!!!Spoiler Warning!!! If you haven’t read this book yet, I give away some key spoilers!
The Starless Sea
by Erin Morgenstern
Synopsis: I have never read anything even remotely similar to this book before. It’s an astounding piece of writing. The book starts off with lots of little stories, and one main story that seems to link them all together, but then everything starts linking up and becomes just one big story full of magic and myth and danger and wonder. Essentially, the book is about a huge library for storing stories, but it’s so much more than that. The best way I can describe it is a series of melodic melancholy moments.
The Good:
1) This book speaks to a readers soul. I want to live on the Starless Sea so much I could cry. It feels like it should be real, and it feels like we, the readers, all belong there.
2) The small stories that slowly build into something much grander and done so well. They’re beautiful and sad and perfect.
3) The mystery of everything. This book keeps its secrets close to its chest. There’s no guessing what’s going to happen, just sitting back and letting the story take you on a ride.
4) The way magic and myth and interwoven with the very ordinary life going on in the real world. It all just seems so realistic. Almost like it could all be happening somewhere far away. I’m just waiting for my door to appear.
5) The Kitchen.
The Bad:
1) With so much going on, and a lot of that being metaphorical, it’s very easy to get confused and lost with what’s happening in the story. I’m normally pretty good with this kind of thing, but even I had to reread some sections before I got the allegory
Conclusion: This was like reading a work of art. It’s not going to be for everyone. It’s heavy in metaphor and surrealism, but it’s also absolutely stunning. I’d like to frame this whole story and stare at it for hours. It was perfect.
Villain Rating
There’s really only one villain to pick from in this book—Allegra Cavallo. This woman is how villains are supposed to be written. She’s clever, ruthless, and truly believes she’s doing the right thing, which is what makes her so good.
Allegra is a painter. She lives in the harbor of the Starless Sea. She loves the library, so she decides to follow the path that turns her into an acolyte. Usually, acolytes give up their tongue or speak in honor of their vows, but Allegra chooses to give up her sight.
The result is that one of Allegra’s eyes is able to see everything about the story, including how it will end. In an endeavor to prevent the the inevitable destruction of the harbor, she decides to seal off the library from the world and destroy all the doors leading there.
She’s willing to kidnap, threaten and maim in her pursuit to keep her secrets, but what she really wants is to preserve things exactly as they are. Her wickedness and villainy comes from her desire to protect and serve. It’s a very complication reasoning and I loved it. She’s also got style, and some great scenes. I would have preferred more of a showdown. 7/10
Happy Reading,
Claire
Love the Villain 