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Book of Night

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Book of Night

By: Holly Black
Narrated by: Sara Amini
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

Number one New York Times best-selling 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 naïve 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 listen, light isn't playing tricks in Book of Night, the people are.

©2022 Holly Black (P)2022 Penguin Audio
Dark Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Paranormal Emotionally Gripping
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Critic reviews

"Black is a master at world-building." (The New York Times Book Review)

"No one writes like Holly Black." (John Green, number one New York Times best-selling author)

What listeners say about Book of Night

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Disappointed

Really wanted to love this, but didn’t. I think Holly Black is an amazingly talented writer, normally I find her characters complex, compelling & memorable, but this whole book just felt flat to me. There didn’t seem to be any development of the world the story was set in, nor the characters themselves. I didn’t like the main character, not because she was particularly unlikable, just because there wasn’t enough substance to particularly like or dislike. Very unusual for this writer, I’m normally even intrigued by her “baddies!”
I chewed through to the end though, thinking I’d at least had closure to the story, but unfortunately it was clearly a setup to allow this to become a series.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent narration and gripping story

Excellent narration, really brought the character of Charlie to life. The story held my interest and was very engaging.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Holly Black does it once again!!

amazing narration! amazing story. took me a while to understand all the different shadow categories. Such a unique story. I loved the protagonist Charlie, fell in love with Vince but couldn't stand her sister Posies character, annoying little sister. Can't wait for whatever book comes next. sexy dark and amazing. Once you get the hang of it easy to follow the story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A slow start, but persevere

A good story with very successful narration. It merely takes time until it becomes captivating.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Couldn't finish

I have loved Holly Black since I first read Tithe at the age of 16, so I was so excited, as a now 34 year old, to read her first adult novel.

The concept of this book sounded so interesting to me, so I went into fully engaged and enthusiastic. unfortunately I just couldn't get into it, I didn't mind the narration, but the plot was very slow, it just didn't pull me in, something I've never had any trouble with other books she's done. I may try and give this another go in the future, but for now I just couldn't finish it as I realised I just didn't care about the characters at all. such a shame.

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Feels like an exciting introduction

I enjoyed this book very much. It has a lot of build, tension, and mysteries. After finishing, I really feel like this story is just starting. As if this was the introduction to the characters and the world. Hopefully, this will continue in more books!
English is not my native language, so I'm sorry for mistakes

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it.

I loved the plot and the development of characters. I look forward to the next one!!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Easy listening

Not the strongest on plot or performance, but it’s easy to listen to. Not as strong as Sarah J. Maas so start there if new to the genre.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Slow and boring

This was my first Holly Black book, and it was a bore. The story was slow and boring, the characters were flatter than a sheet of paper and the author gave vague or no real info about anything. She never explained why Charlie became who she was, or how shadow magic came to be, or how one becomes a gloamist, or who the Hierophant is or how one becomes one....Just one unanswered question after another. Shame really, considering Holly's success with her fantasy novels. I think she might have bitten off more than she can chew with this venture.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Good story but did not like the narrator

I enjoyed the story but the narrator spoiled it for me. I am not sure if it was intentional but it's read in a dull way, just made it very difficult to listen and stay engaged. The main character is not a 'bubbly' type, but the book is written in the 3rd person, so unsure why the whole book is read as the main character is speaking (I assume). I nearly gave up many time due to the narrator, but plodded on since I paid for it. I wouldn't listen again, but may read a second book (if there is one).
Personally I would buy the book if you wanted to read this story rather than listen.

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