Book Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

★★

Keyword Synopsis: Circus, Illusionism, Romance

Pros: Beautifully written, likeable characters

Cons: Confusing perspectives and time jumps, slow developing plot

Warning: minor spoilers included

Hello everyone!

Anyone who has spoken to me about The Night Circus while I was reading it, will know that I had a lot of trouble getting through it. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot. I had seen the book on Instagram many times, and everyone was incredibly excited about it, saying how in love they were with the story. So, if a book has a pretty cover and people say it is good, I will buy it and I will read it. Eventually.

And now I have! It took me about four months. The reason for this is because it was impossible for me to get through the first 200 pages. Yes, you read that right, the first 200 pages of a 387-page book. The main problem I had is that it switches perspectives. Now I’m already not a fan of switching perspectives as some of you might now, but in this case there were three main points of view (POV) it kept switching between. In addition, there were about five or six one-off perspectives that sometimes came in between, as well as a POV written in the second person, which just felt odd to say the least.

However, I could have gotten past the issue of the perspectives, if they hadn’t been dated. All the chapters had a place and a date attached to them. This resulted in me spending an abnormal amount of time going back and forth through the book to figure out how the chapter fit in with the others, as the chapters weren’t chronological.

Lastly, I thought the synopsis was quite misleading. It states “At the heart of the story is the tangled relationship between two young magicians, Celia, the enchanter’s daughter, and Marco, the sorcerer’s apprentice. At the behest of their shadowy masters, they find themselves locked in a deadly contest, forced to test the very limits of the imagination, and of their love.” Yes, that is what this story is about.

From page 200 onwards.

Before page 200, the two don’t talk to each other. Not really, at least. When they do have their first legit conversation, they’re both suddenly in love. Moreover, I still don’t understand “the contest” the synopsis refers to. I didn’t understand why the contest existed, I don’t know how the venue was chosen, and I still don’t understand the rules. I think that was the intention, as the main characters didn’t seem to understand the contest either.

However, from page 200 onwards is where this book racks up its two stars. At this point the pace is picked up and at times I had trouble putting it down. I very much loved the Murray Twins, who started to play a larger part as the story developed. And then there is Bailey. Bailey, the real MVP of this story, deserved a star all on its own. In this sense, I admired how much I could empathise with characters who are secondary, especially in a book where your attention is divided between so many different characters.

In short, I felt like the book spent a bit too much time on world-building and setting the scene, at the expense of the plot and its characters. It was difficult to really relate to the characters to the extent that at some points I even forgot their names. But that is only applicable to the first part of the book. The second half of the book was enjoyable and I finished it in a matter of a few days, as opposed to the months I spent on the first half. However, I want to state once more that after speaking to some other people about this book, it seems it is one you either love or hate. So, I suggest you try it for yourself and let me know what you thought of the Night Circus!