Cecily Larson is a character you will just fall in love with! She is a strong woman who has persevered through many trials in life, yet still holds onto hope and loves those around her. Ellen Baker's book takes you through various parts of Cecily's life - from early days in an orphanage, to performing with the circus, to hospitalizations, and finally, life as a content family matron. She survived various tragedies that would make others fall into despair and that just made me adore her more. I especially liked her survival during her circus era.

Though I liked this book quite a bit, my biggest complaint was that there were so many secondary characters to keep track of - her daughter, granddaughter, and great-grandson... as well as others at various points in life. I felt some of their stories did not add much, if anything, to the plot of this book. At a high level, they did, but some of the details were a bit unnecessary and added confusing sideplots. I felt at times the author was trying to do too much. Regardless, I would recommend this book to my friends. It is an enjoyable dual timeline novel about family, love, loss, and trying again (and again and again).

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

I dove into "The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson" completely blind, and this multigenerational family drama exceeded my expectations.

The story unfolds in Chicago, where Cecily's mother leaves her at an orphanage, promising to return when she can support them both. At seven, Cecily is sold to a traveling circus as a bareback stunt rider. Despite the hardships, she finds a sense of belonging. However, as she matures, she encounters betrayals, forbidden love, surprises, and danger.

At 94, Cecily has lived a long, successful life, deeply involved in her small town community. A science project on genealogy by her grandson leads to the revelation of Cecily's hidden family secrets. Can her family confront the truth and reconcile?

I was captivated by the dual timeline and multiple points of view, providing insight into each character's perspective and their family's history.

The exceptional audio narration made following the story, with its various characters and timelines, seamless.

"The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson" is a must-read for fans of Dani Shapiro’s "Inheritance," Ann Napolitano's "Hello Beautiful," and Sadeqa Johnson’s "House of Eve."

I had such high hopes going into this story. The farther along I read though I just kept hitting a disconnect. With alternating characters and timelines it made it hard to focus on Ceciley at all.
Overall a lot of potential but fell onto the just okay category for me.
I received a ARC of this title, all thoughts are my own.

The main character of this book, Cecily, led a life filled with heartache, determination, love and ultimately, family. This book has many elements of a soap opera with its multiple storylines. In my opinion, there were too many characters introduced and it was hard to follow the time switching. - 3 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-copy of The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson by Ellen Baker in exchange for a honest review.This is a powerful and well-researched piece of historical fiction set in 2 time periods- the past (1920s-1930s) when Cecily, a young girl who is abandoned by her mother becomes part of a circus act where she finally finds a family and in the present(2010s) when Cecily’s family through a genealogy project finds out Cecily is not their relative.This is a story of heartbreak and redemption of second chances and most importantly family.Lots of drama and hidden secrets.

This book has an intriguing book summary, drawing readers in. While I loved the inter generational aspect, the flipping from character to character, in multiple points of view did get a little tricky sometimes and hard to follow. I appreciate how it was all tied together but did feel like it was drawn out a bit, with a lot of filler. The book was one that I could put down and forget about for a few days, with no real anticipation to find out what happens to each character or how it was all connected.

For lovers of Like Water for Elephants, this book weaves together a story about a circus with a modern tale of uncovering the past. This story talks about love, family (secrets) and what creates and defines families. The story kept moving and I found it very endearing. For people who like family dramas or historical fiction, this is a great recommendation.

My thanks to #MarinerBooks #NetGalley and #EllenBaker for the ARC of #TheHiddenLifeofCecilyLarson. Every once in a while, a book ends, and I mourn its loss. This was one of those books. I finished it, and I longed for more. The Hidden Life Of Cecily Larson is so beautifully written – beginning with a DNA test, the reader is drawing into the rich tapestry of a 1920’s circus life, woven into a current-day family drama. Questions, secrets hidden for decades, it’s all here, just under the surface of what seems to be a perfectly normal family. What is grandma hiding? A perfectly delightful read, one that was hard to put down – especially at the end -- I didn’t want it to be over. I could have read the circus stories forever.

Thank you to NetGalley, Mariner Books & Ellen Baker for a digital ARC of The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love books that take place at carnivals or at the circus. They are so atmospheric for me.

This was a exquisite, heartbreaking & heartwarming historical fiction revolving around Cecily who was orphaned at 4 years old & sold to a circus at age 7. The circus family is also she's ever known. As a teen, she falls in love with Lucky, a roustabout.

Many decades later, at age 94, Cecily is surprised by her family (daughter, granddaughter & great-grandson) with an at-home DNA test & all the secrets she's be carefully keep all these years could potentially ruin her family, her legacy & the life she's built.

Readers can expect to feel a wide assortment of emotions while following Cecily's story. A story that only the strongest of all women could endure & come out the other side. Baker did a wonderful job with vivid descriptions making the reader feel like they are there in the story.

I loved this book & story. The only thing that kept it from being a 5-star read was that it was difficult at times to know which character was speaking. It would flow from one character into the next with zero transition & it left me scratching my head a couple of times. So, I didn't really like that part of the writing style, but over all, a solid 4 Stars.

A captivating, multi-generational story, The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson is highly recommended. A story of secrets, the power of love, family, and resilience.
Cecily's story begins in 1924. A story of abandonment and how she came to be a part of the circus. A story of first loves and tragedy, and always looking for where she belongs and who she is meant to be.
Fast forward to 2015 and Cecily is now old and ill. Her great grandchild is doing a school project and decides to do DNA tests for all of them to map their family geneology. No harm in that, right?

The book brings up all the questions - what do we truly know about our families. And how has science - and DNA testing - changed the way that we connect the past with the present?

I loved how this unfolded, and then neatly folded into a new, perfectly delightful story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mariner Books for this ARC in return for my honest opinion.

Pub Date: 20 Feb 2024

Cecily is 95 and has broken her hip. During her recovery, Cecily's great-grandson has chosen a family DNA experiment for his science project, and his grandmother obtains Cecily's DNA sample without permission as a surprise. Unexpected results bring to light undisclosed details of Cecily's early life, and her secret past as a circus performer is revealed through her reminiscences as she convalesces.

This novel drew me in with the circus theme, but it's much more. Cecily's early life juxtaposed with the present as she faces her mortality is at once heartbreaking and uplifting. When her secrets are revealed to her daughter and granddaughter, it brings them closer with empathy and understanding. And the circus life details are fascinating and eye-opening. It's a heartwarming family saga that I won't soon forget.

Read this one for a behind-the-scenes perspective on circus life, multiple love stories, and reflections on the meaning of family.

3.5 rounding up to 4 stars

In many ways, this wasn't the book I was expecting. Intergenerational story about an orphan girl goes to circus to be bareback rider. However, the story was really focused on so many heavy themes. Abruptly switching to a whole new cast of characters about a quarter into the book left me floundering. We were already switching timelines from 3 times periods. Shortly, it all became clear, but it was disconcerting. A partial list of heavy themes would include child abuse, racism, rape, addiction, trafficking in infants, and forced sterilization. Unfortunately, I can't say that I cared about any of the characters. I didn't dislike them, but I didn't connect with them. That could be a me problem, though.

A moving and heartwarming read. The characters both primary and secondary ring true, evoking admiration or disdain. Some passages are a tad unrealistic and some dialogues a tad lengthy, but overall an enjoyable story.
Many thanks to Mariner and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Although I was excited to read this book, I hate to say that I didn't love it, especially for the length of the book. I wish I could give it a better review because I like the premise but I found it to be confusing. There were so many characters to keep track of and the the switching between timelines was also confusing. I didn't feel like it was very clear when it was happening.

This book had so much potential but ultimately fell flat for me.

The author tried to do too much with too many characters and plot lines. It felt like work to finish, which is disappointing because I truly loved the main characters. The second part introduced new “main characters” and I just didn’t care about them. I was already invested in the other journeys and this pulled me out of the pre-established connections I had.

The circus also seemed like a sideshow of its own — we never got to see the beauty or drama of it. We only heard after the fact how good it was.

Thank you for the early copy, NetGalley and publishing team, but unfortunately I wouldn’t recommend this one to my network.

Didn’t love this one. I found the characters hard to follow & the atmosphere of the story a bit boring. I felt like I was confused a lot. Overall this book was just heavy! It had a lot of heavier themes that I wasn’t quite prepared for, and not a lot of breathe easy moments. It had Water For Elephant vibes, which I really appreciated, but the layout of the dialogue was a bit confusing. I will say though, Cecily was a strong character & I enjoyed that! Best of luck!

This story was much more heartbreaking than I had expected it to be, and much less about her past life with the circus.

I loved reading about the history of the time this book took place in, the circus, the racism, the eugenics information. BUT there is a huge problem when you're reading the book and in the middle it switches to a whole new set of characters without any warning or heading or chapter info. And to name the 2 central characters both with a name starting with a "C"? I honestly thought my unedited proof had been accidentally merged with another proof.
Too many characters to keep track of in the 2nd storyline, no understanding of father that has other daughters and his relationship - was he black? was he their father? I STILL have so many questions that are unanswered about a lot of this book. I wouldn't recommend it.
When the answers weren't merging and I couldn't keep them all straight (an issue I never have) I couldn't wait for the book to be over.

*Thank you so much to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to review an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. *

I'm torn on how to review Cecily Larson. The pacing the first half was slower than I preferred, but the story itself and the layout of the book were fantastic!

Although I enjoyed the actual story, it was bogged down by rabbit holes of various characters' backstory that didn't seem necessary to the plot. And there was also one particular character's POV that indulged in one of my pet peeves: excessive self-pity.

All in all, a decent read that had the potential to be better.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!