The Starless Sea - Erin Morgenstern

The Starless Sea

By Erin Morgenstern

  • Release Date: 2019-11-05
  • Genre: Fiction & Literature
4 Score: 4 (From 798 Ratings)

Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the bestselling author of The Night Circus, a timeless love story set in a secret underground world—a place of pirates, painters, lovers, liars, and ships that sail upon a starless sea.

Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, key collectors, and nameless acolytes, he reads something strange: a story from his own childhood.

Bewildered by this inexplicable book and desperate to make sense of how his own life came to be recorded, Zachary uncovers a series of clues—a bee, a key, and a sword—that lead him to a masquerade party in New York, to a secret club, and through a doorway to an ancient library hidden far below the surface of the earth. What Zachary finds in this curious place is more than just a buried home for books and their guardians—it is a place of lost cities and seas, lovers who pass notes under doors and across time, and of stories whispered by the dead. Zachary learns of those who have sacrificed much to protect this realm, relinquishing their sight and their tongues to preserve this archive, and also of those who are intent on its destruction.

Together with Mirabel, a fierce, pink-haired protector of the place, and Dorian, a handsome, barefoot man with shifting alliances, Zachary travels the twisting tunnels, darkened stairwells, crowded ballrooms, and sweetly soaked shores of this magical world, discovering his purpose—in both the mysterious book and in his own life.

Reviews

  • Classic

    5
    By savannahhopeee
    This story (stories) are reminiscent of the coming of age stories that young readers have classically loved (inkheart, Harry Potter), but for adults. We forget that adults, as well as children, lose and find, and lose and find ourselves through the choices we make; or don't. This heartwarming book of stories that come together, reminds you that sometimes you have to believe, and just take the risk. No matter how silly we seem.
  • Spellbinding!

    5
    By serpenssapiens
    I totally love The Night Circus but it would be a tough decision if I had to choose which is better! The most unlinear but beautiful story I think I’ve ever read. I had to force myself not to read it all at one go because it’s so rich and nuanced. The kind of book you read once with a sense of wonder and magic. I’m sure rereading it will be wonderful but will never quite recapture it’s original brilliance. Edit- just re-read this Sept 5, 2023 and it’s just as good the second time around. Don’t expect this to be similar to The Night Circus. Two very different books but both immensely enjoyable no matter how many times you read them
  • Dream

    3
    By etivnae_2010
    It felt like I was reading a dream, and I’m not really sure how feel about that.
  • Pure magic and wonder

    5
    By copygrl
    The most enchanting, twisting, un-put-downable book I’ve ever read.
  • Too confusing

    3
    By SleepyRN511
    Chaos. Rambling. Often felt as though I was stuck in someone else’s head and not in a good, comfortable, or relatable way. Unfortunate because I loved The Night Circus.
  • Hauntingly whimsical, a core memory.

    5
    By zomBambi 👻🦌
    The Night Circus became my favorite book after I inhaled it within a day of buying it. It was the answer I gave whenever someone asked what my favorite book was. When I was asked to suggest something good to read. When someone new to my life was interested in wanting to explore a part of my heart, I told them to read The Night Circus. But now, perhaps only until Erin writes another book that unlocks a part of me that I feel compelled to tell others that they should also consider unlocking, it is The Starless Sea. There aren’t really the right words to convey how much you love something and what that love means when it comes to something that feels intimately personal and yet doesn’t belong to you. I can only say that if you know, you know. Get the book, it’s worth whatever it costs a millionfold. Thank you, Erin. 💕
  • Can’t Give Too Much Away …

    5
    By asapr212
    This book sneaks up on you as first you think it one thing, then another, then another. I found it very satisfying, especially once I stopped trying to solve it and instead just became steeped in it.
  • Takes Me To The Starless Sea

    5
    By xoxoxooxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxox
    I am so In love with this book. It’s kind of hard to explain because it’s stories interwoven into one another. But it is so magical and worth the read!
  • Love this author!

    5
    By beans-72
    What a beautiful read! I enjoyed every minute.
  • Waiting for my door to appear

    5
    By circularblossom
    Just now finished. Took me a month of steady reading. I haven’t felt this in tune with a book for a while. Reading a book that puts so much awe at the action of reading and then remembering that you are also actively reading was such a fun feeling. If anyone needs music while reading, Toshifumi Hinata’s “Hitotsubu no Umi” “A grain of sea” album gives such an ambiance that is fitting to the books feel. Amazing detail, amazing story.

Comments