The Starless Sea Review



Wow! My first dark academia book, recommended by the wonderful @greenghostreviews over on Instagram. 

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern, to put it simply, is about Zachary, a college student who finds a mysterious book called Sweet Sorrows in his university's library. The book was donated by the equally mysterious Keating Foundation. Within the book are symbols of a bee, a key and a sword. Zachary wonders what it could all mean, especially since the story seems to be about him! He finds huge lead at a party that is literary-themed. From there he finds himself in the middle of a magical underground world of all the stories that exist in the world, as well as the people behind it that are trying to preserve it all. 

This book was so atmospheric and whimsical! Intertwined with Zachary's story are other stories in and around the actual Starless Sea and its Harbours. Everything comes together neatly at the end. It kind of reminded me of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.

The book itself is a rather meta book about the art of storytelling, rife with a lot of metaphors. It's kind of like The Neverending Story by Michael Ende! 

Oh yeah, there's queer rep in this book, too. Zachary and another character named Dorian are both gay. 

I am giving 4.5 stars, but that's just because it took me a while to understand the world building and symbolism. Once you understand it, it's a great story!

I am planning on checking out the author's other book The Night Circus sometime in the future.  

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