THE NIGHT CIRCUS by ERIN MORGENSTERN.SOURCE: A Reading Group read.
The circus arrives without warning.
No announcements precede it ....
It's simply there, when yesterday it was not.
..... Outer back cover.
FIRST SENTENCE {Anticipation}:The circus arrives without warning.
MEMORABLE MOMENT{Page 140}: As the completes the rotation, she is no longer there. Only a few sparkling shimmers remain, echoes of the crystals in her gown.
MY THOUGHTS: Another book that because of all the hype I'd put off reading....until now. If only I'd listened to that little inner voice that worried that surely no novel could be that good.
Revolving around The Night Circus or as it is otherwise known Le Cirque des Reves (The Circus of Dreams), a world that I felt oddly beautiful and yet at the same time disturbingly dark.
The story of two egotistical and, if their latest prodigies, Celia (the daughter of one) and Marco (an orphan raised by the other), are anything to go by, cruel magicians who are engaged in a rivalry to end all rivalries that sees the two youngsters compete in some kind of challenge that I barely understood and came to care about even less.
Definitely one of those books that will divide people into those that love it and those that loathe it. For myself, I felt like one of the crowd at the revealing of the Emperor's New Clothes who stood there wondering what all the fuss was about. If I were to sum up The Night Circus in a few words it would be to say that never had so little been said in so many words.
Full of cardboard characters ranging from those who weren't particularly likeable to those who were downright dislikeable. The story flittered around about as contrived as Celia's jacket turned into a raven.
As for the love story, what can I say about the love story except that though the author reassures us this is NOT a novel aimed at the Young Adult market the dialogue shared between the two lovers makes me think otherwise.
13 comments:
I kept coming back to this one because of all the hype, yet kept avoiding it for one reason or another. In fact, I don't think I ever even put it on my wishlist.
Given your review, I think I can safely just forget about it now.
Each to their own Kelly, you may enjoy it. I can't wait for my Readers Group next Thursday as I think opinions will vary drastically.
Oh I read this one a while ago and I confessI really liked it maybe not as much as some persons but it was a really interesting and different read. Thanks for the review!
I haven't read that one, but it sounds interesting. I may have to check it out.
I do love your reviews Tracy. You somehow manage to ‘say it like it is’. There are so many ‘good’ things to read I don’t want to waste my time on the mediocre, thanks for sorting them out for me!
I keep hearing people say to read this, but it never looked good to me. Guess I shouldn't try it out. ahha
I haven't read this one yet- but it has been on my list for a while. Sorry you didn't enjoy it more. Great to hear your honest thoughts! :)
Ah, I loved the memorable moment as I read it. I thought it to be somewhat intriguing along with the name of the book. But, cardboard characters was such a bummer. Just cannot tolerate books that cut that sort of a picture for its readers. Thanks for another one of your fabulous reviews, Tracy, this is the only place I head to for a genuine voice whenever I am looking out to buy any of my books.
I actually have heard a lot of not so good things about this book.
I wonder what is driving the positive buzz on it.
I actually think that unlikable characters can be a very good thing in fiction, but when they are one dimensional the result is usually very bad.
I liked this one a lot but I can certainly see why others might not (and it took me a while to really get into it). The rivalry is petty, though more than anything else it's just sad, using young people in such a way, and so dark. For that I liked how it ended, even if the ending in itself was somewhat sad.
We read this for book club and I had much the same reaction you did. On the one hand, the descriptions were breathtaking. On the other hand, the utter lack of plot and character development drove me crazy. I ended up rating it a "C".
I didn't particularly enjoy reading The Night Circus myself. I agree, it was definitely aimed at YA romance readers and like yourself, I didn't really care about the rivalry between the two magicians. And what the heck was with Celia's father being in the other dimension? And that ending as well? I was scratching my head at that.
I listened to the audio version of this one and absolutely loved it. I want to go back and read the print version at some point. I am sorry you didn't enjoy it, Tracy.
Hype can be a very dangerous thing. Not all books will appeal to the same people, of course, but high expectations can do their own damage.
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