I'll start off with my biggest problem with the book: the main love story isn't a good one. The two leads aren't as interesting as they should be, and their relationship suffers from this blandness. Making it a Love Triangle was a worse decision (though I am admittedly biased against Love Triangles in general) by making Marco look like a jackass, like a reviewer before me have pointed out.
Another issue I had (though much more minor) is the use of second-person POV for some of the chapters. I understand the idea of taking time to absorb the atmosphere of the place, but it would have been better not to devote entire chapters to it (as it does comes across as self-congratulating), and second-person POV is clunky even with great authors. A nameless character would have served the purpose much better, if you must have these chapters.
That being said, I think everything else makes up for the two problems. The other characters, while not being particularly complex, were likeable (with the obvious exception of Hector) and interesting enough to keep me invested in them. While the second-person POV was excessive, I liked the dark romanticism of the circus itself, and thought the part with the rêveurs was a nice touch. The direction the story took, particularly with the Challenge, wasn't what I expected, and I enjoyed it even with the lack of interesting main characters.
I enjoyed reading this, and I recommend it, though I wouldn't blame anyone for being irritated with its faults.
P.S.: Personally, with all the gorgeous imagery this book presents, I think a film or mini-series would have been a better choice of medium for this story. But that's a personal opinion, and the book brings across the beauty of the circus wonderfully.
Everything but the Love Story (And the Second-Person POV) Works
I'll start off with my biggest problem with the book: the main love story isn't a good one. The two leads aren't as interesting as they should be, and their relationship suffers from this blandness. Making it a Love Triangle was a worse decision (though I am admittedly biased against Love Triangles in general) by making Marco look like a jackass, like a reviewer before me have pointed out.
Another issue I had (though much more minor) is the use of second-person POV for some of the chapters. I understand the idea of taking time to absorb the atmosphere of the place, but it would have been better not to devote entire chapters to it (as it does comes across as self-congratulating), and second-person POV is clunky even with great authors. A nameless character would have served the purpose much better, if you must have these chapters.
That being said, I think everything else makes up for the two problems. The other characters, while not being particularly complex, were likeable (with the obvious exception of Hector) and interesting enough to keep me invested in them. While the second-person POV was excessive, I liked the dark romanticism of the circus itself, and thought the part with the rêveurs was a nice touch. The direction the story took, particularly with the Challenge, wasn't what I expected, and I enjoyed it even with the lack of interesting main characters.
I enjoyed reading this, and I recommend it, though I wouldn't blame anyone for being irritated with its faults.
P.S.: Personally, with all the gorgeous imagery this book presents, I think a film or mini-series would have been a better choice of medium for this story. But that's a personal opinion, and the book brings across the beauty of the circus wonderfully.