Review: The Night Circus

by Erin Morgenstern
Series: none
Hardcover, 387 pages
Published September 13th 2011 by Doubleday
Age Recommendation: YA, Adult

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

The first time I read The Night Circus I was swept away by the dazzling descriptions and immersed in the world of the circus. The second time was not less magical but I could appreciate even more the care taken with each of the story's many facets. This is certainly not an "action book" but it is wonderfully crafted in its own way.

Writing a review for this book is very difficult because every part of the book, like the clock that plays a large role in it, is connected to and entwined with so many other parts that it's impossible to explain what is going on without explaining everything else first.

The writing is amazing. I was completely immersed in Morgenstern's world, experiencing the circus myself together with the other characters. Every few chapters there is a short section describing your - the reader's - experience in the circus: the sights, the sounds, the various tents you enter. And there is also description upon description for every place, every person, every event. I never tired of it. I wanted more.

I really cannot talk about what happens plotwise, but I will say that although the story itself progresses slowly, there is so much going on, so many overlapping layers of plot, that I could not put the book down. The story jumps around both in POV and time, and there are several stories going on at the same time. The first time I read The Night Circus it was a little bit difficult to sort out what was happening when, since I rarely pay attention to dates, but it is not jarring at all to switch from one point of view to another.

There is quite a large cast of characters, and although I felt I didn't know many of the characters well (even some of the main characters remain quite mysterious) I fell in love with all of them. Every character has a special part to play, and they are all memorable and unique.

Overall Thoughts: The Night Circus is truly a gem of a book. It is not for everyone, but for others, including myself, it is absolutely amazing. The writing, the characters, the atmosphere, the world: everything is intricately woven and so lovely. I can't get this magical story out of my mind.

Review: Grave Mercy

by Robin LaFevers
Series: His Fair Assassin, #1
Hardcover, 1st Edition, 549 pages
Published April 3rd 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Age Recommendation: Older YA, Adult

Summary (from Goodreads):
Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

Grave Mercy was absolutely fantastic. It's a bit different from what the summary would suggest, and I'm really glad I read Small Review's review before I began the book, since it gave me much more accurate expectations. Not to say that I had to lower my expectations, but the plot is far more centered around political intrigue and the various machinations of the different characters. Yet even though I didn't get a rollicking action plot, I adored the story I ended up with.

The story begins in a less-than-nice way. Ismae is leaving a brutal childhood for an arranged marriage that seems a no better situation. She manages to escape after some rather nasty incidents and is taken to the convent of St. Mortain, where she dedicates her life to fulfilling the wishes of the god of death. You can read the first chapter on Robin LaFevers' website here. (A note before you click over: as I said before, this chapter has some less-than-nice things in it. The rest of the book is not nearly this harsh.)

The scenes in the convent were pretty darn awesome. Ismae doesn't just say, "I learned how to use a dagger..." but actually describes her different lessons and totally immerses the reader in the world of the convent. Daughters of Mortain (Ismae is literally a daughter of Mortain) often have special abilities granted to them by the god, and Ismae's is immunity to poison. She, therefore, specializes in learning about different poisons. In Ismae's time at the convent, she and the reader are both introduced to Annith and Sybella, the main characters of the other two books in the trilogy (Yes, it is a trilogy, but don't worry! Grave Mercy works wonderfully as a standalone).

In fact, Robin LaFevers just released a scene from the convent that was ultimately cut from the novel. You can view it here at the blog Feeling Fictional. It takes place at the convent and is an excellent example of how LaFevers describes Ismae's training.

Ismae is a fantastic character. She is a strong person but has just enough weakness to steal your heart. For all her fantastic assassin skills, she is struggling to find her place. She is so eager to get out there and start killing people (as is the reader), but she is forced to keep up her pretense as Duval's mistress in order to root out the secrets of the palace.

There is not a lot of action and not a lot of assassinations. I think Ismae kills around four people, total, in all 550 pages. There are a few people whom she helps to die, but she doesn't actually assassinate them herself. But if you were expecting lots of action and Katsa-like awesomeness, prepare to change your expectations or be disappointed.

At this point, some of you may be thinking, "This doesn't sound like a very interesting book. No action? No killing?" Never fear. I could barely tear my eyes away from the pages. The story flew by. I didn't ever feel like I was reading a 500+ page book. I was too engrossed in the story. I finished the entire book in two days, largely because I practically refused to put it down. Even though Ismae is not killing everyone off or using her amazing convent training, there is so much going on.

The majority of the story takes place in the court of Anne of Brittany. Every single character has some plot to carry out or some scheme they are trying to keep secret. Ismae has her hands full figuring them all out, while at the same time, trying to fulfill her mission from the convent. All the complex politics were really fun to read about, and as Robin LaFevers writes in her author's note (some slight spoilers), they are all true. In reality, there was actually even more going on, but she trimmed some of the characters and plots because it was getting to be just too much, and the book ended up at nearly 550 pages regardless.

Part of what kept me so interested was the superb world building. As I mentioned in the last paragraph, much of what is in the book is completely true. LaFevers certainly did her historical research, and it shows in the execution. I totally felt like I was there: at the convent, in the court; anywhere Ismae went, I was instantly transported.

And then, finally, there is Duval. I'm spoiling it now: Ismae falls in love with Duval by the end of the book. But I loved the super-slow, hate-to-love romance. Duval is a wonderful character, love interest of not, and he was Ismae's perfect counterpart. I loved the scenes they were in together (which, I suppose, is nearly the whole book), because they worked together so well.

The other characters were great as well: no cardboard cutouts to be seen. I couldn't always get into the heads of the side characters, but I was fascinated with how they played this complex game.

Overall Thoughts:
Quite a spectacular book. There are so many layers upon layers, and lots of different political schemes. Although the action is limited, I was enthralled by the unfolding plots and Ismae's character development. Highly recommended.

Age Recommendation:

I almost never put an age warning at the end of my reviews, but I think this book needs it. This is definitely not a book for younger teens. There is nothing too explicit, but there are many adult themes and references, and the book is written for a mature audience. I would recommend for 16+.

The Death of Achilles

By Boris Akunin
Start Date: sometime in late December
End Date: 23 January 2011
320 pages (Paperback Edition)
Published 18 April 2006

I have to say, this is totally different from most of the stuff I read. Sure, I like variety, but most of my variety is within YA Fiction. Having said that, this was, quite simply, a great book.

If I had to stick a label on this book, I’d say “Russian Spy Novel”. The thing is, it’s so much more than just a Russian spy novel. The premise is as follows: Erast Fandorin, returning to Russia after a few years in Japan, is appointed Collegiate Assessor and is sent to investigate the death of Russian war hero Sobalev, also known as "the Russian Achilles”. Filled with mystery, action, betrayal, and everything else that makes a good mystery, the first half of the book is completely engrossing.

Halfway through the book, our hero has figured out who the villain is, and he’s about the knock on the door to arrest him when the story suddenly stops and starts over from the villain’s point of view. As infuriating as this was, Akunin executed it superbly, and it was what brought it from a good book to a great book.

What impressed my most was Akunin’s mastery of crafting the characters. When telling from the villain’s point of view, he tells the story so expertly that even though you know that he’s committing these horrendous acts, you’re almost rooting for him – until he starts messing with Fandorin.

*SPOILER*

Even at the end, however, I wanted him to go off and live on his island with Wanda. Alas, ‘twas not to be. Sigh.

*END SPOILER*

If I had one complaint about The Death of Achilles, it’d have to be all those darn names. I listened to it on audiobook, but I can imagine it’d be even harder to get the names straight when reading. Since it’s set in Russia, everyone has a 3-part Russian name (with far too many syllables in my opinion), and as if this wasn’t enough, sometimes characters are called by their first and middle names, sometimes by their last name, and sometimes by their title. By halfway through the book, I’d find myself randomly running through the characters’ names in my head. For example, Fandorin is sometimes called Erast Petrovich, sometimes Fandorin, and sometimes the Collegiate Assessor (I’m not quite sure what a collegiate assessor actually is, but that’s Fandorin’s title.) Also, the villain who shall continue to remain nameless for the sake of having as few spoilers as possible has several aliases throughout the book in addition to his name. By the end it was pretty easy to keep all the names straight, but toward the beginning you just have to keep listening without knowing who have the people are.

I’d recommend The Death of Achilles to high school and adult readers. The storytelling is fascinating enough to keep younger readers’ attention, but in part II (the villain’s side of the story) there are some mature themes and violence. I even skipped one of the chapters because it didn’t really contribute to the overall storyline and it was simply reaffirming what a horrible person he was. For older readers, however, I’d highly recommend it, especially the audio version- the narrator is great.

Imperium

By Robert Harris

Start Date: 3 September 2010
End Date: 18 December 2010
400 pages (Paperback Edition)
Published 7 August 2007
Recommended for: High school or adult readers interested in history

Imperium is about the complex politics of Ancient Rome. The story is centered on Cicero, a Roman politician. The first part of the story follows him as he learns how to be an orator and Harris slowly introduces the reader to some of the characters that are to play a larger part later. Then he begins to build his reputation as a lawyer and prosecutes Gaius Verres, an extremely corrupt governor. Both during an after that accomplishment, he struggles to gain imperium, political power, by cleverly maneuvering the treacherous waters of Roman politics.

As I’ve mentioned several times in earlier posts, the beginning of this book was incredibly slow. However, I’m glad I stuck with it. About 60 or 70 pages in, it was engaging enough for me to get the nagging little voice in the back of my mind that pops up whenever I’m reading a good book, telling me to “just read a few more pages; forget the math homework.” About halfway through the book it got to a climax, the thing that he was working towards for the entire book to that point, and it was getting really interesting and really good, and then he had the climax and the resolution and then there was still another half of the books to go, and I was like, what the heck? At that point, part I ends, and Harris moves on to part II. Part II is written in a much more engaging style than part I, partially because the reader already knows the characters and partially because part II feels like a sequel rather than a continuation of the story. Harris focuses less on individual details and writes with a slightly different style as well as having a different goal than part I.

Ultimately, I would recommend it (mostly to adult readers, I think high schoolers would get bored much to quickly) but be prepared to stick with it through the slow bits.