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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Jan. 31st, 2012 12:21 amThe Blurb On The Back:
The circus arrives without warning.
No announcements precede it …
It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.
In 1886, a mysterious travelling circus becomes an international sensation. Open only at night, constructed entirely in black and white, Le Cirque de Rêves delights all who wander its circular paths and warm themselves at its bonfire.
Although there are acrobats, fortune-tellers and contortionists, the Circus of Dreams is no conventional spectacle. Some tents contain clouds, some ice. The circus seems almost to cast a spell over its aficionados, who call themselves the reveurs - the dreamers. At the heart of the story is the tangled relationship between two young magicians, Celia, the enchanter’s daughter, and Marco, the sorcerer’s apprentice. At the behest of their shadowy masters, they find themselves locked in a deadly contest, forced to test the very limits of the imagination and of their love …
A fabulous, fin-de-siècle feast for the senses and a life-affirming love story, The Night Circus is a captivating novel that will make the real world seem fantastical and a fantasy world real.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Erin Morgenstern’s debut novel is a delightful literary fantasy that couples vivid and imaginative world-building with a sweet love story at its heart. Although the nature of the book is such that you don’t get much in the way of in-depth character development, this was offset for me by the world of the circus and the way in which Morgenstern incorporates the story of numerous side characters. Comparisons with Harry Potter are unfair and unrealistic, but I would say that if you enjoyed JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR NORRELL then there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy this. I for one can’t wait to see what Erin Morgenstern writes next.
No announcements precede it …
It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.
In 1886, a mysterious travelling circus becomes an international sensation. Open only at night, constructed entirely in black and white, Le Cirque de Rêves delights all who wander its circular paths and warm themselves at its bonfire.
Although there are acrobats, fortune-tellers and contortionists, the Circus of Dreams is no conventional spectacle. Some tents contain clouds, some ice. The circus seems almost to cast a spell over its aficionados, who call themselves the reveurs - the dreamers. At the heart of the story is the tangled relationship between two young magicians, Celia, the enchanter’s daughter, and Marco, the sorcerer’s apprentice. At the behest of their shadowy masters, they find themselves locked in a deadly contest, forced to test the very limits of the imagination and of their love …
A fabulous, fin-de-siècle feast for the senses and a life-affirming love story, The Night Circus is a captivating novel that will make the real world seem fantastical and a fantasy world real.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Erin Morgenstern’s debut novel is a delightful literary fantasy that couples vivid and imaginative world-building with a sweet love story at its heart. Although the nature of the book is such that you don’t get much in the way of in-depth character development, this was offset for me by the world of the circus and the way in which Morgenstern incorporates the story of numerous side characters. Comparisons with Harry Potter are unfair and unrealistic, but I would say that if you enjoyed JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR NORRELL then there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy this. I for one can’t wait to see what Erin Morgenstern writes next.
