A review by purplepenning
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

"A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world. His punishment? And his reward." —Oscar Wilde, The Critical as Artist

Undeniably beautiful writing in a turn of the century fairytale that is groundedly gritty and soaringly ethereal. I don't care for circuses, but it was the exact right venue for this story. This one didn't knock me off my feet quite as much as The Starless Sea, which I read first and with no expectations. Partly, I think, because I wasn't as enamored with Marco as I maybe was supposed to be and I wasn't as satisfied with the ending here, but mostly because:
"The finest of pleasure are always the unexpected ones." 

Definitely recommend for fans of The Starless Sea and Alix Harrow's Ten Thousand Doors of January.
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