Booklist Reviews
Fiercely independent, 94-year-old Cecily Larson refuses to leave her rambling old Victorian, but a fall on the stairs sends her to the hospital. While gathering some of Cecily's belongings, her daughter, Liz, discovers an old, faded photograph hidden in a dresser drawer, providing a clue to Cecily's past, which she hid from her family for more than 70 years. After she was abandoned at an orphanage, Cecily was adopted by the owner of a circus and trained as a bareback rider—a glamorous occupation that daring Cecily grows to love. But a forbidden relationship with Lucky, a young Black man who works as a roustabout for the circus, changes everything. Baker (I Gave My Heart to Know This, 2011) deftly weaves the lives of three generations of Larson women into a moving tale of secrets, identity, and found family. The story of Cecily's past unravels throughout the book, taking several unexpected turns, and Baker's vivid descriptions bring both the historical and contemporary plotlines to life. An engaging family saga, perfect for fans of Susan Meissner and Lisa Wingate. Copyright 2024 Booklist Reviews.
Publishers Weekly Reviews
The uneven latest from Baker (Keeping the House) poses questions about adoption and family heritage. In a small town in Minnesota in 2015, Cecily Larson, 94, breaks her hip and, confined to a hospital bed, realizes time may be running out to share the secret she's kept for her entire life, which stems from her childhood. At age seven, Cecily was taken from a Chicago orphanage to be trained as a bareback rider in a traveling circus. Baker makes clear that the secret, which is revealed to the reader later on, will impact Cecily's widowed daughter Liz, her divorced granddaughter Molly, and her teenage grandson Caden, who has just started a research project on his family's DNA. At the same time in Florida and North Carolina, members of another branch of the Larson family are wondering about their own mysterious family history and start taking DNA tests. Cecily's circus life provides plenty of colorful drama, but subplots involving Molly's lingering ambivalence about her divorce years earlier and Liz's cancer diagnosis are tied up too quickly in the rushed final act, and the conclusion is too convenient to be convincing. There's too much clutter in this family saga. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider Literary. (Feb.)
Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly.