The Starless Sea

“Symbols are for interpretation, Mister Rawlins, not definition.”

This book was possessing. From the very beginning there was an element to it that I can only equate to one thing. Dutch Golden Age landscape paintings are created in the vision of plein air realism but contain blackness and darkness. A hulking something that you cannot quite put your finger on: it just looms. This is called “the sublime” and this is part of the novel, The Starless Sea. Everything within this book was lavish and detailed however paralyzing. The writing was in depth and reading this was quite a spiritual ritual. I found myself paused and paralyzed—totally captivated and in the moment when reading this, not wanting to miss any luminous detail. I docked a star for the ending. Though “stories don't end as long as they are told”, I wish there was more closure. This book could not top “The Night Circus”, but I am looking forward to reading this again someday. Morgenstern's writing is as intricate as a woven tapestry, the longer your look the more you see and the farther you wonder the more you create for yourself. The story loosely references ‘choose your own ending' children's books and games, and I think this story itself is on par. If anything to take away from this novel it is this: we create our own world. Options are presented to us and every decision we make and door we open envelopes us in our own story. We always have a choice, no matter the perspective and circumstance.