THE HIDDEN LIFE OF CECILY LARSON by Ellen Baker will be released on February 20, 2024 by Mariner Books.
When she was a little girl, Cecily Larson’s mother drops her off at a Chicago orphanage and promises to return for her. After several years without any word from her mother, the orphanage sells Cecily to the circus to be their new bareback stunt rider. Cecily then sends the late 1920s and early 1930s traveling the country with the circus. In her late teens, Cecily falls in love with a young roustabout. Because he is a Black man, their love is forbidden. When it is discovered that Cecily is pregnant, the circus kicks her off the show. After being forced to give up the child that she thought had died, Cecily reinvents herself and begins a new life with a doctor that she met at a tuberculosis hospital. Many years later, Cecily is forced to reveal her secrets when her family tricks her into giving a salvia sample for a DNA test. It comes as a shock to her daughter to learn that Cecily is not her biological mother. Cecily also finds the child that she thought had died.
THE HIDDEN LIFE OF CECILY LARSON is a very intriguing read. The novel moves back and forth in time and between multiple viewpoints. Cecily’s life and the unraveling of her secrets is the main focus of the story. The secondary plotline of Cecily’s daughter’s medical issues seemed unnecessary and distracting. There were times when the plot dragged on, and it felt like it took too long to get to the point. As someone who has spent countless hours tracing my ancestors on Ancestry.com, Cecily’s great-grandson’s research into his family history was my favorite part of the novel. My DNA test results also revealed some secrets, but nothing to the depth of Cecily’s secrets. My main issue with the novel was that there were no answers about what happened to Cecily’s mother. Much of the novel is dedicated to Cecily wondering why her mother never came back for her. The story would have felt more complete if Cecily finally got some kind of answer.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.