Review: The Night Circus

The Night Circus 
Erin Morgenstern 
387pages (Hardcover) 
Doubleday 
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Blurb: 
  
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. 

Review: 

This book was fairly big a while back, but only recently did I realize that my library had a copy and I got it right away. And I'm so glad I did.

There are a few things that I really loved about this book. The first thing, the obvious thing, was the story. I didn't get exactly what I expected when I opened this book. I was expecting s story about two people who were performing with each other, trying to outdo the other with pretty displays of sparks and small illusions. I got so much more. The story was so deep. I didn't realize how many people would be involved, how the circus would actually work, or how much I would support both of the characters. It was heart-wrenching knowing that it couldn't end well, but still hoping it would anyway.

I also enjoyed Erin's writing insanely. Everything seemed so eloquent and the descriptions were beautiful. All I wanted through the whole book was to be able to really experience the circus, in real life. Every single tent, exhibit, or show that was described crept into my brain until I could almost feel it. They were all so real to me, and I could perfectly imagine every one. The descriptions were beautiful, the characters were perfectly written out, and every scene pulled me in.

I don't feel like I can gush a whole lot about this one without giving away details and ruining some of the surprises for readers, so I'll just let it be known that I think everyone should read this book, if only because of how gorgeous the writing was.

I'm giving this book a hangover level of 5 out of 5.

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