One of Us

A playfully macabre and utterly thrilling tale about orphaned twins on the run from their murderous uncle who find refuge in a bizarre traveling carnival,from a master of literary horror ItΓÇÖs 1915 and the world is transformingbut for thirteen-year-old Bolt and EleanorΓÇötwins so close they can literally read each otherΓÇÖs mindsΓÇölife is falling apart. When their mother diesthey are forced to leave home under the care of a vicious con man who claims to be their long-lost uncle Charliethe only kin they have left. During a late-night poker gamewhen one of his rages ends in murderthey decide to flee. Salvation arrives in the form of Mr. Jenglingfounder of the Emporium of Wonders and father to its many members. He adopts Bolt and Eleanorwho travel by train across the vastsometimes brutal American frontier with their new familywatching as the exhibitions spark amazement wherever they go. ThereΓÇÖs Minniethe three-legged ladyand Dr. Chuiwho stands over seven feet tall; Thistle Britchesthe clown with no noseand Rosaliewho can foretell the death of anyone she meets. After a lifetime of having only each otherEleanor and Bolt are finally part of something bigger. But as Bolt falls in deeper with their new clanhe finds Eleanor pulling further away from him. And when Uncle Charlie picks up their trailthe twins find themselves facing a peril as strange as it is terrifyingone which will forever alter the trajectory of their lives. An ode to the misfits and the marginalizedOne of Us is a riotous and singularly creepy celebration of the strange and the spectacular and of family in its many forms.