The Night Circus in Read With Sammy

Jun 03, 2015 Sam Kyle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Fantasy and romance fans have been raving about The Night Circus ever since it was first published so I'm surprised it took me so long to pick it up. It has everything that could attract me as a reader: magic, dueling magicians, magic, a mysterious circus, magic, romance, and, oh yeah, magic!

Based on reviews I had a certain idea of what the plot would be and how the story would unfold. However, my preconceived notions were completely blown away. I had the notion that it would be a lot like The P Fantasy and romance fans have been raving about The Night Circus ever since it was first published so I'm surprised it took me so long to pick it up. It has everything that could attract me as a reader: magic, dueling magicians, magic, a mysterious circus, magic, romance, and, oh yeah, magic!

Based on reviews I had a certain idea of what the plot would be and how the story would unfold. However, my preconceived notions were completely blown away. I had the notion that it would be a lot like The Prestige (you know, that movie where Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman try to kill each other with magic tricks) but with maybe more of a romantic flavor. Sure, both of these stories have the dueling magicians plotline in common but the similarities end there.

First of all, Celia and Marco are hardly ever together. Celia works her magic within the circus, while Marco works from outside. So they don't get a lot of face time. Yes, they have a few stolen romantic moments, which are quite nice, but I found the love story felt sort of stifled because of the distance between the two characters. The romance simmers beneath the surface almost the entire book until it boils over in the climactic ending. So readers wanting a fast-paced, passionate romance won't find it here. Still, I think it worked in the story overall.

Speaking of slow pacing, the entire story doesn't really get off the ground until about 200 pages in. I feel the author was taking her time fleshing out the characters and the plot to achieve a more dramatic effect at the end but there were times when I really wanted the action to pick up. I suppose I expected dueling magicians in the sense of like, wizard duels in Harry Potter but instead, Celia and Marco compete by building more and more extravagant exhibits for the circus. So, it's pretty light on action, too.

Okay, this is beginning to sound like I didn't enjoy the book at all. I actually really did like it (hence the 4 star rating.) It was just different from what I expected.

The thing I enjoyed most about the book was the lyrical, vivid writing. Erin Morgenstern is a magician with words, weaving enchanting images that play out in the reader's mind like a movie. I could smell the popcorn, feel the canvas tents, see the incredible illusions being performed. Her imagination is truly staggering and, with descriptions like that, I don't begrudge her the 500 page count at all.

The Night Circus is a magical reading experience and I'm so glad I finally got around to reading it. Some people want there to be a sequel but I think it works perfectly as a stand-alone novel. I would kill to see a film version, though. ...more

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Mar 02, 2016 Jonne rated it it was amazing

This book is sooo good! It's so hard to describe what the book is about. But I'll try.

The book is about two ancient, equally good but vastly different magicians picks their best pupils against one another in a contest, or game if you will. The setting is a magnificent, magical circus that's only open at night. It moves from one country to another, without warning or advertisements. The contestants both do not know the rules, or how the winner is determined. Only through out will they both find o ...more

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Aug 11, 2018 Winter Benson rated it liked it

I can't really say I loved this book. I also didn't hate it. It was good after the half way point. I didn't like the way the chapters were laid out. How you'd have to go back and check the years and where they were all the time. Otherwise the story was fine and I liked the characters well enough. ...more

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