'Assuredly beautiful' Guardian The magical new novel from the bestselling author of The Night Circus. Are you lost or are you exploring? When Zachary Rawlins stumbles across a strange book hidden in his university library it leads him on a quest unlike any other. Its pages entrance him with their tales of lovelorn prisoners, lost cities and nameless acolytes, but they also contain something impossible: a recollection from his own childhood. Determined to solve the puzzle of the book, Zachary follows the clues he finds on ...
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'Assuredly beautiful' Guardian The magical new novel from the bestselling author of The Night Circus. Are you lost or are you exploring? When Zachary Rawlins stumbles across a strange book hidden in his university library it leads him on a quest unlike any other. Its pages entrance him with their tales of lovelorn prisoners, lost cities and nameless acolytes, but they also contain something impossible: a recollection from his own childhood. Determined to solve the puzzle of the book, Zachary follows the clues he finds on the cover - a bee, a key and a sword. They guide him to a masquerade ball, to a dangerous secret club, and finally through a magical doorway created by the fierce and mysterious Mirabel. This door leads to a subterranean labyrinth filled with stories, hidden far beneath the surface of the earth. When the labyrinth is threatened, Zachary must race with Mirabel, and Dorian, a handsome barefoot man with shifting alliances, through its twisting tunnels and crowded ballrooms, searching for the end of his story. You are invited to join Zachary on the starless sea: the home of storytellers, story-lovers and those who will protect our stories at all costs. **Featured in the Guardian's Season's Reading**
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Good. All orders are dispatched within 1 working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we are dedicated to recycling unwanted books on behalf of a number of UK charities who benefit from added revenue through the sale of their books plus huge savings in waste disposal. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied.
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Used book in good and clean conditions. Pages and cover are intact. Limited notes marks and highlighting may be present. May show signs of normal shelf wear and bends on edges. Item may be missing CDs or access codes. May include library marks. Fast Shipping.
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Fair. Used book-May contain writing notes highlighting bends or folds. Text is readable book is clean and pages and cover mostly intact. May show normal wear and tear. Item may be missing CD. May include library marks. Fast Shipping.
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Fair. This copy has clearly been enjoyed-expect noticeable shelf wear and some minor creases to the cover. Binding is strong and all pages are legible. May contain previous library markings or stamps.
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Fair. Ex Library with stickers and markings May have heavy wear and markings. May not include digital download codes. Stock photo may be different from actual cover.
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Good. Gently used with minimal wear on the corners and cover. A few pages may contain light highlighting or writing but the text remains fully legible. Dust jacket may be missing and supplemental materials like CDs or codes may not be included. Could have library markings. Ships promptly!
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Good. This is a retired library book with typical wear/markings. May or may not have library stickers attached which will not be removed. Item has stickers or notes attached to cover and/or pages that have not been removed to prevent further damage Corners are bent. There is writing on cover of book. Cover/Case has some rubbing and edgewear. Access codes, CD's, slipcovers and other accessories may not be included.
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Fair. Used book in acceptable condition. Cover may include stickers/heavy wear. Heavy wear on pages, heavy highlighting/writing on pages, staining, and moisture damage (rippling/warping). All orders ship via UPS Mail Innovations-MAY TAKE UP TO 10 BUSINESS DAYS from first scan to be delivered. The dust jacket is in rough shape, shows significant wear. The dust jacket has stickers or sticker residue on it.
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Fair. This item is in overall acceptable condition. Covers and dust jackets are intact but may have heavy wear including creases, bends, edge wear, curled corners or minor tears as well as stickers or sticker-residue. Pages are intact but may have minor curls, bends or moderate to considerable highlighting/ writing. Binding is intact; however, spine may have heavy wear. Digital codes may not be included and have not been tested to be redeemable and/or active. A well-read copy overall. Please note that all items are donated goods and are in used condition. Orders shipped Monday through Friday! Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Orders shipped Monday through Friday. Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Thank you!
The story centers around an enormous, underground, labyrinthine library which apparently contains all the books, and the stories in the world. The starless sea (also underground - thus no stars) is mentioned periodically, but does not have a major role, so I don't know why the book name. Also, I can't tell if this book is a standalone or one of a series, and frankly, I don't much care - I had to force myself to finish it, gritting my teeth through to the end (if it wasn't part of a book club, I wouldn't have bothered)
The main character seems to be Zachary Ezra Rawlings (whose whole name is repeated ad infinitum), a 20-something grad student from VT who's gotten involved in games about which he knows nothing, but it takes over his life. Other rather main characters include Dorian (Zachary's putative lover); and Mirabel/Max/serving girl - whose actions appear to drive the action. More minor characters include Allegra (the villain). the Keeper/pirate, (one of whose roles seems to be gate keeper); Kat (Zachary's college friend); Madame Rawlings (Zachary's fortune telling mother); the lovers, Simon & Eleanor/Lenore/the girl (who insists neither are her name); the sun, the moon, the inn keeper; and the Kitchen (yeah, it's a character), and Winston Churchill may have a walk-on role. As noted, many of the characters have multiple names, and their backgrounds often don't have either a beginning or an end, (or both) which is frustrating. If it sounds confusing, it is.
Erin loves words, and she uses way too many of them - this book could be 100 pages shorter and still make about as much sense as it does now. The author has a thing about bees, owls, feathers, statuary, swords, hearts, stags, books, honey, and, especially, doors - the last feature prominently throughout. And the amount of time the characters spend wandering around the various sections of the library gets to be a drag (see 100 pages shorter, above). She has a taste for sadism (which I found off-putting); was influenced by Charles Dodgson; and she meanders through this book with disjointed bits of the story in separate chapters (if they can be called chapters - in some cases, vignettes would be more apt). She also committed the cardinal authorial sin, by using coincidence to get herself out of boxes she's written herself into.
She writes beautifully, no doubt: it is the most beautifully written stupid book I've ever read.
