Review of 'Book of Night'

Charlie Hall has never found a lock she couldn’t pick, a book she couldn’t steal, or a bad decision she wouldn’t make. She's spent half her life working for gloamists, magicians who manipulate shadows to peer into locked rooms, strangle people in their beds, or worse. Gloamists guard their secrets greedily, creating an underground economy of grimoires. And to rob their fellow magicians, they need Charlie.

Now, she’s trying to distance herself from past mistakes, but going straight isn’t easy. Bartending at a dive, she’s still entirely too close to the corrupt underbelly of the Berkshires. Not to mention that her sister Posey is desperate for magic, and that her shadowless and possibly soulless boyfriend has been keeping secrets from her. When a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie descends back into a maelstrom of murder and lies. Determined to survive, she’s up against a cast of doppelgängers, mercurial billionaires, gloamists, and the people she loves best in the world — all trying to steal a secret that will allow them control of the shadow world and more.

Review

Book of Night follows Charlie, a con artist, and bartender, as she tries to unravel a mystery that may cost her her life.

Storytelling

Book of Night was one of my highly anticipated reads of 2022, but unfortunately, I was left underwhelmed. I wanted to love this book, and ultimately, I was left underwhelmed.

Part of the issue I had with the novel was world-building. I generally like urban fantasy, taking fantasy and putting it into a realistic setting. And for the most part, I enjoyed it here. Charlie exists in a world where people can feed their shadows, giving them tangibility and power. These shadows come alive and can change your appearance and memories. It is an exciting aspect of this world. Seeing how shadows can be manipulated creates another “self.” That was the fascinating bit of the storytelling. But the more Holly Black delved into it, the more it lost its charm.

Holly adds too much detail to the gloamist community, with little secs and titles that often feel like whiplash to the reader. Moreover, they don’t add anything to the storytelling. It should add to the world-building but segway’s and seems to come at odd moments in the story. These moments ruin the story’s pacing and distract the reader from the plot.

Character Development

Charlie is an incredibly flawed character. She is a character known for making bad decisions willingly, knowing what will get her in trouble. Her flaws make her charming because the reader sees her struggle to be better and make a better life for herself and her sister. She is trying. However, something keeps pulling her back into that life of a con. As well as a secret she needs to uncover and a villain she needs to unmask.

She was not wholly memorable. Other than her penchant for making bad decisions, her personality did not stand out. The way the story moves makes it hard to connect to the characters. Everything feels so disconnected. It is hard to see how all the pieces relate to one another, even at the end when Charlie has her “ah-ha” moment. The pacing is also off-kilter, going from fast to slow. It is like whiplash. Even in those high-tension moments, the reader sees Charlie, but we can’t connect with her because of how disconnected the plot feels.

Final Thoughts

Did I like Book of Night? Ultimately yes, I did. The fantasy aspect of the story was interesting, and I think Charlie’s journey, how her brain works to put pieces together, was worth reading. Does it make me want to read more from Holly Black? No. A lot here made the story fall flat and ultimately not memorable.

• Writing Quality : 8/10
• Character Development : 9/10
• "Couldn't Put It Down"-ness : 7/10
• Intellectual Depth: 9/10
• Originality: 9/10
• Overall Rating: 4 out of 5.

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About the Author

Cynthia Bujnicki graduated from Emerson College with a BA in Writing, Literature and Publishing. She has always loved to read since she was a child. A contributing writer for YA Fantasy Addicts, she is also the Editor-in-Chief for Cyn's Workshop. She lives in sunny South Florida with her husband, son and daughter and their two cats.