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aviery's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, and Drug use
lainiereads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
This book was definitely unlike anything I have ever read. I honestly am not sure what to say about this book beyond that it was great and very interesting. I have so much respect for Erin Morgenstern, based solely on the insane details that she added to this story. While reading, I found myself having a difficult time picturing what was going on, not because the description was unclear, but because my imagination is just not able to picture all of these intricate details that were going on in ever section of the book. It was really beautiful to read, and I hope that one day these details can be brought to the screen so we can really see the world that Morgenstern created.
My only "issue" with the book, for lack of better a word, is that I felt very disconnected from the characters. Due to the way it is narrated, I found it very hard to really connect with what any character was feeling or thinking. I usually read very character-based stories, so this kind of storytelling is very different than what I am used to. I still liked some of the characters, but I think that it was hard to truly care about any of them.
While this book was definitely a change of pace for me, I still did enjoy it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a slower story with amazing world building.
My only "issue" with the book, for lack of better a word, is that I felt very disconnected from the characters. Due to the way it is narrated, I found it very hard to really connect with what any character was feeling or thinking. I usually read very character-based stories, so this kind of storytelling is very different than what I am used to. I still liked some of the characters, but I think that it was hard to truly care about any of them.
While this book was definitely a change of pace for me, I still did enjoy it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a slower story with amazing world building.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Death, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Physical abuse, and Grief
aseel_reads's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
2021: still a huge fan of the book, but I will say that I don't think I like Marco as much as I used to...
2020: 5 stars of course
Annotating my copy for a second time made me notice several reasons for why I love this book.
The fact that Celia and Marco fell in love with each others magic first, their magic being a representative of their minds and creativity is so beautiful. The juxtaposition between flowery sentences and abrupt paragraphs helps create a steady pace for the novel. The fact that the book, like the circus, attempts to hit all the human senses through words. The heavy feeling in the heart when I get to the final sentence. The conversation between widget and Alexander at the end. These are all moments I noticed and loved.
This books makes me feel a thousand different emotions. All from cleverly chosen words, we have a beautiful setting, quite complex characters, love, loss and friendship.
I will say that the first 150 out of 510 pages are quite slow but I think that is part of the book's charm
Reread 2019: doing my yearly annual reread of this beauty in my autumn
2020: 5 stars of course
Annotating my copy for a second time made me notice several reasons for why I love this book.
The fact that Celia and Marco fell in love with each others magic first, their magic being a representative of their minds and creativity is so beautiful. The juxtaposition between flowery sentences and abrupt paragraphs helps create a steady pace for the novel. The fact that the book, like the circus, attempts to hit all the human senses through words. The heavy feeling in the heart when I get to the final sentence. The conversation between widget and Alexander at the end. These are all moments I noticed and loved.
This books makes me feel a thousand different emotions. All from cleverly chosen words, we have a beautiful setting, quite complex characters, love, loss and friendship.
I will say that the first 150 out of 510 pages are quite slow but I think that is part of the book's charm
Reread 2019: doing my yearly annual reread of this beauty in my autumn
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Suicide
peachani's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Confinement
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Abandonment, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Suicide, and Violence
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