The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern has been one of this year’s most anticipated releases, largely due to the popularity of Morgenstern’s first novel, The Night Circus. I didn’t love the Night Circus as much as some other people, but I was really curious about what Morgenstern would dream up in her second novel.
The Starless Sea tells an inventive story dedicated to a love of stories and peppered with a range of literary references (or at least literary name-checks). It’s a book filled with fable-like stories, intertwined tales and vividly imaginative places and things.
If you liked the Night Circus, be forewarned that the Starless Sea is a different sort of beast, though it shares some similarities and tries to capture the same sense of magic and anticipation. Morgenstern showcased her ability to conjure up dreamy and fantastical imagery that engages the senses in the Night Circus, and continues that with the Starless Sea. But the Starless Sea is a more ambitious novel, I think, than the Night Circus.
As discussed in the next section, there’s a number of things I didn’t think ended up working in the Starless Sea, but even still there’s a lot to be said for what Morgenstern was trying to do with it. From the ruminations on the permanence or impermanence of stories, to the wildly imaginative world and the many tributes to power of stories and the imagination, Morgenstern has offered up a unique and inventive follow-up to her debut novel that many will find thought-provoking and inspiring.
Some Criticisms
When I first started to see how the inter-related myths and fables of the book plays into the plot, I was delighted. It felt interesting and unique, and I thought it was fantastic. However, at some point the plot gets consumed by its own conceit, and the characters get lost in the process. Apart from wanting to be with someone they love, very few of the characters have any other motivations or other personality traits. It makes for very flat character arcs and nearly non-existent emotional journeys across a lengthy book.
Initially, the inter-related stories are charming, but at some point it gets overwhelming, and there’s not much to the story beyond that. Towards the latter half of the book, there’s a lot of characters sort of just wandering around aimlessly, speaking in metaphors and riddles and things happening for no apparent reason. Even once you get the gist of what the general idea is, it continues to drip-feed cryptic half-explanations and random plot events across hundreds of pages. There doesn’t seem to be any story-based reason for many things to happen or for the information to be dragged out across the chapters or for characters to withhold information, they just do.
On a more substantive level, I think the aimlessness of the plot means that the book undermines a lot of its own message. One of the ideas it explores is the relationship between choice and “fate” and how that plays into a story. In the Starless Sea, there’s junctures where Zach has to choose certain paths. But when Zach, a character with very few discernible motivations, chooses a doorway for no particular reason, to me that says very little about either choice or fate. Instead, it just reminds me that characters wandering around randomly doing random things don’t make interesting stories and is kind of pointless.
As a point of comparison, think about the Harry Potter novels where Harry wonders whether he was sorted into the correct house. The sorting hat thought Harry was suited for Slytherin (indicating one personality type), but Harry chose a different house by force of his own will. The point being that ultimately you decide the person you want to be. This is a much more powerful illustration of fate and choice than if a nondescript character randomly chooses a house for no reason.
The book relies on extremely heavy-handed ways of trying to make its points or make connections between things (possibly because it doesn’t trust its reader, or possibly because the story isn’t told in a way where it would be coherent otherwise). It explicitly reminds you that something is a metaphor or that someone has “chosen a path” or emblazons symbols on everything to try to form connections between things. By the end, I was inwardly groaning anytime I saw the words “bee”, “sword”, “door” or “key”. I’m not kidding, those four words come up over 1,500 times in this book.
Read it or Skip it?
Morgenstern explores some genuinely interesting (albeit a bit meta) ideas about storytelling and tries to structure the story in a unique and imaginative way. But the lack of a strong emotional beat, the aimless plot and the overwrought execution (I think this is best described as being “over-engineered”) drags the story down. Instead of being whimsical and adventurous, there’s a tediousness to the whole exercise and a lot of it feels extraneous.
The Starless Sea is supposed to be a book about storytelling, but in its quest to seem clever, it forgets what good storytelling is about. That’s perhaps a bit harsh, but I was honestly pretty frustrated as the story wore on.
Still, even if I didn’t enjoy this book as much as I hoped I would, I have a hard time dismissing it entirely. I think Morgenstern was trying to do something interesting with it, and there’s a lot of inventive elements in the story that she deserves credit for. I like when people strive to do creative things in storytelling, even if it doesn’t always pan out. For this reason, I would consider reading another book of hers in the future.
See The Starless Sea on Amazon.
The Starless Sea, Explained!
Spoilers start here! Don’t read this section unless you’ve already read the book!
In really simple terms, what exactly happens in this book?
From what I can gather, Fate falls in love with Time, which causes a disruption in Time so Fate must be destroyed (by the Owl King). However, a mouse saves Fate’s heart from the Owl King. The mouse approaches the the story sculptor (Fate in a different form) and asks her to keep something safe (the heart). She wraps it up in a nested stories and dead ends so no one can find it (which is basically the story that we are reading about this sanctuary).
Within the confines of that nested story, the Moon falls in love with an Innkeeper. She convinces Death to spare him, and asks Time for a space detached from time so they can be together. Time agrees to help, but on the condition that the Moon helps Time and Fate find a way to be together. So, the Moon has the Innkeeper store Fate’s heart safely (so the heart is stored within these nested stories and is then stored within the frozen-time area of the Inn).
The characters in this story take on many roles, the same way that characters and prototypical figures in stories often do. Allegra, Rhyme, Dorian, etc. are all characters in this story. Allegra is the villain, founder of the Collector’s Club, who both seeks to prevent people from entering and wants to forestall its ending. The Keating Foundation works in opposition to the Collector’s Club. Simon and Eleanor are part of the story, too.
Within these nested stories is one about a sword (and its duplicates) that is created to kill the Owl King (which basically means ending the story). It and Zach are the keys to ending the story.
Zach arrival as the Key is actually the end of the story. Through the book, we discover the story as he does, but he is really the beginning of the end. When Dorian finally goes into the Starless Sea and removes the heart from the Inn, things start to unravel and become untethered. When Dorian finally stabs Zach, it ends this story, but by giving him Fate’s heart, it starts a new one.
Anyway, this is my interpretation of events. I don’t think everything really fits together neatly, and because of that, you could make a bunch of arguments for different variations of what the plot really is. Feel free to leave your thoughts below.
For a fuller summary of the plot, you can find that here.
Who is the Owl King and what does the Owl King represent?
Erin Morgenstern has stated that this was purposely left somewhat open-ended. As she was writing it, she tried different variations on what it should “mean”. The character of Simon does explains that “who” the Owl King is changes from story to story, and he describes the Owl King as type of phenomenon.
I (as in me, the writer of this blog, not an “official” statement from Morgenstern or anyone associated with the book) think you can see it as something that brings change, a powerful force, an ending or a new beginning in a story — but perhaps others may have their own interpretation.
What are all the characters with dual/multiple roles in The Starless Sea?
The Pirate is the Keeper. He is also Time.
The girl is Mirabel. Mirabel is also the painter of the doors and the little girl who grows up in the Harbor. She is also Fate and the Story Sculptor. She was taught to paint by Allegra, who was originally an acolyte in a Harbor.
The mouse-like man (who commissions the sculptor) is the mouse who steals Fate’s heart from the Owl King.
The girl who finds a door on the forest floor is Eleanor and she is Mirabel’s mother (the father is Simon).
Simon inherits a key from his late mother (Jocelyn), and he is the man lost in time. Jocelyn Keating was part of the Keating Foundation which is dedicated to building a place that exists out of time and bringing people into the Starless Sea.
The acolyte who can’t speak is Rhyme.
The acolyte who is a painter that gives up her eye instead of her tongue is Allegra. She realizes she has made a mistake by joining. She later founds the Collector Club dedicated to destroying the doors.
The boy in the library who is tested by being asked to watch a book by a lady in a green scarf is Dorian. He becomes a Guardian.
Zachary is the son of the fortune teller (Madame Love). He is also the Key to ending the story. He is destined to wield the Sword that will kill the Owl King (essentially, ending the story), though Dorian is the one who stabs him.
Thanks for a very thoughtful and thorough review.
I’m probable gonna be skipping this. I loved The Night Circus though.
Wonderfully thorough review! I admit that I wasn’t as keen on Night Circus compared to most everyone else, but this premise sounds amazing. I’m still keen to give it a try but will probably not rush to read it!
Oh my goodness. I just finished and because I’m not a fantasy person I thought well, let me see what other people thought… You took the words out of my mouth on this one. And I am 100% with you on the words “bee” “key” and “door”
Thank you for the summary. I finished the book and felt very confused, though I loved reading it. I should have taken notes and kept flags on certain sections. It’s definitely a puzzle.
I enjoyed your summary of The Starless Sea, however, you’ve got a name incorrect. It’s not Damian, it’s Dorian.
Thank you for letting me know! It’s been corrected! :)
It would be nice if the reviewer could at least get the characters” names right! Who is Damian? See detailed book summary. I think Dorian is the correct character name.
His name was Dorian, not Damian.
Absolutely spot on. For me the thing I loved about the Night Circus was that the idea was so clear, well developed and easy to believe. Unfortunately with The Starless Sea I found the complete opposite. I felt that the author herself didn’t have a firm grip on the concept she was trying to convince others about.
Very boldly expressed review and is very true with regard to the book by Erin Morgenstern. You’re so right about the book losing itself and losing the reader as the plot unveils to nothing in the end. I literally thought I’m missing something and needed a summary online to understand, but looks like there’s nothing to understand except for that the descriptions were good and beyond good. Nothing more to it, which is a bummer.
Let me first say that I absolutely loved her first book, The Night Circus.This book, however, is the strangest book I have ever read and I am about 200 pages into it. There are so many little fairytales and other stories that you have no idea how they relate to the main storyline about Zach. It reminds me of the Monty Python movie, “And now for something completely different”. I feel like every chapter of the book is that way… Now for something completely different. I am going to try to finish the book because I am reading it for my book club. If I were just reading it on my own, I would have returned it to the library 100 pages ago. I am very disappointed in the second book of hers.
The neat thing about the starless sea is how all the pieces fit in a million different ways as the book go is on, the first half does seem really jumbled but after that every chapter seems to have another aha moment where one story connects to another!
Oh my, in your review you said everything I was thinking. This seemed to be an author who is so bent on being clever she forgot about the main parts of a story: plot and characters! The part she seemed to concentrate most on was the setting, which she describes endlessly, to the point of the reader having to skip paragraphs in order to try to hold onto the very thin thread of a plot. I just kept thinking, ” What is the point?” The underground library? The enemies trying to destroy it? Or protect it by keeping it secret? The endless cats? The bees, why? I am 270 pages in and I couldn’t care less about the cardboard like characters. It is ironic that this is a book about stories and storytelling.
Thank you for this review. I loved the magic and fantasy of this story, but I got so overwhelmed by it, it became more of a chore to read than a fantastical journey. There was so much going on I thought I was missing something. But I have realized that it was just a lot going on. I have so many questions! Hehehe
Thanks again for this review and validating my understanding of the story!
Glad to hear it was helpful! Cheers! :)
Many of the comments express what I came here to say: I agree 100%. The story is too full of itself; I lost interest quite some time ago. I did finish it, simply because I felt somewhat invested, but this book was definitely a disappointment after The Night Circus (which I loved). I’m with you on the words bee, key, etc., and also HONEY. How many times are we told the sea is made of honey? Okay, I get it already!
I came upon this review after finishing the book because I wanted to see what others thought. After reading your summary and conclusions I have to say I agree completely; it started well, similar to The Night Circus (which I really liked) in that the threads it intertwined were imaginative and fantastic, but it fell apart because nothing ever seemed to resolve. I felt strung along endlessly to an overly symbolic finale. Thanks for helping me bring many of my own thoughts into focus.
I value books. To finish one is a commitment and rarely do I give up on one. Although Starless Sea is compelling in the beginning, it is too long. Started reading and then , after 200 pages went back to the beginning hoping to find the thread but decided my time is better spent reading something else . If one enjoys fantasy, he/she might appreciate the book more than I.
Thank you for your summary and explanations.
I have literally just finished The Starless Sea (about half hour ago) and immediately looked for an explanation. Like many others, I read The Night Circus which I loved so thought her latest work would be equally strong. I have to say I loved the writing, the detailed description, the depth of feelings explored and the twists and turns but this much was lost as so many threads were left hanging and unresolved. Perhaps we, the readers, have all become so used to story structure – beginning, middle, end – that we crave, too much, an ending that suits the purpose of the story. Maybe then, it is for us to make our own interpretation of the text and create our own endings to all the stories nested within.
I have though found my favourite quote about books and my love of reading, ‘To love a book. When the words on the pages become so precious that they feel like part of your own history because they are.’ (page 298)
Thanks you for these insightful comments. I loved this book. I especially agree with the idea you suggested that there is a structure in Starless Sea that many readers are unfamiliar with and we are left to our own devices to finish or resolve tales to our own satisfaction. The story continues on with the reader. Ingenious!
I just finished this book about 15 minutes ago and I still don’t know what the “story” was about. I kept picking it up here and there, but would lose it again when the ribbons and threads (that figure so prominently in the story) of the story would simply vanish. Very frustrating. I love Morgenstern’s ability to conjure up vivid, luscious fantasy scenes – my favorite was the ballroom – but I tired of trying to sort metaphor out from narrative. I’m exhausted from reading this book, and now that I’ve finished, I feel cheated for all the time and effort I’ve put in and all I can say is… Harumph!
I rarely look for interpretations of books because it’s much more beautiful to find them for your own, but I finished it yesterday night, and the first thing I did today was searching on the web if I’ve missed something. It turns out, I have not. Thanks for the synopsis on as how the different characters appear, I already forgot about this mouse. So that cleared up things a bit for me.
I’m very disappointed that there is not more to it. And it annoyed me throughout the story that Kat and Zachary never meet up again. I loved their dynamic, but it was over so soon and never does he even think of her. What worse, we don’t know if they ever meet again. I guess he and Dorian find a way out so that Madame Love’s prediction will be correct on that her son will be back and she will have two sons. And then Kat is far beneath the earth opening the new Harbor…
Well, who is to say Zach and Kat won’t meet again? After all we left Zach still sailing on the starless sea on Elenor’s ship. Perhaps the ship will reach the new harbor..
Thank you for this synopsis. I absolutely loved The Night Circus and eagerly startedThe Starless Sea. I find it very difficult to get into and am not enjoying it all. I agree with your criticism of the plot and am happy to have read your synopsis so I don’t have to suffer through this story any further .
Agree with the comments. Absolutely loved it at the beginning but then got lost. However, I would still say it is well worth the read.
I have not read The Night Circus but I did pick this book up in a charity shop for £1.00 and I was intrigued by the cover and synopsis.
I like to be challenged so I look forward to reading this book.
I must say that your review is spot on. I started off by thinking this was going to be one of the most imaginative books I’ve read. Before long, I lost interest but continued reading until the end. I felt a little like the characters being drowned in the sea of honey. I appreciate the unconventional approach, however, it just didn’t keep my attention an was difficult to follow.
I just finished the book. I was giddy when I realized that we were reading the same book that Zach was. I had such high expectations for where this would go. Sadly, it got frustrating and hard to follow and I agree with much of your review. At one point I thought that she was going to have us, the reader, make choices or be responsible for the ending of the story. That would have been so clever. I will still read anything she writes. I love her style.
I respectfully disagree. I find the book’s combination of slow pace and lack of solidity to be the closest thing to magic I have ever experienced. I was captivated by the tapestry-esque nature of the stories that somehow managed to avoid didacticism. I really didn’t mind the loose ends. (It may also help that I read the audiobook, which has a few truly profound narrators.)
I agree with your disagreement. And having listened to the audiobook twice in the last month, I can confirm the narration makes it that much more magical. The level of diversity sealed it for me as well.
You are absolutely right about the narrators of the audio book making the story feel so magical. I am incredibly picky about my audio books because some people’s voices are grating especially when they try to put on different voices for different characters and always go for the most absurd, out there voices that don’t match the characters at all. But these narrators did so subtly and tastefully.
What about the daughter of the princess who goes to live with the ghosts and the owl king ? Everyone else we got to know except this story
I keep trying to find an answer to this, also who are the star merchant and the key collector? Is the key collector the keeper?
Thanks so much for your thoughts! They help me to figure out what i feel about this book. Im late to the game, but i didnt even think of looking for further meaning after finishing the book last year – i was too overwhelmed and confused to try and process it. Ive just reread this last week and I absolutely agree with your analysis, but i think i still like the book. I would love it more if it had wrapped things up better – if all the obscure stories made sense in the end, instead of feeling superfluous and confusing. Many of the mini stories are well written and evocative and beautiful, but lack meaning in the grand scheme of the book.
She is an awesome author and I enjoy her writing style, i just dont think this book wrapped up in a way that i enjoyed.
I just stumbled upon this review and agree with everything stated. I read the Night Circus and it took me awhile to get into it. Flash forward a few years and I was looking for a new audiobook and I found Starless Sea. I loved the audiobook itself and the voice author did a great job, but that was the only thing compelling me to finish. I was confused in the end and your review helped pull things together for me.
75% of the way in and can’t be bothered to finish it. Dragging on and as you describe well, the character development is is non-existent. I usually don’t DNF books, but I’ve got other things I’m excited about reading so I’m done with this one.
Thank you for your review, I was excited to start reading this book but about halfway through got bogged down in the honey and almost gave up nevertheless finished it as it is a book club book and have to discuss it, disappointed with it.
I completely understand where everyone is coming from regarding it being a lot to absorb, but this has seriously been one of my FAVORITE books I’ve ever read in my entire life. I was reading it and describing it to my partner and I would read them the short, seemingly “unconnected” stories and explain “this has nothing to do with the main plot so you won’t need a background before I read it to you” and then later finding out EVERYTHING was connected the whole time. Amazing writing in my opinion, and it definitely left me guessing until the very end, when all the puzzle pieces fall together and fit exactly in place where they are supposed to. Though the ending was very open to interpretation, I’m happy it ended as happily as it could without trying to wrap everything up perfectly. This is a book I could definitely read, and re-read over and over again. I haven’t read the Night Circus yet but it is my next read because after this book, I want to get as much of this author as I can!! 10/10 it blew me away
I totally agree with your review and thanks for summing it up! There were a lot of loose ends, and what about Kat? There was the suggestion that maybe this was an elaborate video game created by her that Zachery got lost in… and I was really hoping that was what the whole book was.
The synopsis helped me make sense of things. Every evening as I read a bit more I think…….
“This is either a metaphor of refinding your lost self from childhood.” Or “ this is a wild LSD trip.”
Or “this is a person slipping in and out of psychosis.” Maybe that is what is so marvelous about this book…it is whatever you want or need it to be. And that is all what all our stories are about.
So glad I found this post. I’m about 70% into the book and felt I wasn’t keeping up. I’m listening to it and wondered if there was some kind of map in the physical book. I would need to read it in fewer sittings so that it would all stick in my brain. But you’ve provided such a thorough review and I appreciate it. I hate to DNF a book and you’ve given me what I need to actually finish. Thank you.
Hello! Hello-hello-hello! I did not read this book, but have listened to the audio book twice. Many times I have felt that if I were reading it on my own I would have not finished it for all of the reasons that have already been listed. However, the narrators did such a masterful job that I was able to bypass feeling lost and just enjoy the ride, so to speak. Anyone who finds themselves enamored with the story should, in my opinion, listen to it. Maybe it is a story that was intended to be heard, rather than read. Much like a play is intended to watched. That being said, I appreciate your explanations, they brought clarity that even a second hearing could not capture.
Thank you!! I was so frustrated reading this book -I think you were right on with your review. I really enjoyed Night Circus and was looking forward to this book, it was just so very tedious at times.
I loved this book and disagree with most of the points you made. You can feel yourself losing your mind with the characters and nothing seems to make sense (but it is so beautifully written that you keep reading) then at the end of the story everything seems to wrap itself up and you are struck by the simplicity of the story (however complicated it may have seemed). I agree that some of the smaller stories do not seem necessary (e.g., the key collector), and I am disappointed that not all characters get a happy ending (I wish Allegra’s story did not end where it did. Just because she made the wrong decision doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve a happy ending).
Overall this is a well-written book.
p.s. sorry I used so many brackets but I couldn’t think of any other way to write it.
p.p.s. “The Starless Sea” seems like the sort of book that you either love or hate (like olives – everybody I know either loves olives, or hates olives. No in-between).
Thank you so much for this detailed explanation. I listened to this book a few times and got SO lost at the end I had no idea what was happening. It didn’t help that the reader used the same voice for every character!