The Night Watch: Amazon.co.uk: Sarah Waters: Books

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'A stunning achievement' John Harding, Daily Mail'Brilliantly done ... the period detail never overwhelms the simple, passionate human story. It's a tour-de-force of hints, clues and dropped threads' Suzi Feay, Independent on Sunday 'A truthful, lovel

Suzi Feay, Independent on Sunday
'Brilliantly done... a tour-de-force of hints, clues and dropped threads' --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Customer Reviews

96 Reviews

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(10)

Average Customer Review

3.7 out of 5 stars (96 customer reviews)

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62 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An involved historical drama with human interest, 11 Sep 2006

By	Mister Hobgoblin (Edinburgh, Scotland) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Night Watch (Hardcover)

I loved this book. I should declare a fondness for involved historical dramas with human interest, so perhaps The Night Watch had a starting advantage.

The novel, set in 1940s London, followed various young people through the war and the immediate aftermath: Kay, Julia and Helen - three gay women; Reggie and Viv - a soldier and his mistress; and Duncan - Viv's mixed up brother. The characters are rich, and the secondary characters are no less vivid. The novel has space - six years, nearly five hundred pages, and a widely drawn cast which allows for a lot of plot development and intrigue.

The detailing is superb, with scenes described to perfection. This is never overbearing, but the beauty is in the clarity. And there is humanity and humour amongst it all. It is interesting to contrast the impact of the occasional terrorist incident today and the nightly bombing, killing and devastation that people endured only 60 years ago. And it was especially interesting to reflect on the helplessness that prisoners must have felt, unable to seek safety or shelter as bombs dropped around them.

Sarah Waters uses perfect judgement, too, in addressing homosexuality in 1940s Britain in such a subtle and caring way. She focuses on the people and the love, rather than the sex and the scandal. This is a rare feat that her male counterparts could learn from.

The novel is narrated in three chunks, in reverse chronological sequence. This gives it an odd feel, and I am sure we will all have preferences about which chunk we felt most engaged with and how we might have ordered it. Personally, I preferred the middle: the 1944 chunk. Its ending, as ambulancewoman Kay discovers the fate of her lover Helen, is my personal emotional crescendo. I found the 1941 section rather a let down coming straight afterwards. But we must judge the novel as it is ordered, for right or for wrong. And for me, it is an engaging, page turning epic that offers real insight into aspects of 1940s Britain that have been forgotten.

I'm off to read Sarah Waters other works now...

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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lesbians in the London Blitz, 9 Feb 2006

By A Customer

This review is from: The Night Watch (Hardcover)

This novel is quite outstanding and the author has to be regarded as one of the best storytellers in the English language. Not only is the novel unique, because it starts in 1947 and ends in 1941, but it also approaches the Second World War in a new and refreshing way. The main characters (mostly gay and lesbian) that would have been treated like outcasts at the time occupy centre stage as the reader identifies with the frustrations and tragedies in their lives. Though they lived dangerously it was also a time of sexual freedom and adventure. The characters find it difficult to get to terms with the grey ordinariness of post-war life and the author reaches back into the darkness of the blitz in order to discover the pivotal moments that shaped the rest of their lives.

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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Still Waters run deep, 23 Nov 2006

By	A reader (Los Angeles CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Night Watch (Hardcover)

This was my first time reading a novel by Sarah Waters, and I was really impressed with her storytelling talent. The novel tracks an ensemble of characters during WW2, each one of them involved in an unconventional sexual relationship. The period and setting were vividly evoked, and the simple direct prose carried deceptively deep characters and incidents.

"The Night Watch" has a very engaging structure. It is divided into three sections, each one delving farther into the characters' pasts. I was surprised by how effective this technique was, as it probably made me more curious to find out what happened before than in a conventional novel where the author tries to make the reader curious about what happens next.

However, I felt that the novel's only major failing was that its "climax" - i.e. the stories' genesis - was the weakest of the three sections. It contained no major surprises when perhaps I was anticipating some quite startling twists.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful language and great structure
I loved the way that the characters were drawn immediately. They are then gradually revealed as their day to day lives are recounted with plenty of hints about their past which... Read more

Published 19 days ago by Janie U

1.0 out of 5 stars What a let down from a great author.....
I purchased the hard back copy of this book when it was first published read abit and put it to one side! Read more

Published 2 months ago by Karon.

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful as always
Probably my favoutite sarah waters novel, the charecters are alot more likeable in this book than in her other books, you care about what happens to them. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Miss C

4.0 out of 5 stars The Night Watch
My first Sarah Waters was `Affinity' her lesser known novel which is a dark creepy gothic novel which I really loved and I think is more deserving of Man Booker and Orange... Read more

Published 5 months ago by Simon Savidge "savidgeread...

3.0 out of 5 stars Watching the Nightwatch
Another novel that doesn't match up to Tipping the Velvet, which undoubtedly is Sarah Waters' best work. The Nightwatch is an interesting concept but a slow read.

Published 5 months ago by S. Smith

1.0 out of 5 stars Dross
This is such a disappointing read from a writer who has authored such gems as Fingersmith and the truly awesome (and highly underrated) Affinity that you have to wonder what on... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Occasional reviewer

2.0 out of 5 stars Dull, dull, dull
I only finished this book because I had to. It was a book club choice.
The only part I really engaged with was Reggie, Viv and the dentist [better not spoil the story and... Read more

Published 8 months ago by A. Dean

4.0 out of 5 stars *applauds*
There was no doubt in my mind that i was going to buy this book once i had finished the other sarah waters book i was reading. Read more

Published 10 months ago by The Chosen One

1.0 out of 5 stars A really dreary book
This is the first - and will probably be the last - book by Sarah Waters that I have read. What a thoroughly dreary book, populated by the drearirest people imaginable. YUK! Read more

Published 10 months ago by J. Flanders

4.0 out of 5 stars A Night to Remember
Waters' fourth novel -- her first one set during the 1940s -- revolves around the experiences of four characters during the Second World War. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Oliver Redfern

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	58% buy the item featured on this page: The Night Watch 3.7 out of 5 stars (96) �5.49
	25% buy The Little Stranger 3.9 out of 5 stars (49) �8.49
	6% buy Affinity (Virago V) 4.1 out of 5 stars (57) �4.89
	6% buy Tipping the Velvet (Virago V) 4.4 out of 5 stars (45) �4.79


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