Miraculum

by Steph Post

The year is 1922. The carnival is Pontilliar’s Spectactular Star Light Miraculum, set up on the Texas-Louisiana border. One blazing summer night, a mysterious stranger steps out onto the midway, lights a cigarette and forever changes the world around him. Tattooed snake charmer Ruby has traveled with her father’s carnival for most of her life and, jaded though she is, can’t help but be drawn to the tall man in the immaculate black suit who has joined the carnival as a geek, a man who bites the heads off live chickens. Mercurial and charismatic, Daniel charms everyone he encounters but his manipulation of Ruby becomes complicated when it no longer becomes clear who is holding all the cards. For all of Daniel’s secrets, Ruby has a few of her own. When one tragedy after another strikes the carnival, and it becomes clear that Daniel is somehow at the center of calamity, Ruby takes it upon herself to discover the mystery of the shadowy man pulling all the strings. Joined by Hayden, a roughneck-turned-mural-painter who has recently reentered her life, Ruby enters into a dangerous, eye-opening game with Daniel in which nothing and no one is as it seems and yet everything is at stake.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Adult, Magical Realism, Historical, New Adult

Audible Audio

First published January 22, 2019

About the author

Steph Post is the author of the novels A Tree Born Crooked, Lightwood, Walk in the Fire, Holding Smoke, Miraculum and Terra Incognita- winner of the 2024 Florida Book Award. She graduated from Davidson College as a recipient of the Patricia Cornwell Scholarship for creative writing and a winner of the Vereen Bell writing award for fiction. She holds a Master’s degree in Graduate Liberal Studies from the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Her work has most recently appeared in Garden & Gun, Nonbinary Review, Saw Palm, Black Lily and the anthology Stephen King’s Contemporary Classics. She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, a Rhysling Award and was a semi-finalist for The Big Moose Prize. She lives in Florida.

Reviews

[Phrynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a new author to me but I will certainly be looking out for other books by her after reading Miraculum.

I have a weakness for the circus or carnival setting and many authors seem to feel the same. There are a lot of books set this way but Steph Post does it particularly well with historical facts mixed in with her magic and fantasy.

The story is creepy and fantastical and it unfolds quite slowly. Daniel is presented as an intriguing and mysterious figure and for a while it is difficult to know whether he represents good or evil. You sure find out though! I admired the feisty Kate and felt a bit sorry for Hayden!

There is an amazing ending which involves a very tricky solution to all their problems. It was all great fun and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

[Beata · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a read full of magic, an tricks, with characters revealing slowly their secrets, and with a dangerous game. The setting is quite unusual, and so arethe main characters: Ruby, Hayden and Daniel, most mysterious of these three. This is not the genre I often read, however, The Miraculum, its world and people nicely surprised me, and I'll definitely follow the Author.

*Thank you to Steph Post, Polis Books and Netgalley for ARC in exchange for my honest review.*

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been hearing great things about Steph Post’s writing for a while now and a few years ago I attended a writing workshop she taught. I’m so glad I did, for many reasons. Afterward, I learned she’s also a visual artist and I now have several of her prints—birds!—adorning my house. Her artistic eye is evident in this story with its 1920s settings.

Her characters are written with a generous empathy. They’re not easy people to get to know—hardened carnival workers, roustabouts, voodoo practitioners, and a couple of creeps—but Steph makes it easy. Her immersive writing plunged me into a story that took turns I wasn’t expecting.

I’m a big fan of stories incorporating lesser-known mythologies and I was reminded of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods. Of course there are differences, but if you liked his book, I recommend Steph’s to you as well.

4.5

[ABCme · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Polis Books for the ARC.

1920's, Carnival, Big Top, Sideshow, this is gonna be good!
After being introduced to all the beautiful people of the freakshow, the focus is on our two main characters. Daniel, forever dressed as a wealthy gentleman, at the same time being the geek biting off chickenheads in the sideshow. Who is he really? And Ruby, intended to be a tattooed lady, but ending up as a snake charmer. Her story is heartwrenching.
Vivid descriptions of the surroundings and sublime dialogue put me smack in the middle of every scene.
The mystery of the geek and his attraction to Ruby has me turn page after page, eager for answers.
Miraculum is a magical place full of creepy characters, seduction and the overall feeling of a dark presence.
I'm totally absorbed in the otherworld until it all ends with a bang. Wow! What a ride! Breathtaking.

[Faith · Rating 3 out of 5]

In 1922, Daniel Revont approaches the owner of Pontilliar’s Spectacular Star Light Miraculum with a proposition. He wants the job of geek in the carnival, to replace the man who has just committed suicide. With his expensive suit and aloof manner, Daniel doesn’t seem to fit in with the carnival people but he definitely attracts attention, including from Ruby, the snake charmer. She is covered with tattoos, but not the pretty kind that would let her work as a tattooed lady in the carnival. Her tattoos are crude, unrecognizable symbols. I like books set in the carnival or circus world. The blurb for this book will attract people like me who like carnival stories, when it should be attracting a different audience. The publisher doesn’t seem to want people to know what this book is about so I’ll put the rest of this review under a spoiler tag.

This book started slowly and at first I feared that it was going to be a love triangle involving Daniel, Ruby and Ruby’s sometimes boyfriend Hayden. But no, this is a supernatural fantasy story. Not at all what I expected, or wanted. “Then his eyes glowed red and he wrapped himself in black feathers and ascended to the trees to watch.” “They fell on her and tore her apart with their teeth.” That sort of thing makes my eyes glaze over, but I know that it appeals to some people. However, I don’t know how they are expected to find this book if the publisher insists on hiding its true nature. If I had known this was a supernatural story with a lot of mumbo jumbo about ancient gods and secret symbols I wouldn’t have bothered to read it, but the flip to the supernatural doesn’t show up until half way through the book, so I kept reading. The story wasn’t awful, although the world building was very sketchy and the ending unsatisfying. I might have had a more positive reaction to it if I had known what kind of a book this is. I think the marketing plan for the book may be faulty.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[♥ Sandi ❣ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

If you like the circus, if you like magical realism and you enjoy reading about the early 1900s - this is your book. Steph Post has taken over the genre. She captivates the time period. She entices the reader with the characters you have only wondered about. She leads you through a story full of twists and turns. A complex plot, part love story, part magical realism, part supernatural, but all exciting and non-stop entertainment.

Ruby is a snake charmer for the Spectacular Star Light Miraculum. Full of tattoos and skeptic of everyone around her, she falls under the spell of the new chicken biting Geek - Daniel - a newcomer to the circus, a man that no one can understand. After many tragedies strike the circus Ruby decides to take the lead and settle the score. With the help of a boyfriend, Hayden, who had once betrayed her, Ruby sets out with everything at stake to find the one man that can answer all the questions - the elusive Daniel.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark, gritty, gothic southern noire meets fantasy and the supernatural. Hard to confine in one genre, and I loved it. I've gotten to know Steph Post as an artist, so was not surprised at the artistry and vision in this carefully researched and crafted novel, set just at the edge of America turning over into the modern century. Loved the depiction of a bayou village versus the introduction of the radio in Atlanta. Of the consequences of electrifying the glowing theater of the traveling circus of freaks. I became fully invested in Ruby, the main character ("her lucent gray eyes, like glittering chips of sky collecting for a storm"). I appreciated the realistic atmosphere created "with so much vice that it fell from the air like confetti," and the exploration of humans versus gods, and am hoping there is a sequel. :-) 4.5 glowing stars.

[Kyra Leseberg (Roots & Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruby came down Chole Mountain after losing her mama and grandfather with nothing but an old playbill, searching for the traveling circus -- and the father -- her mama had left behind.

Her father's circus has since turned into a carnival and Ruby travels the South as the tattooed snake charmer for Pontilliar's Spectacular Star Light Miraculum. Her father doesn't hide the disappointment he has that Ruby returned from the Louisiana bayou covered in tattoos of strange symbols instead of portraits and scenes that were to make her the Miraculum's Tattooed Woman.  The tattoos are of no use to the carnival and that makes Ruby useless to her father.

Between the disappointment her father harbors and the heartache she harbors from being left behind by her lover Hayden, Ruby is isolated from the world of rubes and freaks alike.

A mysterious man dressed in an expensive black suit appears on a summer evening as the Miraculum is rushing to leave town after their resident geek hanged himself in a rube's yard.
Pontilliar offers the charming Daniel Revont a place in the sideshow as the replacement geek, biting the heads off live chickens.

Daniel's arrival coincides with both the return of Hayden and several tragedies for members of the carnival.  While Ruby intentionally isolates herself from everyone, she finds herself strangely drawn to Daniel.  Daniel can manipulate everyone around him, except for Ruby.  
Intrigued by one another, they begin a deadly game of cat and mouse.

 Along the way we learn who and what Daniel is and how and why Ruby became the outcast snake charmer.  Their stories and destinies collide in unexpected ways that lead to a stunning finale.

I first heard about Miraculum from an EW article in August, that described the novel as "supernatural story of Southern mysticism and sinister fantasy".  I was thrilled when Polis and NetGalley approved me for an advance readers copy for review.

Post has obviously done a great deal of research for her latest novel that touches on everything from folk magic (hoodoo/voodoo), mythology, the Prohibition era South, and traveling carnival lingo genuine to the time period.

Miraculum is a Southern gothic fantasy that takes readers from the sideshows of a dusty carnival to the glittering lights of Atlanta, leaving a trail of smoke and disasters in its wake.

Thanks to Polis Books and NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.  Miraculum is scheduled for release on January 22, 2019.

For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com

[Niki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty cool book, but only up until a point.

I'm not going to sugarcoat this in any way: the moment the Star Light Miraculum is destroyed, the book is, as well. Or at least it was, for me.

The carnival was endlessly fascinating for me. I'm a big fan of circus/ carnival books (Geek Love, The Pilo Family Circus, The Night Circus), and also a big fan of the 20s (mostly because of the ~aesthetic~, not gonna lie), so this was a perfect combo for me. I was very, very pleased with the book all the way up until the carnival's destruction, and while I do understand why it happened, I thought the book went downhill BIG TIME from there.

Not only was it rushed (everything happened so quickly even though the last 1/3 of the book is so much shorter than the other two), but also so convenient (that rich lady that randomly befriended Hayden just so she would invite him to the super exclusive ball that Daniel would be at, and that being the entire extent of her role in the story? Reeked of convenience, not to mention how quickly and easily Ruby and Hayden were able to find Daniel's "true nature" in the Book of Knowns, and those are just two examples), and also so, so, so very anticlimactic (I'm not going to spoil this, let's just say I'm referring to the "big battle" of the finale). Infuriatingly anticlimactic, actually.

So the above reasons knocked two stars off the book's rating, but let me say, it fully deserves the 3 stars it got. If the last third of the book didn't exist, it could have gotten at least 4. I loved everything up until Daniel destroyed the carnival (really, how many times do I have to say it), including that destruction scene. I felt the carnival had so much more to give, including a bit more of the other performers' lives, anyone who wasn't Ruby or Samuel or January or Hayden or Daniel.

But even then, I loved everything. It is extremely hot in Greece right now (July 2019, as I'm writing this), so I was able to relate completely when ridiculous heat and humidity is mentioned in the book. I loved the sense of camaraderie but also vague cattiness between everyone working at the carnival (felt, ehm, really familiar), I loved that the narration itself tried not to romanticize it (unlike Daniel). I actually laughed when Ruby was asked about the names of her snakes and she just replied "That one's red snake, the other's yellow snake, the one in the back is green snake with stripes"

The characters are pretty likeable, decently well-developed but nothing spectacular. Daniel, in particular, felt weaker after the "big reveal of his true nature" (I hated the reveal, actually, "Oh. That's it?"), and especially weak at the big anticlimax.... I mean the big battle at the end.

Really, if I pretend that the last third of the book didn't exist, you know (say it with me) after the carnival's destruction, the book was almost perfect.

**I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own**

[Lindsay♫SingerOfStories♫ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miraculum was quite the magical ride! Really, it was more than that. There was magic, mythology, mysticism, and so much mystery! The setting of the carnival isn't as central to the book as I expected. Our main character, Ruby, is a snake charmer. Basically a second-rate act who is cast aside for the most part. The carnival is falling apart throughout the book. There isn't much splendor or marvel to the Star Light Miraculum. I found it to be a little disappointing.

What I did like, was the ancient history and mythology woven into the story. Samuel's books and the hoodoo magic of the bayou held . Plus the interjections from throughout time every few chapters. These I found so fascinating and looked forward to reading. I loved how these fueled the story. I wish that the characters were as fiery. I felt no connection to them. Not a one.

My final thoughts on this book: it was certainly a slow burn. I didn't mind in the beginning because I thought things were interesting and I wanted to know where things would go. Then the fiery interjections would come in a move things along a bit. I was so determined to do my duties as an ARC reader so I stuck with the slow reading, but the ending was very good I thought. It wasn't quite the battle I expected it to be, but of course, good pretty much won out so I was ultimately satisfied.

[Robert Vanneste · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up

[Kevin Catalano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steph Post's new novel is the mystical tent at the edge of the carnival: part mystery, part supernatural thriller, part love story, all expertly weaved by Post's magical storytelling. With Miraculum, Steph Post proves she can write about whatever the hell she wants, in whatever genre her imagination chooses, and it will be brilliant.

[Paige Ovanisian · Rating 3 out of 5]

1920's America, Big Top Carnival, Freak Shows, Greek Mythology, New Orleans Voodoo, Murder. This book was a really unexpected read full of murder mystery and magical realism, the Greek mythology being a very unique touch as this is carnival themed and I've never read anything like it.

Ruby's eyes were open, but she could not see. Or rather, what she saw could not be there. A thousand glistring constellations, all on fire, swirled around her. Or they were her. Or she was they, moving in and out of the ether, hurtling towards an empyrean supernova that was somehow inside her chest. Ruby could feel herself draw a breath, but as she did, her chest was pierced with an incalescent arrow and the fever that blossomed from the wound shrouded her in the warmth of wings and she knew herself going backwards into millennia.

Bright lights floating in a backdrop of darkness, the deliciously sweet and salty scents of cotton candy and popcorn in the air, tinkling music and the sounds of machinery and games being played swirling in the senses as crowds of people "ooh!" and "aah!". This story follows the Spectacular Star Light Miraculum, a traveling carnival on their last leg. Business isn't what it was and the freaks and geeks are struggling, but where else would they go looking the way they do and being what they are? Carnivals and circuses are my weakness, I love them, as well as almost anything involving 'evil' themes.

"You don't even know what those words mean. You don't even understand the language that you speak. I doubt you even feel the emotions behind them. You are an ape trying to make sense of the shapes and colors around you. You are clay. You are a speck."

What this is, is a game of psychological cat and mouse, although the mouse does not know they are playing the game, and the mouse may not be the mouse at all. The antagonist felt like a psychopathic personality and I found that interesting, and their monologue segments were easily the most interesting writing throughout the book. Another aspect I immensely enjoyed was the attention to detail with character's expressions and body language, as well as the acknowledgments that while one character may view someone as respectable, another's point of view is that they're pretentious. One person views someone as selfless, another views them as problematic. I felt like these things gave a more nuanced feel.

While I loved the aesthetics of this book, the general layout kind of bothered me. The first half of the book drags because of a few reasons: 1) All of the characters have difficulty with communication which caused unneeded conflicts. 2) It takes quite a while for the plot to pick up, and instead a main focus early on is serious relationship drama between two characters we know nothing about, so I wasn't keen on really caring. 3) The story showcases the negative aspects of carnival life more so than the magical and fantastical qualities, and it was a bit boring to read. I can only read about the smell of sweat, cigarettes, and the blood of chickens so many times.

There are three main POVs: Ruby the tattooed Snake Charmer, the new geek Daniel, and Hayden the caricature artist. I also loved that there was a girl named January, I don't see that often and it's so pretty. However, I never really grew to care for the characters much, partly due to how the story seemed to just drop the reader into the middle of things. We don't get to witness how the majority of the relationships are created, they just are, and the reader has to just make assumptions. So-and-so loves so-and-so because they say so, but I didn't feel it. So-and-so hates so-and-so because they say so, but I didn't feel it. Several of the subplots and their connections seemed too coincidental and/or didn't make sense as well. I suppose it just felt disconnected for me. I want to see it and feel it, not just hear it. I also could have done without so much of the possessive men using women as currency, but that's a personal qualm.

She wanted to reach inside him and burn his own heart, so he could know. She wanted to run to him and be held. She wanted to bury her face in his shoulder, smell his sweat, feel his hands on the back of her neck and his arms against her ribs and she wanted to destroy him. She wanted to surrender to him and bruise him. To break him.

The feelings of first love, and the heart-wrenching pain of losing that, along with the freedom and...complete numbness...one feels afterward. It's difficult to love with that kind of intensity again. I felt that. Although, and this may be an unpopular opinion, but I felt that Ruby and Hayden were not good for each other despite how they try to work things out. About halfway through the book the story picks up. We are seeing both sides of the problem, and the game truly begins. Learning about Ruby's tattoos and what they mean was pretty neat.

While the story was just okay, I was unsatisfied with the ending and how it seemed to just kind of fall together rather effortlessly. For me it could have been much more fun but ended up being just meh. All together I was mostly bored, and had difficulty keeping myself from dozing off at times. This is likely due to my personal preferences, so you may very well like this book if you enjoy carnival and Greek mythology themes.

Thank you to Polis Books for providing me with this eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Content Warnings for suicide, animal cruelty, abusive parents, abandonment, lifestyle discrimination, loss of a loved one, brief mentions of attempted rape and statutory rape, black racism, domestic abuse of a pregnant woman, possessive relationships, and house fires. ♡

[Jypsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miraculum is the name of a carnival side show. Ruby is a snake charmer who is basically cast aside. Daniel is a trouble maker. When several tragedies occur, Ruby begins to wonder who is responsible. She is an intelligent mysterious character. The story has a bit of a mystical magical atmosphere about it. It's a different type of story from most things I've read. It's a little slow but picks up at the end. Good read overall. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

[Kimberly Lojewski · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really fun book for me. The setting was fantastic. It reminded me a lot of Carnivale, an HBO series, which I loved. I was super into finding out the secret of Ruby's tattoos, and loved it when the novel took a side trip into Louisiana. I could read about the world of carnival workers and snake charmers all day.

[Margot Meanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to my friend's glowing review, I preordered this book, driven by curiosity about the interesting plot and catchy cover. I'm not disappointed at all. It was like reading a retelling of a myth, I enjoy those, and what's more I enjoy compelling narratives. This one had its distinct flavour that I enjoyed very much. It's a page-turner and unputdownable. It's just the right amount of dark and right amount of myth, with some intriguing events to keep the interest, and likeable supporting characters, with a touch of a romantic feel to it on top of everything. There is never a dull moment.

The story is set in an early 20th century wandering circus. There are all sorts of distinct and colourful characters, and their presence, their little side stories really bring out the character of the place, add vividness and life. It's like outside the world, a liminal place, and they have their own. Yes, I really liked this feel. Circus and carnival are, in my experience, generally places accepting and welcoming to strangeness, difference, you can just be yourself. It's a perfect setting for all sorts of wonder. The ongoing, recurring feeling that stuck to me is that many characters were liminal, struggled with being a part of a place or feeling left out. The circus performers do not feel welcome outside. Neither does Ruby. Same for Daniel, who is very much outside of anything. Hayden, who is connected to Ruby, comes and goes as he pleases, he is between the worlds as well. Then there is Samuel who also feels like a character between reality and myth. This sort of setting on threshold is interesting and perfect for all sorts of mysterious, strange things. And there are plenty of those.

But something disturbs that dazzling, little world. Things start happening that turn it upside down. Daniel a man of secrets and a great antagonist enters the scene and finds an interesting match in Ruby, the snake charmer that makes him want to play a game with her. They soar, their connection is very palpable and intense, Daniel is a very good villain, with a lot of secrets and aspects about him that make him magnetic. I am not really surprised at anyone who "shipped" him and Ruby. Ruby has a lot of charisma and strong will, it's hard not be drawn to her. Together, they are explosive and share an implicit understanding. Daniel has so much to him but among other things he also has curiosity and interest in certain things - i liked those little things about him.

This story was the right blend of noir,magic and myth and the setting was really vivid, characters very likeable and colorful and I really enjoyed the feeling of otherworlidness and standing outside both reality and time, things happening in different planes. The writing is very engaging.

One thing I regret a little was that Hayden felt a little dwarfed and I feel like he could have been a little more. I really liked him, his "ordinariness", making mistakes as part of human experience but understanding where his heart is, as a balance and shoulder to rely on, as someone who is implictly willing to support. I liked his understanding and acceptnace and most of all, his perceptiveness and good instinct. But I felt he was a little downplayed and a little underappreciated /overlooked, when he could have been a lot more. I liked him though, I felt he was a good counterbalance for Ruby.

The narrative, the setting are compelling, characters colourful, an extremely fun read, with a sense of wonder. The Star Light is a very engaging world of its own right.

miraculum, miraculi, n.
amazement, freak, miracle, amazing act/event/object/sight , wonder, marvel

And I found all that, in the best senses, in Miraculum, an engaging, imaginative story.

[amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really was digging the setting for this read, but I was sadly let down. I feel like not much of anything even happened. Pages of text explaining that things happen with no dialogue?! A plot that goes nowhere, characters with no depth, an antagonist who's supposed to be interesting & dangerous but sadly is not--there was too much that just didn't happen & it's disappointing. The first third of the book felt much stronger than the rest of it.

[Robert Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A shot in the heart and soul, Miraculum is a spellbinding triumph. Masterfully written with such obvious love for its intoxicating setting, it is bursting with memorable moments and characters who delight and thrill - just like a trip to the carnival itself.

[Ally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conversation about Miraculum:
Me: I read a pretty good book, if you like parables about the devil and circus stories.
Kristen: Actually I don't think I like either of those things.
Me: [laughing]

I am a sucker for a circus/carnival story (especially one set in the late 1800s/early 1900s - except I will never see Greatest Showman don't @ me) and I'm 50/50 on parables of the devil, but the devil here, is a smooth talking guy who stands out in a crowd of literal freaks. The characters were drawn well, which sort of helped when the story got a little farfetched. A good read from an author I had never heard of previously but one I'll continue to watch.

[Deanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. I'm not a super fan of the whole carnival thing in the first place but it was available on Overdrive and I was in a hurry to find something. So I thought I'd try something new. The first part was good, mysterious, etc. but the last part seemed rushed and things fell into place too neatly.

[Scott Cumming · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one rollercoaster ride of a carnival set book. I loved parts of it and found other parts a nuisance and just felt a sense of anticlimax with it. It was one those where the journey doesn't reach the destination I was expecting.

Ruby Chole is the Star Light's snake charmer and is having a tough time opening up to those around having been deserted by her beau, Hayden. Daniel Revont has newly arrived at the carnival to become the new geek after the previous one commits suicide. Thus the two are set into the same orbit and the events of the book take place from there.

It's a novel that's never predictable and is driven by the characters, which is right up my street, but the elevation of the action never really took place and it become something more abstract than I was expecting.

Another niggle was that the scenes involving Daniel become redundant once the mysteries of his character are revealed and play over the same things. I really struggled with them once we knew about him.

This is not my typical type of read and that's perhaps why the ending wasn't to my taste. Everything before that was really good though and if historical fantasy romantic fiction is your thing then I expect it will be a winner for you.

[Christina · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started this audio book today and listened for around an hour. I’m abandoning it, rare for me, because I just don’t care about the characters or story. If I’ve listened this long and am finding myself bored, it’s time to give up. There’s nothing that I want to know more about. It’s just sort of meandering along and trying really hard to throw in a lot of characters but they mostly seem like caricatures of carny folks. Except the obvious devil dude.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Step right up folks, don't be shy! Welcome to Steph Post's Miraculum, where we've got the Alligator Lady and the Lizard Man, a Giant and a Fat Lady, men who can swallow swords and women who can tell your future, 1920s glitz and New Orleans bayou voodoo! Step right up, friends, and prepare to be amazed - provided you've never read or watched a fantasy set in a carnival before.

In the summer of 1922, Pontillar's Spectacular Star Light Miraculum is wending its way through its Southern circuit, rolling out the big top and stringing up the midway lights for an unending series of faceless rubes in an endless series of forgettable towns. Always teetering on the verge of insolvency, the crew find themselves scrambling when the carnival's geek hangs himself in a townie's front yard and they're forced to quietly bribe local officials so they can pull up stakes and make a fast exit. In the ensuing confusion, nobody asks questions when an attractive man in a nice suit suddenly turns up looking to hire on as the new geek, even though debonair Daniel Revont seems like the last man in the world who would want a job biting the heads off chickens. Snake charmer Ruby Chole already has enough on her mind - what with the carnival's struggling finances and the sudden return of her ex, Hayden - but when Daniel's arrival marks the beginning of a series of increasing tragedies, she can't help thinking it's no coincidence. Her quest to discover the truth will take her from the dusty midway of Pontillar's to the marbled halls of high society Atlanta, and put her at the center of a very dangerous game.

Post's Miraculum is gorgeously imagined, thick with period detail and loving description of carnival life. It's the rare moment reading it when you don't feel yourself in the center of the midway, harangued by carnival barkers and giddy on novelty and cotton candy, surrounded by freaks and geeks whose lives seem even more fascinating outside the circle of the stage lights.

Unfortunately, all the window dressing in the world can't hide the fact that Post's is a one-trick show, and the trick is a very old one indeed - after all, Charlie Daniels has been singing about the devil going down to Georgia for at least forty years, even if he doesn't specify that the trip was made out of sheer boredom. Post does almost nothing to conceal Daniel's nature or the nature of his game, and even less to convince readers that Ruby would ever buy what he's selling (despite her other romantic option being, shall we say, uninspiring). I'd also argue that the author seems to have fundamentally misunderstood the nature of a trickster in mythology, or at least inaccurately applied it to Daniel's character.

Miraculum is perhaps the prettiest piece of predictability I've seen in a long time. In the flickering dark and excitement, it gives the impression of action, and adventure, and romance, but once the lights come up the magic dissipates and its carnival tricks lose their charm. It's a pity, since we could all use a little more amazement.

(Note: readers who enjoyed the vibe of this story may also like Freaks: Alive on the Inside! by Klause.)

[David Sayre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steph Post's latest gift of fiction, Miraculum, is a fantastic tour of 1920's rural America, carnival life, the fellowship of outsiders and magical questions of mortality. Some might think of this book as a departure for Post, if one was to merely pigeon hole the reigning master of "grit lit" into a crime fiction sub-genre. But what I found was that all the elements that make Steph Post's other novels stand out as great writing were also plentiful among Miraculum's pages. The author's ability to draw unique characters from top to bottom in her stories is evident in each of the people we meet along the way, from the carnival performers and entrepreneurs to coffee shop waitresses and aristocratic Southern belles. And above all, one of the author's most recognizable storytelling traits seems to breathe right off the page. The deftness with which she creates and describes the world for her readers. The life of a carnival, day-to-day performer absolutely came alive for me and I was completely immersed in the environment.
This book is so wonderful, not only for its authenticity, but largely for its uniqueness. I would argue that a novel or film, or any great story for that matter, that is hard to classify makes it all the better. Particularly because it can take you so many places. And that is precisely what Miraculum does. It has a mystery at the heart of it, several in fact and none of them are simple, surface issues to comprehend. There's a love story in Miraculum, arguably several and none less complex than the mystery of the piece.
Ultimately, while it may be hard to simply explain what Miraculum is and who exactly is its reading audience, I think it comes down to a basic truth. Miraculum is an excellent book by one of the, hands down, best writers going today. And its audience is, quite frankly, anyone who likes a good story.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

The novel follows Pontilliar's Spectacular Star Light Miraculum as the performers complete their tasks as a band of freaks. Daniel is the newcomer, portraying himself as a geek (performer who seems to bite the heads off of live animals, a la Ozzy Osbourne maybe?) and he immediately has an effect on Ruby. Ruby, the enchantress who was forced into the role by her father, Pontilliar, doesn't know what to make of Daniel. Throughout the novel, there is a lot of tension between the two but it wasn't compelling enough for me. Neither of the characters are very likable and the ending was extremely unsatisfying to me. The most interesting parts to me were when Ruby was trying to figure out what her tattoos mean and what they are for. Samuel was my favorite character and he was gone from far too much of the novel, in my opinion. This work wasn't bad by any means, just not for me.

[KimM · Rating 3 out of 5]

For fans of Geek Love and Night Circus....except those books were much better. An array of circus geeks and freaks to enjoy along with a supernatural element stemming from ancient folklore and mythological gods. Plus a strong, tattooed, female protagonist. Sound great, right? And it would have been but the story moved slow and honestly, the writing seemed a little lazy at times. With so much to work with it could have been a lot more creative with the plot. That said, my favorite parts were Daniel's stream-of-consciousness chapters. Those were well done. I received this as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Sue Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my all-time favorite shows was Carnivale on HBO, and the time frame and setting of this book seemed to have much in common with it. And the essential mystery or theme of good vs evil of in the show has some similarities as well. It's the 1920s and set in a traveling carnival when a immaculately-suited geek, Daniel, joins the show and mysterious deaths start to occur. Ruby, a tattooed snake charmer, is the daughter of the owner, and she and Daniel engage in a mesmerizing dance for dominance.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Ellen Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Interview with Steph Post on her novel Miraculum, and writing | More2Read Interviews

In the glorious vibrant things under the big top of the carnival, all the enchanting things occurring, one of tragedy arises, an act of one ending things.
This loss leaving a job opportunity arise for position of Geek of carnival.
Then more things go wrong.
The author transports the reader to a bygone time with Buster Keaton and Robin Hood with Douglas Fairbanks showing on the big screen, under the big top into carnival lives and one exceptional snake charmer, Ruby, with good storytelling with the mystical and mythical of a fantastic fantasy extravaganza.
A memorable affair of gothic mystery tale with lead character Ruby Chole aka Esmeralda the Enchantress, with whom one will ultimately discover that, “her fate was tied to the carnival as surely as the ink was etched into her skin and she could not escape it,” with a greater tapestry and message formed in the reader with that of “Pawns can become queens.”
An enchanting gothic tale of discovery, purpose and paths, those leading through darkness and light, worldly and other worldly.

Review also @ https://more2read.com

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a captivating, compelling novel. Very well written. Highly recommended.