Brianna D'Amico- Lit. of Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction

The Martian by Andy Weir was an interesting read. It is humorous that he takes being stuck on Mars lightly and doesn't lose his mind. This is a technique used in other novels in and out of this genre to relate to the main character, having them act calmly in a dire situation so that we can become emotionally attached to them. Futuristic space stories such as these deal with character development in this way majority of the time, this creates a baseline story for their dramatic situations. It also makes these genres seem evil in some way when things begin to go wrong.

In the novel Night Circus, We see many different moral and spiritual experiences unfold in the same setting all throughout the novel. While Prospero The Enchanter and Alexander are arch rivals and deal with competing with each other throughout the whole novel they selfishly put their own egos and wants before the feelings of their young students. The circus could be described as enchanted as it "arrives without warning" and follows an odd color scheme of white, black and silver. This book is interesting as it is told on a non-linear third-person perspective. It also incorporates a second-person narration which allows the reader to be guided through the magical events happening in the circus. Either Marco or Ciela has to deal with trying to save the circus as they also deal with the trials of falling in love with one another. The magical view of this book takes the reader through exciting events while learning about the true wants and needs of the focal characters.