The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Harvill Secker; First Edition edition (15 Sep 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184655523X
• ISBN-13: 978-1846555237
• In this mesmerizing debut, a competition between two magicians becomes a star-crossed love story. 
  The circus arrives at night, without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within nocturnal black and white striped tents awaits a unique experience, a feast for the senses, where one can get lost in a maze of clouds, meander through a lush garden made of ice, stand awestruck as a tattooed contortionist folds herself into a small glass box, and gaze in wonderment at an illusionist performing impossible feats of magic. 
  Welcome to Le Cirque des Reves. Beyond the smoke and mirrors, however, a fierce competition is underway - a contest between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood to compete in "a game," in which each must use their powers of illusion to best the other. Unbeknownst to them, this game is a duel to the death, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will.
• Cover: Both the UK and US covers of this book are not only stunning but relevant as well!  I know I bang on about that a lot but for me, that's an important factor in a cover.  The black and white colour scheme with a burst of red, the circus, the man and woman even down to the umbrella, hat, birds and cards ARE ALL IN THE BOOK.  Beautiful and relevant- the best type of cover.  This has to be one of my all time favourite covers.
• This book had been sitting on my shelf for over a year!  It's taken me this long to pick it up as a few reviews I'd read commented on the detail of the book, saying it was overly detailed, and the fact that it is an adult fantasy, and not my normal 'go-to' YA I was a little hesitant.
• But now I regret putting it off for as long as I did!   I felt drawn to pick it up as a fancied reading something 'magical' for this time of year.
• I loved this book.  The beautiful setting of the circus- dozens of amazingly detailed and different tents from fortune telling and bottled memories to a cloudmaze and grand illusions.  The variations are wonderful and I couldn't wait to read more of them, discovering more and more tents.  I loved that every once in a while there would be a page addressing the reader directly, 'you walk through the tents' etc and it would wonderful!  It was like Erin Morgenstern placed you into the circus and it gave you the depth to experience it yourself.
• The romance was an aspect I really liked.  I enjoyed both Marco and Celia as characters but felt that I wanted them to interact a little bit more before they were irrevocably in love with each other.  That's my only complaint, otherwise I loved them as a couple.
• The game between the illusionists was definitely interesting, seeing them come up with elaborate ideas and build on each others work.
• The only problem is at the end, despite revelations, I just felt 'what was the whole game for?'
• I have to give The Night Circus 5/5 stars!  I was hooked from the first page!  Every page was sensational and magical and I definitely recommend it to everyone!  It's a must-experience book!
• Whilst it is an adult book I can see this appealing to many readers of YA.