A review of Midnight Crossroad, by Charlaine Harris
It’s been almost two years since the Southern Vampire Mysteries came to an end. After rereading the whole series last summer, I’ve been missing the unique world of Sookie Stackhouse and the residents of Bon Temps.
So when I got the chance to pick up author Charlaine Harris’ latest book, I was hoping for good things.
Midnight Crossroad is the first in a new trilogy, set in the tiny town of Midnight, Texas. It seems to be part of the same world as Bon Temps; eagle-eyed readers will even recognise a couple of characters from the Sookieverse.
As the story begins, online psychic Manfred Barnardo is moving into town, where he is quickly introduced to the other residents, all of whom seem to have a secret that keeps them living quietly in Midnight. Manfred is quickly caught up in his neighbour’s troubles, as one of those secrets threatens to come spilling out, bringing a whole lot of drama with it.
In Midnight, Harris has created a town full of interesting and slightly bizarre characters. There’s the taciturn Rev who carries out services in the pet cemetery; or mysterious and deadly Olivia who’s always on trips out of town; or pale-skinned Lemuel, who works in the pawn shop, but only at night. The action focuses on pawn shop owner Bobo, whose family have a dark past and new age witch Fiji, who reveals glimpses of her power throughout the book.
Then there’s Mr Snuggly, but you’ll have to read the book to find out more about him…
At first, the novel is a little hard to get into. As this cast of characters is introduced, the point of view jumps around and there are a lot of details to take in as everyone’s relationships and roles in the town are explained.
But as the story progresses, it becomes an engaging whodunit, part supernatural mystery, part thriller, with a little bit of social conscience thrown in. There are enough thrills and twists and turns to keep the reader guessing, as secrets are slowly revealed.
There are also plenty of hints at the world outside of Midnight and how the characters fit in, as the past comes back to haunt a number of the town’s residents.
I’m certainly intrigued to see what adventures Harris has in store for part two of the Midnight trilogy. In fact, this quirky, fun little book is actually one of the most engaging things I’ve read so far this year, as I’ve been struggling to find my reading groove.
I’ll definitely watch out for book two!
Find out more:
Midnight Crossroad (Midnight Texas 1) on Amazon (affiliate link)
Midnight Crossroad on Goodreads
N.B. I received an e-copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley, for the purposes of writing a review. However, all opinions are my own.