I was really interested in the premise of this novel. A literary horror novel revolving around an early 1900s traveling carnival? Totally here for that.

Unfortunately, I don't thing this really sticks the landing. The stuff at the carnival and the people there was very interesting and I wish there had been more. Instead, we get a lot of Uncle Charlie, the absurd villain of the piece. He ultimately just feels like he's crazy for the sake of being crazy and the antagonist. I never felt any real depth to him in the same way even some of the minor side characters got despite Charlie being a POV character.

I won't get deep into this, because it gives a whole host of spoilers, but I also didn't feel like Eleanor grew in any real way? It felt like she never learned and not in an interesting way, just in a "Ah, I guess we're back here again" way that was frustrating.

I really wish we had gotten more of the twins at the carnival. I felt that was where this book was most contemplative and well thought out, with the ending feeling more haphazard.

My thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for an advance copy of this novel set in the dying days of the old West about two children on the run from their supposed benefactor, who find comfort and more with a group of traveling carnival workers, while hiding secrets from everyone around them.

The West is a place rich in tales and rich in the waste of many four legged creatures. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend, is from a famous movie dealing with lies and stories, but that is the West. Don't let a little thing like the truth get in the way of a myth about the west. The west is home to many kinds of stories, from Zane Grey and Owen Wister cowboys of honor, to the blood soaked sagas of men at their worst as written by Joe Lansdale and of course Cormac McCarthy. A little bit all these authors with the addition of a little Manly Wade Wellman magical realism appear in this tale. Though this writer makes this tale uniquely his own. One of Us by Dan Chaon is a story of family, found families, sins, redemption, the circus and how appearances hide the true evil and the truly best in humanity.

The time is 1915 and the West is filled with telephone and telegram lines and the smell of gasoline carriages. Violence however is never far away however. Eleanor and Bolt are two twins, aged 13, who share a secret, and a lot of unfortunate events. Their father has died prospecting, possibly murdered, possibly something else. Their mother has never recovered from their birth, saying constantly that the twins sucked something out of her, something she could never get back. Their mother finally passes and an Uncle Charlie comes to claim them, an Uncle who they don't know, but has a few things of their fathers. And a curiosity about the secrets they keep. Running away, the twins find shelter in a traveling carnival, bonding with the sideshow performers who don't look like the people they know, but in many ways are better. Finding a home for a time, the twins learn that Uncle Charlie might have found them, and will stop at nothing to bring them back, and get to the bottom of their hidden abilities.

This is my second book by Dan Chaon, and I can't get over how he creates a tale that seems so real, so lived in with characters that I have a vested interest in so quickly. Within a few pages one wants to find out what is happening, what is up with these twins, what is going on with Charlie, and how much worse will things get. Chaon is a gifted author using words to create a West that is sadly real, and yet mythic. The violence is matter of fact, not played for jokes or horror, but just because, which is probably the worst thing of all. One can tell from the title where things might be going in this carnival, but again Chaon is not that lazy a writer, and there is far more going on there also. There are lines that are both sad and beautiful, lines that still resound in my head, and that I keep thinking of days later. A rough book in some spots, but a very good story, one that will leave a mark.

Again this is the second book I have read by Chaon, and this was totally different from the the other book. A really great writer, one that I can't wait to read more on. If one likes the westerns dark, or their stories with a lot of mystery and mysticism this is the book for you.

This book was right up my alley! A first by Chaon for me but definitely not a last. The circus is what originally drew me in but then I couldn't put the book down wondering what would happen with the twins. I finished this book two weeks ago and I find myself often sitting and thinking about it daily. Roller coaster ride, I would agree it gave American Horror Story vibes.

This one didn't hit home for me. It was creepy And gross and pretty sad. I do think the timeline is correct for the thoughts of circus freaks..but it just was really hard to read with a woke mind. The Charlie parts were really hard to get through, like REALLY HARD WITH ALL THE CAPITAL LETTERS and the gore.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Dan Chaon’s latest novel cranks up the weird to Spinal Tap 11. Set in 1915, the story centers on psychic, orphaned 13-year-old twins Eleanor and Bolt Lambkin, who are taken in by their exploitative “Uncle Charlie” after the death of their mother (Charlie was a con man former friend of their deceased father). Mistreated and forced to use their paranormal abilities to scam marks, the siblings escape and hide out while riding an orphan train until they are eventually adopted by a man named Jengling, whose “Traveling Emporium of Wonders” features a cabinet of (human) curiosities: Elmer, the Dog-Faced Boy, Herculea the Muscle Lady, Gladness the Half-Ton Princess of Zanzibar, Piltdown Man (the resident geek), and several others with notable differences, such as added or missing limbs. The kids are quickly welcomed to the carnival family in a ritual proclaiming them as “one of us,” but Charlie—who has a hair-trigger temper and a fondness for axe-murdering—is on their trail. “One of Us” is both endearing and terrifying; we empathize as the twins struggle to fit in with the other misfits—who are not portrayed as victims, but rather as a loving clan whose members occasionally rise to heroic heights—and shudder as the bogeyman searches for his lost children. Mixing humor, horror, fairy tale, and philosophical questions regarding the nature of the self, this is a page-turner with heart, soul, and mind—a gripping journey with a colorful cast of characters. Thanks to NetGalley for providing an advance reader copy.

Following up The Night Circus is the second and final installement in my July 2025 Circus Series is the upcoming novel One of Us. Vibes are very similar, twins with mysterious powers and an unreliable reality. This one was more of a spooky, psychological thriller.

One of Us was my first Dan Chaon novel and my immediate takeaway is that this guy loves the phrase “arms akimbo”. I saw a reviewer describe this novel as a mix of American Horror Story: Freakshow and A Series of Unfortunate Events, a spot-on analysis.

There is a lot going on in this book. Most of it sticks the landing, but some doesn't. Still, it all adds up to an intriguing story.

You start the book thinking this will have an American Horror Story: Freak Show vibe, and in some cases that's true. Twins Bolt and Eleanor are orphans, adopted into a circus "family." But in some ways they do not fit in there and appear to be ordinary teens. Their special gifts are not well defined even to themselves (perhaps they can read minds and/or serve as a good host for a medium.)

While Bolt loves his circus family, Eleanor does not. Thus beginning a trend throughout the book of Eleanor being a super unlikeable character (seemingly enjoying the company of no one). Her personality sets the scene for some dynamic developments in the later narrative, but also makes it hard to empathize with her character.

A secondary element of the story is the twin's murderous "uncle" who is pursuing them. It's a little hazy why, (I guess because he has a sense of obligation to their dead father? But that also rings false as he is a sociopath who doesn't seem to care for ANYONE.) The scenes with the uncle are DARK and violent. Be warned.

Ultimately this book went in directions I was not expecting, and I appreciated that. While I would have liked a bit more of the found family at the circus and a bit less of the uncle, I found this to be an engrossing read.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Henry Holt and Co. and NetGalley for this ARC of 'One of Us' by Dan Chaon.

Very much in the vein of (and influenced by) Ray Bradbury's 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' in terms of the tone and the broad subject matter Dan Chaon's 'One of Us' is a really enjoyable tale of early 20th century carnies and 'freaks' crossed with the supernatural.

Telepathic and maybe telekinetic orphaned twins are 'adopted' by Jengling and join his traveling circus family and are pursued by their evil 'Uncle' Charlie.

What follows is a very well written look into the humanity of the 'freaks' and the monstrousness of the 'normal' people. Chaon imbues all of the circus characters - who'd been previously cast aside by 'normal' society for their differences - with deep warmth and humanity and one of the most original and unexpected, for me, twists was his writing and development of their 'ringmaster,' Jengling.

I'm likely reading too much into it but in a time, nowadays, when, sadly, people are once again being deliberately and violently targeted for their differences - color, race, nationality religion, sexuality, gender, etc. - this was a nice reminder that those 'different' people are individuals with feelings and emotions and humanity.

Can something be whimsical and deeply unsettling at the same time? This book sets place in the early 1900's and we follow twins who are telepathic. They work at a circus but flee to escape their deranged Uncle.

Great Gothic horror novels with an amazing setting. I truly enjoyed this one, just felt that the pacing was a bit slow sometimes.

This book is a haunting gothic oddity set at the carnival of your nightmares. One of Us creeps into your head and stays there, and I will be thinking about this story for a long time.

Twins Bolt & Eleanor are on the run from their evil Uncle Charlie after seeing him commit murder. When a traveling circus takes them in, they find a home and family with the marginalized, the “freaks” society has rejected. But when Uncle Charlie follows them, the travelling circus will become the stage for a final, devastating play.

This book is very hard to describe. It is gothic, it is fantastical, it is darkly funny and deeply disturbing by turns. It has a villain that will literally haunt my nightmares, and slightly spooky children you can’t help but root for. If you loved The Night Circus but wished it was a horror book; or if you wished the circus scene in Ordinary Monsters was longer; or if you were a child that loved A Series of Unfortunate Events, the Eddie Dickens books, or Roald Dahl stories where the villains were frankly horrifying, and now you’re looking for an adult story with similar tones,- then you should try One of Us.

I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy gothic books that lean into the fantastical, carnival settings, and bad, bad villains.

Thank you to NetGalley & Henry Holt & Co for the arc! All thoughts & opinions in the review are my own.

I may be late to the party, but this is the first Dan Chaon book I have read, and I will definitely be looking into his back log! This story was amazing, and it was tough to put down. Basically, twins (a brother and a sister) are orphans and run away to join a traveling circus. I have to say that I loved the celebration of different people, to the extreme. It celebrates diversity. This felt a bit like American Horror Story, especially the circus series. Set in the early 1900s it really gave me an atmospheric feel to the times. It was eerie, creepy, and unusual in all the best ways!

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A pair of orphaned twins end up in a circus after escaping from a weird uncle. Then the uncle locates them....

There is a lot to like about this. Others have described it as an adult A Series of Unfortunate Events and that REALLY is bang on, albeit bloodier. The atmosphere was beautifully created--I could picture the gritty and darkly whimsical traveling circus. The vivid array of circus characters. The absolutely nutso villain. The exploration of good and bad people and the moral greyness of it all. That was all brilliant...but, the ending kinda lost me. I finished it and felt robbed. Maybe I didn't grasp the meaning but it felt disconnected from the rest of the story. This is worth reading, for the atmosphere alone.

Another example of Chaon's far reaching imagination, but what I really enjoyed was reading author's note in which he lists his inspirations, some of which I recognized as I read. Don't usually read horror, but enjoyed this one.

One of Us is a whimsical and eerie tale set against the backdrop of a shifting America in 1915. It follows mind-connected twins Bolt and Eleanor as they flee danger and find refuge in a traveling troupe of misfits. The book blends historical fiction with touches of the fantastical, delivering a story that is part adventure, part coming-of-age, and part love letter to the world's outcasts.

The premise is engaging, especially the bond between the twins and the magical realism woven into the Emporium of Wonders. Characters like Thistle Britches and Rosalie add vibrant, unusual flair to the narrative, and the setting of a traveling sideshow makes for captivating imagery.

That said, the story occasionally feels uneven. The pacing lags in parts, especially during the second act, and some emotional beats—particularly Eleanor’s growing distance from Bolt—could have used more depth. Uncle Charlie’s return adds stakes, but the resolution feels a bit rushed considering the build-up.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the advance read in return of an honest review. At the turn of the last century, 14 year old twins Eleanor and Bolt, whose telepathic abilities bond them to one another, are orphaned and subsequently adopted by a circus promoter while their malevolent “uncle”, terrifically angered that they are out of his evil grasp, searches for them. I adored the first third of One of Us, seeing an often cruel but sometimes benevolent world through intelligent Eleanor’s eyes; understanding the wall she builds around herself and her reluctance to be accepted by her new sideshow “family” and resenting her brother’s easy acceptance of them. Each of the highly likable sideshow characters has a beautifully told back story, and as she gets to know them Eleanor is slowly letting down her guard and might be finding her place in the world. And then the story veers to (for me) wholly unexpected violence and darkness. And a complicated, surreal ending.

I enjoyed this turn of the century mysterious novel with engaging characters who kept my interest. Chan delves into the lives of the circus freaks, each with a story to tell. Chaon is a force to be reckoned with.

One of Us is pure psychological chaos—in the best possible way.

This book had me spiraling. It’s eerie, it’s unsettling, it’s giving “am I losing my mind or is something actually wrong here?” The kind of story that crawls under your skin and lingers in the back of your brain long after you close the book.

Dan Chaon is a master of the slow burn. You’re not handed answers—you earn them, and honestly, half the fun is not knowing what’s real or who you can trust. Think: unreliable narrators, fractured families, dark secrets, and a past that won’t stay buried.

You’re not just reading—you’re unraveling.

Read if you like:
🧠 psychological thrillers that gaslight you in a good way
👀 characters who may or may not be okay (spoiler: they’re not)
🔪 slow-burn tension with a seriously haunting payoff
🪞 stories that make you question everything

Trust no one. Not even yourself.

“One of Us” by Dan Chaon is a dark tale about a traveling carnival filled with a collection of unique disabled men and women headed by a truly evil psychopath. It is also the story of young twins with the uncanny ability to read each other’s minds. When their mother dies and they become orphans they wind up on an orphan train and sold to the operator of the traveling circus, a circus where nightmarish events happen often!
This author is a master at creating heartbreaking and disturbing characters and unforgettable imagery. This book for me was so brutal that it actually kept me up at night. For this reason alone I’m giving it 3 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.