The Night Circus

Le Cirque des Rêves… A vivid spectacle at the heart of a magical competition...

I loved this book! The description, the layout, and the very idea of a mysterious circus that arrives with no warning are unlike anything one would normally associate with the travelling spectacle. The Night Circus includes magic that misdirection and mirrors can’t explain, clockwork masterpieces, and incomparable performers. If nothing else, the sheer artistry in creating and describing Le Cirque des Rêves—expressed through the voices of its performers, owners, and an unnamed guide describing what readers see as they tour sections of the Circus—is impressive. But this is also the story of a competition—forced upon two phenomenal magicians in their childhood to satisfy a wager made by their guardians — played out with the circus as both a tool and backdrop. The pure spectacle presented outweighs the plot, but the novel is still exceptional.

Fans of Susanna Clarke ( Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell), Genevieve Valentine ( Mechanique), or Audrey Niffenegger ( Her Fearful Symmetry) should give this a try.