The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

I’ve put off writing this post for so long because you see… I think this is my favorite book I’ve ever read.

There are lots of books out there that we love, some that seem to know a part of us that we don’t, some authors that just write things that seem to be made for us. I have lots of those, Susan Dennard and Patricia Briggs are some of my favorite authors. I’ll read anything they write. I adored a House of Salt and Sorrows because it felt like coming home. It was the dark horror that I adore mixed with my favorite fairytale of all time.

But The Starless Sea is something else entirely. It’s everything I never, ever knew I wanted. It’s every single facet of my soul that I could write into a book. Quite frankly I don’t know if I could write the story I dreamed of one day because it might just be this book.

Portal fantasy. Stories within stories. Underground magical libraries. Impossible things. Ballroom dances. College angst. A story for finding yourself. A story for readers, writers, and all kinds of story tellers. For those who look at archetypes and those who play with prophecy. A story with bees, all sorts of grumpy and fluffy library cats, of magical kitchens, and lost souls.

I listened to this book twice before I wrote this. Nearly a year apart from the other becasue I wasn’t sure that I’d love it as much as I did. But I do, it is the perfect book. The cast is immaculate, the personal flaws of characters perfect, and the magic? Awe-inspiring. Also if you love audiobooks, this one is phenomenal.

I adored reading the Night Circus, but this is even more to me. Blending reality and fantasy has never seemed quite so flawless and quite so real as to how our world would treat the world of the library and it’s starless sea. However, I completely understand that this book will not be a lot of people’s favorite story. The point of views change, there are numerous stories that do all some how tie together but could be confusing to keep a hold of. With Erin’s talent for description it can lean toward purple prose for some, though I adore it.

I promise not to fault you if you don’t love it, but I would love everyone to read it simply so I have more people to talk about it with.

The Starless Sea is available at Bookshop.org and Libro.fm, as a notice either I or an independent library benefit from referring you with these links.

For anyone who is still as absorbed in this book as I am, who long to sail the starless sea and breath it’s haunted air, you can listen to my Spotify playlist here.