While I love Fiona Davis, I must admit that her last few books didn't impress me as much. The Spectacular, however, knocked it out of the park!! I absolutely loved this book. We all know about the Rockettes, but I never knew much detail about them. This book gives so many details about the Rockettes and Radio City Music Hall. It was a delight from beginning to end!

One of the best books I have read! I enjoyed all of the aspects of NYC. Such a wonderful story with multiple layers. A must read!

A young ballet teacher who is not stern enough to keep her job, instead auditions for a place with the NYC Rockettes, and is hired. Unfortunately, her father doesn't think she should take such an unladylike position and her boyfriend just wants her to get married and start a family. But this is something she wants and no one can stop her, including her jealous big sister. To prove how great her Rockettes job is, she invites her sister to see one of her shows. But Radio City Music Hall is the next place that the Big Apple bomber strikes and the explosion kills her sister.. She teams up with a psychiatric resident who seems to be very adept at reading people, as they race to find the bomber's identity before he can harm others.
Davis, once again, mines New York history as a backdrop for a plucky heroine and and an iconic building. I thought this was her best yet as it combined the stories of the Rockettes with one of the first criminal profilers. It was a good romance and a suspenseful mystery and hopefully THIS one will be turned into a movie.

Storytelling at its best - this book should read by all fiction fans, not merely historical fiction fans.

Another hit out of the park for Fiona Davis! I loved being transported by this historical fiction. The lush descriptions were phenomenal and amazing. Will be recommending this one for years to come!

It's 1956, and Marion, a passionate dancer and dance teacher, is thrilled when she has the opportunity to be a Radio City Rockette. But there is a cost; she must sacrifice her family to follow her dream, as her father is adamantly against this career choice.

I love how the book focuses on the iconic Radio City Music Hall and the Rockettes. Living in NYC and being a fan of the arts, I have seen countless shows there and always pass by Rockefeller Center and Radio City. So, reading about the Rockettes, the intensity of their daily routines, and the rigid rules they must follow was fascinating.

This book also has a mystery: a terrorist is placing bombs in famous NYC buildings, including Radio City Musci Hall. This hits too close to home for Marion, so she teams up with a young doctor, and together, they use the new technique of psychological profiling to help with the search.

I've read and loved this author's books for years, and this story is everything I hoped it would be. Fiona Davis excels at immersing you in another era.

Just finished The Spectacular by Fiona Davis. It was a beautifully written novel. I enjoyed the rich details and the plot. I was more interested in the past pov, but I understand why they had the present too. I just thought the past was a bit more rich in plot. Overall, a good book and I would recommend for fans of historical fiction!

I loved this book! I will definitely recommend it. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

It’s spectacular! I really identified with this book as a blues musician who decided to have a family instead of pursue a career in music

Marion goes against her fathers wishes to become a Rockette. She is torn between her dream and her family. Marion becomes entangled in the mystery of The Big Apple Bomber. She enlists the help of a young psychologist to help solve the case.

This book has a bit of everything, family drama, love interests, mystery, history… I loved it!

Once again, Fiona Davis has created an exciting story, with NYC as it’s backdrop.

This story is told by 55 year old Marion Brooks. In 1956, at the age of 19, Marion was selected as a member of the Rockettes. She went against her father’s wishes and seized this opportunity.

This historical fiction novel is based on the story of the Big Apple Bomber, When Radio City is bombed, Marion takes it upon herself to find the perpetrator. Realizing the incompetence of the NYPD, she engages the assistance of an acquaintance who is a psychiatrist. He profiles the bomber, leading to his capture.

This story includes mystery, love and family betrayal. It illustrates the challenges women who wanted to follow non-traditional paths in the 1950s faced.

I cannot recommend this book enough! It captivated my attention from the first page.

Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with an advanced copy.

I wish I could give this one 10 stars! Fiona Davis is near the top of my MUST-READ list these days. I have loved every book she has written. If you are not familiar with Ms. Davis, you should be. Every book she writes is set in a NYC landmark and features some type of drama along with that landmark, which often becomes a character too. The Spectacular is set in Radio City Music Hall, where Marion has just landed a job as a Rockette. Marion's family doesn't agree with her decision to dance and there is a bomber loose in the city. The Big Apple bomber has been terrorizing New York for 16 years, and I will not spoil anything about what he does or if he is caught. What you need to know is that this book is just like the title states.....SPECTACULAR!!!

This will be my monthly book pick for June.

In Fiona Davis’ new novel, The Spectacular, we meet Marion who was a Rockette in the 1950s, much to her father’s chagrin. Marion’s mother gave up an acting career to settle down as a wife and mother, so Marion felt she owed it to her mother’s sacrifice to give it a go. Marion’s father wishes she was more like her sister, Judy, who works with him at Met Power or like her mother by settling down with her boyfriend, Nathaniel, and being a wife and mother.

After Marion leaves home to live in a boarding house for other dancers, singers, and actresses, she manages to start mending her relationship with her sister, which has been brittle for years. When tragedy strikes, Marion finds herself trying to find the culprit behind sixteen years of bombings, aimed at revenge on Met Power. With the help of psychiatry resident, Peter, Marion aims to help police use a new concept of profiling to capture the man that Marion saw before a bomb went off in Radio City.

Davis returns with another historical novel that blends romance, suspense, and the city that never sleeps. Fans of her other works or those who are ready to discover her for the first time will not be disappointed in The Spectacular. Pulling from New York City’s own “Mad Bomber” and highlighting the Rockettes, you will get lost in 1950s Big Apple. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton/Penguin Random House for the advanced copy. Opinions expressed are my own. This book is set for publication on June 12, 2023.

#netgalley #arc #fionadavis #thespectacular #penguinrandomhouse #dutton

I wish to thank NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton Publishers for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am a huge fan of Fiona Davis as she is a master storyteller. I was so thrilled to be offered this book. I love the Rockettes and this story is all about a young woman of privilege who really wants a career in dancing. Her father wants her to marry well and raise children. One day she learns about tryouts for the Radio City Rockettes team and goes to audition never thinking she was good enough to make the cut. The reader learns all about the hard work that goes into putting on a show at Radio City Music Hall and the bonding between the girls. Just when you are totally absorbed with the story it changes and the reader finds herself in the midst of a murder in the theater. You follow the progression of the search for the criminal. What a great story this one is. If you are a fan of the Rockettes this one is for you. The story is in two time frames which are really fun as you look both forward and back to fully understand what is happening. This one will be a huge hit with book clubs everywhere.

The book is beautifully crafted, well researched and totally engaging. I loved it!!!! I think you will also.

Marion Brooks is a nineteen year old growing up in affluent Bronxville, NY with her sister Judy and her father Simon, an executive at Metropolitan Power. Her mother died in an accident when Marion was much younger. It seems that her father has her future mapped out. She will wed her longtime beau and move into her Bronxville home.
Marion has the courage to seek her own fortune and ventures to an audition with the very famous Radio City Rockettes. What a wondrous moment when she is actually gets the job!
Quickly she realizes that she is far too creative to adhere to the rigid restrictions that being a Rockette requires. Then a blind date with a psychiatry resident, Peter, puts her life into a completely unexpected trajectory as the two join forces in an attempt to identify the bomber who has attacked Radio City and who is terrorizing many New York City landmarks. Can she pursue her own goals and still live in peace with her very authoritarian father? How can she marry her sweetheart while dancing in four shows a day, attending grueling rehearsals and having only one week a month of free time?

Fiona Davis writes with emotion, detail and language that is descriptive and flowing. Usually I am attracted to character driven novels. In The Spectacular, Ms Davis, has managed to create characters who live inside of the reader while she creates a plot that is sublimely interesting.
New York City, specifically Radio City Music Hall in the grand era of the mid 1950’s , is the setting of this remarkable tale. Lots of research went into that period of history as well as historic Radio City Music Hall. I was a small child at that time and remember the splendor and excitement of a trip to see the renowned Rockettes. I knew there was a Mad Bomber terrorizing NYC, who simply was not being caught. It was exciting revisiting history that happened right before my eyes
I enjoyed reading this book from beginning to end and wish to thank #Netgalley and the #Penguingroup for providing me with an ARC in return for my honest review. Four well deserved stars for this engaging read.

Thank you to Fiona Davis and Netgallery for the advance copy of The Spectacular. Another good read about an iconic building in NYC. This time it was Radio City Music Hall.

It was very disheartening in the beginning reading about the controlling father that squashed your dreams if he didn't agree with them. The mystery and criminal profiling was interesting to read.

I kept wondering how a resident could have time to just drop everything and run after a suspected murderer. That didn't seem very realistic. I also don't think police would give so much information to victims' families.

I always enjoy reading a bit about lower Westchester being that I was born and raised in New Rochelle, which is very near Bronxville.

Stories like this that intertwine real life events with fictional characters and done well, Fiona Davis knows how to do that.

The Spectacular uncovers a serial bomber story and laces it with a bright spirited dancer wanting to make a break. The historical events were written so well with the dialogue it didn’t feel like a history narrative book. The mystery aspect kept me glued to the story wanting to know who this person was and why, As answers started surfacing I couldn’t but root for Marion as she fought for justice and herself.

Davis is an incredible story teller in historical fiction, The Spectacular was nothing short of being one of her best written yet.

This one is as good as all of the rest of Fiona Davis’s historical novels. I was excited to have the chance to read it early and I wasn’t disappointed. The characters are multi-faceted, the plot is engaging and the history and place come to life. And of course I was rooting for Marion the entire read. Can’t wait for her next one.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an early release in exchange for a fair and honest review.

"The Spectacular" is an apt title for this wonderful book - everything about it from the characters and descriptions, the writing and plot was 'spectacular'. I could not put it down and raced to the end, wanting to know what happened. I highly recommend this book and will be purchasing a paper copy for my own library that I may enjoy it again and again!

The behind-the-scenes world of the fabulous Rockettes provides an enticing background for a real-life mystery that perplexed police for years. In her latest historical offering, Davis wraps an intriguing fictional Radio City storyline around the Big Apple Bomber. Heroine Marion Brooks may seem an unlikely amateur sleuth, but she has a strong vested interest in finding the man who set off a bomb while she performed with the dance troupe. We applaud Marion’s growth from a protected girl to a strong, independent young woman, as she teams with a psychiatrist who opens the doors to criminal profiling. A great premise nestled in a really special setting.

Another fabulous, enjoyable page turner. Loved this story!!! I devoured it in 2 days, and enjoyed every page. I wish it would have been longer.