Book Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Behind the scenes of Le Cirque des Rêves, there is a competition underay between two magicians who have been trained since childhood for this exact purpose by their mercurial instructors.


“The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.”

Magical. Enchanting. Atmospheric. Breathtaking. Stunning. These are just a few of the words that can be used to describe the experience that is reading The Night Circus. Now I don’t read many books like this… magical and enchanting aren’t usually the words I would use to describe my favourite stories! But boy, am I glad I relented when Abbie forced this book into my hand when we were charity shopping together.

A lot of people have commented on how the plot maybe isn’t the strongest, and perhaps that’s true, but this is the kind of book where the entire experience is what makes it a fascinating read. I fell in love with the characters (namely Poppet, Widget and Celia), I fell in love with the circus… Morgenstern is incredibly talented at making you feel like you are actually walking around these tents, eating the chocolate covered popcorn, smelling the scent of caramel in the air (I was sold as soon as caramel was mentioned), and taking in the scenes that she so vividly describes. The descriptions are out of this world.

Again, a number of people had commented that it wasn’t necessarily a page-turner, and yet…I found myself racing through this book in a number of days. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it – and that’s when I know I’m really enjoying a book. When I turned that last page, I was truly sad to be leaving Le Cirque des Rêves, and simultaneously wishing that it existed in real life.

My only nitpick? The romance felt a bit… stifled at times, and maybe not all that believable. But it wasn’t a huge deal! I really enjoyed this book, it’s nice to sometimes take a break from all the horror and blood and gore, and Morgenstern really delivers an enchanting tale. 5 stars!

Johann
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