I just read this book. The prose is absolutely lovely, but I read this whole book feeling like I was missing something. The plot was just… empty? It felt like the author had the whole story in their mind, but neglected to actually make the details of it clear to the reader.
There wasn't any real emotional investment in almost anyone. It felt like the main characters barely had any interaction before they were madly in love, and there's a scene that I think is supposed to be this awful, heartbreaking scene, but the response of the characters just wasn't there.
It was definitely not a terrible book, and as I said, the writing style was lovely. It was just one of those books where I finished it, but didn't want to just… rest? in the world afterwords, and probably won't read it again.
Did you read it? Did you like it?
Edited for spelling mistake
by aboxacaraflatafan
49 Comments
I really liked it, but I don’t know if I would if I read it again.
I’ve read it, I liked it! However I had a glaring complaint and it was all Marco. I hated that man. Very much a copy and paste from another book post, but Isobel did not deserve any of the treatment that she got from him. She volunteers herself to help him with his game, an endeavor lasting Years, and gets treated terribly for it. He never officially breaks up with her, so Isobel is justifiably concerned about Marco’s flagrant interest in Celia, yet, Isobel is never mean to Celia about it. She is immediately proven correct in the sense, that Marco gains full intentions of dropping Isobel like some dead dog for Celia, without ever talking to Isobel about his desires at all. Almost immediately after he meets Celia, Marco goes around treating Isobel like TRASH. He goes on multiple times about how she means nothing to him, when she had not done a single wrong thing to him. She had done nothing but attempt to help him in a game that he ended up having no intention in playing. He refuses to engage with her in any form of conversation, and when she tries to press a conversation towards the end of the book, he just constantly cuts her off and refuses to listen to anything she’s saying. Horrendous man! Dead ah I thought for a second that the circus staff were gonna turn on Marco, and that Marco was going to turn into some kind of obsessive, power mad villain by the end, someone who could not be told no.
Yeah. I kept feeling like the author was just describing things. Maybe the author was so certain about the feelings or how compelling the characters were that they felt it was self-evident. But for me I was just waiting for SOMETHING to happen.
As a book to start the year with, this was certainly the wrong choice. There was an element of possibility to it. To the characters, to the plot, to the world, to the concept, that all just went unexplored. Rather, the author chose to portray something common place, something typical. Which wouldn’t have been an issue if I hadn’t had the feeling, while reading, that I was supposed to be impressed by it. >!Genuinely, was I supposed to feel something when Tara and Friedrick died? The only thing I felt was irritation when I realised that their deaths, the aftermath, wasn’t something that was going to be dealt with. It was like dropping an ice cream, really, even to the characters themselves. The Bailey, Poppet, and Widget plotline was the most interesting bit of the story, and even that was kind of limp.!<
That was my reaction to the book as well. I kept expecting to love it, but I just…didn’t. I liked it. it’s a pleasant read, for the prose, as you said. But I just wasn’t deeply engaged. I kept expecting more to happen. The whole thing felt very low stakes.
I did read her next book, The Starless Sea, and I adored it. And it’s funny because I know a lot of people were very disappointed in that one. Many who read it said they adored Night Circus and expected so much from Starless Sea but it didn’t deliver. Maybe try Starless Sea and see if that one works better for you.
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I’ve read it after one of my friends raved about it and said it was what love was supposed to be like, etc. (in highsight he was in his 40s, and his longest relationship was 6 months, with most of it being long distance)
It really wasn’t the book for me. They seemed to magically be in love at the snap of the fingers, with no real reason as to why, or any character depth. It felt like a child’s idea of love to me. The book main plot point was that they were in love and were fighting for love, which didn’t work for me. Why are you in love? How are you connected?
Realistically, it was an ok book and really needed more development to be great.
I learned a very valuable lesson while reading this book. Never take only 1 book with you on holiday. I was stuck in an off-grid cabin with just this book and it bored me to tears 💀
I love this book solely for the imagery, and almost entirely ignore the plot.
I felt the same about this book. I liked the prose well enough and enjoyed the magical world but the story itself was terrible. The romance, in particular, fell flat and I found it super corny. I did not care for them as a couple in the least. The ending was weirdly abrupt too. It seemed to me that the author spent more time imagining the world than understanding human relationships and dynamics. I found the book overall uneven and inconsistent.
I read it years ago but I loved it. The story felt fresh and new. I couldn’t get through starless sea.
I agree, I really enjoy her prose but her other book – The Starless Sea – was vastly superior.
I love the vibe of her writing, tho.
I just finished this last night! I feel… Confused and bewildered, if I’m being honest. It was gorgeously written, but I feel as though I was on the outside, instead of slowly being let into the world of the book.
I saw several reviews where people said they had to read it a second time to fully grasp it. I feel as though that shouldn’t be necessary for a book.
I thought it was just okay, too. The ending was definitely a let down. I don’t regret reading it but I won’t pick it back up again.
I struggle with this often, but generally find that a well-written book with a poor plot (I’m thinking House of Cotton) is legions better than a poorly-written book with an interesting plot (I’m think My Heart is a Chainsaw). Though Ideally both are good, lol.
This was a DNF for me.
You hit the nail on the head. I read it with huge expectations and didn’t even finish it. Very disappointing.
Totally agreed. I didn’t get the hype at all.
I liked the first half, and then the second half lost me. Like the world-building was awesome, but the plot didn’t go where it felt like it should’ve.
One of the most disappointing books I’ve ever read – it started off so well, it was so intriguing. The Prestige is one my favorite movies ever and I was so excited to read a Victorian era book about dueling magicians.
Ugh what a pointless book it ended up being. I read this book in my book club and a girl wasn’t able to finish the end of it – so she asked what happened. The ending was so confusing, convoluted, and nonsensical that like 5 of us all tried to explain the ending but we couldn’t even agree on what happened.
Beautiful imagery, absolutely pointless plot. The competition between the two magicians was underwhelming.
I haven’t read this book yet (though it’s on my list) but I have heard this book is often referred to as “no plot only vibes” so I feel like that’s a common theme in majority of people that read it. It’s just pure vibes
I absolutely hated or didn’t care about any character in the book. I especially hated the two main characters.
But the circus, the attraction, the descriptions were all top notch 👌
Your assessment is spot on.
There is an FAQ on her site that this book began as a NaNoWriMo project, which is where you try to write a novel (50k words) in the month of November.
With that in mind, I think this book makes sense as a lot of interesting ideas pushed out quickly with probably 0 planning for plot arc or any of the other structures that would usually be there.
I listened to the audiobook, so that probably influenced my reading. I thought it made sense how Celia and Marco basically lived for each other their whole lives, and basically put their psyches on display for each other eith their tents, so it was natural that tgey would fall in love. I feel like the main love story in the book was the audience with the circus, though, and that it was fine that Marco and Celia were odd and flat. Because of course they would be because their whole lives were abusive and crazy.
I felt the same, that’s why I stopped reading it before I reached the end. I felt like the amazing premise was wasted on the actual story, which seemed to taper into a more or less mediocre love story.
I read it and felt the same way. I kept waiting for the shoe to drop. I almost didn’t finish it but the writing/imagery kept me going. At the end I was disappointed and felt like “that’s it?’
Thank god. I thought my brain broke.
The descriptions of food, the imagery, absolutely mouth-watering.
The plot is non-existent.
I liked the visuals, hated everything else, especially the main characters.
I have this book, I haven’t read it yet but I have exclusively heard it described as “all vibes, no plot” haha
I completely agree. I just left it feeling “what the hell was the point of that?”. I finished it because I finish books, not because anything kept me engaged.
Also agree that I don’t judge people for liking it. I think it’s one of those ones where if the atmosphere grabs you you’ll have a good time. It didn’t. I didn’t.
I guess I wanted it to be more like Gormenghast, with off kilter characters and subtle, socially-aware weirdness, and it was just a lot blander than that.
Never read it, but looking at the comments here sounds like another Morgenstern book in need of an abridged version 🙂
I couldn’t finish it. Just didn’t keep me interested. It had a lot of style, but after I slogged all the way through Blood Meridian I promised myself I’d always have a plot.
I’ve read it twice. If you go in expecting a story or plot tension, you will be disappointed. If you go in wanting a cozy and atmospheric read with fated lovers and a more or less happy ending, it’s a great story.
Some readers like having light reads where they can just enjoy the ambiance. I tend to pick up this book (or ones like it) on in-between reads and/or to listen to at bedtime.
It’s a book with a specific mood and purpose. When I want a strong plot, intrigue, or tension, I pick up something else.
Agreed. I read it a long time ago but honestly forgot entirely about it until seeing this post because it was beautiful prose but lacked substance IMO. It was worth the read but not something I’d pick up again. One and done.
I loved the world and the magic. I disliked the nonlinear timeline. I hated the ending, the whole climax up through the final words of the book. The suuuuuper overdone “I think I can fix this on my own so I’m going to betray you and run off and try on my own instead of talking about it like adults” had me so frustrated with the author.
I still consider it a book that I loved, simply for how much I loved the magic, but did not care for the characters, relationships, weird resolution, and fizzled ending.
I read it. Looong time ago. The premise seemed cool, it had some beautiful writing, but it fell way flat for me. Surprised me to see this book brought up here recently and people absolutely loving it. I’m glad it connected to so many people, don’t get me wrong- it just completely passed me by.
Totally agree. I liked The Starless Sea more, but I had a similar reaction to it as well. I think Ms Morgenstern is very talented, but we’re still waiting for her best.
Don’t forget that it is a NaNoWriMo books that got famous for being published. The purpose of the book is as an achievement, to be able to say “I wanted to do it, so I did it”. The purpose is largely to let go of your expectations and judgement, and to write in order to have written. Most NaNoWriMo books are fairly bad and never see the light of day, but the accomplishment of existing is all they were ever meant to be.
Hard agree. The settings sounded lovely but there was nothing really there. I was so disappointed overall, it was so hyped up.
It’s one of my favorites, the imagery is really romantic.
The Starless Sea was like a dream and I remember reading it over a weekend in January with snow falling and warm tea. So my memory of the book is definitely skewed towards perfection and comfort, but it was great. I really enjoy the author’s style.
I would love to see this as a movie with improvements to the plot and character development
That’s how I felt too. The writing style was so beautiful and I thought the intricacies of the story were very clever. But when I was done I just… didn’t care?
I read this last year and literally don’t remember what the story was beyond some very broad strokes haha. Enjoyed all the imagery and stuff for sure, written very lovely.
I liked this book, and it is beautiful to read for sure. But it definitely feels empty emotionally. I wanted to have more emotional responses to it, but never did.
It’s one of those ‘all vibes, no plot’ books. I loved it, but I can absolutely understand why others don’t.
I thought of it like a dream, where things happen or sort of drift by and they may or may not have a deeper meaning. I thoroughly enjoyed it because I like this type of dreamy, ethereal story where you might not even be sure what happened.
I loved it. I tend to really enjoy existential weirdness and this book had a lot of it. It was essentially just a bunch of vignettes loosely strung together but the vignettes were so good. The description of the clock being made, going through the tent with all the perfumes, describing the magic auditions.
I had the same reaction. I didn’t hate it, but I expected so much from the way it was hyped up on social media, and when I finally read it, it felt… shallow? Distant? I’m not sure of the best word, but it was like there was a veil between me and the characters. I definitely resonate with what you’re saying. Cool idea, pretty prose, hard to connect emotionally, in my opinion.