Name: Anna's review of Book of Night by Holly Black
Item: Book of Night
Rating: 4.5
Author: Anna

Holly Black

'Black is a master at world-building.' The New York Times Book Review 'No one writes like Holly Black.' John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author _______________________________________________________________________ #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black makes her stunning adult debut with Book of Night, a modern dark fantasy of shadowy thieves and secret societies in the vein of Ninth House and The Night Circus In Charlie Hall's world, shadows can be altered, for entertainment and cosmetic preferences-but also to increase power and influence. You can alter someone's feelings-and memories-but manipulating shadows has a cost, with the potential to take hours or days from your life. Your shadow holds all the parts of you that you want to keep hidden-a second self, standing just to your left, walking behind you into lit rooms. And sometimes, it has a life of its own. Charlie is a low-level con artist, working as a bartender while trying to distance herself from the powerful and dangerous underground world of shadow trading. She gets by doing odd jobs for her patrons and the naive new money in her town at the edge of the Berkshires. But when a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie's present life is thrown into chaos, and her future seems at best, unclear-and at worst, non-existent. Determined to survive, Charlie throws herself into a maelstrom of secrets and murder, setting her against a cast of doppelgangers, mercurial billionaires, shadow thieves, and her own sister-all desperate to control the magic of the shadows. With sharp angles and prose, and a sinister bent, Holly Black is a master of shadow and story stitching. Remember while you read, light isn't playing tricks in Book of Night, the people are.

Book of Night

#1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black makes her stunning adult debut with Book of Night, a modern dark fantasy of shadowy thieves and secret societies in the vein of Ninth House and The Night Circus In Charlie Hall’s world, shadows can be altered, for entertainment and cosmetic preferences—but also to increase power and influence. You can alter someone’s feelings—and memories—but manipulating shadows has a cost, with the potential to take hours or days from your life. Your shadow holds all the parts of you that you want to keep hidden—a second self, standing just to your left, walking behind you into lit rooms. And sometimes, it has a life of its own. Charlie is a low-level con artist, working as a bartender while trying to distance herself from the powerful and dangerous underground world of shadow trading. She gets by doing odd jobs for her patrons and the naive new money in her town at the edge of the Berkshires. But when a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie’s present life is thrown into chaos, and her future seems at best, unclear—and at worst, non-existent. Determined to survive, Charlie throws herself into a maelstrom of secrets and murder, setting her against a cast of doppelgangers, mercurial billionaires, shadow thieves, and her own sister—all desperate to control the magic of the shadows. With sharp angles and prose, and a sinister bent, Holly Black is a master of shadow and story stitching. Remember while you read, light isn’t playing tricks in Book of Night, the people are. Praise for Holly Black: “Black is a master at world-building.” —The New York Times Book Review “No one writes like Holly Black.” —John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Anna Lauren

« If she couldn't be responsible or careful or good or loved, if she was doomed to be a lit match, then Charlie. might as well go back to finding stuff to burn.

because adults couldn't be trusted to keep their promises

« They seemed to forget that everyone gets born into bodies they can't just kick off like slippers, figures they can't transform as though they were shadows. »

Helen Borham

ny child can be chased by their shadow. All they need to do is run straight toward the sun on a lazy afternoon. As long as they keep moving, it will be right behind them. They can even turn around and tr to chase it, but no matter how fast their chubby legs pump, their shadow will always be a little bit out of reach.

A little heartbreaking. Now we have to wait for book 2.

Alison

There'd always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn't willing to double down on. "Im a good enough thief to steal a shadow from a tower," she told him. "I can steal back your heart.

"Maybe. No. I don't know." He either didn't notice the opportunity to squabble, or squandered it. "I like you, Char. I always liked you. I should have said something, but I'm not a good person. I'm not even sure I'm a person at all."

If someone had put a marshmallow in front of her as a child, she would have eaten it straightaway, because adults couldn't be trusted to keep their promises. 

After a bad night where Travis yelled at Charlie to clean up her room and, when she didn't do it to his satisfaction, ripped her copy of Howl's Moving Castle in half, she decided it was time.

In the hours before a job, adrenaline kicked in. She was alert, focused. Although she only truly came awake when there was a puzzle to solve, a potential triumph outside the grinding pattern of days.

Zoey

Inés

Kenny Al-Bashir

Chloe Heisserer

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

Previous to Book of Night I’ve never read anything by Holly Black and by the end I was off to the bookstore to buy every book she’s ever written. This fantasy novel was fast paced with an amazingly hilarious and pessimistic main character. There are so many plot twists that you truly never know what’s coming next. I’m so excited for the sequel to come out!

Anna

Was a little confusing at times- maybe because I listened as opposed to my usual - but was still invested just took a little longer than usual for holly 

Joanna

Unfortunately it wasn't as good as I was hoping for it to be... But I have to give it some bonus points for interesting theme and how the author build the world around main leads.

Martyna

andrea valentina 

el final salvó a este libro de ser el libro más aburrido y peor planteado que he leído este año.

nina 

it’s the way that i genuinely can’t tell if this is a standalone or not

addie

What makes you feel safe when you go to sleep at night? Being able to check and see that your secrets are still hidden.
  

The saddest 2 stars I've ever given. 
I mean, this book deserved better, you know? The world building is incredibly rich and the main characters have such a good dynamic together but the reasons that kept me intrigued and thirsty for more reading just disappeared in the transition between the beginning and the middle, resulting in a puzzling beginning, a good ending and a sea of boredom and pointless investigation story in between them both—which I hate to say because I really adored this world and these characters but maybe if written all over again. In a better moment. With a different plot. Maybe different author? Same author but with a different focus on the plot? Because the writing was ok, I can't understand why it didn't work for me. Who knows?

Charlotte Massie

When is the sequel coming out? I need to know what happens next! 😩

I knew I could trust Holly Black to write something amazing. This story was very interesting, and different from what I’ve read before, but still full of magic and amazing characters.

The begging was slow and there might be a few things I forgot or didn’t understand well, but in the end those things didn’t really matter or change anything. Something about the writing and the vibes and the mystery had me hooked so I kept reading the book and found myself in love with the world and the magic system. After 70 or 80 pages, the action starts. I’m very glad I kept reading and finished it and I can’t wait for the sequel !

This book was very different than I expected. It was more modern, and the pacing went from slow to fast. I felt there was too much world-building and background that wasn't necessarily needed. Overall, I enjoyed the story and the shadow magic aspects of it. 

Faith Sekerak

the .5 is for what felt like a jarringly written yet slow start. once i got used to the flow of how it was written and the plot became MORE clear, i honestly loovveeeddddd this book. cannot wait for me.

Cici Pearson

I would try to give this a 3.75, only because I found that at some points, it was kind of boring, and I was losing my focus with it, because some parrts of this book were kind of irrelevant. 

 I loved this book, as the plot and atmosphere was just top tier. I loved how complex the magic in this system was. Never have I read a book which is solely based on magical shadows, and I find that uniqueness the one defining characteristic of this book. 

If a book is unique, to me, it's so much more than just being inventive. It opens a whole new idea in my mind, so for Holly Black to use shadows as the magical system, not physical powers, I find it so charming. 

I adore our main character Charlie Hall. She's a wonderful woman who's selfless and all she wants to do is to help the people she loves. She's a girl who "doesn't go looking for trouble, trouble comes looking for her" sorta girl. And it's genuinely true. She definatly tries as hard as possible to live a good and honest life, but thievery just sings to her and to be honest I can't blame her. 

Why this book didn't get 5 stars is because it's just so painfully slow and boring at the start. I was worried that I wouldn't like it, especially because I adored Holly Black's YA series'. But now that i've finished it, I can 100% tell you that this book is definatly worth the read. It's also a great introduction to adult fantasy, which I have not read up until now, so if you're looking to take that step into adult fantasy, this book is a great addition to your shelf. 

Finally, this ending of this book had me speechless. 

I hope that you decide to read this book. 

surtified™

Just wow. 

I would try to give this a 3.75, only because I found that at some points, it was kind of boring, and I was losing my focus with it, because some parrts of this book were kind of irrelevant. 

HOWEVER:

 I loved this book, as the plot and atmosphere was just top tier. I loved how complex the magic in this system was. Never have I read a book which is solely based on magical shadows, and I find that uniqueness the one defining characteristic of this book. 

If a book is unique, to me, it's so much more than just being inventive. It opens a whole new idea in my mind, so for Holly Black to use shadows as the magical system, not physical powers, I find it so charming. 

I adore our main character Charlie Hall. She's a wonderful woman who's selfless and all she wants to do is to help the people she loves. She's a girl who "doesn't go looking for trouble, trouble comes looking for her" sorta girl. And it's genuinely true. She definatly tries as hard as possible to live a good and honest life, but thievery just sings to her and to be honest I can't blame her. 

Why this book didn't get 5 stars is because it's just so painfully slow and boring at the start. I was worried that I wouldn't like it, especially because I adored Holly Black's YA series'. But now that i've finished it, I can 100% tell you that this book is definatly worth the read. It's also a great introduction to adult fantasy, which I have not read up until now, so if you're looking to take that step into adult fantasy, this book is a great addition to your shelf. 

Finally, this ending of this book had me speechless. 

I hope that you decide to read this book. 

Mae Erceg

I cannot get over how amazing this story was. So genius, so creative, so thrilling. THAT PLOT TWIST THO! It made the entire book a 5/5 star honestly. The characters development and also lack of development (specifically Charlie’s, who I love so much) was wonderful and just made me so happy in the end. The actual ending brought me a deep sense of hope and excitement, my only wish is there was a sequel out like rn! Would highly recommend for something with mystical inklings in a real world scenario.

It threw me off to start that it was set in modern times but the farther I read the more I liked it! 

Kelsey Ellis

I was both entertained and bored at the same time. This was unlike any magical/fantasy story I’ve written and maybe because shadows are the main component of magic. Still loved the ending and the twist actually had me go dead-still. Charlie is a gritty, scrappy character and I think the thing I like the most about this book, is that it’s almost like real life and then you’re smacked with the shadow issues going on. Really good read. I’d recommend!

Liv N.

Lizeth Garcia

jinni

Gorgeous writing as always by Holly Black, I don’t expect anything less from her books. But man, this was hard for me to get through for some reason. The magic system confused me at times and there were points that dragged. The beginning immediately intrigued me and the ending actually made me sad but excited for the next book.

Megan Leprich

I’m surprised that this book had such a low rating, because I loved it so much. I had to physical stop myself from reading so that I could get some sleep. 

I loved Vince for reasons I can’t explain. 

I went in with low expectations because of the ratings it has gotten, but it really was a 10/10 read for me. 

I find that sometimes books that get 3.5 and lower ratings tend to be my favorite, and I can’t understand that at all. 

But anyways, for me, this was a 5 star read, and I eagerly await the sequel! 

Sarah Campbell

I’m surprised that this book had such a low rating, because I loved it so much. I had to physical stop myself from reading so that I could get some sleep. 

I loved Vince for reasons I can’t explain. 

I went in with low expectations because of the ratings it has gotten, but it really was a 10/10 read for me. 

I find that sometimes books that get 3.5 and lower ratings tend to be my favorite, and I can’t understand that at all. 

But anyways, for me, this was a 5 star read, and I eagerly await the sequel! 

Nicki Voskuil

I did enjoy this book. However, I think a big part of that was because I lowered my expectations after seeing a lot of bad reviews. If you are expecting something as amazing as The Cruel Prince, please lower your expectations before reading this one! 

***spoilers below***

I was really frustrated by the romance in this book, and I am not someone who needs a romance plot to enjoy a story. However, at the beginning of the book, there was absolutely nothing to the romance. Our MC didn’t even know if she liked Vince that much. Then, by the end of the book, basically all of her decisions were driven by their relationship as if she was super in love with him??? Where did that come from??? Obviously, as we learned more about who Vince really was, Charlie actually found herself getting more attracted to him. Yet, there just really wasn’t much there and I needed more to get on board with her all of a sudden doing everything for him.

It seems like there will be a sequel and that their relationship (well, fixing it) will be an important part of the story. I just don’t feel like I really have much of a relationship to root for. With that said, I will still probably pick up the sequel to see if the story gets better (hopefully there will actually be a sequel or else that ending really sucked!)

Alexa M

possibly a 2.5 

this was just boring and confusing and i didn’t really care about what happened. the magic system doesn’t really make sense and nothing in this particularly excited me. the MC is “28” but acts wayyyy younger. i love Holly Black but think she just needs to stick to YA <3 this was like trying to be Ninth House but very much wasn’t . 

for a 300 page book this read so slow :/ i didn’t hate it (hence my rating) i was just bored

I bounced back and forth over what I thought reading this book. At first I was convinced I loved it. Then a few chapters in as I realised the pace would be slower than I initially thought I was a little wary. I thought maybe it would be a like but not a love. And then I got further still and I realised I was doubting myself for no good reason as I was hooked I just wanted to read and know what happens next. I’m glad this is a duology but it’s disheartening to see there is no firm release date so it will be a long wait for me it seems. 

The book centres around Charlie and her thieving con artist past which becomes her thieving con artist present. I am a sucker for a character with a shady background who is a bit of a rogue and it helped she was a little bit of an angry mess. I strongly relate to angry women as I am a big ball of rage myself. I saw other reviewers saying Charlie was unlikable or even that she lacked character but I think those people were reading a very different book to me. Charlie had character and she wasn’t meant to be likeable. I do think some of Holly Blacks other characters may have been more morally grey and unlikeable and that’s why I enjoyed the character of Charlie. 

I admit that the magic system was a little confusing with these shadows and all the different terminology but it actually wasn’t too bad. I got to grips with it all in the end and it was definitely unique. I wanted ti explore it more as I came to understand how it worked better but I’m sure there’s more to come. 

I was disappointed there wasn’t more romance but it was quiet and very much not the focus. It simmered in the background and had you second guessing instead.

I did find I predicted one plot twist very early on but I think it was alluded to enough through the book that it isn’t surprising I figured it out. It didn’t detract at all for me and I enjoyed the book just as much so I don’t think it was meant to be a shock twist anyway. 

I’m glad that the book was good. I’ve enjoyed Holly Blacks YA books in the past so I was optimistic I’d feel the same about her adult book too. 

Becky

I bounced back and forth over what I thought reading this book. At first I was convinced I loved it. Then a few chapters in as I realised the pace would be slower than I initially thought I was a little wary. I thought maybe it would be a like but not a love. And then I got further still and I realised I was doubting myself for no good reason as I was hooked I just wanted to read and know what happens next. I’m glad this is a duology but it’s disheartening to see there is no firm release date so it will be a long wait for me it seems. 

The book centres around Charlie and her thieving con artist past which becomes her thieving con artist present. I am a sucker for a character with a shady background who is a bit of a rogue and it helped she was a little bit of an angry mess. I strongly relate to angry women as I am a big ball of rage myself. I saw other reviewers saying Charlie was unlikable or even that she lacked character but I think those people were reading a very different book to me. Charlie had character and she wasn’t meant to be likeable. I do think some of Holly Blacks other characters may have been more morally grey and unlikeable and that’s why I enjoyed the character of Charlie. 

I admit that the magic system was a little confusing with these shadows and all the different terminology but it actually wasn’t too bad. I got to grips with it all in the end and it was definitely unique. I wanted ti explore it more as I came to understand how it worked better but I’m sure there’s more to come. 

I was disappointed there wasn’t more romance but it was quiet and very much not the focus. It simmered in the background and had you second guessing instead.

I did find I predicted one plot twist very early on but I think it was alluded to enough through the book that it isn’t surprising I figured it out. It didn’t detract at all for me and I enjoyed the book just as much so I don’t think it was meant to be a shock twist anyway. 

I’m glad that the book was good. I’ve enjoyed Holly Blacks YA books in the past so I was optimistic I’d feel the same about her adult book too. 

stefanija

"#1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black makes her stunning adult debut with Book of Night, a modern dark fantasy of shadowy thieves and secret societies in the vein of Ninth House and The Night Circus. One of Publishers Weekly's top ten most anticipated books of 2022! Charlie Hall has never found a lock she couldn't pick, a book she couldn't steal, or a bad decision she wouldn't make. She's spent half her life working for gloamists, magicians who manipulate shadows to peer into locked rooms, strangle people in their beds, or worse. Gloamists guard their secrets greedily, creating an underground economy of grimoires. And to rob their fellow magicians, they need Charlie. Now, she's trying to distance herself from past mistakes, but going straight isn't easy. Bartending at a dive, she's still entirely too close to the corrupt underbelly of the Berkshires. Not to mention that her sister Posey is desperate for magic, and that her shadowless and possibly soulless boyfriend has been keeping secrets from her. When a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie descends back into a maelstrom of murder and lies. Determined to survive, she's up against a cast of doppelgängers, mercurial billionaires, gloamists, and the people she loves best in the world - all trying to steal a secret that will allow them control of the shadow world and more. "Dark, strange, thick with mystery and twists-Book of Night is everything delicious and frightening I've come to expect from Holly Black. It's a story so believable in its magic, you'll be keeping one eye on your shadow as you turn the pages." -Leigh Bardugo, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House "Black is a master at world-building."-The New York Times Book Review "No one writes like Holly Black."-John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author"--

Anna Ureta

*listened to audiobook and read physical illumicrate edition* 

Honestly I was intrigued by this via the goodreads ads that were posted around. 
It sounded interested so I wanted to give it a try. Unfortunately I was disappointed.

I haven't read any of Black's other novels and this was her first dive into adult fiction or adult fantasy. 
I just wanted captivated and lost the story, too many characters, too muxh going on, too many interested parties to remember what alliance they have, etc. 

There was one thing I enjoyed which redeemed it a tiny bit for me but that was it.
Nothing to push me to read anymore or to give it another chance. 

This is a definite pass for me. 
Glad it's over.
Sorry if you loved it.

Beatriz Aguiar

3.5

i think i would've enjoyed this more if i wasn't holding this book to The Cruel Prince level of expectations. 

despite that i did still think this book was a bit too slow for me in the beginning. The mystery, the mc, everything else was just the Holly Black i knew, sooo good.

Sarah Eliz

debating between 2 or 1 stars. big disappointment :(

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Book of Night by Holly Black

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &Book of Night by Holly Black

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Book of Night by Holly Black