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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Honestly I’m just a huge fan of this author and how she writes about queer experiences in historical fiction. I found this book much like her others. If you like to get into the brains of characters and don’t mind deep, long descriptive romantic writing, you’ll like it.
Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for a review copy.
After reading The Paying Guests earlier this year I wanted to read more of Sarah Waters works and this seemed an ideal opportunity.
Whilst I loved The Paying Guests I was less enamoured with this. I found the characters less engaging and the story more confusing, although I enjoyed the London Blitz / WW2 setting. Whereas The Paying Guests had an obvious plot (a crime of passion) there was a less obvious plot with The Night Watch.
The Night Watch centered around 4 main characters each facing challenges, in the most part to do with their sexuality. There were descriptions of sexual (straight and lesbian) activity which some readers might not want to read.
In the end the characters stories all intertwine which I liked. As I said before I found the plot and characters confusing. This was probably a 3.5 star read for me. It hasn't turned me against the author and I would read her other works.
After reading The Paying Guests earlier this year I wanted to read more of Sarah Waters works and this seemed an ideal opportunity.
Whilst I loved The Paying Guests I was less enamoured with this. I found the characters less engaging and the story more confusing, although I enjoyed the London Blitz / WW2 setting. Whereas The Paying Guests had an obvious plot (a crime of passion) there was a less obvious plot with The Night Watch.
The Night Watch centered around 4 main characters each facing challenges, in the most part to do with their sexuality. There were descriptions of sexual (straight and lesbian) activity which some readers might not want to read.
In the end the characters stories all intertwine which I liked. As I said before I found the plot and characters confusing. This was probably a 3.5 star read for me. It hasn't turned me against the author and I would read her other works.
I really enjoyed the chronologically backwards narrative in The Night Watch, which felt like solving a sort of puzzle (although the solutions, I have to admit, were rather predictable in some cases). Not as good as Fingersmith, but certainly up there with my favourite novels by Waters.
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
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
This book is basically a series of vignettes of 4 specific people's lives. There's no plot; instead there's a running narrative of the characters daily experiences during and after the war. This was sometimes really interesting and sometimes a tad boring. However, Sarah Waters' writing is so beautiful and engaging that it makes slow, drawn out stories become compelling page turners. The Night Watch is the last Waters novel I had left to read. I have my favorite books of her's (Fingersmith and The Little Stranger), but all of them are well worth the read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Self harm, Abortion, Pregnancy, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt
Minor: Child death
Très prenant ! J’ai surtout aimé la manière dont les personnages sont liés les uns avec les autres et le choix de Sarah Waters de raconter en suivant une chronologie inversée.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
Truly lovely. Deeply complex and original. Fragile human natures exposed and mended through an innovative story telling method.
I absolutely adored the book. I love that it was written backwards because I don't mind spoilers, I want to know how the spoilers came to be. That's why this was such an interesting novel to me! Of course, there's plenty of open questions: when and why did Kay and Helen separate? Why the fuck did Vivien go back to Reggie after the bullshit he pulled after the abortion? Was Duncan gay? Did he try to take his own life after Alec did or is that just a rumor?
I like how intervoven the stories are, how the details matter and how they feel when you read them.
I also just really like Waters' writing style.
I like how intervoven the stories are, how the details matter and how they feel when you read them.
I also just really like Waters' writing style.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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:
No