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The Starless Sea
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From the New York Times bestselling author of The Night Circus, a timeless love story set in a secret underground world—a place of pirates, painters, lovers, liars, and ships that sail upon a starless sea.
Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn pris ...more
Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn pris ...more
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Start your review of The Starless Sea
"How are you feeling?" Zachary asks.
"Like I am losing my mind, but in a slow, achingly beautiful sort of way." (p.288)
Funny, I felt the exact same way while reading this book.
So, Erin Morgenstern's The Starless Sea is the highly anticipated follow up to The Night Circus (which, I admit, I haven't read). I won an ARC of this book from my library's summer reading program and, after reading the synopsis, I could not wait to jump in.
I think that most people who read The Starless Sea will love it b ...more
〘
find other reviews on my blog
〙
It’s a profoundly strange thing—to feel as though you are wading through superficially entertaining novels that pass through you like falling smoke, always searching for the one that will reach into the back alleys of your soul and settle into the bottom of you like fallen leaves.
And then there it is, like a faint spark bobbing on a dark sea, calling you, beckoning.
The sheer joy of it is like what all the books you’ve ever read have been aspiring to be, the s ...more
It’s a profoundly strange thing—to feel as though you are wading through superficially entertaining novels that pass through you like falling smoke, always searching for the one that will reach into the back alleys of your soul and settle into the bottom of you like fallen leaves.
And then there it is, like a faint spark bobbing on a dark sea, calling you, beckoning.
The sheer joy of it is like what all the books you’ve ever read have been aspiring to be, the s ...more
Someone PLEASE procure me a striking, modern, big-city apartment with lots of windows, where I can hold a glass of expensive wine and gaze unseeing over the skyline at night, because apparently I’m going to feel melancholy for the rest of my life over never again being able to read this for the first time and if I’m going to do so I at least want to be glamorous about it.
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
Or, at the very least, I need to locate the sort of old-fashioned library described in ...more
https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...
Or, at the very least, I need to locate the sort of old-fashioned library described in ...more
HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY TO THIS LITTLE COCKTAIL OF MAGIC AND WONDER!
i know for a fact that this book wont be everyones cup of tea (morgensterns writing style is an acquired taste), but it sure is mine.
this quenches my thirst for a story that was meant to be told, a love letter to the art of storytelling, as well as the stories we find ourselves in. it is an ode to those who write their own paths in life. and there is an aromatic intimacy to this that can only be created when such words are so ten ...more
i know for a fact that this book wont be everyones cup of tea (morgensterns writing style is an acquired taste), but it sure is mine.
this quenches my thirst for a story that was meant to be told, a love letter to the art of storytelling, as well as the stories we find ourselves in. it is an ode to those who write their own paths in life. and there is an aromatic intimacy to this that can only be created when such words are so ten ...more
I am SO disappointed.
Bee. Sword. Story. Door. Doorknob.
Someone doing something somewhere but loses someone.
Owls. Honey. Sea. Bees.
Swords. Cats. Stories. Fragments.
Smart literary references haha.
Bees. Swords.
The moon.
Clueless boring gay character gets lost, does nothing, stumbles, regrets everything, has no spine. Insta-love - why? He took my hand then lost it.
Sea. Trinkets. Books, ribbons, lost, what, maim someone randomly.
Hate for no reason. Kitchen. What? Swords. The fortune teller’s ...more
Bee. Sword. Story. Door. Doorknob.
Someone doing something somewhere but loses someone.
Owls. Honey. Sea. Bees.
Swords. Cats. Stories. Fragments.
Smart literary references haha.
Bees. Swords.
The moon.
Clueless boring gay character gets lost, does nothing, stumbles, regrets everything, has no spine. Insta-love - why? He took my hand then lost it.
Sea. Trinkets. Books, ribbons, lost, what, maim someone randomly.
Hate for no reason. Kitchen. What? Swords. The fortune teller’s ...more
I did not enjoy this at all. Pretentious, confusing and jumping through time to make no sense whatsoever..I feel like I wasted a reading week. All my anticipated releases have been flops this year.
Now what is this book about? Honestly your guess is as good as mine. There was a hint of some love stories but they were so muddled into everything else that was pointless and made no sense so who knows.
The plot got lost, the writing style was so saturated in metaphors and description I got bored and ...more
Now what is this book about? Honestly your guess is as good as mine. There was a hint of some love stories but they were so muddled into everything else that was pointless and made no sense so who knows.
The plot got lost, the writing style was so saturated in metaphors and description I got bored and ...more
Jun 06, 2019
Emily (Books with Emily Fox)
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
arc
After trying to describe my issues with this book, I have found the best comparison.
There's a video of a raccoon putting cotton candy in water and staring at it as it dissolves... yup, that exactly how I felt. The writing is beautiful but I'm left empty handed and dissatisfied. I'm left wondering if I read the same book as everyone else and, quite frankly, feeling like I'm dumb because I don't get it.
The premise sounded interesting but I was quickly lost and bored. By the end, I was so ready fo ...more
There's a video of a raccoon putting cotton candy in water and staring at it as it dissolves... yup, that exactly how I felt. The writing is beautiful but I'm left empty handed and dissatisfied. I'm left wondering if I read the same book as everyone else and, quite frankly, feeling like I'm dumb because I don't get it.
The premise sounded interesting but I was quickly lost and bored. By the end, I was so ready fo ...more
This book is a love letter to stories and storytelling, myths and fables, symbols and imagination. This was haunting and magical, foreboding and whimsical in a way only Erin Morgenstern can achieve. This is a story in which something new can be discovered every time you read it. Breathtaking.
loveddddd 4.5
This is a review I did not want to write because this is a book I so desperately wanted to love.
The Starless Sea is a book written for true readers. I’m talking about the kind of person who spent their childhood in and out of libraries and bookshops; the kind of person who sits and imagines adventure and an escape from the mundaneness of every single endless day without magic: the kind of person who lives for books and reading.
As such it is totally enchanting to begin with it. It hooks you ...more
The Starless Sea is a book written for true readers. I’m talking about the kind of person who spent their childhood in and out of libraries and bookshops; the kind of person who sits and imagines adventure and an escape from the mundaneness of every single endless day without magic: the kind of person who lives for books and reading.
As such it is totally enchanting to begin with it. It hooks you ...more
Nov 10, 2019
Nilufer Ozmekik
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
i-m-intrigued
I waited the book for months and months, also named myself as Vladimir who is waiting for Godot forever! Of course my request stays at the NetGalley limbo space with other thousands of my requests doing boogie dance together. (I don’t want to visualize them dusted, positioned at the bookshelves kind of purgatory!) So as a patient reading, high five-d myself for releasing day (actually I slapped my nose, I couldn’t do a proper high five for years and always missing the other person’s hand or alwa
...more
Oct 08, 2020
Emily (Books with Emily Fox)
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
audiobooks
Read this as part of my "Giving authors a second/last chance" challenge and...
This is a tough one for me.
I can acknowledge that Morgenstern’s writing is whimsical but after two books by her leaving me confused and unsatisfied, I have to admit her books are simply not for me.
The worlds she creates are fascinating but I don't find myself caring enough about the story in them nor the characters. Frankly, I felt bored.
If you've enjoyed The Night Circus, you'll most likely enjoy this one too. If you ...more
This is a tough one for me.
I can acknowledge that Morgenstern’s writing is whimsical but after two books by her leaving me confused and unsatisfied, I have to admit her books are simply not for me.
The worlds she creates are fascinating but I don't find myself caring enough about the story in them nor the characters. Frankly, I felt bored.
If you've enjoyed The Night Circus, you'll most likely enjoy this one too. If you ...more
Finishes book.
"I'm getting this book tattooed all over my body, mind and soul."
2019 really saved the best for last. 8 years was fucking worth it.
____
UPDATE APRIL 30TH
WE HAVE A COVER AND IT'S FUCKING BEAUTIFUL.
_____
a bee,
a key,
and a sword.
"I thought I was writing a book about books, but as it turns out I was writing a book about stories."
No words. Nothing. I just—
Twitter | Bookstagram | Youtube | ...more
"I'm getting this book tattooed all over my body, mind and soul."
2019 really saved the best for last. 8 years was fucking worth it.
____
UPDATE APRIL 30TH
WE HAVE A COVER AND IT'S FUCKING BEAUTIFUL.
_____
a bee,
a key,
and a sword.
"I thought I was writing a book about books, but as it turns out I was writing a book about stories."
No words. Nothing. I just—
Twitter | Bookstagram | Youtube | ...more
When I started reading The Starless Sea, I was blown away. I read through stories of pirates and girls in forests, of key holders and sword sellers, Fate, Time, the Moon, and some dude named Zach. The stories were intoxicating, like I was floating around in some hypnotic, dream-like daze, breathing in all of these beautiful short stories. They were beautifully written, imaginative little pieces of art, all smushed together and delicately held in place.
But somewhere in my drunken haze, the magic ...more
But somewhere in my drunken haze, the magic ...more
This is a masterpiece. This is flawless. This is the kind of book that comes along once in a decade. This cracks the foundations.
Imagery: ★★★★★
Concepts: ★★★★★
Writing: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★★
Erin Morgenstern is not for everyone. Her writing is for those who love the story for the sake of the story. The lyrical, meandering, and existential prose is not the standard format, and it takes no prisoners. If it's not for you, it's not for you.
Normally, I try to make some sort of sense in my review. Talk ...more
Imagery: ★★★★★
Concepts: ★★★★★
Writing: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★★
Erin Morgenstern is not for everyone. Her writing is for those who love the story for the sake of the story. The lyrical, meandering, and existential prose is not the standard format, and it takes no prisoners. If it's not for you, it's not for you.
Normally, I try to make some sort of sense in my review. Talk ...more
Reading an Erin Morgenstern book is like dreaming with your eyes open. There's something so profoundly beautiful about The Starless Sea that I don't quite know how to put into words.
This book tells the story of Zachary Ezra Rawlins (I mean, that's already the best name ever), who is an ordinary book nerd like you and I. One day, he stumbles upon a ...more
“Strange, isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are.”
This book tells the story of Zachary Ezra Rawlins (I mean, that's already the best name ever), who is an ordinary book nerd like you and I. One day, he stumbles upon a ...more
incredible fanart by 
I always imagine Erin Morgenstern's books like paintings. She is that good at describing things.
...more
DNFed @ 56%
THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE YEAR!
The writing is so abstract that I couldn't take it anymore! And the problem is I expected that, I wanted that, but it was just SO MUCH!
I'm so sad right now, I really wanted to love this 😭
I feel this was a cheap copy of The Shadow of the Wind, even The Ten Thousand Doors of January to me was similar and better than this.
I'm gonna crawl into a hole and cry myself to sleep now! ...more
THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE YEAR!
The writing is so abstract that I couldn't take it anymore! And the problem is I expected that, I wanted that, but it was just SO MUCH!
I'm so sad right now, I really wanted to love this 😭
I feel this was a cheap copy of The Shadow of the Wind, even The Ten Thousand Doors of January to me was similar and better than this.
I'm gonna crawl into a hole and cry myself to sleep now! ...more
Am I confused as heck? Yes.
But was this book the most incredibly magical, moving, imaginative and absolutely immersive gem I’ve read in a long time? Also yes.
I enjoyed this so much more than The Night Circus!
"We are all stardust and stories."
Ok, where do I begin? I can honestly say I've never read anything like this book before.
Zachary Ezra Rawlings finds a book in the library that isn't catalogued and becomes curious. Once he begins reading 'Sweet Sorrows' he discovers a world beyond his w ...more
But was this book the most incredibly magical, moving, imaginative and absolutely immersive gem I’ve read in a long time? Also yes.
I enjoyed this so much more than The Night Circus!
"We are all stardust and stories."
Ok, where do I begin? I can honestly say I've never read anything like this book before.
Zachary Ezra Rawlings finds a book in the library that isn't catalogued and becomes curious. Once he begins reading 'Sweet Sorrows' he discovers a world beyond his w ...more
Be sure to visit Bantering Books to read all my latest reviews.
How I wish I could visit the Starless Sea.
I wish I had my own magical door; one that would allow entrance to the labyrinthine libraries of this magical underground world that Erin Morgenstern has created, where I could wander aimlessly for a time and be surrounded by books, secret rooms, riddles, and CATS. Lots and lots of cats.
It would be such a wonderful escape. And then once satiated, I could return to my beloved normal life and ...more
How I wish I could visit the Starless Sea.
I wish I had my own magical door; one that would allow entrance to the labyrinthine libraries of this magical underground world that Erin Morgenstern has created, where I could wander aimlessly for a time and be surrounded by books, secret rooms, riddles, and CATS. Lots and lots of cats.
It would be such a wonderful escape. And then once satiated, I could return to my beloved normal life and ...more
why can't I just like things.
...more
I’m so sad to have not liked this book. I’ve read so many amazing reviews of it and had such high hopes. But alas, this was not my cup of tea. Swords. Bees. Books. Keys. Painted doors. Sea of honey. Owl king. Fate. The moon. Fortune Tellers. Cats. Is it an alternate reality? Is it the inside of a book? Is it the inside of a crazed mind? Is it magic? Is it aliens? I. Don’t. Know. 🤦🏼♀️ I held out hope all the way through that something would finally click for me... that I’d have a mind blown mome
...more
”Far beneath the surface of the earth, hidden from the sun and the moon, upon the shores of the Starless Sea, there is a labyrinthine collection of tunnels and rooms filled with stories.”
There are stories that leave you with thousands of questions,
that cause you to topple under the sheer weight of their words.
And then there are stories that leave you with a million questions more,
but each and every single one of them feels like a soft caress.
Like a tender kiss on your longing skin. Like a shive ...more
There are stories that leave you with thousands of questions,
that cause you to topple under the sheer weight of their words.
And then there are stories that leave you with a million questions more,
but each and every single one of them feels like a soft caress.
Like a tender kiss on your longing skin. Like a shive ...more
Here's my video review https://youtu.be/Vsqig2KrvgY
...more
3 stars
Time for those who have read my reviews before to see a bit of deja vu. I have from time to time mentioned books that are artsy for the sake of moving along the story in a unique fashion and they are wonderful. But, on the other side, there are books that are artsy for the sake of being artsy. Books where the weird and fantastic plot points feel forced in order to make the book seem edgy and trendy. This is, of course, in the eye of the beholder, so you may not feel the same about this as ...more
Time for those who have read my reviews before to see a bit of deja vu. I have from time to time mentioned books that are artsy for the sake of moving along the story in a unique fashion and they are wonderful. But, on the other side, there are books that are artsy for the sake of being artsy. Books where the weird and fantastic plot points feel forced in order to make the book seem edgy and trendy. This is, of course, in the eye of the beholder, so you may not feel the same about this as ...more
I had no idea what was happening for 90% of this book, but guess what? I did not give a fuck. I knew something was going to lead to something else, and I knew the story would have gorgeous lyrical writing, and I knew there would be a gay romance. That’s enough for me.
Honestly, I really considered putting this book off for a while because I had made no progress whatsoever. It took me about three weeks to read this book and it put me in a reading slump - hence the reason I took off one star, beca ...more
Honestly, I really considered putting this book off for a while because I had made no progress whatsoever. It took me about three weeks to read this book and it put me in a reading slump - hence the reason I took off one star, beca ...more
“Which way is the Starless Sea?”
I envy everyone who enjoyed the journey to the Starless Sea, because I sure didn’t.
I'm still debating whether I want to rate this 1 or 2 stars. I didn't hate it, but I didn't enjoy most of it.
The Starless Sea follows Zachary Ezra Rawlins as he finds a mysterious book in his school's library. What frightens him the most is how the book features him in it, and Zach slowly becomes a part of the mystery surrounding the book he picked up, thrown into an e ...more
Nov 24, 2019
darmera
added it
No rating yet, because I am still processing. I liked it, but I also didn't? Better review is coming. Those of you who have gotten around to it- what do you think?
...more
ARC provided in exchange for honest review 🌊
GUESS WHO IS BACK TO FUCK ME UP ONCE MORE
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overbooked Book Club: Current Reads | 2 | 8 | Mar 25, 2022 03:33PM | |
| Retro Chapter Chi...: March 2022: The Starless Sea | 55 | 25 | Mar 11, 2022 09:07AM | |
| besties book club<3: The Starless Sea (January 2022) | 1 | 24 | Jan 11, 2022 02:42PM |
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“Strange, isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are. It’s nice to finally have someone read stories I know so intimately.”
—
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“We are all stardust and stories.”
—
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