The Contortionist

Harrow Faire, Book 1

By: Kathryn Ann Kingsley

Narrated by: Hollie Jackson

Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Come one, come all, to Harrow Faire...and greet your sweetest nightmare.

Cora Glass’ humdrum existence as a bank teller flips upside down when a long-abandoned circus mysteriously returns to life. But the entry fee to this big-top show is far more than Cora bargained for.

A deal struck. A soul...stuck.

As Harrow Faire shines a spotlight on Cora, she discovers there are far more secrets in that three-ring nightmare than she could possibly imagine. Trapped in the world of the fiendish and alluring man known as the Puppeteer, Cora finds herself caught in a war between him and the reclusive Mr. Harrow. Both parties will stop at nothing - even murder - to get what they want.

And what they want...is her.

©2021 Kathryn Ann Kingsley (P)2021 Podium Audio

Very Promising!

Good first book to kick off what looks to be an awesome series. I cannot wait to see how the romance develops! This book def has a creepy feel to it’s unique world build. I’m new to this author but she is fast becoming a new favorite! I’m already downloading the first book to another one of her series while I get ready to buy book 2 of this series! The narration was well done and the ending left me hungry for more without being the kind of cliffhanger that makes you want to bash your face into a wall,

Great book but,

I am writing this review while listening to the last book in this series. I love the story and writing in the whole series and the narration is amazing. This book, The Contortionist, is the first book in the series and so far is the best one because it's the only one that didn't have graphic sex scenes in it. I understand that in this particular story it does help to understand the characters better but I feel that it could also have been done without it being so graphic. I think books 2,3 and 4 should not be listed as horror but should be reclassified as some type of romance. I don't normally listen to any type of romance but the story had enough paranormal to keep me listening. If you don't mind the graphic sex and you like a little horror and wonderful narration then this series is amazing! I took 1 star off of 2,3 and 4 because of the sex and the incorrect classification. I have not finished the last book yet so that may get another review and/or an edit here.

Love this series!

One of my favorite series by Kathryn Ann Kingsley. Simon is the best psycho MMC and Cora is perfect for him. Narration was also amazing, kudos to Hollie Jackson for that.

Refreshing, intriguing, and witty!

I suppose this review technically has very minor, very light spoilage in it, to be completely fair and upfront, but I promise that it's nothing that will give away anything you won't already have figured out an hour or so into the book. The plot is pretty clear, I think, and while I won't give it away, I can't exactly discuss it all without inadvertently alluding to certain events that I will not speak of directly. That said, I must start by stating that I just love this book, and I can't wait to see how the story develops. I love Cora's feisty nature, and Simon's madness is just wonderfully sick and twisted in all the right ways. I wonder why this series wasn't labeled as a dark romance fantasy type thing, because romance is center stage but it's going to be a slow burn for sure with the stubbornness Cora and Simon both share along with SImon's consistently shifting emotions on account of the lunacy making it's way through his mind at all times.. I realize at the time of writing this that I am apparently similar to Cora in the sense that we're both drawn to the worst kinds of dangerous men, because the madness brought on by Simon's long lifespan and the fair having its' way with him along with his flip-flopping between sadistic glee and tender care is so intriguing to me and I can already envision the way he could slowly change into someone less awful and can already see it beginning to happen in my mind... although it's true that less awful isn't much of an upgrade in his position. I also enjoyed the Cora's snark and the author's wittiness; making her so colorful with her language and so funny was a great contrast to some of the darker tones in the book. The author did an excellent job of blending those aspects together and making Cora feel "real" in the way she talked and acted, which made me like her and feel for her as she went through a huge range of emotions over the course of the book.
I need to mention that it's of the utmost importance to me that I achieve that escapism I always search for in a good book or series of books, just like I'm sure many others do, and I certainly found it here. I felt Cora's last bit of hope falling away as she cried in the rain after what happened, the searing anger at Simon that SHOULD have been pure, unmitigated hatred, but somehow didn't feel final or lasting in any way, and that ever-present feeling of the fair being an entity all its' own that watched her as she walked through the fair at the end. I'm practically giddy to continue on and see what happens next, I can't wait to see how this all unfolds! I do love a new and refreshing series, and this one has undoubtedly caught my attention. I just pray the writer spent as much time and effort on the other books (we've all seen the authors that write a smashing first book in a series just to metaphorically flush it down the drain with carelessness afterwards, and for some reason I've seen it more often with fantasy novels recently). I have hope though, I can feel it, this is gonna be a good series, and this was an excellent start!

worth the listen

Hollie Jackson is great and I am committed to the story because I keep yelling at my phone due to The FMC making decisions then gets mad when it happens. I have a feeling she's gonna be a hot mess in the next book and I'm anxious to hear her cry, nah and scream. but I'm committed to see this car wreck. Happy Listening

main character has EDS & so do I

great story and author does a good job explaining EDS. EDS is a rare genetic disease so it's very cool to see it in a book. hoping my friends read it.
engaging plot line so much so I can't wait to get the sequel.

Great series!!

I absolutely loved every series that I have read and listened to by Kathryn Ann Kingsley! She creates amazing characters and great twists and turns in her books. Her work is so creative and unique. I love dark romances and this book does not disappoint in that but it’s so much more than just a romance series. Hollie jackson is an awesome narrator. Her voices and accents work perfectly with the story. I love the tempo that she narrates and just the perfect amount of acting.

Very interesting

I waited to listen to the entire series before i rated it and id say the first book has a completely different vibe from the rest in my opinion. The first one seems more thriller i had goose bumps but it was very good. I truly cant remember the second one very well but i remember liking it. all in all a very interesting and good read one of the books feels closer to erotica but i didnt mind that but i guess if you weren't here for that id be a bit wary of it.

I normally don't do circus or carnival books......

This was purchased on a whim through one of audibles sales. I am a credit subscriber, not just a one off purchaser, and seldom do I find new authors who can keep my attention. I do not like to DNF any book though, I have quite a few still sitting on my bookshelf, with bookmarks firmly in place from years past, sadly. I started audible years ago, or I should say audio books while working as I needed something to help filter out the noise in my head. So I am an old reader, per se. This book is an amazing treat to supernatural and fantasy fans anywhere. It really does ponder the question which path do you take and can you deal with the consequences of that single choice, as life is that way in the long run. Enjoyed, enjoyed, enjoyed so much! Thank you for writing such an interesting character, who many of us can see ourselves in. Also the narration was lovely.

SPOILER ALERT: That being said this kept me coming back to hear the next part. I literally would listen while driving or working, or even in bed at night when I just couldn't find sleep. Now I have to finish the series as I am so very entrenched in what occurs in the life of Miss Glass, and the puppeteer. As the faire lives again in the same location it appears to me a conundrum of sorts on how your main character will accustom herself to life, while seeing people she loved who no longer know who she is!

I love this book!

Fantastic. Glad to read a book with characters that I actually care about, they have such intrigue. The performance was definitely a asset to this novel as well, none of it seemed odd or took me out of the story. Now I’m going to have to burn through credits for the next 4!