Fantasy comes in many forms. Though I tend to gravitate toward high/epic fantasy, it would be an injustice to ignore the other beautiful forms of the genre. This week’s book is an urban fantasy of sorts – that is, it is a historical fiction set in the real world (late 1800s), but with magic thrown in. It is called The Night Circus, and it is one of the best and most magical books I have read in a long time.
The Night Circus is a stand-alone novel written by Erin Morgenstern published in 2011. The setting, writing, and storytelling of this novel are each unique and enthralling in their own ways. The book has an iconic opening revered by all of its fans:
“The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.”
*shivers of excitement*
The setting of this story is, as you have probably surmised, a traveling circus – one that opens only after dark, and holds magic nearly impossible to comprehend in its city of tents. Simply immersing yourself in this circus is worth reading the book, with delicious descriptions and fantastical elements, illusions, and acts that stretch your mind to the limits of its imagination.
Then there is the writing itself. I am not usually one to appreciate third-person omniscient, nor do I typically relish the present tense, but Erin Morgenstern somehow combined my two least favorite forms of writing and made a story that I never wanted to stop reading. There are even short chapters scattered throughout the book written in second person, as though the reader is experiencing the circus themself. I found these unusual perspectives and writing styles refreshing, and think they added to the immediacy and mystery of the novel.
The story is written non-linearly and from multiple viewpoints, but the two primary characters are Marco and Celia: two magicians raised from childhood by magicians of differing philosophies in preparation for an eventual competition of magic. The circus is the competition’s arena, and none but the competitors know of the dangerous contest underlying the traveling phenomenon. Even Celia and Marco do not fully understand the competition of their masters’ fabrication, which leaves the reader guessing along with them until the end.
The magic in The Night Circus is incredibly ‘soft,’ that is, there are no distinguishable rules or limitations to the magic. It is a magic that can be taught and learned, as well as inherited, but is a rarity in the world simply due to lack of knowledge and belief. The unpredictability and seeming limitlessness of the magic adds to the air of mystery of the story, and enables truly spellbinding effects and scenes, because the reader never knows what to expect. You constantly want to see what the main characters will do with their magic next.
Of course, this novel is also a romance, and a beautifully told one at that. Marco and Celia fall for one another in the midst of their competition, and as the stakes become higher for both them and those in the circus unknowingly tied to their game, they must make difficult choices and do all in their power to hold the circus together.
Recommendation
There are few conditions upon which I would not recommend this book. If you are entirely gung-ho for serious plot, hard magic, and straight-forward writing, perhaps The Night Circus isn’t for you (though I still say give it a try and broaden your horizons ;)). Otherwise, I would recommend this book to any fans of stories and books of all kinds. It is particularly lovely to read in the fall, with the weather getting colder, the skies darker, and leaves floating on the air.
This book will make you feel, which in my opinion is the highest praise of any story out there.
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