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A review by sherwoodreads
Day Shift by Charlaine Harris
Received from NetGalley.
This book has not yet been published, so this review is going to reflect the reading experience more than the plot twists.
The blurb says:There is no such thing as bad publicity, except in Midnight, Texas, where the residents like to keep to themselves. Even in a town full of secretive people, Olivia Charity is an enigma. She lives with the vampire Lemuel, but no one knows what she does; they only know that she’s beautiful and dangerous.
Psychic Manfred Bernardo finds out just how dangerous when he goes on a working weekend to Dallas and sees Olivia there with a couple who are both found dead the next day. To make matters worse, one of Manfred’s regular—and very wealthy—clients dies during a reading.
Manfred returns from Dallas embroiled in scandal and hounded by the press. He turns to Olivia for help; somehow he knows that the mysterious Olivia can get things back to normal. As normal as things get in Midnight…
That's a good summary of the beginning. Manfred finds himself accused of murder and theft, and in trying to clear his name, he ends up reaching out to most of the citizens of Midnight, Texas, who are surprised, and at first not very pleased, to discover that a megacorporation has bought, and begun renovating a long-vacated hotel, supposedly for old folks. And then a visitor comes to one of the most reclusive Midnighters, which draws the others in to help.
Gradually we begin meeting the few old folks after the renovation is finished, as they get drawn into events in Midnight. We also get a closer look at certain among Midnight's citizens as their secrets are revealed.
I chose this out of curiosity. I know that Harris is a mega seller; I tried the first Sookie novel way back when, but it didn't take. I'm not an automatic sell for vampires, and the idea of 25 books of vamps is somewhat daunting. But this here is book two in a new series. I wanted to discover, if I could, why Harris is so popular.
I ended up reading straight through. I was drawn in immediately by the skill with which Harris deploys the reticent, often witty, surprisingly affectionate narrative voice. I loved the slow unfolding of the weird, especially contrasted with the arid setting of a small town in Texas. I was intrigued by the way the Midnighters look out for one another, in spite of their being very different, very reclusive, and (they acknowledge in various ways) rather dangerous. And I appreciated the vivid details, and the complexities of these characters.
By the end, which expertly resolves some threads while setting up others to tantalize, I found myself so thoroughly hooked that as soon as I finished I began hunting out the first Midnight tale, so I can find out what happened before. There is even fan-service in the form of Sookie's Bon Temps characters who show up in Midnight, adding to the zaniness.
Harris proves herself to be a master at balancing plot, character, humor and the shivery side of weird; I'm not sure I want to visit Midnight, but I definitely want to read more about it.
I might even have to go back and retry that first Sookie Stackhouse novel.
This book has not yet been published, so this review is going to reflect the reading experience more than the plot twists.
The blurb says:There is no such thing as bad publicity, except in Midnight, Texas, where the residents like to keep to themselves. Even in a town full of secretive people, Olivia Charity is an enigma. She lives with the vampire Lemuel, but no one knows what she does; they only know that she’s beautiful and dangerous.
Psychic Manfred Bernardo finds out just how dangerous when he goes on a working weekend to Dallas and sees Olivia there with a couple who are both found dead the next day. To make matters worse, one of Manfred’s regular—and very wealthy—clients dies during a reading.
Manfred returns from Dallas embroiled in scandal and hounded by the press. He turns to Olivia for help; somehow he knows that the mysterious Olivia can get things back to normal. As normal as things get in Midnight…
That's a good summary of the beginning. Manfred finds himself accused of murder and theft, and in trying to clear his name, he ends up reaching out to most of the citizens of Midnight, Texas, who are surprised, and at first not very pleased, to discover that a megacorporation has bought, and begun renovating a long-vacated hotel, supposedly for old folks. And then a visitor comes to one of the most reclusive Midnighters, which draws the others in to help.
Gradually we begin meeting the few old folks after the renovation is finished, as they get drawn into events in Midnight. We also get a closer look at certain among Midnight's citizens as their secrets are revealed.
I chose this out of curiosity. I know that Harris is a mega seller; I tried the first Sookie novel way back when, but it didn't take. I'm not an automatic sell for vampires, and the idea of 25 books of vamps is somewhat daunting. But this here is book two in a new series. I wanted to discover, if I could, why Harris is so popular.
I ended up reading straight through. I was drawn in immediately by the skill with which Harris deploys the reticent, often witty, surprisingly affectionate narrative voice. I loved the slow unfolding of the weird, especially contrasted with the arid setting of a small town in Texas. I was intrigued by the way the Midnighters look out for one another, in spite of their being very different, very reclusive, and (they acknowledge in various ways) rather dangerous. And I appreciated the vivid details, and the complexities of these characters.
By the end, which expertly resolves some threads while setting up others to tantalize, I found myself so thoroughly hooked that as soon as I finished I began hunting out the first Midnight tale, so I can find out what happened before. There is even fan-service in the form of Sookie's Bon Temps characters who show up in Midnight, adding to the zaniness.
Harris proves herself to be a master at balancing plot, character, humor and the shivery side of weird; I'm not sure I want to visit Midnight, but I definitely want to read more about it.
I might even have to go back and retry that first Sookie Stackhouse novel.