Laura’s Rating: 4/5 Stars
The Night Circus was the first book I read in 2020. It came highly recommended to me by my sister and book club friends. PLEASE do not read the Goodreads description or the back of the book before starting to read! I think a reveal about the realities of the challenge was ruined by the description of the book, which unfortunately made it feel anticlimactic for me.
The Analysis:
“The circus arrives without warning.” The first sentence of the book is already filled with mystery and anticipation. Author Erin Morgenstern is able to then set the tone in such a way that the whole story feels very magical and elegant. The writing style and descriptions are very on-theme for the setting of a mysterious circus and the black and white colors used in almost every setting and outfit give an air of formality and sophistication. Morgenstern also manages to capture the electricity of attraction and the tingling feeling of new love without making it cliché. While I am often leery of overly flowery language, this book reads like beautiful prose and the gorgeous details and descriptions never feel tiresome. This book is all at once a love story, a mystery, and an adventure.
I didn’t particularly care for the organization of the story, as I thought that the complex chapter divisions were unnecessary (maybe this was more confusing on a kindle?) and the timeline was confusing to me as the story progressed. Celia and Marco are bound to a challenge when they are children but the action does not really begin until they are young adults. It seemed to me that events were always happening in the same present timeline, when really years had passed. While I didn’t love the ending of this book, I can’t pinpoint a different ending that I would have enjoyed more. Despite my few small complaints, the rich setting and intriguing plot line make The Night Circus worth the read.
Comments