Vice and Virtue

Vice and Virtue by Libby Klein, 320 pages

Former cop and current aspiring musician Layla Virtue has had a rough go of it since leaving the force with a tattered reputation. She's a recovering alcoholic who has to take any gig that's offered to her, including a thankless performance for a spoiled kid's birthday party, where balloon artist Chuckles the Clown sexually harasses her before he drops dead on stage. While it could've been natural causes, Layla's not convinced, and between gigs, begins investigating his death, starting with his string of ex-wives.

This could've been a fun mystery, especially when Layla's aging rockstar dad pops up in her trailer park, but something about this just hits a bit wrong. Part of that is Layla's questionable investigative practices (approaching and questioning suspects at AA meetings key among them) and part of it is the fact that there is absolutely no reason to care about who killed Chuckles, who was, by all accounts, a jerk. I'd skip this one.

Stop Me If You've Heard This One

Stop Me If You've Heard This One by Kristen Arnett, 272 pages

Professional clown Cherry Hendricks has yet to really make it in her chosen profession (currently she's barely making ends meet through kids' party appearances, a part-time job at an exotic pet store, and, regrettably, making a few bucks from clown fetishists). Doesn't help that her mom doesn't accept that her adult daughter is a clown, or that she still compares Cherry to her late brother. When Cherry has the chance to network with a big magician on the Orlando performers' circuit, she thinks she may finally get her big shot. If she doesn't screw it up first.

A book about a lesbian clown has the potential to be hilariously sarcastic and fun. Unfortunately, this one's mainly pretentious (well, once you get through the going-for-shock-value-only first chapter). Cherry isn't particularly likeable or relatable, and her actions in that first chapter REALLY undercut her later claims to professionalism. Feel free to skip this one.

The Lonely Hearts Hotel

The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O'Neill, 389 pages

Orphans Pierrot and Rose are brought together as children by their odd dispositions and innate talents for performing, dreaming of one day creating a traveling show of their own. But as things for orphans in the 1920s often go, they are torn apart, with little chance of meeting again. By the time they do, more than a decade later, Pierrot has gone from living in the lap of luxury to being a heroin addict, while Rose went from being the mistress of a mafia boss to performing in pornographic films.

O'Neill tells the story in such a romantic, melancholy way that it comes across less like a novel and more like an antique music box that's been bewitched to create a seedy story of crime. It's haunting and sad and somehow beautiful, all at once. While it was perhaps a bit more risque than I was anticipating — particularly for a book that features so many forlorn clowns and an invisible bear — I loved it.