Friday 10 May 2013

The Night Watch

Author: Sarah Waters


Published: 2006



Publisher: Virago



What They Say: Moving back through the 1940s, through air raids, blacked-out streets, illicit partying, and sexual adventure, to end with its beginning in 1941, The Night Watch tells the story of four Londoners - three women and a young man with a past - whose lives, and those of their friends and lovers, connect in tragedy, stunning surprise and exquisite turns, only to change irreversibly in the shadow of a grand historical event.

What Sheli Says: Sarah Waters is one of my favourite writers and The Night Watch was a re-read for me as part of a book group that my friend Sian has set up.

I really enjoyed this book first time round and enjoyed rediscovering it this time just as much. The book is set during and just after the War and we follow a number of characters and gradually find out all of their secrets and how their lives intertwine with each other.

The book is written in a really interesting way as it starts at the end and works its way back in time. I really liked this style as it meant we made assumptions about the characters and learnt the truth about them the further into the book we got.

As always, the descriptions were great and were really evocative of the era. I also enjoyed reading about the geographical setting of the story as I have spent a lot of time in some of the locations included so felt more of a connection with it this time around.

Not my favourite Sarah Waters book, but still very enjoyable and a great piece of writing.

Sheli's Rating: 7/10

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