Review: The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Hey everyone! I finished reading The Starless Sea a while ago and I loved it and thought I’d share my review of it.

Book: The Starless Sea

Author: Erin Morgenstern

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

Series? Standalone

Synopsis (from Goodreads): “Far beneath the surface of the earth, upon the shores of the Starless Sea, there is a labyrinthine collection of tunnels and rooms filled with stories. The entryways that lead to this sanctuary are often hidden, sometimes on forest floors, sometimes in private homes, sometimes in plain sight. But those who seek will find. Their doors have been waiting for them.

Zachary Ezra Rawlins is searching for his door, though he does not know it. He follows a silent siren song, an inexplicable knowledge that he is meant for another place. When he discovers a mysterious book in the stacks of his campus library he begins to read, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, lost cities, and nameless acolytes. Suddenly a turn of the page brings Zachary to a story from his own childhood impossibly written in this book that is older than he is.

A bee, a key, and a sword emblazoned on the book lead Zachary to two people who will change the course of his life: Mirabel, a fierce, pink-haired painter, and Dorian, a handsome, barefoot man with shifting alliances. These strangers guide Zachary through masquerade party dances and whispered back room stories to the headquarters of a secret society where doorknobs hang from ribbons, and finally through a door conjured from paint to the place he has always yearned for. Amid twisting tunnels filled with books, gilded ballrooms, and wine-dark shores Zachary falls into an intoxicating world soaked in romance and mystery. But a battle is raging over the fate of this place and though there are those who would willingly sacrifice everything to protect it, there are just as many intent on its destruction. As Zachary, Mirabel, and Dorian venture deeper into the space and its histories and myths, searching for answers and each other, a timeless love story unspools, casting a spell of pirates, painters, lovers, liars, and ships that sail upon a Starless Sea.”

My Thoughts:

Erin Morgenstern’s writing is really flowery and descriptive. I liked it for this book, all the descriptions of the world she built was done really well. I enjoyed everything about this book.

I loved the plot of this book. I will say that this book needs to be read while you are clearly awake and able to concentrate. Every single thing, and I mean every single thing is connected and if you miss something, you’re probably going to end up being confused at some other part in the story. I know I was.

The world that Erin Morgenstern created seems pretty awesome actually. The book has these little stories that are put in between the chapters of the main story. It was a little annoying to have them in the middle of the story, but I liked them nonetheless.

What I also found interesting was that the book was told in third person but it was also told in the present tense, something I’ve noticed that Morgenstern does. It was a different way of reading it, but I did like it.

Zachary was a fun character to narrate the story. Though it was in third person, it was only his thoughts for most of the book. I enjoyed the little slips of humor from him.

I enjoyed Mirabel too. I liked all the characters, really. Mirabel was kind of a mysterious character. Not in the way she acted but more of her backstory was like that. I was not expecting her background to be how it was.

I’d actually say Dorian was the most mysterious. If I remember correctly (I read this book a while ago), Dorian isn’t even his real name. And he kept disappearing from the story which I know was part of the storyline but still.

This book was amazing! Though there were a few things that I was confused about, it was still a great fantasy read for me.

My Rating: 5/5 dragons