• Winner – 2020 International Book Awards, LGBTQ Fiction
• Finalist – 2020 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards, LGBTQ+ Fiction

Margot Wright has led a deliberate life. At 18, she left her unusual and abusive family situation and never looked back, and then two years later she devoted herself wholly to Estelle Coté, her first and only love. But now, at 45, freshly retired from a career in antique firearms dealing, and settling into a new home with her wife, Margot finds herself feeling restless. Bored. She admits this to herself on the day she visits Le Galopant, a historic carousel that has become bafflingly meaningful to Estelle; and, as with anyone wishing to dodge a midlife crisis, Margot sets her feelings aside, intending to ignore them for as long as possible.

At La Ronde, the amusement park where Le Galopant is showcased, Margot is accosted by a 17-year-old girl named Katherine de Wilde. Katy is hyper and unrefined, “rural,” everything Margot cannot stand, yet she finds herself thinking more and more about the lisping girl in the Converse sneakers and “Meat is Murder” T-shirt as the days tread on. Even after Estelle discovers a massive secret she’s been keeping for a decade, forces her into couples counseling and then on a road trip to confront this secret, Margot is unable to stop Katy from seeping into her thoughts. So when Katy phones her one morning with bad news, “They’re taking down Le Galopant for good. It’s broken!” Margot yields to impulse and pursues her interest in the girl.

Set between Montreal, Quebec and various American cities, Carousel is a story about secrets—secret yearnings, lives, and losses—and the measures we take to protect our loved ones from the monsters we see ourselves to be.

“Dear Reader: This novel contains evil Siamese cats, total disregard for Chekhov’s gun theory, much French without translation, a madhouse in Cape Cod, several carousel horses named Napoleon, Bertrand the secret knitter, waffles, a merry-go-round, a marriage in crisis, a crazy mother, and references to Les Nessman. What more could you ask for in April Ford’s debut?”

—Colleen Curran, author of Out for Stars and the Lenore trilogy

“Spellbinding and beautifully written, Carousel is a galloping ride into love, relationships, friendship, and the burdens of family history. The characters cast their charms, lingering in your heart and mind long after you’ve finished the book. April Ford is a masterful storyteller and literary force.”

—Cora Siré, author of Behold Things Beautiful

“An arch and darkly comic look into obsession, marriage, and family trauma, Carousel takes us deep into the tilting, whirling world of Margot Soucy, its one-of-a-kind protagonist. Caught between three formidable women—intimidating Estelle, insouciant Katy, and unstable Marguerite—Margot must determine for herself the answer to the question that dogs modern life: Why do we want what we want, and what will we sacrifice to get it? Her journey will stay with you long after your head’s stopped spinning.”

—Anna Leventhal, author of Sweet Affliction

“Carousel, April Ford’s debut novel, takes us from Montreal’s famed amusement park, La Ronde, back and forth through history, following Margot Soucy, a middle-aged former antique firearms buyer and seller, as she experiences a crisis in her longtime marriage to the beautiful and enigmatic Estelle. Featuring Le Galopant, the oldest working carousel in the world, family secrets, French, madness, a staycation, art galleries, evil cats, teenage ingenues, and a whole cast of memorable moments and characters, Carousel is a wild and rollicking ride!” 

—Greg Santos, author of Blackbirds and Rabbit Punch!

“Carousel is an acerbic but open-hearted novel about break-ups and new beginnings that is as lovingly crafted as its central metaphor. And there is a depth of characterization here sadly lacking in so much contemporary fiction. An amazing debut novel.”

—James Grainger, author of the bestselling novel Harmless

“April Ford constructs the exquisitely imagined world of her wildly spinning Carousel with irresistible characters and intricate plotting. You’ll likely find yourself a bit dizzy with giddy and well-deserved appreciation for her considerable gifts in this psychologically acute novel.”

—Kimberly Elkins, bestselling author of What Is Visible

“With the precise intimacy of a short story and intriguing depth of a novel, Carousel plumbs a marriage in crisis, and in so doing, reveals all the nuances of the relationships that make us who we are—family, friends, and lovers—in all their messiness and wonder. In the end, the novel provides hope that what was once joyful can be restored.”

—Brad Windhauser, author of The Intersection

“April Ford’s absorbing, beautifully crafted novel weaves a modern tale of mid-life crisis. In deftly constructed scenes and effortless backstory, Ford’s painfully flawed, all too human protagonist impulsively confronts doubts about her marriage, with unsettling consequences for those around her, especially her wife. Peopled with appealing, finely wrought characters, Carousel’s often funny twists and turns of plot end up making perfect sense: You can’t escape your origins. Yet, as with the fate of the horses on the grand machine at the heart of this story, Ford shows us that neither can you know for sure where any particular path will lead. The last page will take your breath away.” 

—Annita Sawyer, author of Smoking Cigarettes, Eating Glass