Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern || There’s magic in these pages………

The Night  Circus

Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. 

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. 

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. 

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

Publisher: Doubleday

Published: September 13th 2011 

Goodreads

Content Warning

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Parental/Mental/Physical Abuse, Death, Murder, Mutilation, Mention of Suicide, Grief

Buddy read with Tisha ❤ .

I don’t think you understand how long I sat on this review.

And it was for a really superficial reason… don;t know why I brought that up tbh, but I am glad I did wait before posting…

 Now at first: I was  a bit overwhelmed and underwhelmed at the same time?

Now, before we start: I liked this. A lot more than I thought I would. However, this book is just surprising with what I liked about it. And sitting on this book, thinking things through and reflecting on the story it isn’t that deep yo… I definitely liked it a lot more than I initially did. This is absolutely a book that I recommend letting seep into your soul and brew a bit.

I mean… okay, world-building— we all know how much I just don’t pay attention to that? And yet, it was what had captivated me most. The setting, the descriptions, the prose: you can’t tell me this book wasn’t easily imaginable. Her writing reminds me of a fever dream: of occupying that in between, drowsy state of being lucid,  yet having reality be obscured by fantastical imagery.

I MEAN… IT’S A CARNIVAL. THAT MOVES ON A TRAIN. AND KIND OF APPEARS OUT OF NOWHERE. AND OPENS AT NIGHT. AND MAGIC. AND WEIRDLY AESTHETICALLY PLEASING GENERAL-NESS.

And the pacing, the way the threads were slowly coming together before your eyes. The clues that catch your attention and those you take a chance on ignoring, only for it to come back in an important way. I feel like rereading this would be a dream, finding things you thought insubstantial and connecting the dots in different ways.

As for the characters…

❥ Celia: Daughter of a magician, with a way with illusions who is being exploited by her abusive father. I’d hate to say I played favorites buttttttttttttt we all know who I was rooting for.

❥ Marco: An orphan chosen for the competition, with a way with words who was just lonely and thrown into this without really knowing what was happening, yet it seemed better than his old life.

The romance surprisingly enough was what was a bit of a let down for me? Because while I liked the two together, it… it kind of happened out of no where. They had the barest of interactions over a span of 30 or so years and then one full conversation later I move yous were through around like flowers on a windy day.

Again, I feel like if I’d reread this which rest assured I will I’d probably catch the subltey of it all, but for now I just… while it’s fresh in my mind, it happened sort of quick.

Howeverrrrrrrrrrrrrrr like I mentioned above: their romance was something I could root for. Which in a way says a lot about my complaints that I am still very for this couple and wishing with every bone in my bidy that they come out unharmed.

And the fact that we missed out on Celia and Herr Thiesson?????? I peeked it and I feel scammed my wants weren’t fulfilled.

Now, did I guess this books ending? In a way, yes. Considering that I came into this blind which was a feat in and of itself the synposis alone kind of gives off the vibe that led me to guessing the majority of how things would pan out. Yet and yes I sound like a broken record it didn’t bother me. Which is a testament to the writing and the story in general. I don’t think I have to recommend this book, the hype speaks for itself at this point.