After Reading: Nightwatch

By: Meradeth Houston on 8:04 AM

by Sergei Lukyanenko, Andrew Bromfield (Translator),

Set in modern day Moscow, Night Watch is a world as elaborate and imaginative as Tolkien or the best Asimov. Living among us are the "Others," an ancient race of humans with supernatural powers who swear allegiance to either the Dark or the Light. A thousand-year treaty has maintained the balance of power, and the two sides coexist in an uneasy truce. But an ancient prophecy decrees that one supreme "Other" will rise up and tip the balance, plunging the world into a catastrophic war between the Dark and the Light. When a young boy with extraordinary powers emerges, fulfilling the first half of the prophecy, will the forces of the Light be able to keep the Dark from corrupting the boy and destroying the world?

I was feeling the need to branch out into some more "adult" books, and I absolutely loved the movie of this book, so when I stumbled across it at the library book sale, I snapped it up!

First off, it's really, really different from the movie :) I was expecting that, so it's cool, and I still highly recommend checking out the movie. (It's on Netflix, and IMDB). I had a Russian friend tell me that she hated the movie because of all the product placement in it, but honestly I didn't notice that at all (her comment kind of cracked me up, really).

Anyhow, the book itself was really interesting. I particularly enjoyed the first of the three parts, as I felt like it had the smoothest storyline and plot. The second two halves spend a bit too much time philosophizing (it is a Russian novel, so I don't know why I thought it might not be so heavy in this area!), for my taste. That being said, the characters and world is amazingly imagined, and detailed to the point where it feels like you're falling into the the story (always my favorite kind of thing to have happen!). If you're up for a really interesting, different type of Urban Fantasy, this one is def one to check out. Also, if you're looking for something to catch on Netflix tonight, the movie was really pretty cool :)