The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

cover image from LibraryThing

What an interesting book!  From the first pages you enter an unexpected world of magic and intrigue, magicians and the unknown.  In fact, the entire book keeps you just a little off center, just a little lost and confused - as if you are wandering around in the dark, and I think that is entirely Morgenstern's intention.

I really loved this book.  I love the quirky and unexpected and this is it.

The book is based on a gentleman's agreement - a bet between two ageless men to see whose protege reigns supreme.

As one of the men slowly disappears the other remains motionless in the process of time. But, their young pupils do not remain frozen. Instead, they slowly move out from under their older teachers to become something completely different.

The competition takes place in and around an incredible circus. The kind that runs only at night - on an unknown schedule - simply appearing and disappearing at seemingly at will.  At the core of the circus are two incredible magicians - each attempting to out do the other with tents of splendor all the while locked in an impossible contest that they aren't really even aware of.

So - this reminded me of an old movie - "Something Wicked This Way Comes."  The story of a circus and some  of the things going on behind the curtains. That is just how this book is. There are so many layers - so many slight of hands that a naive reader like me just doens't see.  But, that doesn't keep me from being mesmerized and returning again and again.