Claire North

At the end of the day, Death visits everyone. Right before that, Charlie does. You might meet him in a hospital, in a warzone, or at the scene of a traffic accident. Then again, you might meet him at the North Pole - he gets everywhere, our Charlie. Would you shake him by the hand, take the gift he offers, or would you pay no attention to the words he says? Sometimes he is sent as a courtesy, sometimes as a warning. He never knows which. The End of the Day is the stunning new novel by Claire North, author of word-of-mouth bestseller The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August.

The End of the Day

Moray Lyle McIntosh

I've been a fan of Claire North (in all her authorial guises) for many years. The concept of The End of the Day sounded like perfect fodder for her formidable imagination and her ability to write page-turners with a touch of the fantastic and a great deal of heart.
Charlie takes a job as the Harbinger of Death, the one who Goes Before, sometimes as a warning and sometimes as a courtesy. Often Death follows. His work takes him from his home in London to Greenland, to Syria, Nigeria and others. Against the background of his journeys there are glimpses of other Harbingers and their bosses, the entities themselves - Death, Famine, War, Pestilence. As well as countless snatches of other voices debating holding forth their views on the problems of our times.

At first I enjoyed the fragmentary narrative, the main plot interrupted by these soundbite-like interludes but after as the story moved it failed to really progress or coalesce it became more frustrating than interesting.

Claire North confronts a lot of the injustice, unpleasantness and selfishness in the world against the backdrop of death (or is that Death?) the greatest leveller of all. North had always been a socially aware writer and I've always admired her ability to weave these themes seamlessly into her stories. Unfortunately she tries to take on too much on The End of the Day, it feels as though she had tried to cram all of the world's ills into a narrative that just can't support them and while so much if it is worthy it often lapses into sentimentality and lacks the subtlety needed to make it a stronger piece of writing. 

At one time Charlie is asked whether he is just the Harbinger for the UK or whether he travels and I wonder if whether Death had been given a global team of Harbingers and Charlie's efforts had been focused in a single place it would have allowed for a tighter, more manageable ​story. Instead the weight of all the issues overwhelm the imagination and the plot which are usually get greatest strengths. Even the characters are somewhat lost in the narrative.

There are some intensely moving passages but it is the simpler stories rather than the extraordinary tragedies that are the most successful in the context of this story and they are definitely the most convincing.

Kyle Curry

Stefan Hansen

A novel about life and death and a quest for moral purpose, by the acclaimed author of word-of-mouth bestseller The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. "Wholly original and hauntingly beautiful." -- Kirkus "Funny, ambitious, immensely humane and full of philosophical panache." -- Sunday Times Sooner or later, Death visits everyone. Before that, they meet Charlie: the Harbinger. Sometimes he comes as a courtesy, sometimes as a warning. Either way, this will be the most important meeting of your life. But who will come for Charlie? "A fascinating exploration of what makes us human -- and a riveting journey through life, and death." -- The Bookbag "Reaffirms the passion and ambition that have made North such a consistently intriguing writer." -- Locus

The End of the Day

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