The Starless Sea: A Novel

You know those books that become a part of you? The Starless Sea is one of those. My eyes are still tearing up. This one has taken up permanent residence in a corner of my soul. It's such a beautiful story about stories and love and... well, I don't want to give too much away. I need to read this one again. And again.

I am a huge fan of The NIght Circus and I have been eagerly waiting for Ms. Morgenstern to write a second book. Having now read The Starless Sea, I can understand why it took her eight years to craft this amazing and imaginative story. For the first half of this book I was planning to say that The Starless Sea was superior to The Night Circus. But the story bogged down for me and I had trouble fully understanding what was going on. I still don’t understand part of what was going on, but the ending was nice and not as confusing. As noted by other reviewers, this may be a book that you have to read a couple of times to grasp all the plot lines. This is such a fantastical story that a brief summary is challenging. Graduate student Zachary Ezra Rawlins, is an avid gamer and reader. And the son of a fortune teller. He finds a mysterious book of fairy tales in the university library. At least he thought he was reading fairy tales until one of the chapters describes an event that happened to him as a young boy when he found a hidden door but did not go through it. Intrigued and disturbed, he tries to figure out more about this book. This leads him to a literary masquerade ball in NYC and a meeting with a mysterious woman named Mirabel. There are also symbolic clues of swords, bees, keys, door knobs, and other things. This leads him to a romance, a secret society that may be up to no good, and finally to an elevator ride below the earth to a hidden library and the people who protect it. But nothing and no one is as it seems. Or maybe it is. And time does not work in the way it does above ground. While Zachary is experiencing this magical world, his almost-friend Kat is searching for him because he has been missing for some time. And that’s not the half of it! I continue to be blown away by Ms. Morgenstern’s phenomenal imagination. She creates and beautifully describes whole gorgeous worlds. One thing that I appreciate is that the author is able to balance her writing to give enough of a description of a place or thing while still leaving room for the reader to form their own images. Ms. Morgenstern also pays homage to other books (particularly Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and the Narnia series), authors, readers, and players of fantasy world role-play computer games. I gave this four stars because I was getting irritated and impatient with the book about three-quarters of the way through. In some parts it was too confusing to hold my interest. In fairness, I always struggle to understand books that involve alternate experiences of the passage of time. It’s over my head. Also, I think that this is a book that is best read in large chunks. That would give the reader a great immersion experience as well as it may be easier to keep track of what is going on. My schedule refused to cooperate with large chunks of reading time. None of this means that this book is not worth reading. It is still a really good piece of fantasy. I also think that you can see that Ms. Morgenstern has matured as a writer with prose that perfectly fit the story being told. I will certainly read her third book, even if I have to wait another eight years!

Every once in a while--too infrequently--a book 'comes along' that is extraordinary. Because it has clear echoes of one own life. Not fully bit for bit--that would be wrong. But something that sings about one's own door not opened. And the story(-ies) that unfold back upon themselves, like a switch back road up a steep mountain. The ending is a beginning...and when it flips, the beginning is the ending. The story as Ms Morgenstern suggests (I think) enjoys being rewritten. This book 'just came along' when I needed to read a story about an unopened door...or rather, doors... Just a story, though, well-written, well-crafted, well-scribed...

Overall: I have very mixed thoughts on this book. I felt completely absorbed in it and absolutely loved the writing. The author writes like a painting, everything is so descriptive and lyrical it is hard to not be enthralled. That being said, I wanted more plot and more character depth and found both to be lacking. Still, an enjoyable read but would give this a 3.5/5 or a 6.5/10 overall. Summary: “A boy at the beginning of a story has no way of knowing that the story has begun.” Zachary Ezra Rollins is a fortune-teller's son, gay, a bibliophile and lover of cocktails, and a graduate student studying video games when he comes across a book called Sweet Sorrows. The book includes a passage intimately describing a moment from his actual childhood that Zachary becomes obsessed with it and reads it compulsively. He becomes obsessed with the need to reach the Starless Sea, a mysterious otherworld that he failed to enter as a child when he turned away from a painted door. The story follows Zachary’s adventures of getting to and once he is in the Starless Sea. The Good: “It doesn't look like anything special, like it contains an entire world, though the same could be said of any book.” The writing in this book is exquisite. The different fairytales and fables that intersperse the novel are lovely and this book really lives up to the power of storytelling. I felt completely engrossed in the writing and found myself rereading sections just to experience the beautiful writing again. This book succeeds in capturing you, transporting you to another world, and holding you in. I also loved the mystery and how most things come together by the end. For all those reasons, I loved it. The Bad: Very fragmented and disjointed throughout the whole book. I think the author may have tried a bit too hard to make this unique and I felt it suffered as a result. There are a dozen or so narratives all interspersed into one book and every chapter is different so you never know where it may lead. My other major issue with this book were the characters, and Zachary especially. Zachary Ezra Rawlins (and his entire name is used in the beginning of every chapter about him just in case we forget who he is… which you can’t!) is the star of “The Starless Sea” but only because he is fated to be. I did not feel that I grew to know or love him, and was surprised by this given the amazing writing. I did not feel connected to Zachary or really any other character and this may have been a result of too many narratives competing with one another. Favorite Quotes: “Strange, isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are. It’s nice to finally have someone read stories I know so intimately.” “Everyone is a part of a story, what they want is to be part of something worth recording” “Not all stories speak to all listeners, but all listeners can find a story that does, somewhere, sometime. In one form or another.” Everyone wants the stars. Everyone wishes to grasp that which exists out of reach. To hold the extraordinary in their hands and keep the remarkable in their pockets.” “We are all stardust and stories.” “Be brave,” she says. “Be bold. Be loud. Never change for anyone but yourself. Any soul worth their star-stuff will take the whole package as is and however it grows. Don’t waste your time on anyone who doesn’t believe you when you tell them how you feel.” “But the world is strange and endings are not truly endings no matter how the stars might wish it so.” “This is not where our story ends, he writes. This is only where it changes.”

It's not very often that I come across books that I want to read again. It's not that you have to read Starless Sea more than once to "get it", for me, it was that I wanted to, and when I did, I picked up on things I missed the first time and I enjoyed some things even more the second time. There are stories within stories and I enjoyed the moon story almost as much as I enjoyed the main story. I read a critique on here about the gay love story so I was a little apprehensive expecting Brokeback Mountain and was left baffled by that critique. As a matter of fact, one of the things that I like about Erin Morgenstern's style is that she develops romance through thought. There is longing, yes, but if it was a movie it would be rated G, not even PG, unless the idea of a same sex couple likng/thinking about each other needs parental guidance. Then again, this isn't a children's book, so unless this would make you uncomfortable, there is no need to let this keep you from reading this book. Also, I read where the drinking bothered some people. Again, this made me think,... oh no, I don't want to read about lots of drunks... and again I'm glad I didn't let this stop me from checking it out for myself. Yes there is drinking involved. I'd say think MadMen or maybe a little less. As a little something extra, I love how polite the main characters were. Another thing I read here more than once that people who liked this book liked The Night Circus more. This may be a thing of whichever book of her's you read first will be your favorite because I read Starless first, became a fan, so then bought Circus and I like Circus, but loved Starless. I know one other person who read these books in this order and he too enjoyed Starless more than Circus. I noticed this with people who've read all the Dan Brown books too. Their favorites seem to be whichever one they read first. Overall, this is a magical book that I'm glad I own because I enjoyed rereading it even more than reading it the first time around. Thank you Erin Morgenstern for this wonderful adventure.

"The Night Circus" is one of my favorite books of all time - completely perfect in my eyes. This is NOT "The Night Circus," and if you go in expecting it to be perfect, you will be disappointed. It is NOT perfect. However, it was perfect for me. If you are fascinated with stories, with myth and folklore, with magic and mystery, with puzzles and surprises and the best kind of confusion at the beginning, then you may love it as well. There are stories within stories within stories, and the way they come together, I found to be brilliant. If you sit around and ponder the meaning and power of story, of beginnings and endings, of reality within the myths and folklore of different cultures, you will love this book. It is a fairytale of the very best sort, with homages to most of my favorite books. I intend to go back and read it soon when I have the luxury to read it slowly and taste each word on my tongue and examine the structure and symbolism more closely now that I know the outcome. Did this book have flaws? It did. I do agree with other reviewers that certain elements of the story could have been expanded upon and the book would have been even better for it - the owls, for example. But ultimately, for me, the conflict and price of protecting something magical to the point where no new beginnings are possible, and what others would sacrifice to find that new beginning were absolutely mind-boggling and horrifying and beautiful and heartbreaking all at the same time. I can honestly say I have *never* read a book like this - and unique stories that pull me in until everything around me disappears are my favorite stories. This one accomplished this on the very first page. Therefore, despite its minor flaws, it's a 5 in my book.

This is the story of Zachary Ezra Rawlins. He is a graduate student who one night stumbles upon a mysterious book in his college library. As he begins to read the book, he stumbles upon a story that seems very familiar to him. A story from his own childhood. Confused how he has become the part of a very old book, he returns to the library in search for more clues about the books beginnings. This leads him to a masquerade party in New York, a secret club, and a library hidden deep in the earth. Here Zachary meets Dorian and Maribel, and as he continues to read Sweet Sorrows - the book that contained a piece of his path - it takes him on an adventure filled with danger and wonder. Zachary finds himself deeply wound in the world he has discovered through books and the one he lives in as he tries to figure out where he belongs. The Night Circus - Morgenstern's first book -is one of my all time favorite reads. I was so excited to see that she put out a second book because she is an incredibly talented writer. I always know I am going to enjoy a book when I am hooked on chapter one. Magical Realism is one of my least favorite genres but Morgenstern's writing pulls me in. This one wasn't QUITE as good as The Night Circus. I don't think I can give it 5 stars because I didn't find the story as good as her first novel. Expertly written? YES. The story just had some parts that I didn't love, and didn't tie quite as nicely as I was hoping it would in the end. But it came so very close to a 5 star book for me. I did really enjoy it. Plus - it didn't hurt that she mentioned one of my other favorite books - The Shadow of the Wind - within the first few pages. Scored some points there. If you loved The Night Circus, or you like Magical Realism - don't miss this one. Truly. It is a story that will suck you in as you picture the world that Morgenstern creates.

This is a book that I immediately wanted to fall into and never return and all I can say is my god how I’ve missed you Erin Morgenstern! “The Starless Sea” is a story beautifully written that balances time, fate and love as magic and reality are separated by a door that patiently awaits to be opened. I can’t even begin to describe my love for this book and the amount of work that went in to crafting a story this layered. Every detail was so perfectly placed that despite the multiple stories that laid within pages I never felt lost or like it took away from the “bigger” story that centered around Zachary and Dorian. Morgenstern has a way with her writing that makes you feel like you’re lost in a dream that you never wish to wake from and that was never more apparent than with this book. The entirety of the Starless Sea and the stories that lived on its shores are like every readers dream and I would gladly leave my life behind to have a chance at exploring what all it holds and that’s why it was so fascinating to see the lengths the characters would go to protect that magic even if it meant destroying it and I just want to read it over and over to pick up on all of the little things I’m sure I missed on my first run through. This book is just magic, everyone needs to read it and nothing I could write here with ever do it justice and I’m going to have to live with that.

“How are you feeling?” Zachary asks. “Like I’m losing my mind, but in a slow, achingly beautiful sort of way”. The Starless Sea left me speechless, a wonderfully poetic book that is devastating and soothing in equal parts. The Starless Sea is a fantastical book that is an homage to storytelling, a warm gentle hug to readers, and the highest sign of reverence to world-building. It was written for those who seek solace in the pages of a good story, and now it might live forever, just because once it is told it can live within us and therefore be real. “Be brave,” she says. “Be bold. Be loud. Never change for anyone but yourself. Any soul worth their star-stuff will take the whole package as is and however it grows. Don’t waste your time on anyone who doesn’t believe you when you tell them how you feel.” Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont, and one day he finds a weird book in the library. While reading the enchanting Sweet Sorrows Zach has a wtf moment, because the story is about him. More precisely it is about something that happened to him when he was much younger. The book is the call to action that propels Zachary to a bizarre adventure in search of the meaning of the book, a long-forgotten harbor on The Starless Sea, and the significance of the bees, sword, and key. We meet the mysterious Dorian, the mystical Mirabel, the frightening Allegra Cavallo, and the terrifying Owl King. All while jumping between Zach’s reality and the fables written in the many books he finds during his journey. The Starless Sea has all the elements of a great epic tale, romance and drama, nostalgia and hopefulness, angst and happiness, dread and confusion, mysteries and scary monsters. Beautiful and terrifying beings, things that make great sense and things that will keep you wondering for a long time. It was truly a gift to be able to read this. And I’ll keep their stories with me forever. “Strange, isn’t it? To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are. It’s nice to finally have someone read stories I know so intimately.”

この本の日本語版をもう7回読み、電子辞書で英語版を購入し、英語のハードカバー版を手に入れ、いまはAudibleで一番初めから聞いている途中です。 1冊の本にこれほど時間をかけたことはまず無いし、1冊の本が私をこんなにも素晴らしい変化へと導くのは初めてです。 私の心にかぎ針を食い込ませた最初のシーンはキャットが主催する自主的な学生ミーティングでの議題です。人はなぜゲームをプレイし本を読み、変化を求めるのか。私はゲームが大好きで本も大好きなのでこの起承転結の「起」に惹き込まれてしまいました。 この本は「ありとあらゆるものになぜと思うこと｣それを探求としており、その答えを求める者だけを読者とします。まるで星のない海の〈港〉へ導く扉のように。 この本をどれだけ愛しているか、心から愛しているか言葉にするのが本当に難しいです。 私は現実と物語を結びつける物語が好きで、この本もそうでした。 この本を読み終えたあと私に起こったことはまるで扉を潜ったあとのザカリーのようで、他の人には大したことに思えないかもしれないけど私にとってはこの本が私の世界を広げてくれたように感じています。 ゲームにはオマージュ、リスペクトという文化があり、本には引用、文献という文化があります。そして人生にも同じことができると信じています。 この物語を探求して私の人生が彩られたようにこの本を手に取ろうとしている他の誰かにとっても、そうであって欲しいと願わずには居られません。 きっとあなたは扉を探している。だからここに居る。これを読んでくれたのなら、騙されたと思って信じてみて。私たちが居る扉の向こうを一緒に探求してくれたら嬉しいです。

Just read the book without knowing anything, you'll thank me later

Que missão escrever uma resenha para este livro. Para começar, Erin Morgenstern escreveu um livro de fantasia e mistério diferente de qualquer outro que já li. Sua narrativa é contemplativa. Me parece que ela colocou em páginas tudo que já quis escrever na vida, então as lias e admirava. The Starless Sea conta a história de Zachary, um jovem rapaz que encontra na biblioteca da faculdade um livro que conta sua própria história. Ele descreve não apenas seu presente, como seu passado e algum futuro. Zachary entra em uma jornada muito louca (peço desculpas pelo termo, mas é o mais perto da realidade que posso chegar) envolvendo organizações secretas e ambientes fantásticos, incluindo o misterioso Mar Sem Estrelas. “Alguém estava tentando impedir a história de terminar, eu acho. Mas a história queria um final.” Toda narrativa é embasada por mistérios. Quando temos respostas, elas nunca são evidentes, sendo ditas por metáforas, por exemplo. Zachary caminha à procura de sentido, em um universo de diversas histórias que se intercalam por trajetórias e personagens. Pode ser confuso? Sim! Mas não deixa de ser incrível! Há contos, páginas de diários, fábulas, histórias que explicam o universo, histórias anteriores de outros personagens, e até histórias que ficam difíceis até achar conexão com Zachary diretamente. Quem ama a escrita, narrativa e leituras desafiadoras pensa: Meu Deus, Erin Morgenstern é um gênio! FATO! “Nem todas as histórias falam com todos os leitores, mas todos os leitores encontram histórias que falam com eles de algum jeito e em algum momento.” Se você gosta de narrativas que te indicam “segura na minha mão e só confia”, você vai amar O Mar Sem Estrelas. Se não, talvez este não seja o livro ideal neste momento. Ou talvez, este seja só o início de sua história, mas você precisará abrir uma porta para entrar e descobrir. “Um menino no início de sua história nunca sabe que sua história está começando” Mesmo o foco sendo nos eventos e nos universos criados, O Mar sem Estrelas tem uma linda representação LGBT e de personagens não brancos. Eu li a versão em inglês, mas a Editora Morro Branco está lançando agora a edição brasileira!

je recommande