This is a very quick read, but also a very slow one - it's not long in pages, but it contains so much that you end up going back to reread chunks and glean new meanings from them. It's a little bit Neverwhere, a little bit Stardust, but wholly Joanne Harris's own kind of dark, lyrical fairy tale. There's a sense of familiarity in the building blocks - the dreamer boy, the pert girl, the mysterious old man, the magical market hidden in ordinary London - but only in the way that you feel you've read any fairy tale before, that it's part of a whole world that just exists whether you've read it or not. Interspersed with the main story are fragments of history, or fairy tales, depending on which way you look at them, which adds to this otherworldly feel.

If I had one criticism of this book, it's that the lyricism and metaphorical magic of it does somewhat override the actual plot. There's a relationship on which the story hinges that never quite felt fully realised to me; we simply don't spend enough time actually with the characters for me to connect with it, as the narrative is always haring off into magic over actual chemistry. This does lend the denouement of the story a very magical, fairy tale feel of true love as something you can't understand until you experience it, but also makes things feel a little abrupt as they wrap up. It's always a tricky balance when an author tries to keep the reader at that fairy tale arm's length, and it's about 90% successful here, I would say.

The Moonlight Market is not a long book at all, so in that classic blogger cop out I'm going to say it's one that needs to be read without too much more information from me, or you'll lose the beauty of watching it all unfold. Be prepared for the dark, dangerous kind of fae and the building and shattering of illusions... Four out of five cats!

I really enjoyed this book. I love Joanne Harris’s take on the fae, with the butterfly and moth people and their endless war.

I enjoyed the descriptions of the two different groups a lot, the bright, vibrant butterflies who could bewitch you with their shine and the less showy moths who could blend in more easily with their surroundings. I especially enjoyed when Harris used a butterfly or moth metaphor or simile that was unconnected with the actual butterflies or moths in the book.

I loved the way stories ran through the book. The story of the Moth King and the Butterfly Queen and their missing son, the story of Tom and the market and the spider mage. I loved reading the little stories every so often, learning the history of the butterflies and moths.

The only thing that disappointed me was how little the market was actually shown. I expected more of it as it was the title of the book and though it was important, we didn’t really get to explore it in the way I’d have liked.

5 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2024/07/23/review-the-moonlight-market-by-joanne-harris/
My Five Word TL:DR Review: A Beautiful Tale of Fairies

I absolutely loved this story and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Literally I devoured this in two sittings and then felt sad that it was over. I confess that Harris is an author whose work I enjoy very much. I don’t think this gives me an unbalanced view however because as with even a favourite author there will be occasional books that simply don’t work their magic. This isn’t one of those times. This is a beautifully written, grown up fairy tale set in a contemporary London where an alternate reality exists alongside the everyday.

The writing is lush. We have an almost olde world feel to the story that gives it a certain charm and whimsy. There is a collection of fairy tales that provide the backstory as the plot unfolds and we even have a jump back in time to a London Before. Not to mention a visit to an enchanting moonlit market where anything can be bought for the right price.

The story revolves around a character called Tom (although he has some other interesting monikers). Tom is a photographer based out of a dusty old shop in a forgotten corner of London. His heart is stolen by a beautiful young girl who visits his shop one day and from that moment he begins to see other ‘things’, clues to another world that lead him on an adventure. Strangely enough, he appears to be well known in this alternative world even though he has no recollection of the place or the people.

I’m not going to further elaborate on the plot as I think this is best discovered for yourself.

What I loved about this. The writing first and foremost. Harris is a fantastic storyteller, I love her imagination and the way she creates a spell with her words. I felt almost (in fact positively) enchanted reading this.

I really enjoyed the story itself. Tom, I will confess, can be a little frustrating at times but then he’s been mesmerised and really not in control of his actions so I did cut him some slack even whilst I was shaking my head at him with despair. The tale of the moths and the butterflies is lovely and the way the differences between the two are borne out in their characterisation is really well thought out.

A tale of love, of love lost and of love found. The fickleness of memory and the lengths one will go to when under the throes of infatuation.

The pacing at times feels almost indolent and yet at the same time the story kept me racing eagerly to find out how things would play out so go figure that conundrum.

A book that captured my imagination with ease. I loved it.