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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
3.5 stars. Oh wow...I actually don't know what to say. This book has left me feeling confused and somewhat underwhelmed; from the description I had expected so much more, which was the reason for putting it on my "Want to have"-list, wanting to own a real copy of the book because I had such strong feelings that this book would be exactly my cup of tea. Sadly...that didn't really happen. I've already read "Affinity" by Sarah Waters and had very ambivalent and complicated feelings towards the book, being quite unimpressed (due to different expectations concerning the book's plot) by the first half of the book but having absolutely been blown away by the grandiously sick and magnificently executed plot-twist ending, which almost completely saved the entire novel for me (half a year later, this book still has left an impression on me! Can you believe it). I had such high hopes that the same was going to happen with "The Night Watch" after having a déjà vu-like mediocre reading experience, expecting that once again it would be the end that would make the book (and break my sanity) for me. I remember people asking me about the book throughout my different stages of reading, and me replying the same thing everytime (no matter if I had just read the first hundred pages or after reaching the last quarter of the book): "I (still) don't really know what the plot is about, nothing is happening other than everyone being gay" (which wasn't meant critically, but happened to be the only memorable thing about the book) I was waiting for the moment when the reason for the title was finally going to be revealed to the reader, but somehow and inexplicably this never happened. Not even after having finished the book do I know why it is called "The Night Watch", because neither do all the main devolopments concur during the night (only), nor is there some sort of Night Watch made up of all the protagonists as I had expected to happen. I guess I will never find the answer to that riddle! Apart from that, the novel is a very character-heavy one and Sarah Waters is very good at making her protagonists feel like real people, with their various strenghts, weaknesses and the usual tragic pasts. The bok basically following the (background) stories (since interestingly, the book starts with 1947, continues with 1944 and ends with 1941) of the four main characters and is very descriptive in telling their intertwined relationships with each other. I do love novels that focus on characters rather than a general, all-surrounding plot, but I had still been expecting something that was featuring...more plot, basically. Vi's and Duncan's stories felt kind of shallow at times (as interesting and disturbing as Vi's experiences could be; her chapters in the second half of he book were very strong, whereas Duncan's remained tragically dull till the very end) and Kay's chapters were the only ones that really managed to grip me throughout the entire book. Not because there's actually a lot happening in Kay's chapters, but because I really enjoyed reading about Helen's and Kay's difficult (one-sided) relationship, strangely relatable not necessarily (or thankfully) because of the main character's actions, but on a very (very!) deep subliminal level that I couldn't even really explain to anyone, other than that I strongly empathized with the story without really knowing why. What a beautiful, confusing and sad relationship; I don't have the words for how much I loved Kay's character, who reminded me so much of a good friend of mine. Ultimately, her and Vi were the ones who actually made the book for me. All the 3.5 stard are due those two protagonists, and the author's wonderful talent for making you experience the most inexplicable feelings that speak to roots in your heart that you didn't even know existed. I love and hate Sarah Waters for that; for her amazingness in writing characters, and her dullness when it comes to (most) of the execution of the plot. The book wasn't exciting, nor was it exactly (and eloquently-phrased) "meh"...it was something inbetween, some sort of middle ground of a weird kind that doesn't exist in most books; an underlinding significance that cannot be explained on a higher level. I will not give up on Sarah Waters' books therefore; they have something that I cannot find in any other book, some sort of magic that has nothing to do with the supernatural but the beauty and tragedy of the realistic and ordinary. How much is fate and destiny, what is self-inflected and what could not have been helped, what is intertwined in ways that decide about life and death, and what, ultimately is just pure and rotten luck, as unescapable as a bomb written with your name on it? There are no right or wrong answers to these questions; but Sarah Waters is a master in raising and discussing them. Maybe the question on how I really feel about this book is another one that is never meant to be answered. I am so very glad I read it though!
Personal note for me: How funny and enjoyable was Fraser's character?
Mr. Mundy: "What I always say is, in prison you see men at their worst, and at their best. I've known plenty of gentlemen in my time here. I've known fellows come in as villains, and leave as saints- and the other way around. I've walked with men to the gallows, and been proud to shake their hands-"
Fraser: "That must've cheered them up to no end, sir!"
-------------------
"Mr Mundy won't be doing that", said Duncan loyally.
Fraser laughed. "You're right. He'll be sitting in the corner with a Christian Science tract, imagining the bombs away. Maybe I should take a tip from him (...) There are no bombs. The bombs are not real. There is no war. The bombing of Portsmouth, Pisa, Cologne-that was nothing but a mass hallucination. Those people did not die, they only made a little mistake in thinking they did, it could happen to anyone. There is no war..."
He opened his eyes. The night was suddenly silent again. He whispered, "Has that done the trick?" Then he jumped about a foot, as another explosion came. "Fuck! Not quite. Try harder, Fraser. You're not trying hard enough, damn you!" He pressed his hands to his temples and began to recite again, more softly. "There are no bombs. There are no fires. There are no bombs. There are no fires."
(...) At last Duncan lifted his head from his pillow to say irritably, "Stop walking about, can't you?" 'I'm sorry", said Fraser, exaggeratedly polite, "am I keeping you awake?" (...) For a minute he said nothing. Then he started up again: "There are no bombs. There are no fires. There is no poverty and no injustice. There is no piss-pot in my cell-"
"Shut up,", said Duncan.
Personal note for me: How funny and enjoyable was Fraser's character?
Mr. Mundy: "What I always say is, in prison you see men at their worst, and at their best. I've known plenty of gentlemen in my time here. I've known fellows come in as villains, and leave as saints- and the other way around. I've walked with men to the gallows, and been proud to shake their hands-"
Fraser: "That must've cheered them up to no end, sir!"
-------------------
"Mr Mundy won't be doing that", said Duncan loyally.
Fraser laughed. "You're right. He'll be sitting in the corner with a Christian Science tract, imagining the bombs away. Maybe I should take a tip from him (...) There are no bombs. The bombs are not real. There is no war. The bombing of Portsmouth, Pisa, Cologne-that was nothing but a mass hallucination. Those people did not die, they only made a little mistake in thinking they did, it could happen to anyone. There is no war..."
He opened his eyes. The night was suddenly silent again. He whispered, "Has that done the trick?" Then he jumped about a foot, as another explosion came. "Fuck! Not quite. Try harder, Fraser. You're not trying hard enough, damn you!" He pressed his hands to his temples and began to recite again, more softly. "There are no bombs. There are no fires. There are no bombs. There are no fires."
(...) At last Duncan lifted his head from his pillow to say irritably, "Stop walking about, can't you?" 'I'm sorry", said Fraser, exaggeratedly polite, "am I keeping you awake?" (...) For a minute he said nothing. Then he started up again: "There are no bombs. There are no fires. There is no poverty and no injustice. There is no piss-pot in my cell-"
"Shut up,", said Duncan.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
This is like... 3.2 stars in reality, but I rounded up to four because a) it's possible I'm just WWII-booked out right now and b) there were so many lesbians I can't possibly be mad. Overall the characters were interesting and the stories were pretty good, but I just didn't love it. I wanted to! Gosh, did I want to. So. many. lesbians. But I didn't. Here's something I think contributed to that: I don't think I'd go on to read Fingersmith or Tipping the Velvet, but I did like those movies, so if there's a Night Watch film, I'll see it.
Spoiler
The structure of the book was ass-backwards. I get that jumping backwards in time can be really interesting, and it was at first, but then we jumped back further, and then we never went forward again. I felt like I never got closure. And I feel like there were gaps that were never bridged despite all the jumping.
I loved reading this book! I loved the characters and how flawed and complicated their lives were. But I did not like the ending, or lack thereof. We meet these beautiful characters and see the current problems (current being post-wartime 1940s) they are dealing with, and then get a shocking and emotional look at what happened during the war for them. Then, instead of circling back to their current lives and giving any of them a happy ending or even just a bit of closure, it ends!
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Suicide, Medical content, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, War
I usually love sarah waters' novels, since they have intriguing stories and draw you in from the beginning. Therefore I was a bit disappointed with this one. It took me ages to get into it. The fact that I've only just read it and can't remember the ending is probably significant!
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Couldn’t get into it. I found the long chapters tedious and perspective changes jarring.
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes