The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus – Erin Morgenstern (2011)

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

My Review of The Night Circus

(2.3 / 5)

I bought the audio version of ‘The Night Circus’ over a year ago when it was on special and It’s been sitting in my audible library. When I saw someone do a review on Goodreads, I remembered that I had it and thought now was the time to listen. It has won so many awards I was quite excited to read it! Unfortunately I was left feeling a little underwhelmed.

As children, Marco and Celia were put into a competition against each other by their instructors. They both possess amazing, magical skills, and the circus is developed as their arena. As they both play out, trying to best each others designs and magic, the circus enthrals visitors and performers. But as the two competitors find out the truth of their competition, and their feelings for each other, they realise only one of them is going to survive this challenge to the death.

I’m not sure how to describe this book. The writing was amazing, and the atmosphere was incredibly unique and almost gothic. It was just SO SLOW! The focus of the story was on the circus itself and on the specific details, the sights, sounds and emotions of every tent. However the characters kind of get lost in the background. Even the most important ones.

The pace is at times painfully slow, and even when things do happen, it barely feels like it. Even the climaxes towards the end of the book just felt like yet another slow description of events.

Another thing I have to mention because it bothered me, was the relationship between Celia and Marco. I love a good romance, I don’t like a co-dependent whinge-a-thon. The unhealthy “I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT YOU!” “I AM NOTHING WITHOUT YOU” was getting thin. And Marco, what a self-obsessed boring character he was! Honestly I felt they were quite dull and mostly lacked personality or any interesting qualities.

The time switching confused me at times, but maybe that’s just because I was listening to the audio version.

There is no denying that she knows how to write. It was written really well, I think that’s why I kept listening. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the narrator either. Something about the way he would over emphasise certain things in his dramatic accent didn’t make for the most enjoyable listening experience. However I still got through it, so it wasn’t all bad.

On reflection however, it had too much description and not enough story depth for my liking.

Would I Recommend The Night Circus?

I can appreciate how many people adore this book, however it just wasn’t for me. I would advise you to give it a go if the description interests you and formulate your own conclusions. It gets AMAZING reviews, unfortunately this was not one of them.

I purchased The Night Circus at my own expense on audible.com