I wanted to like this more because any book that dares to set a circus in WWII occupied France has a pretty intriguing premise. There were aspects I enjoyed and I appreciate that it wrapped itself up with a nice neat bow. What tugged down the star ratings for me: there were missed opportunities to develop the characters more and the timeline felt really compressed.

POTENTIAL SPOILER ALERT
I mean, maybe war drives people to fall in love quickly or form ridiculously immediate attachments, but it just struck me as unlikely that a Jewish woman who has an opportunity to leave for the US would even consider (let alone insist on) giving her seat to someone who is far less likely to die under the Nazi regime.

I recommend passing on this one. There are better books about circuses and WWII. (Water for Elephants, The Nightingale, and Kavalier and Clay to name a few.)