"The Night Circus" by Eric Morgenstern has worked its magic and left me completely spellbound. 
 I consumed this book. The pages flew by in a speedy blur; and it was over before I wanted it to be. While I read it, I was transported into an enchanted atmosphere, and it seemed so real, almost as if I could reach out and touch the smooth and silky surface of Celia's dress, or smell the faded scent of the icy rose petals. Perhaps I got caught in one of Marco's illusions - I cannot say for sure. 
 "We lead strange lives, chasing our dreams around from place to place." 
 The word "beautiful" is used too often, and has faded to a weak and common phrase. However I cannot bring myself to use any other word to describe "The Night Circus". It was beautiful in the most simple and honest sense of the word. 
 The writing was so intricate and rich in detail, and yet there seemed to be a lingering sense of abruptness hovering above it. As if the book merely consisted of a series of still images and impressions, demanding the reader's undivided attention in order to become a flowing stream of storytelling. Each chapter ended with a silent void, a distinct feeling of emptiness - it was so delicately executed, and I loved filling the empty gaps left between the chapters with my own imagination and interpretations. It somehow made the story belong to me (or perhaps made me belong to it). 
 From the fantastic illusions shaped and formed in Marco's mind, to Celia's shimmering wishing-tree and the mystical circus itself; this book radiates wonders and is vibrating with a certain tingle of envious imagination. It is the fantasy-book I have been waiting and pining for, for ages. 
 "I have been surrounded by love letters you two have built each other for years, encased in tents." 
 Perhaps I am a bit too sentimental, but I loved the love story between Marco and Celia. They are soulmates, they are meant for each other, and it is evident from the very beginning of the book. It is no surprise, it is bittersweet and it is predictable; but it adds an elegant element of fairy-tale to the story, along with the ancient myth of star-crossed lovers. 
 "Le Cirque des Reves" means the Circus of Dreams. And that is exactly where this novel transported me to: a place to dream.