This book was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. I knew it had been popular several years ago, but not much else. The ambience created by the novel and the circus was my favorite kind, similar to Harry Potter or Neverwhere, where when I had to put the book down I felt like I had been ripped away from its world. My only small beef is spoilery:

The ending felt overly telegraphed. It was as if Romeo and Juliet had begun "a pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, one by poison and one by a dagger to the heart."

That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and just about couldn't put it down.