Nightworld

by Maureen Noel

Orcas Island. Jewel of the San Juan archipelago and a paradise in the Pacific Northwest. Until the nightmares and the murders. As manager of Eastsound's bookstore, Sapphire is accustomed to quiet days. But then the night comes. It's then that Sapphire finds herself to be a saboteur in a different body, in a different time. Her nightly exploits could be written off as fantastical dreams if it weren't for every morning she wakes with the scars of her adventures in darkness. Morning after morning she gets out of bed sore, bruised, and most inexplicably of all, pregnant. Just when things seem strangest, her nightmare demons break into her world and begin walking the streets of Eastsound in broad daylight. Sapphire must hurry to unravel the mystery of her nightworld and her other self. For her sanity, her unborn baby, and the fate of future generations. READER REVIEWS "Suspenseful, sometimes frightening and sometimes even funny. Every page has something good on it. ★★★★★" "Pet wolves, nasty villains, worm holes, and a pregnant woman who has to figure it all out. Definitely worth a read. ★★★★★" "This is a great piece of writing. The cosmic twin characters are vividly drawn with realism, insight and humor. ★★★★★" "A compelling and imaginative adventure. The action is vivid and gripping. ★★★★★" "This is pretty different from anything else I've read. Good stuff! ★★★★★" "Nightworld was a fast and thrilling read. Kept me turning pages well past my usual bedtime. ★★★★★" "A great adventure with a strong finish. ★★★★★" "Nightworld is full of delicious sarcasm, wry wit, and of course kickin' butt with sharpened implements. ★★★★★" "Best read for ages! ★★★★★" "Riveting...Maureen Noel writes beautifully, with skill and imagination. ★★★★★" "...took me on a journey of unpredictable twists and turns. ★★★★★"

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Fiction

250 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 5, 2011

Reviews

[Kiersi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now here is a book that never stops moving. I feel it's my duty to warn you before you pick up Noel's NIGHTWORLD that you will probably not put it down until it's done.

By day she is Sapphire, the heavily-pregnant off-season attendant to a small Orcas Island bookstore. By night she is Safire, a fierce warrior bent on freeing her people from the frozen wasteland of Nightworld. Her two lives have always seemed independent of one another until a man from Nightworld appears on Orcas Island, seeking revenge on Sapphire and her unborn child.

Noel weaves a complex dystopian fairy tale, accommodating not only the two separate lives of Sapphire and Safire, but also the forgotten memories of young Safire. It almost always works. When it doesn't, it's because Noel seems confused as to how the three stories intertwine--how much each character knows or remembers of another character's life. After reading Noel's blog, my guess is that she'd created two (almost three) separate universes at the outset and then had to tie them all together, and lost track of a few threads along the way.

Nevertheless, Noel paints a delicious and delightful heroine. I've always had a thing for girls that kick butt, and Safire is at the top of her class. But neither is Sapphire, pregnant through some mysterious, immaculate conception, any more demure than her Nightworld counterpart. She swings a sword, performs some beheadings, and makes clever quips.

My gripe with Nightworld was Sapphire's kind and forthcoming companion, Thomas. He played a great character in the novel, but somewhere near the end, he seemed to simply vanish. I wasn't sure what to make of that after Noel had primed me for a heroic Sapphire/Thomas romance. It just felt like another dropped thread.

Overall, I highly recommend Nightworld for Noel's unique prose style, non-stop action, and a novel spin on the post-apocalyptic/dystopian fad. She deserves some serious praise for what she accomplished with this novel--though I'd have liked a few less descriptions about snow and some Thomas closure.

[Joe Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit that I struggled to read this book, not that there wasn't sufficient interest to keep me reading but, I was frequently looking back at what I had read to see if I missed a key point, why I didn't understand what was happening or what was the relationship between the characters? Once I relaxed and allowed the jumps between Sapphire (awake and on present day Orcas Island) and Safire (Sapphire's Nightworld alter ego while she is asleep) then I was able to progress with my reading. I also had to make allowances for other characters to move across time and between physical locations. The description of a barren future with people living with animals, without technology or any infrastructure for providing utilities or services we currently take for granted and no way to provide sufficient food. When long winters start freezing living things, humans devolve to something less than human and exploit weaker humans (some women and children). People grow up fast or die. Joining groups and living be rules of the strong was the only way to survive. The contrasts between living in "Today" and the future world was made immediate by following a character that was transported between both worlds. I'm reading the book a second time now to see if there is some mechanism that caused the changes or if it was just something that happened to a strong self sufficient young girl. It is interesting to read of the recognition of what can be done in an inhospitable environment to substitute for modern medicine and deal with the challenges that each day brings. A great adventure that is thrown upon an intelligent young lady with internal resources that she didn't realize were available for her. An interesting look at an alternative that is successfully managed in spite of inherent disadvantages. You have to cheer the resourcefulness and strength of the determined young lady!

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

First I need to say I really really enjoyed Nightworld. I am a sucker for great stories that aren't afraid to welcome time as a character and was pleased to see how Noel so generously included it. Additionally I have a bad habit of 'peeking' at the ending as I become attached to the characters. I fought this urge hard after only the first few chapters and was glad I did so if you're a peeker RESIST!

Nightworld is full of delicious sarcasm, wry wit, and of course kickin butt with sharpened implements. A great adventure with a strong finish. If it is still in your to read list, open it up and settle in to a cozy place. Let the steady tap of your page turning thumb take you away in to Nightworld.

//update//
I'm adding that Nightworld is a definite reread. It's still in back of my mind and because of that I'm adding a star!

[Sean Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up from a recommendation on Twitter. I'd been getting a little weary of fantasy lately. It seems the industry just pounds readers with as much junk as they can find publicists for. But I read the first few pages before I bought it and I was hooked.

Maureen Noel isn't just pumping out genre filler. This is a great piece of writing. The cosmic twin characters are vividly drawn with realism, insight and humor. The prose flows easy with a balanced level of detailed. The story keeps the pages turning. The action is vivid and gripping, but not overwrought. And just when the epilogue was easing me out, it suddenly was over and I wanted more.

So, "Bravo" and let's hope there's more from Maureen Noel.

[Rachel Cotterill · Rating 4 out of 5]

When she falls asleep, Sapphire's consciousness moves to the body of swordfighting heroine Safire. Or maybe it's the other way around; both worlds are portrayed as equally real, although Sapphire's world is the more familiar. In any case, the result is that the two women share one mind, and only one of them can be conscious at any given moment. This is an entertaining conceit, and gives rise to a number of strange situations: both girls are prone to dropping out of consciousness, and Sapphire studies medicine and explosives to better equip Safire for her life. A third thread is provided by scenes from Safire's early life. All in all, this is a compelling and imaginative adventure.

[Aeryn Dougan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I did not particularly enjoy this book, I will say that story was intriguing enough that I had to finish it. I feel that the general idea of Nightworld was a good one, but as an overall novel it just did not pull together. There were many things that simply did not fit, or were mentioned (as if to foreshadow coming events) that did not return or become pertinent later on. I felt the relationships between the characters--including the one between Sapphire and Safire--were disjointed and not heartfelt, leading sometimes to being unnecessary. The humor was hit and miss...especially the pregnant jokes. Those were just weird.

[Howard Parsons · Rating 5 out of 5]

These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
                                                                                          These Dreams by Heart

Imagine that you're a girl living on Orcas Island in what is - or was - The State of Washington. Your name is Safire and you are a highly skilled insurgent battling the rapidly decaying order of things on Orcas Island in the not too distant future. Orcas Island - and indeed Washington state - has become depopulated as thousands have fled the advancing glaciers of the new ice age. Civil authority has disintegrated and the island is ruled - or rather, terrorised - by an organised gang of thugs. You were employed as a scavenger in the island's old landfill rooting out things like plastic bottles, rusted car parts and paper but now you are in a guerrilla war against the authority wielded by the thugs who control the crumbled civilisation.

Now imagine, if you will, that you're a young woman named Sapphire working as the seasonal manager of a book shop in the present day village of Eastsound on Orcas Island. You are - somehow - pregnant though you have no recollection of the act that started it and your nights are consumed with strange dreams - nightmares, really - in which you become Safire. Going to sleep is something you fear because you see what Safier does, thinks and feels - including wounds she suffers - and more than once, you have awoken to find yourself bruised, cut and bleeding. Safire dreams about you and your quiet life at the book shop in a time that is so much warmer than hers.

This is the dichotomy that Maureen Noel has created in her novel, Nightworld, a gripping thriller about both a present-day and future world that are seemingly connected only by dreams. At least that's the way things are until a character from Sapphire's Nightworld makes an unwelcome appearance in Eastsound and things are never the same after that.

Abiding by my rule of not revealing the plot synopsis or ending., I can say that once this story really gets underway, it gets better and better by each page. At first, readers are thrown into a confusing situation where they spend time trying to determine just what is happening; not unlike the confusion that Sapphire must have felt when she found herself pregnant and dreaming of the Nightworld inhabited by Safire. As the plot progresses, the reader starts to get his or her feet on the ground and the book becomes less and less easy to put down.

While the book is classified as "Fantasy", it is definitely not the stuff of unicorns, Hobbits, mermaids, royalty or talking animals. Instead, it is a dark and brooding work punctuated with flashes of terror; both in present-day Eastsound and the Nightworld of Sapphire's dreams. The book, Nightworld, is suitable for the upper age segment of Young Adult readers as well as adults.

Remember, don't go to sleep as you never know what will happen to you in the Nightworld.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it (3 stars), no, I really liked it; therefore, 4 stars. The author does an excellent job of creating two interlocking worlds. I loved the often times poetic words that describe the experiences of all senses - not just sight, but smells, touch, taste. It draws you in to experience it for yourself. The story flows with plenty of action to keep the pages turning. The ending? Never saw it coming.

There is definitely a need for better proofreading and some editing. Safire's story being told in present tense is a little jarring and took some mental adjustments. The story lines may seem a little jumbled at times (I think even the author at one time switches Sapphire for Safire.) But I would urge you to persevere - the story is worth it.

Sadly, there is a message in the story of where earth may be heading - a new ice age. Unfortunately that warning seems lost to readers (reviewers) who are too hung up on grammatical correctness to hear it.

[Jess the Romanceaholic · Rating 3 out of 5]

(free from the Kindle Store)

This one was...... interesting.

I'll be honest, if it hadn't been for Thomas, as in, if his entire character had been cut out as well as everything having to do with him? This would've easily been a 4.5 or a 5. There was excitement, romance (eh, kinda), mystery, time travel, post-apocalyptic society, all sorts of goodies that I love.

And then there was Thomas.

Well, to be fair, there was also a little too much confusion between when she jumped times (though I think some of that was intentional), and I didn't care for the rapes Safire suffered at the hands of her captors, but I could forgive that since it was off-screen.

There were also quite a few editing errors which threw me off, but even with those errors, I did enjoy the main storyline.

I just really, really hated Thomas lol

3/5 Stars

[Madeleine Holly-Rosing · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ms. Noel has done a fine job for a first novel. I'd actually give it a 3.5. But it is tough to balance going back and forth between two worlds equally. The "Nightworld" was far more interesting than the "present time." Meaning Safire was a much more interesting character than Sapphire. And sometimes the switch between the two could be a little jaring. Thomas seemed to be a conveneint add-on as a "writer needed" character as opposed to someone who organically evolved from the world and the story. I also never really understood the main character's need to consume so much food and the intimate focus on bodily functions.

However, I did find it engaging and often times a very fun read. I look forward to seeing Ms. Noel's development as a writer as I think she has a terrific future ahead of her.

[Caroline Rolley · Rating 3 out of 5]

You really need to stick with this book. Most of it leaves you scratching your head, but all revelations happen at the end. The reason I took two stars off? One star was for the length of time it took for ANYTHING to make sense and for the childish relationship banter. Another star was for..... SPOILER ALERT.... why Sapphire dreamed of Safire in the first place. If you go in the undo you go back in time. Safire only "hung off the walls" of the undo so just her pregnancy and memories went back? What, they spontaneously took human form? They landed in the only ancestor with the same name?? It's never explained and it just confused me. It isn't a bad book, it's worth a read if toy can stick it out. If you give up on books easily, then pass this up. It needs a dedicated reader.

[Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a few false dawns in reading this book which were more to do with life and other books I then decided to read first but eventually started it and found it a good read overall. Its an interesting concept, parallel worlds colliding through weird devices. As with a lot of books that use this sort of device this means you do have to pay attention to timelines and whats going on but credit to the author they avoided making it too complicated. Worth a read and I will certainly pick up the next offering from the author.

[Suki · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellently-written book, delving into aspects of time travel without attempting to answer the intricacies of such a difficult subject. I didn't feel invested in Sapphire, initially - much more in Safire and her world. Then, suddenly, both were extremely important. And, what was more pressing - the fear that one or the other would fall asleep at a crucial moment. It became quite nail-biting toward the end! I especially enjoyed the battle scenes and the focus on what was really important to the character at the time. A good concept, well executed.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was difficult to read and...weird. The explanation for the nightworld and sleep/dream lives isn't explained until very near the end and then the story is over. It took me a while to get through the book (on kindle) and while it was interesting in some parts, it seemed choppy and incomplete in others. It also seems like a prequel to a series of books about Nightworld and these characters involvment in it. I'm not sure if I'll pick up the next one.

[Mara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a weird book to read. A mix of sci-fi and dystopian, it moves between worlds smoothly enough. I'm not sure if it has a proper plot and, of course, time travels are always tricky. But I found myself intrigued.

It took me long to decide whether to read it or not. Self-pubb and freebies have been a strong disappointment too long for me to ignore. But I would suggest this book if you feel daring enough or want to try something different.

[Teipu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't think I would finish this book, the middle part was just ridiculous with the deer and all.
Also I didn't care for Thomas and his huge house at all. What was the part about being his muse about? And then comes Ne'erboughs and Thomas is completely out of the picture.
I liked the "future" parts, the world-building was interesting and gritty (Safire was a bit too allmighty though).

[Victoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't bring myself to like Sapphire, I found it way too jumpy, and there were cliches galore. But, it was free. What do you do? And it was entertaining. If you want to be entertained and aren't finicky (I am. It's not something I'm proud of) then go for it. It was a quick read with some interesting concepts.

[Mollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought it for 99 cents and that is fine. It was interesting but I kept losing the thread of the story and while I figured out what Nightworld was, I wanted to know more about the technology of the Undo and what happened to lead to Nightworld.

[Brett Anningson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book did not get me right away. The more I read, however, the more hooked I was on the outcome. When I started I was reading pages a day. When I ended I was reading chapters a day. It is worth a look if you like "non science" type sci fi.

[Michael Fournier · Rating 5 out of 5]

very enjoyable read.

[Sharon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not care for this book. The cross over from the two worlds was confusing. The characters could have been more developed.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would have much better had Maureen trusted someone to proof read it before publication. There were some jarring mistakes.

[Taryn Houston · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't even manage to get through the prologue! I cannot be bothered to waste my time on a book that has not been proofread and properly edited, whether it's free or not.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing. Had me interested until the end. In some spots, it seemed like the author was just trying to fill words, and some editing errors, but beyond that, I enjoyed the read.