When I first came across this book, I was a little intrigued. The simple cover caught my eye, but I kept putting it on hold until recently. I was browsing through the library and saw it was available. Much like many of the other times I have found a book I ended up really liking, I said, “What the hell. I’ll give it a shot.”

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern starts out with a second person narrative where you find yourself standing before the gates of a mysterious circus that seems to have appeared from thin air. You, along with the others gathered, are waiting for nightfall when the gates to this mysterious place will open. It’s an interesting technique that is found peppered throughout the book. As the story progresses, so does your journey further into the circus.

The center of the story revolves around a wager between two magicians in which they each choose a student to train and take part in a competition. The two participants, Celia and Marco, are never really told what this competition is or how it works. All that is known is it will involve magic, and the magician training Marco will eventually make the first move. The fact that two of the main characters never actually know more about what they are supposed to be doing than you do is refreshing. It lends to the sense of mystery and creates a feeling of discovery as the details of this challenge unfold themselves to you along with them.

The book covers a span of roughly thirty years; about half of it in the circus itself, which serves as much of the backdrop for the challenge. The circus is a seemingly endless place of wonders that appears to just show up overnight in random places, and departs just as quickly. During the day it is still and quiet, but at night it comes alive with activity. All of the sights and sounds are meticulously planned, and it houses a diverse cast of characters.

One of the places where Morgenstern shines is these characters. While the story mostly revolves around the challenge between Celia and Marco, and the bonds between them, it would be unfair to say it is just about them. The challenge, their relationship, and the circus itself, involves so many other characters. From the Murray twins, nicknamed Poppet and Widget, who were each born on opposite sides of midnight, to Chandresh, the knife throwing eccentric who comes up with the idea for the circus, each character in this story is well developed and unique. They each have their own place, and you often find yourself looking equally forward to seeing how their parts unfold, as you do either of the main characters. More than once I caught myself looking ahead to see when I would be getting back to reading about Bailey, a boy from Connecticut who finds himself drawn to the circus, or the contortionist Tsukiko.

As good as the characters are though, the real joy of this book is how it is written. There is a certain motion to how it is told; some intangible force luring you into the next page as the story starts to take shape, and reveal itself. It develops a flow that is almost as important as the words themselves. The way it moves reflecting the fluid nature of the circus, and breathing life into it. There’s an ethereal cohesiveness in it all, tying it together and making it feel somehow real.

When I started reading the book, I wasn’t sure what to think. I sort of figured early on there may be some romantic elements to it, and there was the very real possibility this could turn into an overly sappy love story. I was pleased how those elements evolved. In the end it actually turned out to be one of the better books I have read in a long time.

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