The Night Circus Read Along: Week 1

Hi everyone! This page is for The Night Circus read along discussions, not the book review, so I would turn around now to avoid spoilers if you aren’t in the read-along!

Week one is hosted by Dear Geek Place! Do note that I copy and pasted the questions (in bold, capital letters) and they are direct quotes from her page.

Lets just jump right in …

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The narrative here seems designed to tell this story with the reader observing from the outside, though the story is full of intimate moments that we get to witness – and not all of those moments are charming or comfortable (ie. Celia’s childhood and her training with Hector). How do you feel about the story so far, given how it’s being told?

So I feel extremely detached from the story so far. The way it’s written in present tense, like “Marco almost drops his pen” makes me feel like it’s playing out on a stage in front of me. Why? What if it was written as “Marco almost dropped his pen”? The difference in tense creates a whole different feel for me but at least Morganstern is consistent with it

I also think it’s weird to randomly intersperse the “you” chapters and then Bailey’s future chapters in with the rest. In the timeline the circus hasn’t even been made yet and there’s no segue between the main story and these other chapters where she’s talking directly to the reader

Overall though I feel like it’s all mood and hardly any action

The story also dovetails the creation of the Circus of Dreams with its establishment and effect on visitors, such as Bailey. Do you enjoy the atmosphere of a circus? And how does this one in particular make you feel?

Ha I kind of talked about Bailey above. I do get that they are trying to show it’s effect on people but it isn’t even created yet and I don’t like the incongruous timeline.

That said – I love circuses. I would love one like this even more where it’s more like a traveling fair of dreams and wonders vs one big tent. I’d love to wander around for a few hours. I’m sure as we discover any potential sinister underlurkings that my opinion on it might change 😂

Celia and Marco could not be more opposite to one another when it comes to magic. What are your first impressions of these “opponents” as the contest begins?

Oh dear, yeah I feel like Marco is quite screwed at this point. He has studied a lot but Celia has learned how to use magic to survive. She could also probably just flash some cleavage to distract him and take him out rather quickly.

Any other thoughts/feelings/theories? Share away!

My only other comment at this point is that the dialogue tags are driving me crazy. Absolutely mad. Isobel asks, Marco says, Isobel asks, Marco says, over and over and over until oblivion. This is part of why I DNF’d the first time, I’m trying to train my mind to just glance over the tags and not get hung on up them

I am enjoying it more than my first attempt though now that I have tempered my expectations for the book 😅

Thanks for the great questions this week!