The Flying Circus
The Roaring Twenties. Life in America is changing. Emotions are running high after the Great War. Women have taken the first steps into the mainstream by winning the vote, yet are still subject to rules and mores that stifle nonconformity. Aviation is new and thrilling.
Meet Mercury’s Daredevils, barnstormers performing aerobatic thrills over America’s heartland.
Charles “Gil” Gilchrist, a WWI veteran pilot whose tragic past fuels his death defying stunts. Henry “Jefferson” Schuler, a beleaguered son of German immigrant farmers, a young man with an extraordinary talent with machines and shocking allegations on his tail. And Cora Rose Haviland, a young woman whose once-prestigious family has lost their fortune, leaving her to rely on her daredevil nature to chart the course of her future. In these wild and changing times, they risk it all, their lives, their futures and their hearts.
Their adventures are entwined with farmers and tycoons, tent revivalists and hell-raisers. And while mutual need binds this makeshift family together, their complicated pasts threaten to ruin it all.
Although they spend every day taunting death, they soon discover that the truth holds the most danger of all.
Now available in paperback
THE BUZZ:
SIBA 2015 Summer Okra Pick
Booklist Summer Reading Pick
Pulpwood Queens Book Club Pick for 2016
“Susan Crandall’s THE FLYING CIRCUS is a fascinating story of love and loss set against the colorful background of barnstorming 1920s America. Every detail sings, and every character will touch your heart in this rip-roaring tale of three daredevils on the run, each with something to hide, drawn together by a desire to conquer the skies as well as their own demons. Romance, suspense, aerial thrills and spills—what more is there to ask for?” –Melanie Benjamin, New York Times bestselling author of THE AVIATOR’S WIFE.
“Crandall excels both at capturing the meaning behind a glance and at describing the mechanics behind the trio’s daring acrobatics.” — Bridget Thoreson, Booklist
“THE FLYING CIRCUS is Susan Crandall at her best– a colorful, rich and historical tale of the early years of flight. Heroes and villains and an achingly sweet romance will pull at the reader’s heart long after the last page is turned. I loved this book! —Karen White, NYT bestselling author of THE SOUND OF GLASS
“Crandall has crafted a wonderfully charming, memorable and thought-provoking read.” –RT Book Reviews
“A spirited, big-hearted tale.” —Beth Hoffman, New York Times bestselling author of Looking for Me
“…a satisfying road saga.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Deeply moving. A richly drawn story of love, loss, and redemption with characters as finely tuned as the planes they fly.” – Wendy Wax, USA Today Bestselling Author of A Week at the Lake
“…a refreshed mash-up of William Faulkners Pylon and the 1970s Robert Redford vehicle The Great Waldo Pepper.” – Publishers Weekly
“An exhilarating, memorable flight into the world of barnstorming in the 1920’s, with all the twists and turns of an aerial acrobat. Compelling characters and a fascinating setting make this journey a sheer joyride. Satisfying and delightful!” –Lynn Cullen, author of TWAIN’S END