*3.5 stars*
Corey is 17 and has been living in the circus life since she was 2. She is a breakout trapeze artist, and on her debut as lead in a very small town in California, a fire breaks out in the circus tent and she barely makes it out alive. When the only life she’s ever known is in ashes around her, she moves back in with her mother, and begins a real school for the first time in her life. With this life change is a girl trying to find her place in this new world, gaining confidence, finding a new love and dealing with some very tough circumstances.

I have to say this is definitely one of the best Wattpad novels I’ve read. With that being said, there’s quite a bit to unpack here. Let’s start with some trigger warnings. There is physical, emotional and verbal abuse; and bullying. Other things alluded to but not really seen were addiction and domestic violence. I was not prepared for how tough some of these scenes would be to read, but they were written and done incredibly well.

I thought the circus part of the story was creative and different. The details here were quite impressive. You could almost see the circus routines. I do wish that there was more circus in the story because that was my favorite part. There was quite a bit thrown into the middle of the book; a little too much in my opinion. While it was certainly a page turner, it was overwhelming with how many important things were going on, and I really did not like how they were so neatly resolved. The ending was realistic for the heroine’s age and for the storyline, but I still wanted just a little bit more. Overall, this was a solid debut from a young author. I look forward to her future novels.

* ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

This book wasn’t at all what I expected going in. I was thinking it would be a typical sweet and cozy contemporary love story with some thoughtful bits in it, basically a happy pill in the form of a book. But I was wrong, but I was wrong in the best way possible.

Trapeze is a contemporary coming of age story with a surprising amount of depth and darkness to it. It’s a nice balance between the classic contemporary cute romance element and the more serious parts of living in a small town where everyone knows everyone. It’s about what choices we make that defines us as human being and that we’re all flawed in some way. Corey is a trouper after everything she’s gone through and I would have loved to get to know her a bit better. Even though the story is about her having to find her place in a “normal” world there’s not really that much to her that doesn’t directly connects to the people around her to push the story forward. Don’t get me wrong, I like Luke, Kim and George, but I left the book feeling that I didn’t get the chance to know Corey as much as I would have liked. Maybe it’s just how I am as a person but to me the ability to go deeper into a character and their feelings and experiences is what makes books worth reading. A book is only as good as it characters, which luckily for Trapeze is not a problem but like I said I would have liked more “alone time” with just Corey. Also I really liked Luke, he wasn’t the typical “he’s so dashing” but more that he felt like a real person and acted in a way someone would in his situation. He’s not a golden dream boy fantasy but a flawed boy trying to figure out life for his own and handle his demons. One thing that bothered me a bit was that sometimes the story jumped forward a bit to much and I felt a bit lost at it moved to much at ones, but it was not a really big thing that ruined the reading experience in any way. I also adores the ending, again not what I expected even for this kind of book but it left me with a satisfied feeling which is nice.

Overall I would say it’s a really nice coming of age story which has it’s flaws here and there, but I became really invested in the story and the characters it housed. The “darkness” was a surprise, but in a nice way and took the book in a direction I didn’t expect it would going into it. Corey is a main character that I really liked, and I would love to live in this world and just be friends with this group of characters. So I’d definitely recommend the book, but beware that there are possibles triggers in the story as it has physical abuse mentions in it.

Trapeze by Leigh Ansell is about Corey Ryder, a teenage trapeze artist with a traveling circus. Despite her unusual background she’s very relatable. When the circus goes up in literal smoke she’s forced to move in with a mom she’s never known, go to public school, navigate friendships and deal with the only boy who knows that she’s a trapeze artist from the circus that the town hates.

The story is less about the circus and the mysterious circumstances involving arson, and more about Corey’s relationships and how she deals with a world completely foreign to her. I was with her with the highs and the lows, and you do get a ‘whodunit’ moment - still, I’d consider this more of a coming of age story where our girl learns a lot about herself and what she really wants out of life.

Thank you Netgalley and Wattpad books for an eBook arc.

#Trapeze #NetGalley

**I received a copy of this book via netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

This book comes out September 10, 2019

3.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads

How do you trust the ground when all you’ve known is flight?

In this breathtaking debut, Leigh Ansell has created a compelling, heartbreaking, and truly engaging story about a young girl used to flying high only to be faced with living life with her two feet firmly on the ground . . .

Seventeen-year-old Corey Ryder can’t remember a time when she wasn’t gliding through the air of Cirque Mystique’s big top. As a trapeze artist in a traveling circus, Corey wakes up every day in a different place, buzzing for the moment she can suspend gravity during the night’s performance.

When the circus pulls into small-town Sherwood, California, everything seems normal—aside from meeting the exceptionally cute Luke Everett at a local diner. But that night, in the midst of the performance, tragedy strikes and flames overtake the tent. While Corey narrowly escapes, in the ashes of the circus pitch lies the only home she’s ever known.

Repeatedly thrown out of her comfort zone, Corey must learn how to push toward her future without forgetting her past, what it means to be a daughter to a mother she’s never known, and how to navigate the confusing magic of first love, even as she performs the high-wire act of being true to who you really are.

My thoughts

This book reminded me of a Kasie West romance, it was a fun, quick read and I quote enjoyed it. The story flowed nicely and I was immediately drawn into the story.

If you are looking for a book with a main focus on the circus and trapeze this isn't the book for you. We don't spend a lot of time at the circus even though our character is a trapeze artist. There are really only two scenes where she is actually at the circus and both of those scenes are pretty short.

I did feel like there was a little bit of insta love in this book. At one point the character is thinking about how she was drawn to him which was a little cliche. Otherwise I quite enjoyed Corey and Luke's relationship.

Overall

3.5 stars

I enjoyed this book but I would have liked this book to have more focus on trapeze and the circus as it was something that particularly drew me to this book.


Get a Copy!
https://www.amazon.com/Trapeze-Leigh-Ansell/dp/0993689957
this book comes out September, 10
Or find it at your local library :)

My review will be posted on my blog on August 30


TRIGGER WARNINGS: Parental abuse and physical abuse

Corey “I’m not like most girls” Ryder moved in with her Aunt when she was a toddler and joined the circus. She grew up living in a trailer traveling across the country, spending a few weeks in each city. The circus was her family and she was on her way to becoming the star of the trapeze act, until tragedy strikes and she is forced to move in with the mother she hasn't had any contact with since she left.   

This wasn't bad—I truly thought the general idea was really interesting—I just didn't think it was well executed. The author ended most chapters, foreshadowing to what would come next, but it was so blatantly obvious and done so much that it got cheesy. I definitely wanted to see more with the circus, or even just more contact with the people from the circus. Corey kept talking about how important and special her circus family was to her, but she never talked to them the entire time she was away. 

The author seemed to only care about the romance, leaving it to be the only thing really developed in the story.  Corey is living with her mother for the first time since she was two and it was just a waste of a storyline that I think could have been really compelling if it had any development. Luke was an okay love interest but for someone who was supposed to be the most popular kid in school, he hardly interacted with any one other than Corey. It just didn't feel very authentic. 

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had requested this book shortly after having read several other circus themed novels, unfortunately this book did not live up to my expectations. While this was a great concept I wasn’t able to connect with the story like I had other novels of similar nature.

I was really curious about the circus theme and didn't expect too much because it is from wattpad. That does not mean that wattpad books aren't good, there are sometimes really good stories you want to have as a physical book but all in all it is better to expect less. Most of the time you can tell if a book is from wattpad and one of the first books the author has written, which is okay. Everyone needs to start once.
But this book is truly exhausting. For me there is too much unnecassary drama going on where people should be professional. The school thing isn't logical at all. I don't understand why the main character has to go to the high school? There has to be something like a circus school. The so called friendships don't exsist and all in all the story is just boring. Nothing really happens. For me it was a waste of time.

Trapeze is a great YA novel that I breezed through on vacation. Corey is a teenage trapeze artist whose life gets thrown into disarray when the circus literally burns to the ground. She has to move in with the mother she has no relationship with and begin life as a normal high school student. It includes elements of romance, family issues and bullying, and I think Ansell expertly handled some tough topics. Trapeze is a great book for high school students to read as I'm sure many can relate to Corey and Luke, the male protagonist.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

You can find this review and all of my others over at www.readbookrepeat.wordpress.com

Corey has been with Cirque Mistique since she was two years old. It's all she's ever known, and she's fine with that. She has a family in the rest of the circus crew as well as her Aunt Shelby. She's part of the trapeze team and loves every second of the gruelling training that Silver puts her through. When they roll into Sherwood, it's just another stop on a map filled with pins, however, this stop will change the entire circus' future and none of them know it. After an accident on opening night, Corey is soon thrust into the real world where she is sent to live with the mother she hasn't seen in fifteen years, who she's knows nothing about and hasn't even spoken to. Now she finds herself having to navigate a life that seemed to be part of another world, a world she's never lived in. She must make her way through high school, making friends, first love and the awkwardness of her home life. Feeling more scared of this than having her body suspended above a crowd by a piece of rope and wood, can she do it?

A young adult contemporary story about growth, learning and making tough decisions, Trapeze was a really enjoyable read. I've discovered that I really enjoy reading these kinds of books where as I never would have even looked twice at them even 18 months ago. The first thing that drew me in was that cover, can we please just take a moment to bask in how beautiful it is?! I know, I know, the book is called Trapeze and the girl on the cover is clearly doing aerial silks, but that's beside the point. There are aerial silk artists in the circus so it's not entirely out of left field, it just doesn't exactly fit with the title. But still. It's so freaking pretty!

When I first started the story, I couldn't help but be incredibly annoyed by Corey, our main character. It's a ritual for her at each new town to wander off and have a meal in the first restaurant that she comes across, this meal generally dictates how opening night will fare. If the meal is good, the night is good, if the meal is poor, well, so is opening night. She finds herself in a diner called Joe's, having a conversation with a local boy, Luke Everette. When he asks about her, she has no problem gushing at how she's an exotic trapeze artist with the travelling circus and basically talking herself up to no end. I understand being proud of your achievements and being proud of what you do, but this was bordering on arrogant boasting. So I didn't like her for about the first quarter of the book. She's a very caring character, and this is illustrated as the story progresses, so if you find yourself being irritated by her at first, I implore you to persist because she does get better. It takes the accident for us to get a look behind the mask she so carefully wears, we get to see the insecurities, the worry, and the anxiety that she has when she thrust into something that she's never had to deal with before, namely, life.

I know a few people said in other reviews that I read that they thought the circus and trapeze would be a big central part of the story, it's because of these review that I went into the book knowing that for the most of it, that wasn't the case, so I think I enjoyed it a lot more having known that. Yes the circus and trapeze is a big part of Corey's life, but it's not really at the forefront of the story, this story is about a girl just trying to get through a situation that left her feeling lost.

The supporting characters were great too, I loved Luke's character and how much depth there was to him, I also enjoyed Kim and George and even Claire to a degree. All the characters were written really well, distinctively different from one another.

I love how Ansell put a lot of focus on the strained relationship between Corey and her mother. I enjoyed that it wasn't all rainbows and butterflies from the minute they met again after fifteen years, because we all know that's not entirely believable. The relationship that Ansell created here was written beautifully and executed really well.

This book isn't as light as it may seem, it does deal with some pretty heavy issues in the form of [abuse, and miscarriage (hide spoiler)]. But it deals with these issues so well. I had worked out early on what was going on with something, but that's neither here nor there really, it was still a great addition to the story and really added another dimension to it.

The story itself was good, it was well thought out and executed and even had a dash of mystery thrown in which I thought was absolutely great. One of the biggest things I loved about this story was [ that everything didn't end up fairy tale perfect (hide spoiler)] decisions were made and things happened and it really worked for the story, if it had have gone the other way, I doubt I would have enjoyed it as much when I put it down finished.

All in all, a wonderfully written debut by a promising author. I can't wait to pick up the next book!!

I really enjoyed this book as a whole. I’ve never read a book where the main character was involved in the world of the circus. Seeing how she handled being ripped away from it truly showed us that Corey was a strong women. She did so much to help others even knowing it coils jeopardize it all.

I was nicely surprised by this book! I enjoyed reading about Trapeze artist Corey's life becoming a "normal high school girl" after a tragic accident at her circus. This was nicely written, I only wish there had been more about the circus as I that in books.

I really liked Trapeze. This novel focuses on themes such as faith, passion, family and love. Highly recommend and an impressive story that tells a story of not giving up, and to believe in yourself no matter the circumstances. It made me think differently about circuses and how they worked together, creating a beautiful show at the end of it.

Leigh Ansell is the author of Trapeze, Human Error, and a number of other titles on Wattpad. Since she began posting her works online at the age of fifteen, she has accumulated over 130,000 followers and her stories have been read over thirty million times. Leigh is the winner of two Watty Awards and the Wattpad Prize for Best Love Story.
Trapeze tells the story of Corey Ryder a trapeze artist. it’s the only life she’s ever known—but when a tragic accident puts a halt to the travelling circus she calls home, she’s forced to a standstill. Now, she’s a normal high school student living an anything but normal life, staying with the mother she’s never known, and trying to fit into small-town Sherwood, California.

When her friendship with the local golden boy, Luke Everett, grows into something more, Corey finds herself defending old misconceptions, navigating new love, and balancing the high-wire act of being true to who you really are.

This book has elements of being a modern twist on The Greatest Showman. The characters are well developed and the author seems to have done research into Trapeze artists, as it feels like they really know their stuff which adds to the overall enjoyment of the story.

One of the things we loved about this book was the ending (no we aren't going to spoil it for you.) it felt right for the characters given their ages and was done in a way which each reader could interpret it in their own way.

If you like emotionally compelling stories about growing up and trying to find your feet and discover who you are then we highly recommend you read Trapeze.

Thank you for the opportunity to read an advance copy of Trapeze! I was able to begin Trapeze and I am enjoying it so far! Unfortunately, my real life job hit the busy season just as several publishers granted me ARCs at the same time and I simply don't know if I will have time to read through them all before they are archived. Be assured, if I requested the title it was from genuine interest and I either have a copy already preordered or will be grabbing the audiobook upon release and will still write a review. I am sorry that I was not able to read this by the publication date.

Between 2 and 3 stars on this one.

Corey has lived most of her life in a traveling circus, training as a trapeze artist. Mystique has been her life and she loves being on the road and flying high as a circus performer. When tragedy strikes and she has to leave the circus behind to become a normal high school student, everything changes. Throw in some instant friends and a love interest, it is a fairly typical YA novel.

This was just an ok book for me. It was fun to imagine what it would be like to live the life of an artist on the road. The instant friends and boy interest were a little far-fetched for me, and the relationships throughout didn't feel fully authentic. The book was a bit choppy for me. There is some hard language, which I felt was unnecessary. There is domestic violence, and while not super graphic, it is still in the book. The ending felt a little like a present wrapped up with fancy paper and string, but left a lot to be desired inside.

Ultimately wouldn't recommend this book. There was potential, but it wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC for my review.

Corey Ryder had been living with her aunt and uncle since she was a toddler. She had been living what many would deem an unconventional life on the road with a traveling circus where she became a 17 year old trapeze prodigy. Her life takes a sharp turn when the Mystique Circus pulls up in Sherwood, California and is met with a tragic fire.

What you will find

1. Possible triggers with mentions of substance abuse, domestic violence, parental violence, bullying, and arson
2. A fish out of water story about a girl who gets dropped into an unknown situation and told to swim until she learns.

What you will not find

1. A circus focus. It does not play a huge role in the bulk of the story. The circus is like the bread of a sandwich. It is at the beginning and shows up at the end. There are bits a pieces of it mentioned during the middle but it is mostly mentioned in passing until the late second half of the story.

What I thought was odd in no particular order

1. Corey's mother, who she hasn't seen or spoken to in 15 years, so happens to live in Sherwood.
2. After the circus burns down Corey's aunt decides it is best for her to be dropped off at her mother's house with no formal introduction
3. Mother and Daughter NEVER make an attempt to communicate and form a bond but all of a sudden at the end of the book they are talking normally and planning dinner dates
4. Kim and George are her supposed best friends who never hang out outside of lunch at school...
5. The cover is not a trapeze
6. Corey is signed up for high school without any placement exams to see where she would fit academically
7. The school does NOTHING to step in... outside of 1 nonsense counseling meeting.... to help her academically... she is failing all her classes outside of gym where she excels
8. Her Math teacher write on her test "see me" after class and she never does and he never addresses it...

What I liked

1. How the relationship between Corey and Luke developed at the end
2. The mentions of the circus performances... I wanted more of the circus
3. The lesson on group-think... Corey was made fun for being part of the circus based on rumors and assumptions made from the towns people that Mystique was involved in vandalism in a different town.

Thank you Netgalley, Wattpad Books, and Leigh Ansell for a copy of Trapeze in exchange for my honest review.

Young trapeze hopeful, Corey, grew up in the circus. She trained every day to become the star in her traveling circus family, but when a mysterious fire breaks out during her debut, Corey’s life switches faster than her rise to the top. Now, she must live a normal teenage life in Northern California doing normal things with her estranged (and not normal) mother.

This is a realistic, coming-of-age story. The plot and characters all orbit around the theme of learning who you are and being proud of it. Corey made for a well-adjusted, mature, and insightful narrator. Her observations hold true to what teenagers deal with daily. Her relationships with Luke, friends Claire and Kim, and her mother are well done and not cliched. The author does well to avoid the pitfalls of young adult literature and creates a wonderful community around a likeable narrator.

There were a few inconsistencies in the plot (although minor) that may cause readers to question what is going on. Corey’s passion for trapeze artistry seemed strong at the beginning of the novel, but quickly waned once she lost it. I would have liked to see her struggle more with coming to terms with that loss as part of her identity search.

I would rate this novel a 4 out of 5 stars. Trapeze releases on September 10, 2019.

I really liked the beginning and my attention was caught immediately but it slowly dwindled. I lost that feeling of connection to the main character. I would probably suggest this book to people but I doubt it would be the first book I suggested.

I loved this book. It tells the story of an ex-trapeze artist and her life as a "normal" 17-year-old girls. I love the way the book is written and cannot wait to recommend this book to everyone I know.

A quick read with a unique storyline. It was a page turner.

Corey Ryder a trainee trapeze artist at her aunts circus. She’s determined.

After a tragedy strikes she’s has to go back to live with her mom. Not only that but she has to go back to public school. Where an unexpected romance might be waiting.

First time reader. Very well written. Need to check out more books.

*Received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*