* I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book. *

Anna and Kat are sisters working with a seedy and run-down circus. Anna is a fortune teller and Kat a knife-thrower. The circus gets stranded in the desert after a breakdown. After a few days in unrelenting heat, Anna finds Kat dead, stabbed in the back with her own knives. Soon after, she sees Kat's ghost and is possessed by it.

Circus owner Jebediah Tetanus asks Anna to keep the murder quiet and to investigate on her own. She does so, with the aid of her sister's ghost and of her own hand-built computer. Snake charmer Flora also insists on getting involved.

There is a lot going on in this story, and the climax of volume 1 hints at even weirder things to come. I found it very engaging, and Gedris' lurid artwork is very appropriate for the circus setting. This is a strong start to what promises to be a very interesting series. ( )

I liked the premise a lot for this story: circus performer has to solve a murder that takes place when they’re stranded on the railroad tracks on the way to their next performance. Having the ghost of the murder victim help her solve the mystery made it even more interesting.
I was hoping for more resolution in this first volume, but I’ll stay on board for more. Anna is an interesting enough heroine, and I like Flora as her sidekick. My favorite panel of the book was Flora pulling a list of suspects from the depths of her considerable cleavage. ( )

I DNFed after the early ableism about the "freaks." Let that be your content warning.

Pretty unlikable main character, which is always hard for me to deal with as a reader, but the circus setting is great -- and I'm torn about this -- I kind of like that she isn't a friendly happy person, and that her response to other people is fairly hostile most of the time -- it makes a good foil for the extra friendly dead sister -- but there isn't a secret well of things that do make her happy, so she's just comes across as a miserable and stuck person.

The storytelling feels weirdly mechanical to me -- ack, a murder mystery. Did this person do it? They must have. But they couldn't have. How about this person? They must have. But they couldn't have. Hmm. I will sleep now, or consult my difference engine. Repeat.

The art is quite compelling, so that also pulls the plot along, and a after a while it does pick up. On the whole, I think it's well done but not quite my cup of tea. I also was extremely surprised by the sudden ending in the ARC -- very abrupt, and no back matter to indicate that it is indeed the ending.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Oni Press. ( )