Book Review: The Spirit Circle by Tara Calaby
Tara Calaby’s second novel, The Spirit Circle, published by Text Publishing, is a sapphic historical fiction novel set in late 19th-century Melbourne. It explores themes of love, loss, and belonging, making us question how far we’d go to connect with those we’ve lost. The story highlights the importance of relationships and the human desire to feel as if we truly belong.
“Death extracted its toll on everyone. And only the spiritualists claimed to know its cure.”
The Spirit Circle follows Ellen Whitfield, an unmarried 30-year-old woman living a comfortable life with her brother, William, in Melbourne, Victoria. Ellen’s best friend – and the first woman she falls in love with – Harriet, is happily engaged to William when she suddenly breaks off their engagement at the behest of her deceased mother. This news troubles Ellen greatly, and she quickly learns that her dear friend has become involved with a spiritualist group. The Church of the Spirit is led by Caroline McLeod, a medium who proclaims she can commune with the dead. Fearing she will lose her friend altogether, Ellen moves in with Harriet at the Church’s rundown mansion with the intention of exposing the fraud – the levers and wires, sleight of hand, rigged seances and hidden cabinets.
What she encounters is far more complicated, and Ellen quickly finds herself drawn under the spell of the enigmatic Caroline and her congregation. The mysterious brooding tone of the story drew me in from the very beginning, and I found it difficult to put the book down as the tension escalated and Ellen became entangled in a web of unsettling events. Ellen’s character was well-developed and authentic. I enjoyed watching her grow as a person and slowly come to terms with her personal shortcomings and biases, as it represented the innate struggles we all face as human beings. Her attitude and beliefs made a fascinating fictional character to follow, as she did not fit in the role of a traditional Victorian woman. The weaving of her sexuality and personal identity was also artfully integrated into the plot.
“Ellen did not understand why a touch between woman and man was given more meaning than the same touch shared by two women.”
One thing I found especially moving was William's acceptance of Ellen's sexuality. His encouragement for her to follow her heart and fight for the woman she loved felt deeply sincere. While his reaction may not align perfectly with the historical context, it was still powerful to witness on the page. As a whole, Ellen and William’s sibling dynamic was heartwarming. They truly loved and supported each other no matter their decisions, which feels rare, even in today’s far more accepting society.
I also enjoyed how Calaby wove subtle historical details throughout the story. Small details such as how Ellen “buttons up” her shoes rather than just pulling them on helped to bring the historical setting to life. However, I struggled with Ellen's character motivation in the early chapters, as some of her decisions felt inconsistent with her otherwise practical and skeptical nature.
Ellen moves in with Harriet at the Church of the Spirit in order to expose the trickery behind the seances – to disillusion her friend and bring her home so she can rightfully marry the man she loves. Yet, shortly after arriving, Ellen is warned by Caroline’s daughter, Grace, to “be careful” and not “believe everything they say”. As a reader, this immediately raised alarm bells, making me think Grace was warning Ellen about the Church’s danger and isolation. A few chapters later, she reinforces this concern, reminding Ellen of her earlier warning and admitting that it worries her because she’s seen similar situations before. What had Grace seen before and what did she mean about Ellen being careful and not believing everything the Church members say?
It seemed to me that Grace was giving Ellen concrete evidence and almost a confession of the Church’s fraudulence, but instead, Ellen believes Grace has a personal dislike for her and is jealous of her friendship with Harriet. Eager to prove Grace wrong, and possibly just to spite her, Ellen moves in and joins the Church entirely. This moment felt somewhat frustrating, as Ellen is actively searching for reasons to doubt the legitimacy of the Church, yet when Grace explicitly cautions her against it and urges her not to believe what she is told, Ellen fails to grasp the significance of the warning and disregards it entirely. Considering how stubborn and skeptical Ellen is by nature, it seemed implausible that she would miss the point so completely.
The end of the story was beautiful and heartwarming, and I felt myself genuinely cheering Ellen on for finally getting her happy ending. The theme of female friendship runs strongly through the whole narrative, displayed when the congregation of women gather again at the end of the story and are happy to see each other, even after the Church of the Spirit is revealed as the fraud it always has been. The novel serves as a true testament to the power of friendship, love (sisterly or otherwise), compassion and forgiveness.
However, I did feel that the ending invited speculation over the credibility of the conflict resolution. For example, Margaret Plumstead is responsible for the trickery at the seances and for pretending to be various spirits, but some of the spiritual feats described don’t seem like they could plausibly have been performed by a single woman. When Ellen first witnesses a floating bell, she scrutinises it but cannot find a wire that would be responsible. Later in the novel, when the séance table floats up from the floor and starts spinning rapidly in circles, she is also at a loss for an explanation. Since this isn’t a speculative fiction novel, these happenings couldn’t be explained away by magical intervention. These impossible things were what made us as readers, albeit temporarily, believe in the Church and side with Ellen as she was swayed in her beliefs. So, if there are no logical explanations, then we feel cheated as an audience.
Although I was delighted that Ellen got her happy ending and moved in with Grace, I was still left with an abundance of questions about other plot lines and side characters. After all, Ellen was deeply offended by Caroline taking advantage of people's grief by pretending to channel spirits. Her moving in with Grace almost served as her acquiescence to Caroline’s practice and a condoning her actions, which I didn’t feel was the case, especially considering how hurt and betrayed she felt after discovering the truth for herself.
Overall, I really enjoyed the intrigue of The Spirit Circle and the atmospheric setting in which it takes place. The novel explores the impact of grief in a nuanced way that felt real and tangible for the reader, even if they themselves haven’t experienced the death of a loved one. Calaby’s portrayal of complex, multifaceted characters was one of the highlights of the book, and this refreshing take on the historical fiction genre is sure to delight any reader.
You can buy the book here.
Shanthi Malpress
Editorial Associate