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"FIRST IN A NEW TRILOGY From Charlaine Harris, the bestselling author who created Sookie Stackhouse and her world of Bon Temps, Louisiana, comes a darker locale-populated by more strangers than friends. But then, that's how the locals prefer it. Welcome to Midnight, Texas, a town with many boarded-up windows and few full-time inhabitants, located at the crossing of Witch Light Road and Davy Road. It's a pretty standard dried-up western town. There's a pawnshop (someone lives in the basement and is seen only at night). There's a diner (people who are just passing through tend not to linger). And there's new resident Manfred Bernardo, who thinks he's found the perfect place to work in private (and who has secrets of his own). Stop at the one traffic light in town, and everything looks normal. Stay awhile, and learn the truth... "--… (more)
User reviews
I have to give her credit. Charlaine Harris has made a name for herself as a writer, garnering vast popularity from her Sookie Stackhouse novels, which spawned the HBO hit "True Blood" (I will admit to compulsively reading all thirteen of them last year). But can
One has to start somewhere, build new characters in a new town in order to create a new series. Harris gave new characters, and a new town (really, new state more than a new town), yet her overall format was the same as in her Sookie books. Weird people live in a small town, guarding their secrets. There are witches, vampires, psychics, (possibly) angels, supremacists/hate-mongers, and killers. A minor mystery ensues, complete with a kidnapping, and ultimately the bad guy is... a peripheral character. Tiny group remains tight-knit until next time.
I wasn't blown away, yet I can imagine how hard it is to start again on the heels of the wrap of a major series. Maybe I'll read one more...
Lots of them feel familiar even though they are theoretically new characters as well - one has wild, untameable hair - sound familiar? And her "voice" is just very similar to Aurora Teagarden as well. There's a tough beautiful fighting woman who feels very similar to Lily Bard too but it was still a hugely entertaining novel and I hope she writes more in this series.
On the good side the book is rife with all of Harris's sweet touches. Even though Fiji is a witch she likes to bake casseroles and decorate her home. She is the Sookie homemaker of the book. Yet even with the Harris hallmarks the characters are seriously lacking in punch here. Instead of Manfred, Harris needs to send in Eric Northman to liven things up. Unless he is making a cameo next book I think I am opting out of this series.
I was excited to hear that there was a new series coming
Overall Rating: 3.75
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 3.50
Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the overall rating)
First Thought when Finished: Midnight Crossroad by Charlaine Harris had a very strong (and enjoyable) mystery and the characters are starting to grow on me!
Story
Character Thoughts: Going to admit that it took till the last quarter of Midnight Crossing for me to get into the characters. In the beginning, I just couldn't quite connect with them. There were too many characters but towards the end I realized why. Now, I am invested in Fiji and her familiar. I was happy to see characters such as Manfred and Arthur from her other series. Overall, I am sure in the 2nd book I will have more favorites!
Audio Thoughts:
Narrated by: Susan Bennett/Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
I thought Susan did an excellent job with the narration of Midnight Crossroad. She managed to capture the quirkiness of the town just right. She showcased the large cast in a way that made each one stand out and be completely unique. I will be continuing this in audio.
Final Thought: Rocky start but excellent mystery!
Midnight, Texas, the town with more supernatural misfits than tumbleweeds. Standard set up: Psychic moves to a new town. Meets his witch-neighbor, local vampire, and a few other characters with unclear motives and possibly shady pasts. There's a bit of a mystery over "what happened to the girlfriend of the antique shop owner" as she upped and disappeared one day. Now, the white supremacist group from her past is out to find/avenge her, which doesn't bode well for the inhabitants of Midnight. But as I said, there's a witch, a psychic, and a vampire, and some kick-ass others, who will fight to keep the town safe.
My thoughts? An okay start for a series of this sort. It may be telling that my favorite character is Mr Snuggly, a cat. I felt there was a strong effort not to draw on the Sookie elements of vampire-dom, but at the same time, saw references to other series (ie Shakespeare), though it's been a while since I read any of the Lily Bard books or enough of that series, to pick up more). I suppose the characters, and their back-stories, will round out and develop. right now, there's just a lot of hints and foreshadow.
I rounded up to 3 stars because of Mr Snuggly, who stays true to his catness, even when forced into heroic measures.
Tags: an-author-i-read, fantasy, ok-but-not-great, part-start-of-a-series, read, set-in-the-south, thank-you-charleston-county-library, vampires-ghosts-and-other-creatures
Midnight Crossroad by Charlaine Harris is the first book in a new series. It seamlessly weaves supernatural creatures, white supremacists, witches, and average small-town folk into a story that captivates from beginning to end. The twisted ending is the perfect finish to an already spectacular story. I can't wait to find out more secrets from Midnight, Texas.
Ms. Harris' Shakespeare series was also a non-paranormal one,
I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at the inclusion of characters from Ms. Harris' three other series within the world that has vampires and shape-shifters that is the setting of her most popular one. After all, Lily and Jack did show up at Sookie's house.
Yes, Midnight Crossing is a bit slow at the start while our author is building the setting and the new characters, but it wasn't dull.
While there were enough hints about one of the characters that finding out whodunnit wasn't really a surprise, I did not see the revelation about Mr. Snuggly the cat at the end of chapter 23 -- and another secret let loose in chapter 39 -- coming at all.
My favorite chapter is the Halloween celebration in chapter 38. Wish I could have been there.
As for the racists, it'll be interesting to see if they wise up any in later books.
The end papers with the photographs of things one might find in a pawnshop are a nice touch.
Midnight Crossing didn't make me want to run out and buy my own copy, but it was good enough that I'll be looking for the sequel when it hits my local library's new mysteries shelf.
When a picnic leads to a
It wasn't a bad read, it just didn't really hold my interest.
I have to admit that I did not think much of it. At first. The whole thing was 8 discs long and I was bored out of my mind until the end of disc 6. Several people asked what I
When things started heating up, someone threw rocket fuel on the fire. This book TOOK OFF and it did not fizzle. The ending was spectacular. The story is typical Harris, chock full of strange and unusual characters. The mystery is everywhere. Everyone has a secret. And I loved them all. The narration is excellent. I am already craving the next in the series so I can listen to Susan Bennett's wonderful characterizations. I do NOT want to wait until summer.
If you are a Harris fan or if you like paranormal-ish mysteries or if you just want to read something interesting and have the fortitude to wade through what (in my opinion) was very ho hum, then you might want to take a look at this book.
Recommended.
Welcome to Midnight, Texas! A town full of colorful characters!
The people here in Midnight are secretive-they all have something to hide. It is a rule of the townsfolk to not ask questions. Eventually though, the secrets will come out.
In this first book, in a new series, some
Get to know these quirky characters and discover the magic hidden in the town of Midnight.
*SLIGHT SPOILER*
There is a vampire, witch, a psychic, even a talking cat with a sense of humor-by the name of Mr.Snuggles.
*END SPOILER*
Follow the mystery of Bobo's missing girlfriend and delve into the world of Midnight, Texas. There are plenty of interesting characters, and you won't want to miss this read!
The central mystery of the book was
I can't wait to see what happens next in Midnight!
I really enjoyed some hints at revelations to come. Susan Bennett's narration was good. Her