Assorted Autumn Reads [Part 1]

I journaled about several of the books I read this autumn, but I haven’t mentioned the others I managed to squeeze in during this busy season.

• Erin Morgentern’s The Night Circus [read 9/1/12] 4/5 Stars
  I feel as if I read this book eons ago, when really it’s only been about three months. The thing is, I’ve read fifteen (almost sixteen) books since this one, so my memory isn’t as clear. Note to self: write about books as soon as you finish them like a good little book blogger should. From what I can recall of my feelings toward this lovely novel about magic and mystery, I remember being completely entranced  by the ballroom scene between Marco and Celia. It was written so beautifully that I could practically feel the longing between the two characters. I found myself deeply exhaling after holding my breath because the tension is just so tangible; the passion radiated off the pages.  The novel is a bit slow here and there, but the original storyline and fascinating characters completely won me over.

• Daniel Clowes' Ghost World [read 9/12/12] 3/5 Stars
  After wanting to read this book for years and years and having it hyped up by several friends, I imagined this graphic novel to be, at most, life-changing-- or captivating at the very least. But for me, it is neither of those things. I was bored. I was annoyed. Maybe if I had read it during my angsty teen years, my feelings would be different, but I couldn’t connect. Bookish disappointment. Ah well, you win some, you lose some.

• Mark Gatiss' The Vesuvius Club Graphic Edition [read 9/21/12] 3/5 Stars
  Apparently this graphic novel is based off of its literary novel counterpart, Lucifer Box. Too bad it wasn’t extraordinary enough to make me want to read the original. The story follows Lucifer, an English secret agent during the Edwardian age, and his investigations of various unsavory characters. The only aspect that sets the story apart from countless other tongue-in-cheek-mysteries of the historical fiction genre is Lucifer’s sexuality. Otherwise, I was not wowed by the plot or the artistry.

• Vera Brosgol's Anya's Ghost [read 10/13/12] 3/5 Stars
  I promise I didn’t read three graphic novels in a row. I read Howl’s Moving Castle and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society in between—both of which are fantastic reads. Anya’s Ghost, on the other hand, was just okay. The art is cutesy, but I suppose that’s to be expected, or at least accepted, for a Young Adult graphic novel. The plot is original in many ways, but moved a bit too slowly for my liking.
  

Check out the other autumn reads I journaled about here and here.