The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Photo taken by Emboss&Spine

Title: The Starless Sea
Author: Erin Morgenstern
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Adult
Publisher: Doubleday Books
Release Date: November 5th, 2019

                                                                 
                                                                              Summary :

"Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, key collectors, and nameless acolytes, he reads something strange: a story from his own childhood. Bewildered by this inexplicable book and desperate to make sense of how his own life came to be recorded, Zachary uncovers a series of clues--a bee, a key, and a sword--that lead him to a masquerade party in New York, to a secret club, and through a doorway to an ancient library, hidden far below the surface of the earth. 

What Zachary finds in this curious place is more than just a buried home for books and their guardians--it is a place of lost cities and seas, lovers who pass notes under doors and across time, and of stories whispered by the dead. Zachary learns of those who have sacrificed much to protect this realm, relinquishing their sight and their tongues to preserve this archive, and also those who are intent on its destruction. 

Together with Mirabel, a fierce, pink-haired protector of the place, and Dorian, a handsome, barefoot man with shifting alliances, Zachary travels the twisting tunnels, darkened stairwells, crowded ballrooms, and sweetly-soaked shores of this magical world, discovering his purpose--in both the mysterious book and in his own life."

Review :

 The Starless Sea is unlike any book I've ever read. Many times while reading I would think to myself "I got this figured out" and then I would be proven completely wrong. There are so many twists and turns and moments that make you step back and reread the paragraph that you just did because it was written in such a peculiar way that it makes you think you're the one who is odd.

Just trying to think and figure out a cohesive way to write this review leaves me a bit uneasy because there is no real proper way to explain The Starless Sea. The words spin and flow so effortlessly in their whimsical and strange way, it's almost like reading another language that you somehow know but can't explain how you do, you just know. It's a sense of feeling lost but knowing you'll end up where you belong. That is who Zachary Ezra Rowlins is. He doesn't feel like he belongs, like a part of him is missing, until he finds his way into the Harbor of The Starless Sea. This is when the beginning of the end starts for Zachary. His journey throughout the book was his destinations all along, there are just so many doors along the way that he got detoured.. many times.. and it just took longer than he thought to reach his ending.

One thing I really loved about this book was the alternate chapters between stories of The Starless Sea. Stories about the past and the future and the stories that got lost and found in The Starless Sea. Stories of people caught in different times trying to find the door that will bring them together at the same time. The sun and the moon and the man who loves the one he cant have. So many dimensions happening at the same time and morphing right in front of your eyes you sometimes don't even realize it's changed. There is just something so smooth and strange about Morgensterns writing that it makes you think, if she can confuse you while reading and also make sense at the same time, what is her mind like and how is she able to formulate these wild thoughts into words?

The only complaint I have about The Starless Sea is that there was too much description of things at times. I found myself rolling my eyes or sighing at the extent of her explaining. There is only so much you can say about a desk in a room, or a pen and a jacket. Because of this, it took me over 200 pages to really invest myself into the book. Prior to that I would pick up The Starless Sea casually or when I needed something to read on the train in between other books I might have been reading. Boy am I glad I got past it though because once I couldn't put the book down I knew I was in trouble. Finishing The Starless Sea left me questioning so many things about myself! One would think the ending of a book would make you think more of the characters and life you just were transported into, but no, not this one. It makes you wonder if you are seeing the world the way it should. If you should be looking at things so literally and to look more closely at objects you might find mundane, like a door. 

                          ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ~ 5 Stars ~ MUST READ

Sometimes while reading I find myself listening to music, and while reading The Starless Sea I only played music by Half Alive and for me one song in particular called Maybe. Anytime I hear their songs my mind immediately reminisces on moments from The Starless Sea. Click here to take a listen to their song!

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I have a giveaway going on my bookstagram right now to win my ARC copy of The Starless Sea! My handle is @embossandspine head on over for a chance to win!