For much of her life, Eva Root has been in the care of one Mrs. Blodgett, a woman who uses Eva’s preponderance for coercion to her advantage. Eva leads séances anywhere the two find themselves, carefully manipulating guests into receiving the responses they desire. But when one séance becomes more real than any before and Eva is beckoned from beyond her awareness, she does what she must to relieve herself of Mrs. Blodgett and find her way to the World’s Fair in Chicago. Along her journey, she meets a new friend called Henry, and the two discover there is more to magic than they ever realized, and that magic may not be the benevolent entity they initially expected.

This fantastic historical fiction novel expertly blends the real-life World’s Fair in Chicago with a plethora of magical elements. Much like in a dream, Eva and Henry frequently find themselves forgetting conversations or experiencing time in an unusual way. Mr. Magister, initially a welcoming and kindly man, seems to be orchestrating much of the unusual behavior the two youth experience. But as Eva and Henry wander deeper into Mr. Magister’s lair, truths come to light that make them question everything they thought they knew. The magic within the two young people is smothered by that of Mr. Magister’s pavilion, and they must fight to think for themselves as the shroud of mystery attempts to envelop them.

Mature middle grade and young adult readers will love the depth of this story, especially as it takes twists and turns that keep readers guessing as to what will happen next. Detailed descriptions, long chapters, and profound discoveries amplify the intensity of the novel, and though the protagonists are young, they are often called upon to make important decisions that affect the momentum of the story. Additionally, occasional illustrations are included at choice intervals, and these bring the novel to life while helping to depict specific moments and locales mentioned within the narrative. Engaging and filled with historical references, this is a tale that will resonate with readers long after it ends while simultaneously inspiring further research and investigation. It is an excellent precursor to Caraval or The Night Circus that is aimed at younger readers. This is a superb addition to library collections for young people.

I received an electronic ARC from Random House Children's Publishing through NetGalley.
Savit blends suspense and appealing characters with enough creepiness for middle grade readers. Eva is an orphan who makes her living faking seances for the women who got her from the group home. One night something intense happens and she really hears a voice. This spurs her to run away to Chicago at the time of the World's Fair (World's Columbian Exposition). On the way, she meets Henry and he invites her to join him at his family's home. Something mysterious happens to Eva when she discovers a hidden pavilion that doesn't quite fit. Strange and eerie events happen from here and Eva and Henry discover a world of magic including a mysterious older man who woos them and separates them. Some of the story is predictable but Savit brings enough mystery and energy to these plot points to make readers want to know more. I appreciate the ending where Eva defeats the pull for power and finds her way to her own life.
TRIGGERS: Death, fires

Review copy provided by the publisher.

When orphaned Eva has a chance to escape the horrible person who has been using her to run fake seances, she jumps at the chance--especially when it leads her to the glitter of the 1893 World's Fair and to Henry, her first real friend. The Pavilion of Magic isn't open to everyone--but its denizen, Mr. Magister, assures Eva and Henry that she are welcome to stay as long as they like.

Of course it isn't that simple. The scars of the Great Fire are still a deep part of Chicago, changing those who have lived there forever in ways that Eva struggles to understand. And how can something that seems magical--that seems to replicate the home she never had--be anything but a delight? Well, you've all read YA fantasy before. I bet you have some ideas of how.

This book was a smooth read but in some ways very structurally weird. The climax depended on Eva's character insights into people she (and we) had never met, and the ultimate answer seems to be "don't trust things that seem magical and bright." I appreciated that character sacrifices were not undone by the narrative, but at the same time, "don't look for anything magical in the world, it's all bad" is...not actually a message I find very resonant. Savit has done a lot of research on the period but also uses magic to handwave a lot of socially inconvenient things. For me it was one of those books that's better to be in the middle of reading than to consider when I finished.

Come See The Fair - Not since Erik Larson wrote The Devil in the White City has there been such a dark tale of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. First, I will admit that this novel is well written and held my interest. It’s a story of a young girl, Eva Root, who starts life at the shill to a unscrupulous woman and together they travel running faux séances. Eva runs away and befriends Henry, a talented young artist, whose sketches somehow reflect future events and people. The two of them are heading to Chicago and the wonders of the 1893 World’s Fair. This is a great grab.


Unfortunately, the book, in trying to be mysterious, becomes dark, and sad, and more intense than many young readers may be able to tolerate. I’m seeing it as if Clive Barker writes YA. That’s sort of a combination compliment and a dig at the author. If the protagonists were older, this would have been an excellent book. If the book channeled a younger POV with less darkness it would have been a better book. I think the author, Gavriel Savit, no doubt talented, missed his audience with this one.

#NetGalley #ComeSeeTheFair #RandomHouseChildren's #KnopfBooksforYoungReaders
#Children'sFiction #Middle Grade #SciFi&Fantasy

A fun magical story for ya to adult. A girl is told to go to the fair, but things aren't what they seem. Our Mc teams up with a young friend to find the magic of the Chicago fair, but they can't seem to remember things. As time and facts become slippery, she must figure out who is at fault and how to stop them even if it means her losing what little she has left. A clean, easy read good for MA and up.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in advance. This book had the fantastical feel of The Night Circus and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with the darkness of The Deathly Hallows. And I loved it! I also loved that it had a historical feel with Chicago World's Fair and the Chicago Fire entwined in the story.

While Come See the Fair, by Gavriel Savit, reminded me a bit of Night Circus, I struggled to finish it. I loved the characters but the story was a bit confusing to me and I found myself having to reread parts multiple times to figure out what was happening. Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with an ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review. I probably would not have finished this one had I not been reading it to do a review.

I liked Eva and Henry and the start of the book was strong, but the magic rules were confusing and the story rather dark. The ending kind of sputtered out in a dissatisfying way, esp for a book aimed toward middle grade readers, at least in my opinion. 2.5-3 ish stars. Thanks for the free Netgalley book for review though!

I'm really sad to say that this one just didn't work for me. I really enjoyed The Way Back by the same author, so I was looking forward to this book as well. I still liked the writing style, however the plot was extremely hard to follow and seemed very muddled to me. I loved the characters but just couldn't understand what was going on most of the time. I would, however, try another book by this author.

I did not finish this book because I was very confused throughout. I made it 50% of the way through before letting it go. The details were hard to follow and I found myself writing down characters and plot points to try to keep up.

Where do I start with this book? If you know the history behind Disney’s Carousel of Progress, have read the Night Circus and enjoy Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, then you will devour this book like I did. The Carousel of Progress is what I think about when someone mentions World’s Fair. The characters were amazing. It was so enchanting. I was constantly looking to see what would happen or appear next. Thank you so much NetGalley for the opportunity to read this!
My only concerns were how dark the book could be at times, but it was still an amazing book.

Come See the Fair follows the journey of young Eva Root and her discovery of magic, and her own magic.

I loved the premise of the book, the characters and Henry’s art.

I had a hard time following the rules of this magical world. It distracted me and made it hard to follow along.

Although I enjoyed the characters, the book just wasn’t for me.

Typically I would not have chose a book abut seances to read. However, my interest was piqued when I read the description of the book. I found the story to be an interesting one even if it was a little hard to follow at times. There were parts that I thought I had missed some information but instead the story just kind of jumped to another part. I did enjoy the story. It was a fun read. I enjoyed the suspense and imagination of the story.

I was provided a copy of the book by Net Galley in exchange for my honest feedback. Thank you Net Galley.

When a young orphan who pretends to channel spirits at seances escapes she finds herself hearing a voice in her head to go to the World’s Fair in Chicago. On her way there she meets a mysterious boy who has been seeing visions and drawing them before he ever encounters said place or person and a mysterious magician who needs her help to bring magic back. However the more Eva helps this magician the more she begins to think something even more sinister is happening and that the magician isn’t as good as she thought. This was an okay read for me, it started out really interesting but unfortunately lost my interest as I got further into the book. By the time I finished it I just didn’t think it was all that memorable or as interesting as it had started off. While this didn’t work for me, I think maybe younger readers will have a better experience reading it.

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Reading the book summary, this had all the making of a great middle-grade found magic story.

Eva starts as a mistreated orphan who finds a world of magic as she visits the Chicago World's Fair. The start was promising. When we reached the magical elements, the middle-grade sweet spot disappears.

The magic rules are hard to follow, it's very disjointed and full of creepy edicts from this mysterious magical man to an 11-year-old girl: Come to the fair- in the middle of the night and make sure you are alone. Come live at this magical house, don't worry- we will magically make it so no one will remember you are gone. Memories are taken without consent and fuzzy memory gaps happen more than once.

The obedience of the main characters to these mandates in order to learn magic felt equivalent to a kid willingly taking off in a random car because a stranger is offering them candy. Given the age range of the target readers for this genre, this is not the best device to drive the plot.

I really enjoyed this novel! Historical setting (the Chicago world's fair), likeable main characters, and an excitingly pased plot. I think this is a good story for a middle grade reader and will keep their interest. Would recommend to a lover of historical fiction and circuses/fairs.

This book started off with a bang. I loved the seance and psychic introduction to the MC Eva Root. The descriptive details of the Chicago Fair were amazing and well researched, I felt as if I was walking the grounds and marveling at the sights with Eva and Henry. When Eva meets a mysterious magician at the Fair, the story begins to veer into territory that was hard to follow with a difficult to understand system of magic and muddled supporting characters. I would have loved to have read more of Eva's backstory and wish more time was spent on her seance beginnings.

Come See the Fair had promise and it really interested me from the description and cover, which is really beautiful. Unfortunately the characters were shallow and I was hoping for more depth and character development. The plot had holes and moved really quickly. I'm sure some would enjoy it, but this was not for me.

There is nothing inherently wrong with it, but neither is it particularly exciting. The story seemed a little bit disjointed, a little bit shallow. Perhaps it would be more appealing to a younger reader, but it didn't seem like any of the characters seemed to hold any development. The just never felt real.

Come See the Fair is Gavriel Savit’s third novel and his first middle grade work. Set in the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893, we follow Eva Root as she discovers that the line between possible and impossible isn’t as finite as she believes. This was a selection from NetGalley, who provided me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. You can read my full thoughts on this one on my blog, mziniganmshiiken.wordpress.com.

The story starts off very strong! We’re immediately immersed in Eva’s story and invested in how she gets on. Descriptions of different scenes are lush but not over-done; the same is true of the characters. In a way this brings a real sense of immersion from Eva’s point of view, as other characters’ interactions with her are sometimes difficult to parse. The first half/two-thirds of the book were in a consistent style that was easy to follow and drew me in to find out what happened next. The last third, however, had a stylistic shift that made the conclusion difficult to follow and understand. All of that said, I’m coming down on the side of listing this book as recommended.