• The Night Circus

  • A Novel
  • By: Erin Morgenstern
  • Narrated by: Jim Dale
  • Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (29,170 ratings)

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The Night Circus  By  cover art

The Night Circus

By: Erin Morgenstern
Narrated by: Jim Dale
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Publisher's summary

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love - a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

©2011 Erin Morgenstern (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

" The Night Circus made me happy. Playful and intensely imaginative, Erin Morgenstern has created the circus I have always longed for, and she has populated it with dueling love-struck magicians, precocious kittens, hyper-elegant displays of beauty, and complicated clocks. This is a marvelous book." (Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife)
"Self-assured, entertaining debut that blends genres and crosses continents in quest of magic…. Generous in its vision and fun to read. Likely to be a big book—and, soon, a big movie, with all the franchise trimmings." ( Kirkus Reviews)
"Debut author Morgenstern doesn't miss a beat in this smashing tale of greed, fate, and love... a giant, magical story destined for bestsellerdom. This is an electric debut on par with Special Topics in Calamity Physics." ( Publishers Weekly)

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What listeners say about The Night Circus

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    17,748
  • 4 Stars
    6,881
  • 3 Stars
    3,044
  • 2 Stars
    962
  • 1 Stars
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Performance
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    15,652
  • 4 Stars
    5,999
  • 3 Stars
    2,909
  • 2 Stars
    1,044
  • 1 Stars
    612

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  • Overall
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lovely and magical

This story reads like a fairytale. it's magical, sweet and lovely. read this story to add a touch of whimsy to your life.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful Book......Loved IT... Finally!!!!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend it to someone who enjoys this genre. The book is beautifully written, full of imagination, rich characters and a great story. I have listened to it three times now and have only had it for a few weeks. I never do that.

What other book might you compare The Night Circus to and why?

I wouldn't compare it to another book because I haven't read anything thing similar to it. I love that it is an original.

Have you listened to any of Jim Dale’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I love Jim Dale he is always fantastic at bringing life to a book.

If you could rename The Night Circus, what would you call it?

I wouldn't rename it.

Any additional comments?

I hope this auther has more writing to do.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A really excellent read.

This story kept my attention the whole time and I am eager to listen to it again.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing to the finish

I'm in awe of the boundless creativity and heart this novel holds for the art of story telling. It strikes a careful balance with its plot, and keeps me from chiding pieces of its ending for romanticism, for which I am extremely grateful; very few novels have given me such pleasure.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

FABULOUS!!

What a fabulous story!! A wonderfully dark and modern fairy tale!! Well, modern being the 19th and early 20th century; despite this I always felt like it was happening in the here and now!

This is one I will definitely read again and again!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

My favorite book of 2012

I have gifted this book more than any book I can remember, and I have gifted a lot of books.

This book is really a magical read. I enjoy books who take you to new places and make you want to stay there, and NIght Circus does just that. From beginning to end I was thoroughly engaged. I can't think of a part that dragged or that could have been left out. The characters are delightful. And the narrator is so good that he seems a part of the story itself.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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enchanting!

such a great book, I can listen to it over and over again! And with Jim Dale as the narrator, you wouldn't know that there's only one person reading this book!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Naaaahhh...

It isn't totally awful, but the story is extremely slow and the constant time jumps left me confused about the story timeline the entire time! Haha... see what I did there?!?

I only finished it because I paid for it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

pleasantly original

i have listened to this one 3x now! it is high among my favorites. the descriptions of the circus ate mental eye candy. can almost smell the circus it is so well described.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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This was a magical and amazing story!

This was a magical and amazing story! Jim Dale really brings the story to life too! I feel like I was really there!

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