When the curtain rises

Summary: Chloe's 90-year-old great-aunts, Bess and Kitty, ask her to leave her west coast home and venture to Little Venice, in Ontario, for a summer vacation. Chloe is initially reluctant but is intrigued by the stories of her great-aunts' "magical" house and a small key sent with the letter. Kitty immediately gives Chloe "The Memoirs of Dante Magnus", through which details about her great-grandfather's life, his magic, and even Canadian history are found. The memoirs work through Dante's immigration to Canada from Ireland and his discovery of and passion for magic. This passion takes him on a difficult journey to the Yukon where he performs as a magician and ultimately disappears, carnival and all. As Chloe reads the memoir and listens to her great-aunts, she becomes increasingly determined to solve this mystery. At the same time, Chloe also grapples with her own psychological problem. Her stage fright threatens her dream of becoming a renowned pianist, and Chloe begins to wonder if her ambition is as dangerous as her great-grandfather's was.

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