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A review by jefferz
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
An incredibly ambitious novel with wonderful writing that is also incredibly niche. Erin Morgenstern certainly has a set style as I found this novel shares many of the same strengths and drawbacks as The Night Circus amplified. Beautiful and otherworldly visuals combined with a multiple layers of symbolisms, unfortunately the novel's plot is slow, complex and vague. Are you interested in a passionate queer romance story? How about multiple factions with cult-like tendencies? Multiverse-style dimensions or dreams within dreams with a clear resolution? A fantasy adventure across land and sea to reach a final goal? An engrossing page turner? If you answered yes to any of the above, the Starless Sea is not for you.
There are so many compelling elements that have mass appeal, but the delivery will likely alienate all but the most patient readers who appreciate the essence of literature. The chapters are also broken up jumping between the primary narrative focusing on several main characters and short fables, stories or exerts that seemingly have no connection to the main story or each other. Each short story has a role to play and connects to each other and although the pieces do come together in the end, the end result is open-ended at best, convoluted and random at worst.
This one is a solid 2.5 and I can appreciate the sheer ambition and effort that went into this novel. I am usually someone who can appreciate the strength of the parts that make up the whole and I love complex metaphors in books/movies/tv-shows, but ultimately this one was too loose with its plot/ending and too random to feel like my time invested was worth it. And that's a shame as I found this to be one of the most unique and high-concept novel I've read.
There are so many compelling elements that have mass appeal, but the delivery will likely alienate all but the most patient readers who appreciate the essence of literature. The chapters are also broken up jumping between the primary narrative focusing on several main characters and short fables, stories or exerts that seemingly have no connection to the main story or each other. Each short story has a role to play and connects to each other and although the pieces do come together in the end, the end result is open-ended at best, convoluted and random at worst.
This one is a solid 2.5 and I can appreciate the sheer ambition and effort that went into this novel. I am usually someone who can appreciate the strength of the parts that make up the whole and I love complex metaphors in books/movies/tv-shows, but ultimately this one was too loose with its plot/ending and too random to feel like my time invested was worth it. And that's a shame as I found this to be one of the most unique and high-concept novel I've read.