catherinedsharp's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-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? It's complicated
4.0
Good book! Some beautiful passages with a fun plotting with bits that kept me guessing. Nothing that completely moved me or changed my life, but I believe that was because this book is more ‘good, cool vibes’ with less of a concrete plot. This would be something to bare in mind, but overall, a pretty good read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Blood, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Death
vas_17's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Alcohol, Abandonment, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Blood, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
raypaws's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
surprisingly good..
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Child abuse
Minor: Blood, Suicide, and Death of parent
stupidwittlebaby's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content, Animal death, and Blood
artstitute's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'm a fan of Erin Morgenstern, so understand that when I say this I don't say it with any malice: her books are reliably 0% character, 0% plot, and 1,000% Vibes. And I love it.
Are you looking for something character driven, in which the protagonists behave as three-dimensional human beings with fleshed out inner worlds? Skip this. Are you looking for something plot-driven, that ties up every loose string and delivers a fleshed-out hard magic system? Pass. Do you want a story full of love, whimsy, magic, beautiful ekphrasis and vivid phantasmagorical imagery that conjures a world of magic in your mind? Then this is the book for you!
This isn't my first time reading this book, but it is my first time since high school, and I found the ending more satisfying this time around.
Are you looking for something character driven, in which the protagonists behave as three-dimensional human beings with fleshed out inner worlds? Skip this. Are you looking for something plot-driven, that ties up every loose string and delivers a fleshed-out hard magic system? Pass. Do you want a story full of love, whimsy, magic, beautiful ekphrasis and vivid phantasmagorical imagery that conjures a world of magic in your mind? Then this is the book for you!
This isn't my first time reading this book, but it is my first time since high school, and I found the ending more satisfying this time around.
Spoiler
I think that while before I saw Marco and Celia's ascension (so to speak) as a cop-out, I now see it as them finally freeing themselves from the cycle of abuse perpetuated by Prospero and Mr. A H—. I did still find Tsukiko's role in their ascension a little disappointing, especially how she approached it. I think the twist that she was a former contender needed more room to breathe than it got.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Death
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
The first solid chunk of this book is just a detailed description of child abuse and neglect.tsar's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
“People see what they wish to see. And in most cases, what they are told that they see.”
In the world of magicians, it is wise to ingrain the essential rules of performing magic tricks in front of the spectacle that you would like to entertain, in which one of the customs requires you to perform them under the right circumstances while keeping its secrets to yourselves. The consequences, as its tirelessly reminded on stages, could be dire effects on the well-being of the performers or to the audience that attend to their shows.
Taking the phrase "magic tricks" in the most literal manner, Morgenstern transforms the engaging competition between aspiring magicians into a vicious rivalry that languidly drains the soul of the performers, binding them to a never-ending contract of a magical contest that lasts until the timely death of one of the competitors. In constructing the life-long magical battle, she composes a chronological tale that chronicles the respective contestants from their childhood learnings to the moment where they have mastered their respective specialties. Consequently, regardless of the plethora of characters written in the book, the encircled focus transpires The Night Circus to be exclusively Celia and Marco in every aspect of their staggering evolution.
As each chapter takes a turn in highlighting the tremendous achievements acquired by the young performers, it subtly imbues the personal conflict of interest that is as passionate as their desire of victory, which is a burning romance that intensifies the climaxing battle of morality that has been mentally trained to avoid such precaution for years to come. Its seeping romantic angle is likely expected as a delectable element to heighten the pressure of the conflict, however, Morgenstern does not let its love affair constrains the exploration in playing the deadly circus game. Instead, it opens to new possibilities where Celia and Marco could force the competition to play in the way that they desire to execute to reach the ultimate victory that frees them from the impending years of wicked torture.
Conclusively unique, its form of narrative could be perceived as an uncommon construction that might not be the cup of tea of casual readers as its penchant of utilizing the time jump element could be distracting to be followed rather than being acknowledged to be an intriguing story-telling arrangement. To speak from personal references, I find that the time-skip factor as the most crafty feature to draw the readers into the mystical journey of Celia and Marco in The Night Circus, as it brings a fascinating look on their characters that analyzes each of their moves without the feeling of invasiveness but serene enlightenment.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Violence
Moderate: Blood
hannas_ink_prints's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Taianominen ja hätkähdyttävä lukukokemus, jonka aiheuttamaa tunnetta on vaikea kuvailla. Ylipäätään tästä kirjasta on vaikea sanoa mitään. Yösirkus on unenomainen ja vangitseva tarina, joka lumoaa lukijan. Pitkästä aikaa kirja, jota paloin halusta lukea eteenpäin ja joka jäi pyörimään ajatuksiin. Tarinassa on uskomattoman uniikki tunnelma, joka on selvästi kirjan paras asia. Tarina on täynnä yksityiskohtia sekä tietynlaista runsautta. Se kulkee eteenpäin eri hahmojen ja eri aikatasojen kautta, joka tekee tarinasta erityisen herkullisen. Itse ainakin palasin vuosilukuihin jatkuvasti pysyäkseni kärryillä.
Yösirkuksen taianomaisuudesta huolimatta, siitä silti puuttui jotain. Celian ja Marcon rakkaudesta puuttui mielestäni syvyyttä eikä hahmoihin muutenkaan kiintynyt. Vaikka nämä olivat persoonallisia, niin silti hahmot jäävät etäisiksi. Lopetus oli omaan makuun ehkä turhan pliisu.
Lopulta Yösirkus on moniulotteinen teos, jsota löytyy varmasti pureskeltavaa vielä seuraavallekin lukukerralle.
Yösirkuksen taianomaisuudesta huolimatta, siitä silti puuttui jotain. Celian ja Marcon rakkaudesta puuttui mielestäni syvyyttä eikä hahmoihin muutenkaan kiintynyt. Vaikka nämä olivat persoonallisia, niin silti hahmot jäävät etäisiksi. Lopetus oli omaan makuun ehkä turhan pliisu.
Lopulta Yösirkus on moniulotteinen teos, jsota löytyy varmasti pureskeltavaa vielä seuraavallekin lukukerralle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Blood, and Child abuse
rosenau's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Death, and Murder
Minor: Body horror
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