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June 30, 2008 12:46 PM

MORE ON MONDAY: The Night Watch by Sarah Waters

Since writing about Sarah Waters in our Thursday Trailblazer, I've been wanting to write a review of one of her books. I'm currently making my way through Fingersmith after thoroughly enjoying Tipping the Velvet and, the first book I read of Sarah's, The Night Watch.

Drawn to The Night Watch because it was set in the second world war and after hearing great things I was initially suspicious, as the story goes backwards through time. It seemed odd to me to find out what happened in the end first, after all, why would I need to keep on reading?

Starting in 1947 and ending in 1941, the novel follows the lives of Kay, Vivien, Duncan and Helen. Kay, a wartime ambulance driver who dresses in men's clothes, sweet Helen who has a painful secret, Viv, loyal mistress to a soldier and mixed up Duncan who has many demons. Each of their lives connect in some way.

As someone who loves reading about this era, Waters did not disappoint. Her writing is evocative, and filled in a lot of gaps for me of what life would be like during that period. The sights of London, the feelings of the people as they go through nightly bombings is brought to life with brilliant writing. The four main characters, along with the periphery characters, jumped out the page at me, and the relationships between them were captivating.

So what made me want to read until the end? Well, as we go back in time we learn why their lives are the way they are.  So what the book lacks in suspense is replaced by our wanting to know the whole story. Why, for example, is Duncan tormented? Pieces come together, like a jigsaw, until we get the complete picture. The book was surprisingly good and original. Now I have high expectations of all Sarah's books. I'll let you know how I get on with Fingersmith.

Rating: 5/5

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Posted by Helen Redfern on June 30, 2008 in British Authors, More On Monday, Rating: 5/5 | Permalink

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