The Mumbo Jumbo Circus [Kindle Edition]

The author does a great job of creating a realistic world with sympathetic and unique characters. The protagonist has been through the worst aspects of foster care, but is still a sweet person. The circus world is portrayed so convincingly that whenever I stopped reading to do something else, I felt like I had been someplace completely different. Some of that comes from the magical elements in the story, but most is just from good writing and description. The pace is quick, with plenty of action, and there is a nice teen romance. The print version says, "Volume 1," so I have hopes that it's the start of a series.

Highly recommended!

Esri Allbritten
(author, Chihuahua of the Baskervilles)

've spent a while trying to express my wholehearted love for this book in a way that does not utilize capital letters, an overabundance of exclamation marks and the word awesome. I have clearly failed because I still want to shout: Dudes! This book is AWESOME!!!! *ahem* Right... having gotten that out of my system I can now attempt to tell you why you should stop reading this review and just go grab the book...

First of all, it's set in a circus. Having been to a grand total of... 0 circuses in my life, I love a good circus story to fill this gaping whole in my life experience. The Mumbo Jumbo Circus is just like a circus should be (according to my completely uniformed imagination), complete with clowns and fire and horses. It is even better though, because it has magic! Ta da, two of my favorite things, circus stories and magic.

I loved how Jane managed to balance the everyday circus appearance, the one that people like to go and eat popcorn and watch, with the wonderfully complex magical backdrop that holds the circus together. The magic controls the plot, which is written so perfectly that, even with some admittedly odd events, I never questioned anything. Each scene made sense, and every character fitted perfectly into the circus. I would apologize for my vagueness but really, having no clue what you are getting into is the best part.

So having described my love for the setting, the magic and the plot (which really is fantastic) I must give some acknowledgement to my absolute favorite part: the characters. Without this hodgepodge crew of people, who really come to life in the story, even the fabulous story would have fallen flat. We have a little bit of a love triangle, which I normally hate, but here it adds a bit of oomph. I loved Wally, the gothiest cook in history and I particularly loved Solly, the elephant. And of course, I loved the ringmaster who was exactly quirky enough to be perfect.... ok, I loved everyone.

If you are still dithering over spending you $3, go for it. I promise you won't regret it.

Step between the chapters of this book and instantly get swept into magic, mystery, non-stop excitement, and the 42 true meanings of life. This is a winner on every level, the characters are well developed and appealing, the plot twists faster than a ring full of performing horses and the bad guys are drenched in evil.

Hyperbole aside, this is a great story, one that will occupy a treasured space on my shelves and one I'll recommend to everyone over 12 who loves fantasy. Though this is clearly YA this is a book that adults will enjoy reading on the edge of their seats as well.

Ms George's illustrations are reminiscent of the classic Circus posters and the tale is a classic coming of age story, original, old-fashioned in its hope and integrity, yet as cutting edge as today's news.

I can't wait for more stories from under the Big Top of the Mumbo Jumbo Circus!