Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Night Circus

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

35 reviews

kattila's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Content Warnings

flowersindecember's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

such good vibes all around i enjoyed myself so thoroughly there were just a lot of timelines to keep up with but i LOVED the romance subplots and that they weren’t the main focus of the book but also were at the same time. it was just really good but i cannot explain most of it

Content Warnings

gothcoraline's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

a decadent read, dripping with magic and mystery. i could not put this book down and have reread many times. the descriptions are so real i feel like i am in the circus, i can smell the kettle corn, i can taste the caramel apples, i can see the london buildings rising up around me. erin morgenstern enthralled me with this book. if i could give a book 6 stars, i would 🤍🎪🖤🎪🤍

Content Warnings

ramakn22's review

Go to review page

The opening threw me so badly I felt like I couldn't find any piece of the story to latch onto. What I did get through was whimsical and confusing and sounded like it would build into something fantastical, just not for me.

Content Warnings

readerette's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

If you prefer books with plot and believable relationships between characters, this may not be the book for you. I've heard it described many times as "just vibes" which is extremely apt.

There's beautiful imagery for the circus's various tents and performers. However, I found there to be way too much of it, at the expense of a coherent plot and well-developed characters. If most of the first 3/4 of the book were expunged, its plot and character relationships would still make just as much sense--maybe even more so since there wouldn't be as much fluff between plot points and character development moments--and would read as quickly as it should given its relatively simple plot (for a fantasy novel).

Content Warnings

queersicles's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

mblanke's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

Content Warnings

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Blurb:

Marco Alisdair and Celia Bowen have been groomed since childhood to compete against each other in a competition of fantastical manipulation and illusion, although they are not told whom they are competing against, why they are competing, or the rules of the game. The venue of the competition is a traveling black-and-white circus that only opens at night, a circus full of magic, wonder, beauty, and enchantment. Marco and Caelia must contend with the complex and dangerous rules of the game while protecting the circus and its people they have come to love.

Review:

I first read The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern when I was young (perhaps eleven or twelve), and I read it far too quickly. My impression of the story was that it had a beautiful, evocative setting but a weak plot and characters. I am not sure what compelled me to pick it up again, as I rarely re-read books, but I can safely say that my opinion of the book remains the same.

Morgenstern has a gift for creating imaginative and fantastical settings and descriptions so delectable to all five senses that they feel like magic. I loved falling into the Night Circus and exploring it; it felt like entering another dazzling world. I did not even mind how slow-paced the book is because I enjoyed indulging in the sensory cornucopia of the circus.

Characterization and plot remain the book’s weak spots. The characters, while not poorly written, lack depth and complexity in the way that young adult book characters often do. Beyond the initial setup, the plot moves at a glacial pace. The climax and resolution at the end feel rushed and rather fuzzy on the details. In terms of representation, the book’s Asian character is depicted as an exotic, Oriental stereotype, which isn’t great.

Overall, however, the book is so good at what it does well that I did not mind its weaknesses.

The Run-Down:

You will probably like The Night Circus if . . .

· You love rich, multi-sensory, imaginative, and fantastical settings and descriptions

· You like star-crossed lover stories

· You don’t mind slow-paced stories

You might not like The Night Circus if . . .

· You can’t stand lengthy descriptions of setting, characters, etc.

· You need strong characters and plot to enjoy a book

Content Warnings