Reviews

The Light of the Midnight Stars by Rena Rossner

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hannah_grillo's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.5

chantale's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

hannahollihan's review against another edition

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I wanted to give this book a chance and read outside my comfort zone, but as an atheist I’m just really uncomfortable with the sheer amount of actually religion in this book. If this was more inspired by the authors Jewish faith I may have been more inclined to continue. It’s just not for me.

zluke's review against another edition

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adventurous dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Incredibly moving, beautifully written, but also really sad.

Content Warnings

faehistory's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

jerseygrrrl's review against another edition

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4.0

This was the book I didn't know I needed. It embeds magic into Judaism, threading it into prayer and practice so they become one and the same. It's a perspective not seen often (The Golem and the Djinn is the only example I can think of). I loved it.

I was especially appreciative of Sarah. Initially, I didn't like her character. I found her impetuous, thoughtless, and frustrating. But over the course of the book, she changed, evolving as the best characters do, and became one of my favorites.

One quibble with the book was with Laptitza's poetry chapters. I don't have much patience for poetry and I wish her voice hadn't changed from prose. My other quibble was with the dying. I know that's historically accurate: Jews were killed and expelled throughout history. But I didn't want to read it. I wanted a true fantasy where everything worked out for the characters I had come to love.