The Night Circus

Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus is a magical book.

When Celia Bowen was five she went to live with her father. Soon her father had a colleague, a man in a gray suit, in to meet Celia. She was embarked in a contest against an unknown person that would shape the rest of her life. As an adult, she becomes the illusionist for the Night Circus. The audience members don't realize that her tricks weren't illusions, but real magic.

The man in the gray suit adopted Marco Alexander from an orphanage when he was young. Marco grew up knowing he was part of some sort of magic contest. When his boss interviews Celia for the new circus he is creating, Marco knows Celia is his opponent. The circus is the venue of their competition. No one except Celia, Marco, and their mentors know the truth. Celia doesn't know for many years that Marco is her opponent.

Le Cirque des Reves appears one day outside a city. It hadn't been there the day before. No schedule is posted. No flyers are distributed. Its sign says it opens at nightfall and closes at dawn. People enter to see a completely black and white circus - from the large clock inside the entrance to the tents to the contents to the costumes. It's a different world full of illusions and fortunes, high wire acts and contortionists, caramel popcorn and chocolate mice. Then one day it is gone again, vanishing as suddenly as it appears.

It's difficult to say much more about The Night Circus. The story twists about on itself. The magic that Celia and Marco put into the circus is amazing. The characters are well defined and pull in the reader. The Night Circus jumps around some in chronology, but is easy to follow once Erin Morgenstern's style is obvious. What first appears to be many different threads twine together into a solid story that hits the heart strings and the fantasy strings.

The Night Circus is a must read.