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monetp 's review for:
The Other Side of Midnight
by Simone St. James
3.5 stars
WARNING: The first 100 pages are painstakingly slow. It seems like this book is going nowhere, but trust me, the rest is fantastic.
This book originally appealed to me due to its publicity; it's based in the 1920s, there's magic, mystery and drama. The scenes take place in old fashioned coffee houses, manor homes and the autumn streets of London. Sign me up!
What really kicks off the story is the séance scene in Ramona's home. It's dramatic in the best way! It's reminiscent of [a:Agatha Christie|123715|Agatha Christie|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1321738793p2/123715.jpg] and [a:GK Chesterton|19325791|GK Chesterton|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s amazing scene work with intrigue and plot suspense. I was pacing myself through the book until this scene hit me. I felt as if I was in the room with Ellie when the ghost was there!
Ellie is such a phenomenal main character to read about. She's mysterious, but not too mysterious, and she's just smart enough to lead the story but still needs help from her friends. I loved how [a:Simone St. James|4981568|Simone St. James|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1541540226p2/4981568.jpg] gave the reader a clear picture of Ellie as a person: a flapper with street smarts and psychic powers. I loved how the end of the story gave us a clear idea of the depth of Ellie's powers and psychic abilities!
My main thoughts:
- My favorite scene was the flashback when readers saw Ellie and Gloria together. When Gloria talks about how amazing it is that women like her have incredible powers when sexiest men don't, it was an empowering moment and I looooooved it.
- The descriptions were luscious and radiant. Reminded me of [b:The Great Gatsby|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490528560l/4671._SY75_.jpg|245494].
- I only partly guessed the identity of the murderer. Props to the author for making me think!
- Seeing Ellie come into her own and making her own choices as a woman was such a relief.
- The only reason this couldn't be 4 stars was the pacing. In the beginning, the book barely caught my interest. The buildup is too slow, especially since the story is barely 300 pages.
WARNING: The first 100 pages are painstakingly slow. It seems like this book is going nowhere, but trust me, the rest is fantastic.
This book originally appealed to me due to its publicity; it's based in the 1920s, there's magic, mystery and drama. The scenes take place in old fashioned coffee houses, manor homes and the autumn streets of London. Sign me up!
What really kicks off the story is the séance scene in Ramona's home. It's dramatic in the best way! It's reminiscent of [a:Agatha Christie|123715|Agatha Christie|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1321738793p2/123715.jpg] and [a:GK Chesterton|19325791|GK Chesterton|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s amazing scene work with intrigue and plot suspense. I was pacing myself through the book until this scene hit me. I felt as if I was in the room with Ellie when the ghost was there!
Ellie is such a phenomenal main character to read about. She's mysterious, but not too mysterious, and she's just smart enough to lead the story but still needs help from her friends. I loved how [a:Simone St. James|4981568|Simone St. James|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1541540226p2/4981568.jpg] gave the reader a clear picture of Ellie as a person: a flapper with street smarts and psychic powers. I loved how the end of the story gave us a clear idea of the depth of Ellie's powers and psychic abilities!
My main thoughts:
- My favorite scene was the flashback when readers saw Ellie and Gloria together. When Gloria talks about how amazing it is that women like her have incredible powers when sexiest men don't, it was an empowering moment and I looooooved it.
- The descriptions were luscious and radiant. Reminded me of [b:The Great Gatsby|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490528560l/4671._SY75_.jpg|245494].
- I only partly guessed the identity of the murderer. Props to the author for making me think!
- Seeing Ellie come into her own and making her own choices as a woman was such a relief.
- The only reason this couldn't be 4 stars was the pacing. In the beginning, the book barely caught my interest. The buildup is too slow, especially since the story is barely 300 pages.