Imagine waking up to find a circus that you didn’t know was coming in an open field just on the outskirts of your town. A large crowd gathers around it, but no one goes inside because it isn’t open. A sign on the gate reads that the circus, known as Le Cirque des Reves, opens at dusk and is open until dawn. All day, all anyone can talk about is the circus. You make sure that you are one of the first in line that night and when the gates open you are met with a magical sight you could only imagine in your dreams.

For Celia and Marco, the circus is their playground. As two illusionists, they were pitted against each other in a battle to see who is the better magician when they were very young. However, neither of them know that the other is their competition. So when romantic feelings get mixed it, the competition becomes harder to take seriously. Especially after it is revealed that the loser loses their life.

After seeing The Night Circus in Target several months ago, I had been itching to read it. I was hooked within the first few sentences I read in the store. The thought of a circus only open at night, and the different aspects described about the circus in the book, intrigued me and drew me in.

You really fall in love with the characters and begin to cheer them on. I only had two problems with this book. The first was I thought Morgenstern kind of glossed over some characters, such as Celia’s father and Isobel (a little). I wish they were in it a little more, but I’m sure she had her reasons for writing it the way she did. My second issue was I didn’t really feel the love between Marco and Celia. It just seemed so sudden and out of no where, especially since they barely see each other, that to be so strong between the both of them came off as fake.

However, this book of love, mystery, and fantasy will still thrill fantasy readers of almost every age.

Grade: A