If I could sum up my disappointment in three words or less, trust me, I would. So, what's wrong with Sarah Waters' much praised and heralded book, "The Night Watch"? Simply the gimmick of telling the story in retrograde doesn't work. I know that the ploy is meant to show us why the characters end up becoming the people that they become, but honestly, I never felt like I knew the characters enough to have an 'aha' moment when a big, revelatory moment happens. And by 'happens' I mean in a painfully drawn out manner where words are used, but not to great effect. Why not go ahead and reveal some of the motivating factors behind some of the characters decisions? Why does Viv stay with Roger? Why does Helen become a quivering bowl of jealousy, or just cherry jell-o?
In the end, I just didn't connect with the characters, and I absolutely hated it when the book jumped from 1947 to 1944 in order to facilitate an exposition that never fully materialized. It was all just one big tease with no pay off.
Posts
