Before We Disappear by Shaun David Hutchinson

Description from Goodreads:

The Prestige meets What If It’s Us in Before We Disappear, a queer ahistorical fantasy set during the 1909 Seattle Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition, where the two assistants of two ambitious magicians find themselves falling in love amidst a bitter rivalry designed to tear them apart.

Jack Nevin’s clever trickery and moral flexibility have served him well his entire life—making him the perfect assistant to the Enchantress, one of the most well-known stage magicians in early-twentieth-century Europe. Without Jack’s steady supply of stolen tricks and copycat sleight-of-hand illusions, the Enchantress’s fame would have burned out long ago—not that she would ever admit it.

But when they’re forced to flee the continent for America, the Enchantress finds a new audience in Seattle at the 1909 Alaska–Yukon–Pacific World’s Fair Exposition. She and Jack are set to make a fortune until a new magician arrives on the scene. Performing tricks that defy the imagination, Laszlo’s act threatens to overshadow the Enchantress and co-opt her audience. Jack has no choice but to hunt for the secrets behind Laszlo’s otherworldly illusions—but what he uncovers isn’t at all what he expected.

What makes Laszlo’s tricks possible is, unbelievably, a boy that can seemingly perform real magic. Wilhelm’s abilities defy all the laws of physics. His talents are no clever sleights-of-hand. But even though Laszlo and Wilhelm’s act threatens to destroy the life Jack and the Enchantress have built, Jack and Wilhelm have near-instant connection. As the rivalry between the Enchantress and Laszlo grows increasingly dangerous and dire, Jack finds he has to choose between the woman who gave him a life and the boy who is offering him love. It's a new star-crossed romance about the magic of first love from acclaimed author Shaun David Hutchinson.

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My Review:

This book was not what I expected it to be. I thought it would be a fun interesting enemies/rivals to lovers magical romance but instead, it was a lot more serious and darker book. Warning mild spoilers ahead. Most of what I am going to mention happens in the first couple of chapters, but feel free to skip to my wrap-up at the end if you don't want to be spoiled.

So, instead of enemies to lovers, we have Wilhelm who is a kidnap victim of Laszlo and essentially a slave to his master. He is only discovered to be a victim by Jack who breaks into their home to try and figure out their magic trick secrets. The rest of the book is spent with Jack trying to free Wilhelm and stop Laszlo's con. While not a bad plot, I do wish this was hinted at in the synopsis. It just wasn't what I expected and just overall not a good twist for me.

With that being said, I absolutely loved the characters. There was not one that I disliked. The author did an amazing job fleshing each of them out even if they were side characters. The characters are the reason I kept reading the book. I loved seeing the relationships between them grow and change. I really liked Jack as he is painted to us as this golden boy, but he really has no ambition and doesn't think of his future or want to further himself. Wilhelm is painted as this shy character but he's bold enough to pursue Jack despite the danger it brings. I also really liked the two of them together. There were no unnecessary understandings. They did their best to openly communicate. Just chef's kiss.

Overall, while I wasn't a fan of the plot, the characters stole the show and were my absolute favorites. They are why I did not dnf this book. I think this is a great read if you're looking for fun interesting characters and a complex plot. I would stay away if you're not interested in reading about kidnapping, torture, racism, and emotional manipulation. I am interested in reading more books by this author.