Conjuring Science is a study of how magic and science (mechanics, physics, chemistry) coexisted between the mid-eighteenth century and the early twentieth in the theatrical performances of conjurers and magicians. The author argues that stage magic at once reflected and contributed to the great scientific enthusiasm of the period, and she explores the reasons why theatre acts were framed in scientific language, making science appear wondrous and magic scientific.

Lachapelle contextualizes the emergence of entertainment science in a time when public scientific lectures were growing in popularity, and cities were transforming into sites of attraction for visitors, with aquariums, museums, botanical gardens, theatres and shopping venues. Drawing on the performances, the publications and the inventions of conjurers, as well as their participation in psychology experiments and their contribution to early cinema, the author discusses how conjurers operated at the border between science, entertainment and the supernatural, applying their own technical and mechanical skills to the creation of shows catering to a middle-class audience with an increasing appreciation of the sciences. The shows and memoirs of Robert-Houdin feature prominently in this work, as he embodied the multifaceted figure of the magician–inventor. One of the first performers to dismiss a magician's attire for a gentlemanly one, Robert-Houdin studied optics, mechanics and electricity, and made use of them in devising the scenography for his shows and in framing his feats for the public.

Lachapelle's monograph discusses five main themes: the shift from the small tricks of itinerant quacks to grand illusions in city theatres using machines, the popularity of home sets for performing magic tricks of ‘amusing physics’ or ‘wondrous chemistry’, the relationship of conjurers with paranormal practitioners, the knowledge of psychology gained by magicians, and the contribution of stage magicians to creating stage effects for the theatre and early cinematography. The chapter discussing the complex relationship of conjurers with paranormal practitioners is particularly significant, as it contains issues which recur across the book. In the late nineteenth century, stage magicians ridiculed spiritualists and mediums while still being inspired by their tricks. According to Lachapelle, stage conjurers saw themselves as experimenters skilled in creating illusions, not as the possessors of paranormal powers. Nevertheless, the distinction between experiment, illusion and séance blurred onstage, as feats of levitation, conjuring and clairvoyance were presented as ‘experiments’. While stage magicians on the one hand reproduced supposed paranormal phenomena by showing that they could be reproduced without supernatural powers, and on the other called themselves physicians or professors in opposition to quacks who exploited the gullibility of the public, they were careful not to dispel the aura of mystery which was necessary to attract an audience. This chapter is of particular interest as it highlights how, although performers were increasingly skilled in the sciences, and rode the wave of scientific enthusiasm of their time, the supernatural held a strong appeal for the audience, and conjurers exploited this element while still adapting their performances to the fascination that scientific phenomena held for the middle class.

In virtue of what has been said so far, especially on the relationship between science and the paranormal, Lachapelle's work is a useful contribution to the study of how science (or natural philosophy) was inextricably connected with the concept of wonder, and how sensationalism was a crucial part of the collection and divulgation of knowledge. This is a particularly strong feature of Conjuring Science, as Lachapelle continually misplaces the reader's expectations by demonstrating the impossibility of drawing fixed divides between sensation, wonder and education in the popularization of science through stage performances. Considering the interplay between these elements, the book is an excellent addition to the literature on the topic, which has mostly focused on cabinets of curiosities or, in limited cases, on the craze for automata in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe.

A weaker aspect of the book lies perhaps in the fact that, although the work is heavy on delightful examples, evidence and case studies, it would have been helpful if the author had elaborated more extensively on their significance as opposed to presenting them as being somewhat self-explanatory. In more concrete terms, the book might perhaps have benefited from a more detailed contextualization of the circumstances in which stage magic emerged, which, although hinted at on several occasions, are not extensively discussed. This becomes particularly evident on a specific occasion: the popularity of deception and illusion in the period discussed by the author is linked to ‘a much broader cultural fascination with illusion, deception, and make-belief’ and the examples of Jean Valjean and Edmond Dantes are cited to this purpose (p. 90). Nevertheless, similar examples of imposture and disguise, above all in theatre (see the operas of Mozart and the popular plots on which they are based), can be found much further back in time, and an in-depth discussion is lacking as to which factors contributed to the emergence of this fascination in this period. Although this would have allowed the reader to understand better the significance of the extremely rich evidence presented by the author, this is a relatively minor criticism in an overall detailed, colourful and engaging study.