Review: End of the Night Girl by Amy T Matthews

 

Title: End of the Night Girl

Author: Amy T Matthews
Released: May 2011
Source: Boomerang Books Early Critics Club
Reviewed by: Sapphired Dragon
Sapphired Dragon rating : ** 1/2

Synopsis (via Goodreads):
Molly, a sassy waitress, is haunted by the ghost of a murdered Polish Jew. Two novels, each a compelling page-turner, combine teasingly in one as End of the Night Girl explores the shadow cast by the Holocaust across decades, continents and cultures.
 
Review:
When I read the the above synopsis before requesting the book, I think i expected somehting other than what I got.  I like the idea of two novels combining into one but to be honest I am not quite sure Matthews achieved this. Sure there were two different stories going on but I didn't quite get the way they came together and as a reader felt that the destination was not necessarily worth the journey to get there.

For a start, some strong language in the first chapter nearly stopped me going any further and while the two stories by themselves were interesting enough, I was by no means hooked at any stage.  I would read pleasantly until i came to a natural stop (i.e. i had to get of the train or bus, or my lunch break finished) but never felt compelled to jump straight back in and see what happened next.  I really had to make myself continue.

The biggest issue I had was that I felt the main story (the one set in the here and now) didn't really go anywhere and the other story was too disconnected really to follow all the time, no matter how interesting the excerps were and the connection between the two seemed to me flimsy at best.  I think if i was to discuss this book in an english class or on a forum etc then I might be able to make some more connections and find more from the story but purely as a reader, the conclusion left me feeling immensely unsatisfied.

While this story was not my cup of tea, if you are a fan of Australian literature set in the  present, or  then you may enjoy this book. For me however, unfortunately I could only give it 2 1/2 stars.

Sapphired Dragon xx

Purchase:   Book Depository | Boomerang Books

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