From the New York Times Bestselling Author of The Magnolia Palace A thrilling story about love, sacrifice, and the pursuit of dreams, set amidst the glamour and glitz of Radio City Music Hall in its mid-century heyday. New York City, 1956: Nineteen-year-old Marion Brooks knows she should be happy. Her high school sweetheart is about to propose and sweep her off to the life everyone has always expected they'd have together: a quiet house in the suburbs, Marion staying home to raise their future children. But instead, Marion finds herself feeling trapped. So when she comes across an opportunity to audition for the famous Radio City Rockettes--the glamorous precision-dancing troupe--she jumps at the chance to exchange her predictable future for the dazzling life of a performer. Meanwhile, the city is reeling from a string of bombings orchestrated by a person the press has nicknamed the "Big Apple Bomber," who has been terrorizing the citizens of New York for sixteen years by planting bombs in popular, crowded spaces. With the public in an uproar over the lack of any real leads after a yearslong manhunt, the police turn in desperation to Peter Griggs, a young doctor at a local mental hospital who espouses a radical new technique: psychological profiling. As both Marion and Peter find themselves unexpectedly pulled in to the police search for the bomber, Marion realizes that as much as she's been training herself to blend in--performing in perfect unison with all the other identical Rockettes--if she hopes to catch the bomber, she'll need to stand out and take a terrifying risk. In doing so, she may be forced to sacrifice everything she's worked for, as well as the people she loves the most.
THE SPECTACULAR by Fiona Davis
This has just the right amount of facts and fiction which is what I love about historical fiction.
The author combines the glamorous yet grueling history of the Radio City Rockettes with the “Mad Bomber” (a serial pipe bomber who terrorized NYC for 16 years) so seamlessly.
Marion, Simon, Judy, Peter and the other supporting characters were interesting with well developed arcs that kept me engaged. Even though some of Marion’s thoughts and actions felt too modern for the 1950s setting, it was a minor blip in an otherwise great story.
Overall, this was a fast paced, vividly written mystery that touches on corporate greed, mental health and feminism. The audio book narrators (Rachel L. Jacobs and Kimberly Farr) were great as well. I look forward to reading more of Fiona Davis’ work.
Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️
The Spectacular Mentions in Our Blog
21 June Releases We're Excited About
Published by Ashly Moore Sheldon • May 25, 2023
No matter how long our TBR lists get, we're always finding new titles we want to tack on! Here are 21 exciting June releases available for preorder, along with suggestions for similar reads you can enjoy right away.
ThriftBooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. We personally assess every book's quality and offer rare, out-of-print treasures. We deliver the joy of reading in recyclable packaging with free standard shipping on US orders over $15. ThriftBooks.com. Read more. Spend less.