Sometimes interesting, sometimes goes off on unnecessary tangents. The point of Hadley's story was never made. Yes, she found the answer, but it wasn't necessary or adding anything to the plot with her story. The characters are quite one dimensional, and you don't really care what happens to them. In amongst all the waffle, there are some interesting stories that make you plough on through. The beginning story of the shipwreck, the barnstorming pilots, when Marion discovered a love of flying, the bush pilots adventures in Alaska, the ATA piloting in WW2, and the actual last flight attempting the great circle were interesting.

Marian loves anything daring and dangerous. She lost her parents when she was two in a plane crash and has been fascinated by flying ever since.
After flying Spitfires in the war she looks for another challenge and in 1950 sets off to circumnavigate the world.
This was her dream but she vanishes without a trace.
25 years later, Hadley Baxter is chosen to lay Marian and she finds herself drawn to her. Will she be able to solve the mystery of her disappearance?

I lost many hours of sleep with this book (just another chapter...) - couldn't put it down.
The story moves between past and present - in 2014 Hadley, a young actress with a sad family history, is chosen to play Marian Graves, a daring pilot who attempted to fly the Great Circle after WW2 and disappeared mysteriously.
Family history, drama, amazing and vivid characters in this very enjoyable historical fiction.

Dear Heavens, what a book! It's epic- I don't mean the size of it, although 600+ pages is quite sizable. It's a saga. It's detailed, well researched. It's fantastic. One of my books of the year I'd say.

An enjoyable read which follows the story of Marion Graves, an aviator who disappears when attempting a flight to circumnavigate the globe longitudinally in 1950, and Hadley, the young actress who is chosen to depict Marion in a film of her life. Hadley is given an opportunity to unlock the mystery of Marion’s disappearance when researching the role, thus following two quest plot lines - Marion’s quest to achieve an aviation “first” and Hadley’s quest to find out what happened and to get under the skin of a real life character for a role. Whilst Marion’s story was compelling from beginning to end, Hadley’s was not and I would have liked to have seen more self-awareness developing in Hadley’s character as she unpeeled the layers of Marion’s story through her research. The contrast between the complexity and richness of Marion’s story and the superficial celebrity life of a modern day actress was stark but meant that, for me, the pages turned more slowly when it moved from Marion’s to Hadley’s viewpoint. Thanks to Net Galley for the opportunity to review an advance copy.

Whilst reading the blurb for this novel, I was reminded of the biography about the female aviator Beryl Markham, Straight on till morning.
That Great Circle is a fiction, it is no less affecting.
Marian Graves was born to be extraordinary. The first few chapters of this book lay the groundwork for this premise. She and her twin brother Jamie are rescued from the bowels of a sinking ship. Their father sends them to an uncle in Montana, where they grow up in unconventional surroundings, with a friend called Caleb who will remain a constant throughout the novel and both of their lives.
One day, a pair of barnstormers arrives and Marian's love of flight begins. She is determined to be an aviator, and does whatever she can to achieve her dream.
She sells part of her soul to Barclay McQueen, a bootlegger who becomes obsessed by her, and who will affect her life in more ways than she would like.
Concurrently, in the modern age, Hadley Baxter, troubled Hollywood actress, is playing the role of Marian in a film about the flight Marian took in the 1950's - the great circle flight - where she disappeared.

This is an epic novel, which flits between Marian's, Jamie's and Hadley's lives, but it is engaging and beautifully written. The characters draw you in, and it's easy to become invested in them. Marian's life is rich with experiences that span continents. The descriptions of the countries that she visits throughout her life are intriguing, and Jamie's life runs concurrently throughout, gentler but no less interesting.

I was less engaged with Hadley, to be honest, and was more eager to continue reading about Marian...in fact I was tempted to skip those chapters but didn't!

The ending was very satisfying, and relates to a tale told by Caleb earlier in the novel. This is a rewarding read and would reccommend it very highly.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

The story of Marian Graves, rescued from a ship wreck as a vaby who became a female pilot when women were not supposed to or encouraged to fly and Hadley Baxter, a Hollywood actress chosen to play Marian in a film of her life.
The two stories run parallel, occasionally intersecting. Both Marian and Hadley were orphans, both brought up by their uncle.
It's a long book and it took me a while to get into it but once I did I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story of Marian was more interesting and engaging than Hadley's story. And I found Hadley hard to like.
Keep going beyond the first few chapters. It's worth it.

This book covers the life of Marion, rescued as a baby off a sinking ship, to her role in WW2 and then to her attempt to circumnavigate the world by air over the poles. I never really got into the book or the characters as I usually do probably because for me it was too long. Thanks Maggie Shipstead the publishers and NetGalley

This book covers the life of Marion from when she was rescued as a baby off a sinking ship, through her adolescence to her role in WW2 and subsequent attempt to circumnavigate the world by air over the poles. This is then reflected in a film being made of her life and the polar journey, with Marion's part being played by Hadley, a troubled Hollywood starlet.
I must admit that I struggled with this book, it took me a week to read rather than my more normal day or two. This is partly due to it being about twice as long as the books that I normally read but also I found it difficult to get into. I did persevere and found that I became more absorbed as I got into it, the writing brought the various times that the book is set in to life, from prohibition through WW2 to modern times. There are twists and turns in the plot and I ended up reading until way past my normal bedtime with the TV off to find out what actually happened in the end.
In summary this is not a light read, but it did end up bringing this strong, independent woman to life for me and deserves time being put aside to read it quietly.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

I loved this big, sprawling book with its multiple storylines which sometimes run parallel with each other and sometimes intersect. Good, old-fashioned story-telling with plot and characters! I really wanted to know what happened to them all and how it all worked out, and I loved that there was time to get immersed into this fictional world.

This was really three stories, that of Marian Graves, her brother and the starlet who plays Marian. To be honest, I found Hadley rather spoilt and irritating and her connection to Marian rather tenuous. But, having said that, I did find the life of a rich Hollywood starlet quite interesting. But I found Marian's life much more interesting, in particular her childhood and her relationship with Jamie and Caleb that shaped so much of her life. I'd have liked to have known what happened to their father though. I thought the book was rather long, but it did have span a long time. I felt almost disappointed by the revelation at the end, but it was quite a twist.

It's a biggy but bearing in mind the book is twice the length of a standard book I ripped through the pages. Marian Graves has many incarnations - orphan, twin sister, bootlegger, wife, pilot - the list goes on and to elaborate would spoil the story. She is a thrilling and engaging character, her trials and tribulations are enthralling and entertaining.

My only quibble is the American film star side story. Having finished I can now see why it is there - but throughout the book I was questioning why I was reading about this Hollywood starlet apparently going through a mini life crisis. So hang in there, Hadley may be irritating but she has a point!

An interesting and surprising read.

I was drawn to this book as I loved W E Johns books as a child., I was not disappointed
I have to admit that I had not heard of Marian Graves before but what a life she lived.. She lived an unusual life as a child with a passion for flying, a rather bohemian life of freedom and danger.
Then there is Hadley Baxter a brilliant but troubled actress who is fascinated by Marian Graves and plays her in a Hollywood film. She probes into the deep mysteries of the vanished pilot.
Absolutely fascinating

This novel is well-conceived as well as well-researched. It is also only the second novel written by an American and at least partially set in England in WW2 that I have read without being annoyed by all the misconceptions, half-truths and untruths -and the other stayed well away from technical matters. As Alan Myers once put it: “the reader is in safe hands.”

Covering a sweep of years from the Great War, through the Prohibition years and WW2 to nearly the present day, Great Circle has many well-drawn characters and perhaps not by accident, the only really superficial ones are found in the scenes involving Hollywood and its people. The leading characters are complex in a way that is consistent with their being driven to do really extraordinary things and I think this is the real strength of the story. “Normal” people wouldn’t have done these deeds, would not have achieved these things. But we see those extraordinary characters being forged in difficult circumstances in difficult times and they achieve by challenging, rather than accepting, the world as it is. They don’t merely overcome adversity: they are nourished by it. This is not exactly heart-warming, because they don’t make very many comfortable personal choices, but they do great things.

3.5 rounded up.

This is an epic saga with central characters being aviator Marion Graves and her navigator Eddie Bloom who aim to fly in a great circle from pole to pole in 1950, Marion’s brother Jamie and actress Hadley Baxter who is cast to play Marion in a film sixty years later.

First of all, this is a huge book and it takes stamina to read it. It’s very slow to begin with and extremely confusing. However, the sections concerning Marion and Jamie are really good. The characters of the twins is vividly portrayed and they couldn’t be more different. Marion is a thrill seeker whose life is colourful and varied, she’s courageous and brave. Whereas Jamie is a shy, sensitive and talented artist. I love reading about Marion’s life which is absolutely fascinating taking us on a circular journey from life growing up in Montana, through the Prohibition years with bootlegging and marriage, to Alaska, the war years and finally the polar quest and much of this is riveting. I like how she ventures boldly into a male dominated aviator world especially in World War 2. The novel is undoubtedly well written, the many settings being richly described as are the momentous events in the twins lives. I find these sections are the most exciting and at times thrilling, especially the latter parts in Antarctica.

However, the sections featuring Hadley especially at the beginning do not resonate with me although this does improve towards the end where we learn more about Marion via Hadley. There are some intriguing parallels in their lives which is interesting.

Overall, this is an ambitious book and there is certainly much to praise here especially the quality of the writing which whilst being richly descriptive is never overblown. However, the length of the book is exhausting, there are sections which I think distract the attention from the main characters thus overwhelming the really good premise. After much deliberation I’ve rounded my rating up because Marion’s story deserves it.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Random House UK for arc in return for an honest review

"Great Circle" is an epic story of one woman finding her dream, and the effect on those around her. Marian Graves and her twin Jamie grow up in relative poverty in small town Montana. They have been left in the "care" of their uncle Wallace when their father is jailed for cowardice (who knew that happened?). This is in 1914 so the story progresses through world wars, Depression, Prohibition, etcetera. The twins' friend Caleb, who is part native American, is a key part of the story.

The interwoven second strand is about an actress in modern-day Hollywood who is making a film about Marian's failed round-the-world flight. She becomes fascinated by her character and starts to delve more in to her history.

This is a complex tale about women's place in the world over the last 100 years or so. Some of the characters are difficult to love and rather complicated to fully understand. Nevertheless this is an inventive and engrossing book.

I absolutely loved this book.

Marian Graves and her twin, Jamie, were saved as babies from a sinking ship by her father, the ship's captain, who was condemned for saving them rather than going down with the ship. A wild child, brought up by her uncle when her father is jailed for abandoning his ship, Marian becomes obsessed by flying. A benefactor, rich on the proceeds of prohibition, funds her flying, but his price is that Marian becomes his wife.

Hadley is an actress who has made headlines for all the wrong reasons, who is chosen to play Marian in a film.

Parallels between Marian and Hadley become clear as the book progresses. Both lost their parents young and were brought up by indifferent uncles, both struggle to settle.

Through the book, we move from Marian's life to Hadley's, from 1920s Montana through WW2 and into the 1950s, then to the modern-day where the film of Marian's life is being made.

Beautifully crafted characters, lovely writing and an engrossing story. I was convinced this book was based on a real character...

Don't be put off by the slow start - you will soon be gripped.

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead is an enjoyable novel about a young woman who wants to be an aviator and about the actress who plays her in a film.

I can’t begin to describe this book as it has so many settings, so many characters, and such a good story. I will tell you that it has depth, heart, fantastic description and at it’s heart three very special and different people.
It loses one star for me as occasionally there is, to my mind, unnecessary prose, which I found myself skipping over. It’s still a tremendous book to read and I’m full of admiration for the author for the incredible amount of research she has obviously undertaken to help make this book as good as it is.
Beautifully written, you can’t help but be drawn in.

I thought this was excellent - a proper 'big American novel' with the worlds it inhabits, flying and Hollywood, brought to life so well. Great ending too.