imaginaryalchemist's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The Night Circus is pure magic!
Erin Morgenstern is a master of atmosphere, I felt like I was actually at Le Cirque des Rêves, seeing the fantastical performances for myself. The circus itself felt like a character.
I do wish more time had been spent fleshing out Celia and Marco, but that's a minor nitpick. Ultimately the story was more about the circus and it's inner workings, as well as the hidden competition taking place.
My favorite characters by far were Poppet and Widget, they felt the most alive to me. I enjoyed the scenes with them and Bailey exploring the circus. There was a lot of chemistry between Poppet and Bailey.
Overall, I was enthralled by this book. I was drawn into the circus and the world around it. I suppose you could say I've become a rêveur.
Erin Morgenstern is a master of atmosphere, I felt like I was actually at Le Cirque des Rêves, seeing the fantastical performances for myself. The circus itself felt like a character.
I do wish more time had been spent fleshing out Celia and Marco, but that's a minor nitpick. Ultimately the story was more about the circus and it's inner workings, as well as the hidden competition taking place.
Spoiler
The ending was bittersweet, in my opinion. I'm glad Celia and Marco were together in the end, and that the circus lives on, even if it means they only exist within it. I'm also glad that Bailey reunited with Poppet and Widget.My favorite characters by far were Poppet and Widget, they felt the most alive to me. I enjoyed the scenes with them and Bailey exploring the circus. There was a lot of chemistry between Poppet and Bailey.
Overall, I was enthralled by this book. I was drawn into the circus and the world around it. I suppose you could say I've become a rêveur.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Injury/injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Suicide, and Abandonment
Minor: Child abuse and Animal death
Some of what Celia's father, Hector, does can be seen as abusive. At one point he slices open the tips of her fingers repeatedly to get her to practice healing them. There is a brief mention of a dove having its neck snapped. There are mentions of blood and injury. In one scene, Celia stabs her hand with a dagger.Spoiler
Two characters die pretty horrifically. One is hit by a train, the other takes a dagger to the heart. There are mentions of suicide as well, including someone setting herself on firechelseylb1988's review
dark
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Violence, Suicide, and Death of parent
abookwormspov's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Dementia, Suicide, Grief, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Murder, Mental illness, Confinement, Violence, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Death, Torture, Injury/injury detail, and Child abuse
adelll's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Death
Minor: Suicide
zoemaleah's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A creative, whimsical fantasy novel about a forbidden romance and a dangerous game. It had the aura of a fairy tale. The characters weren't unique or multi-dimentional, but that was okay because they served the purpose of the story beautifully. The main plot is romance, but in a way that creates this beautiful, complex story and layers that kept me intrigued. The writing style was descriptive and sensory, and it made me feel like I was there at the circus some times.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Death, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicide
jednakniekinga's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Suicide
eam006's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicide and Murder
mxbluet18's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Trigger warnings for The Night Circus include: child abuse, suicide, blood depiction, death of a parent and animal death.
☆
☆
This story jumps around between perspectives a lot, which I find a little difficult to follow.
~
I was interested in it, but I didn't have an easy time keeping the characters and the timeline straight, which meant I couldn't really work out what was happening a lot of the time, and kept confusing characters and who was who.
~
I think I enjoyed The Starless Sea more than I did this one because I cared more about the characters and events in that one. I'm sure it's a great book for someone, but I wasn't thrilled by it.
☆
☆
This story jumps around between perspectives a lot, which I find a little difficult to follow.
~
I was interested in it, but I didn't have an easy time keeping the characters and the timeline straight, which meant I couldn't really work out what was happening a lot of the time, and kept confusing characters and who was who.
~
I think I enjoyed The Starless Sea more than I did this one because I cared more about the characters and events in that one. I'm sure it's a great book for someone, but I wasn't thrilled by it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Child abuse, and Suicide
nicole12's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, and Child abuse
Minor: Sexual content, Suicide, Cursing, and Body shaming
gen_geeks's review against another edition
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I love this book so much. It’s just so whimsical. The prose is excellent and I constantly feel like I am within the story and the circus itself.
There is not really much of a plot, and you don’t learn that much about each of the characters, so if that bothers you, don’t read this book haha. But the environment and atmosphere in this story is some of the best I’ve ever read.
I love that there are multiple perspectives that we get to explore, and I especially love the framing device of the second person chapters before each act. It really exemplifies the circus atmosphere perfectly and makes you feel even more connected to the story.
The romance subplot (?) is not the best developed but I simply don’t care because the ✨VIBES✨
that’s my only thoughts about this book: the writing craft is impeccable, as are the vibes. The whimsy magical circus has a place in my heart 🥰
There is not really much of a plot, and you don’t learn that much about each of the characters, so if that bothers you, don’t read this book haha. But the environment and atmosphere in this story is some of the best I’ve ever read.
I love that there are multiple perspectives that we get to explore, and I especially love the framing device of the second person chapters before each act. It really exemplifies the circus atmosphere perfectly and makes you feel even more connected to the story.
The romance subplot (?) is not the best developed but I simply don’t care because the ✨VIBES✨
that’s my only thoughts about this book: the writing craft is impeccable, as are the vibes. The whimsy magical circus has a place in my heart 🥰
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide