The Night Circus

The Night Circus had me completely riveted from page one. Everything about this story entranced me - the characters, the magical setting, the suspense of the contest. When I first picked up the book and realized it was about a circus that pops up at night, but is gone by sunrise, I thought how much I would love to see something like that. It's such a fun and mysterious idea! The circus is called Le Cirque des Reves, which translates to The Circus of Dreams - a perfectly fitting title since the entire book evokes a wondrous dreamlike feeling.

Illusionists Celia and Marco are each chosen at a young age to compete against each other in a magical competition when they are older. They do not know each other growing up, but they are each training individually their whole lives, knowing that they will someday meet. The competition is very vague on the rules - all they know is that the competition can only end when one of the participants is no longer able to continue.

As the competition goes on, Celia and Marco fall in love, setting the stakes even higher. They begin to realize that the lives of the other circus performers and the circus itself could be in danger if they don't find a way to end the competition soon. The Night Circus is a book of suspense, romance, and fantasy all wrapped into one and I couldn't put it down!

What I loved most about The Night Circus was that my desire to be able to go to a circus like the one Erin Morgenstern has created only grew stronger as the book went on. I loved the mesmerizing details that she added, such as the black and white colors of the circus, set off by the spurts of red that the attendees use to differentiate themselves. Night Circus is an astounding work of fiction - reading it feels like living a daydream. I highly recommend this book!