Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A stunning book. Quite different than the WWII books I've read in the past. The book starts in 1947, then goes backwards in time, all the way to 1941; showing four characters post-WWII and then pealing back the layers of each of their stories as the book slowly rewinds itself. Also, the characters aren't straight, which I found to be refreshing for a change. Not the typical book, not the typical characters or sexual orientation, either. It takes all kinds to make the world go around, and I appreciate a book that gives the reader an entirely new perspective.
I did NOT like the backwards telling and it made everything fall flat instead of being moving, because the background I needed to feel things for the characters was missing. Why, Sarah?!
A really poignant, heartfelt story. I was intrigued by the structure, with each part moving backwards, and I do think that worked really well to tell the story. I loved meeting the characters and then realising slowly how they got to where they do over the course of the war. There was a bittersweet quality to the ‘ending’ of the novel, because I rooted for them early on, knowing that they wouldn’t get any further closure than the one we’re first shown. They feel almost stuck in a timeless limbo, which, to me, really reflects that uprooted quality of post-war Britain when people struggled to adapt to their new normal.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loyal readers of Sarah Waters often laud her works as lesser-known literary gems. With my first (not counting watching the adapted film, The Handmaiden) Waters foray, I absolutely understand the sentiment.
The Night Watch follows four Londoners largely haunted by their past after and during World War II. In tandem with their reveries, the structure is told in reverse-chronological order. To its effect, the structure challenged previous assumptions I had about some characters and the intricate ways their relationships intertwine. Knowing the characters’ outcomes added an additional emotional weight when it’s slowly revealed what has strongly impacted who they become. By the end, we, the reader, feel we’ve achieved some kind of wisdom instead of the characters.
The novel has a lot to say about those left behind after the war: women entrusted with vital, life-saving roles, who afterwards are told to take off their slacks and are expected to return to wallow in mundanity; prisoners forced to endure bombing raids, sitting like human targets while wardens hunker down below in bunkers; and the same prisoners, deeply traumatized, released into a shattered world. Waters illustrates how people were treated as tools and shields, then discarded without consideration.
Known for her historical novels centered on sapphic stories, Waters has said much of her research for The Night Watch involved watching films from the period. The cinematic influence is crystal clear in her writing. She has a knack for large, harrowing moments emphasized by quieter, reflective ones, crafting juicy twists that prompted audible gasps, and extremely visceral, flinch-inducing moments. The drama of it all made it an easy read, and the sweeping journey was well worth the longer page count.
In the same vein, I occasionally felt the author’s hand too conspicuously shaping the reveals and descriptions. It’s perhaps a matter of taste, as I often gravitate towards more understated writing rather than full bore. Even so, I flew through this and will undoubtedly be exploring more of Sarah Waters’ work in the future.
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Great read. Love the web of connections between the characters, love how it feels you’re following these strands back to the start. There’s some truly harrowing sections emotionally and it’s all set in WWII London.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Abortion, War