As an African tightrope dancer in Victorian London, Iris is used to being strange. She is certainly a strange sight for leering British audiences always eager for the spectacle of colonial curiosity. But Iris also has a secret that even “strange” doesn’t capture…
She cannot die.
Haunted by her unnatural power and with no memories of her past, Iris is obsessed with discovering who she is. But that mission gets more complicated when she meets the dark and alluring Adam Temple, a member of a mysterious order called the Enlightenment Committee. Adam seems to know much more about her than he lets on, and he shares with her a terrifying revelation: the world is ending, and the Committee will decide who lives…and who doesn’t.
To help them choose a leader for the upcoming apocalypse, the Committee is holding the Tournament of Freaks, a macabre competition made up of vicious fighters with fantastical abilities. Adam wants Iris to be his champion, and in return he promises her the one thing she wants most: the truth about who she really is.
If Iris wants to learn about her shadowy past, she has no choice but to fight. But the further she gets in the grisly tournament, the more she begins to remember—and the more she wonders if the truth is something best left forgotten.
I always enjoy a Victorian London setting, and the description of the Tournament of Freaks sounded like a mashup of The Hunger Games and X-Men. There’s no way I could resist requesting this book from NetGalley.
After the macabre opening scene of this book, I was all in. Adam comes across as a cunning assassin with plenty of closely held secrets. I wanted to know exactly what they were and what his connection to Iris was. While I understood Iris’s need to discover her identity and origin, her character didn’t appeal to me as much – but three of the male characters are completely enamored of her. The love triangle – square? – pops up early in the story, but the competition between her suitors grows tiresome pretty quickly. I’ve never been a fan of that trope, but that’s just me.
I was anxious to get to the Tournament, but it doesn’t make an appearance until around the halfway mark and isn’t as much of a plot element as I’d expected. The clues send the teams on life-endangering searches all over London, and the rules state the winner will be the player still alive within the team left standing. Love the high stakes. And there’s no shortage of creepy characters on these teams. I liked the fact that Iris and her team had plenty of stiff competition, but the disadvantage of that was the sheer number of characters to keep straight. Many times I came across someone I couldn’t remember.
While the world-building and plot are unique and well thought out, the story features a strong female MC, and there are several plot threads to follow, I struggled with the pacing (nearly 500 pages) and skimmed through some sections. Reviews are split on this, and many readers enjoyed the longer length of the novel – it just comes down to personal perference.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Books and Such 
Seems like a mixed bag. Sorry it didn’t live up to your expectations.
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The premise was great, Staci, but I probably would have enjoyed it more if it had a tighter storyline. It would have helped with the pacing.
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I love the Victorian setting. I’m fine with a 500+ page book, but with that length it has to keep me spellbound. Sounds like this one had some good points and not so good.
Very insightful review, Teri!
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Thanks, Mae! Parts of it I found compelling – especially with Adam’s story – but the love square became a little overwhelming.
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I’m not a fan of the love triangle either, Teri. I give you credit for sticking with it. Thanks for the honest review.
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I know some readers enjoy that trope, but you and I are squarely in the other camp, Jill, lol.
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I love that there’s so many unique qualities to this story. That definitely has me wanting to take a closer look. But that number of pages- sometimes I can enjoy 500 pages but more often, like you, I end up skimming sections. Excellent review, Teri!
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It was heavy at 500 pages, Tessa. Honestly, I think it could have been shortened to move the story along at a more consistent pace. Thanks for dropping by!
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Sometimes longer is great on a well-written book. If parts need scanning may be too long.
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The first thing that came to mind with that statement is some of the Harry Potter books – never skimmed a page no matter how long the books were.
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Sounds like this needed a character index with a bit description to make it easy. I don’t like more than 1 love interest but I might like this book for other aspects. Great review, Teri!
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With multiple teams, there were so many characters to keep up with, Yesha. A roster with a description would have been helpful.
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This is the second review of the book, Teri, and though I love the cover and the setting and the premise, the other reviewer had many of the same issues as you did. Implausible love square and pacing issues, in particular. The page count is a real challenge for me. As I get older I just run out of patience. Lol. Thanks for the review.
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I have that same patience problem, Diana, lol. I thought the premise was original and unique, but the pacing and love square (not a fan of triangles either) were problems for me. Reviews seem to be split – just comes down to personal preference I guess.
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I find love triangles annoying too, Teri. The character who is free to make up her/his mind and endlessly waffles seems self-indulgent, and I have a hard time liking them.
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You nailed it, lol.
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Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this book, Teri. I love the cover and the premise. However, 500 pages is daunting.
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The cover and premise both get a thumbs up from me also, Jan. I didn’t realize it was that long when I requested it. I understand fantasy books tend to be longer due to world-building, but the uneven pacing threw me off.
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I like the last line of the blurb; But the further she gets in the grisly tournament, the more she begins to remember—and the more she wonders if the truth is something best left forgotten.
This sounds like a good one, Teri!
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Right? That’s a good one. Really makes you want to know what happened to her. Thanks for dropping by, Jacquie!
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An interesting review, Teri. It sounds like the hype is better than the actual book. I won’t read a 500 page book unless its a classic.
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I’ve read some this length that seemed to fly by and others where I skimmed some of the pages. One that length is a chunk to take on.
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