Mat Osman, brother of Richard, tries his hand at fantasy noveling...outta the park, buddy, what a genre debut! Co-founder of Suede, a quintessential 90s Brit-emo-boy band, decides to write something not centered in the music culture. Great decision! Tackling the end of Elizabethan London, adding a layer of fantastical performance art to it, made this a book I approached with some trepidation. His earlier novel, <I>The Ruins</I>, was a powerful read set in a modern world heightened but still mundane. It was imperfect in its characters' grapplings with desire, the desire to be one's self, the desire to be valued and still free, but it was a fine read.

Here we get the thing I missed in The Ruins. Shay is a cross-dressing woman (it's safer in this world to present as a man) who falls in with young actor Nonesuch (recalling as you do that female roles in Elizabethan theaters were played by crossdressing boys) after her bird-worshipping cult is disrupted by violence. Violence, societal down to interpersonal, is the refrain of this operatic tale of escape, concealment, and ultimately discovery. Violence rules this novel. Shay, rescued from violence, and Nonesuch, accustomed to its sexual expression, decide to become performers of stories that aren't about the great and good. They tell stories like the one they've just shared in which they stave off rage and hate, but pay a price in the process. They know not to try to compete for center stage with those stories of the great and good. They take to the corners, they lurk in the shadows among those like themselves who, stunned, see themselves in the stories the Ghost Theatre duo are telling.

The power of seeing yourself in a story is hard to overstate.

Soon the pair, intimately connecting to the hoi polloi of their class, are attracting crowds. That means they're also attracting notice. The great and good, the primacy, inescapability, of whose stories drove the pair to rebel, are suddenly attentive and making them very much in fashion. They're getting noticed by the elite who never knew they were alive before.

Ask a gay person outed in heteroland, a Black person in whiteworld, a trans person anywhere, how that feels.

Passionately pursuing Truth is, I think, only safe for the young and powerless. They have little to lose. They have no kind of perspective, but this irresistible draw to honesty and truth and self-realization is the road traveled to acquire a lifetime's supply of that missing perspective. This is a subtractive, even divisive process. Shay and Nonesuch ignite passion and create magic with their Ghost Theatre. Fire metaphors for growing up, for attaining wisdom, are apt: annealed in flames of their own ignition, the entire troupe burn in the brightness of fame's flames.

When the bill comes due, the prices (plural) are high; the perspective, one is left to hope in the ending that gives no closure, they've earned will keep them safer than they are during the story.

I can't get to a fifth star because the way we move, bob, and weave in this narrative is sufficiently non-linear as to make the journey circular in affect. Has anything fundamental, or even just more than cosmetic, changed?

I'm not sure; I'm only sure I love the Aviscultans, and the Ghost Theatre, and the honest portrayal of the power of Love among the powerlessness of Others to make a life of struggle feel as though it's a Quest, a magical, important affirmation of Life.

Sadly it never really is, or not for long. That knowledge, though, is mine, not the characters'. Beautiful-sounding, complicated, and still the story's in the end slighter than it feels while you are within it.

What in the fever dream Elizabethan England did I just read? This had dangerous magic with an exploration of gender, race, and trust amongst the characters. This was well done and kept me very engaged.

Mat Osman's love for the city of London and experience with performance studies shine through in this entirely unique blend of historical fact, fiction, and fantasy. A delightful unread quite unlike anything I've ever read before.

👻Theatre and magic combine in this reimagining of Elizabethan London. Shay can see the future in the pattern of birds. Shay meets Nonesuch and the pair fall in love then open the Ghost Theatre.

👻Haunting and darkly romantic. A world gone-by that was never a reality, but will surely come to life when reading this book.

Mat Osman's second book. The brother of the esteemed Richard of Thursday Murder Club fame and founding and current bass guitarist in (The London) Suede.
There is SO much vivid imagery in the Aviscultan world. Mat does a terrfic job of creating a vast fictitious world based around real places witin England. In all honesty fiction is not my preferred genre. I'm not convinced historical fiction is the right descriptor for this book. While I would recommend The Ghost Theatre, there were some parts that were difficult to follow. I understand a third novel is in the works, keeping an eye out for that.

I do badly wanted to love this more than I did. The plot was intriguing and different than anything I’ve read before. The writing style was a bit off for me.

A swirl of a novel set in a slightly sideways 1601 London. Shay meets Nonesuch and both their lives change for the better as they navigate life, the theater, and, well, birds, This is next to impossible to describe (and sometimes strains a bit) but fans of fantasy might enjoy it as much as fans of historical fiction. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. An immersive read,

All the world’s a stage, said the bard, and the men are merely players. Most of us take this as a purely metaphorical (and metatextual, if you’re an English major) statement about the role humans play in our vast earthly drama. For Shay, an impoverished member of a clannish group of outsiders and our protagonist, the words of Shakespeare might have been better put to use as a warning to watch out for anyone who might fancy themselves a director. The Ghost Theatre, by Mat Osman, is a wild ride through early seventeenth-century England, the world of the theater, civil strife, and betrayal.

Shay is in a very bad place when we first meet her at the beginning of The Ghost Theatre. The men chasing her are in a violent mood. There’s also the fact that she’s racing across the rooftops of London to get away from them. It’s only by luck that she spots a kind soul who helps her find a place to hide until the danger passes. The kind soul reveals himself to be Nonesuch, a star player at a popular but not prestigious theatre run by a vile man who gets up to all kinds of unsavory things to make money (often involving Nonesuch and his fellow players). Nonesuch whisks Shay into his world. Before long, Shay is barely going home to visit her elderly father in their isolated community of bird-worshippers. (Sadly, the history of the Aviscultans is not explored in this novel.)

When things are good, they’re pretty good for a teenager who previously made money running messages or irregular gigs as a falcon attendant for the wealthy. The good times include a fierce physical connection with Nonesuch, a daring turn at rebellious street theater, and unintentional prophecying. But when times turn bad, they turn very bad indeed. Shay’s accidental prophecies (apparently a gift inherited from her mother) bring her to the attention of the powerful in London and, even worse it turns out, to the attention of the would-be powerful. When plague arrives in London, Shay, Nonesuch, and their friends depart for a tour of the country that quickly becomes disastrous.

Saying any more than that would ruin the pageant of The Ghost Theatre. This book is an incredible romp through the end of the Elizabethan era, when the shine has worn off and everyone is desperate to not be the lowest person on the ladder. Osman’s novel is rich in detail and action—there are many cinematic chases through the streets and across the roofs of London. It’s the kind of book that I read faster and faster the further I get into it; I just have to know what comes next. Readers who enjoy unusual historical fiction will enjoy this one.

Mat Osman's The Ghost Theatre is a tour de force of imaginative storytelling, an exhilarating dive into an Elizabethan London seen through a kaleidoscope of magic, rebellion, and love. The book kept me riveted from the first page to the last, leaving me yearning for more of this bewitching and vivid world Osman has created. Truly, I did not want the story to end.

Osman’s vivid rendering of Elizabethan London is remarkable – a city both golden and dark, teetering on the brink of tumultuous change. At its heart are the novel's characters – so beautifully fleshed out that you can't help but invest in their destinies. Shay, with her mystical ability to predict the future through the movements of birds, and Nonesuch, the charismatic star of the Blackfriars Theatre, are irresistibly drawn to each other, their growing bond driving the story and providing a riveting exploration of the intoxicating highs and devastating lows of love.

In the creation of the Ghost Theatre, Osman’s storytelling genius takes flight. This underground troupe performing fantastical plays echoes the audacity and resplendent grandeur of the Elizabethan theatre. Their performances, shimmering with magic, rebellion, and the essence of theatre itself, ignite the hearts of the city's downtrodden and ultimately challenge the status quo.

But it's not just the grand moments that captivate. The Ghost Theatre thrives on its details - the religion of birds, the poignant plight of young actors, and the gritty resilience of London's underbelly. Osman’s gift for conjuring a vivid and sensory world makes you smell the musty air of the back alleys, hear the flutter of Shay's bird friend Devana's wings, and feel the collective breath-holding anticipation of an opening night. It’s an immersive experience that lingers long after the final page.

In addition, Osman’s writing style is as wonderful as the story itself. I fell deeply in love with the beauty of his sentences. His prose is lush, lyrical, and evocative, deftly balancing the dreamlike qualities of magic realism with the grittier details of historical fiction. He explores the human condition in all its rawness and grandeur and touches on themes of identity, power, and the dangerous allure of ambition, while the undercurrents of prophecy, rebellion, and anarchy add depth and richness to the narrative.

Above all, The Ghost Theatre is a love letter to the transformative power of art. It underscores how stories can shape societies, ignite revolutions, and reveal the profound connections between us.

Thanks to ABRAMS and NetGalley for the early read.

In 1601 London, Shay, a messenger who comes from a line of bird trainers and interpreters travels the city from rooftop to rooftop and joins a group of actors who are stolen boys in strange, hallucinogenic performances that are attention-getting and prophetic.

What a read this book is! The Ghost Theatre is so imaginative and lyrically written with spellbinding characters and settings. Each page took me to a visual moment I thoroughly enjoyed.
Shay is a well rounded flawed, likable and equally dis likable character and I would say the same about Nonesuch. They invent, live and adventure in old London with a band of renegade thespians, running into and out of trouble at seemingly every turn.
I won’t be hesitating to recommend this book to our library patrons.

What a beautiful book! I know many people who love imaginative historical fiction that is written with flourishing magic. Two characters, Shay and Nonesuch have paths that collide and work together to create The Ghost Theater. Here the reader will be a part of magical plays, hope, beauty, tragedy and mysticism, all set in London. The atmosphere is vividly described: “all of London felt like an ocean into which one might drop like a penny and disappear….”. The prose is seductive. The abyss of London, hope for individual soul survival, and redemption all come together in this beautiful story. While I felt some parts were a little slow, it overall was a wonderful book that will transport readers into Elizabethan London. I give it four out of five stars.

Thank you to ABRAMS, The Overlook Press via NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review for my honest opinions.

The writing style was weird and very difficult to get into but the actual idea and plot were compelling. Just feel like it was overwrought and needed editing.

Loved the ideas but I found the writing to be long winded and too action oriented for my taste. It's possible that a reader with different tastes would enjoy more.

The idea behind this book was a good one and piqued my interest; however, the writing style, pacing, and plot didn't pan out as expected. It was often hard to follow what was happening because of a lack of clarity in the writing, and the characters felt flat.

A gorgeous and inventive re-imagining of Elizabethan England, with cameos (and more) from real figures including Black trumpeter John Blank and Elizabeth herself. The language flies and paints pictures and makes a ghost theater come to life, indeed, in the mind. The swirl of birds, a religion based on their movements, actors, Greek fire, plots within plots, daring escapes and terrible captures--all against the backdrop of a London that isn't, or wasn't , but easily seems like it could have been. A delicious read.

The Ghost Theatre is a marvel of a book. Taking place in London in the early years of the 17th century, it tells the story of Shay, a bird worshipper, a girl who dresses as a boy, and that of Nonesuch, a boy press ganged into the Blackfriars Theater, and who dresses as a girl in the leading roles of the plays that are performed. This is all presented against the backdrop of Elizabethan London, prime for revolt by the common people.

The book opens with Shay’s breathless flight across the roofs of London, as she’s pursued by the owner of a shop whose birds she freed. It’s there she encounters Nonesuch, and they make their way to the theater. Shay falls in with the troupe, and falls in love with Nonesuch. Somehow, because of her affinity with birds, she’s able to tell cryptic fortunes through song, though she has no memory of what she says. She eventually has an audience with the Queen, and based on what she says, Elizabeth enacts cruel domestic policies. From there, the book takes off in unexpected directions.

The author brings Elizabethan London to life. There are scenes that are so well written that I though I could smell the stench of the crowds and markets. All of the characters are well drawn, and you just can’t help, becoming involved in their stories. The author kept this reader on tenterhooks throughout the novel.

Highly recommended.

My thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing an ARC of The Ghost Theatre..