A review by mommarex1221
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

2.0

I am a bit sad, I really wanted to like this book. I did appreciate the idea the author was trying to convey, I think the execution fell short. It felt like a tedious retelling of Alice in Wonderland yet not at all because its ultimately a love story to... stories. Very meta.

Due to the complexity of the nested stories and the format in which they were presented, I was often playing catch up whenever corresponding sections would pick up again. I think things were lost or muddled along the way. At some point, I increased audio speed to 1.5 just to help it along (I have never done this before). It's possible may've enjoyed it more if I'd read a physical copy... but the fact of the matter was that I still needed to read a couple "explained" articles to ensure I completely comprehended what I'd just read. If I finish a book and am still confused, that's not a good sign.

If you're thinking of picking this one up because you liked The Night Circus, please know this is not similar in the slightest. If you were not a fan of the format, this is definitely not for you. 

But if you enjoy unlocking doors to find beautifully written slow burning paced tales with seemingly endless layers, that are metaphors but sometimes not, and cats then this is the book for you. Maybe take notes.