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The Midnight News
From the bestselling author of Longbourn , a gripping novel of one young woman’s unraveling during the Blitz—a story of World War II intrigue, love, and danger • “[A] thrilling novel…atmospheric and memorable.” —Emma Donoghue, bestselling author of Haven
It is 1940 and twenty-year-old Charlotte Richmond watches from her attic window as enemy planes fly over London. Still grieving her beloved brother, who never returned from France, she is trying to keep herself out of holding down a typist job at the Ministry of Information, sharing gin and confidences with her best friend, Elena, and dodging her overbearing father.
On her way to work she often sees the boy who feeds the birds—a source of unexpected joy amid the rubble of the Blitz. But every day brings new scenes of devastation, and after yet another heartbreaking loss Charlotte has an uncanny sense of foreboding. Someone is stalking the darkness, targeting her friends. And now he’s following her.
As grief and suspicion consume her, Charlotte’s nerves become increasingly frayed. She no longer knows whom to trust. She can’t even trust herself . . .
Utterly riveting and hypnotic, The Midnight News is a love story, a war story,and an unforgettable journey into the fragile mind and fierce heart of an extraordinary young woman.
It is 1940 and twenty-year-old Charlotte Richmond watches from her attic window as enemy planes fly over London. Still grieving her beloved brother, who never returned from France, she is trying to keep herself out of holding down a typist job at the Ministry of Information, sharing gin and confidences with her best friend, Elena, and dodging her overbearing father.
On her way to work she often sees the boy who feeds the birds—a source of unexpected joy amid the rubble of the Blitz. But every day brings new scenes of devastation, and after yet another heartbreaking loss Charlotte has an uncanny sense of foreboding. Someone is stalking the darkness, targeting her friends. And now he’s following her.
As grief and suspicion consume her, Charlotte’s nerves become increasingly frayed. She no longer knows whom to trust. She can’t even trust herself . . .
Utterly riveting and hypnotic, The Midnight News is a love story, a war story,and an unforgettable journey into the fragile mind and fierce heart of an extraordinary young woman.
336 pages, Paperback
First published March 28, 2023
214 people are currently reading
18456 people want to read
About the author
Jo Baker
19 books987 followersJo Baker is the author of six novels, most recently Longbourn and A Country Road, A Tree. She has also written for BBC Radio 4, and her short stories have been included in a number of anthologies. She lives in Lancaster, England, with her husband, the playwright and screenwriter Daragh Carville, and their two children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 330 reviews
May 11, 2023
Twenty-year-old Charlotte Richmond, daughter of a high-ranking Minister, belongs to an affluent family but now lives on the other side of London, as a boarder (the reasons for which are revealed later in the novel). She mourns the loss of her brother, who died on the front and works as a typist in the Ministry of Information and spends her free time checking up on her friends and colleagues, though doing so is becoming increasingly difficult on account of restrictions imposed as the war rages on. She meets Tom Hawthorne, a young man she notices daily feeding the birds in the park, and befriends him. Tom, unable to serve on the front due to his physical limitations, works with his father in their family’s undertaking business and is waiting to start classes at the University to pursue higher education, which he believes will enable him to strike out on his own. The sudden deaths of people close to her raise Charlotte’s suspicions, and when she notices someone following her in the streets, Charlotte senses that there are sinister forces in play. But everyone around her doubts her suspicions and her sanity. Alone with her thoughts, dealing with her personal losses and the devastation all around, unable to determine whom to trust and dealing with the strained relationships with her family members, she struggles to keep it all together.
The author combines elements of historical fiction, drama and mystery into a masterfully woven narrative that touches upon themes of war and its psychological impact, mental health, love and survival and much more. The narrative is shared from the perspectives of Charlotte and Tom. Needless to say, this is a layered novel with complex characters and a complicated plotline, but at no point does it feel overwhelming. The narrative flows seamlessly and is perfectly paced to allow us to absorb the story as it progresses. The novel is set in WWII London during the Blitz, and the author employs vivid imagery to depict how the war impacted the lives of civilians trapped in war-torn London and how they tried to maintain a semblance of normalcy and survive the air raids, blackouts and bombings that have become a part of their daily lives. The author describes Charlotte’s state of mind, her self-doubt, uncertainty and her inner resolve with much depth and honesty. The suspense and psychological tension are palpable and I couldn’t wait to see how the story eventually played out. The author also sheds light on how mental health issues were perceived during the time, especially how easy it was for families to institutionalize women who were considered a “nuisance”. The mental health practices described in this novel are disturbing to read. I appreciate that the author chose to end the novel on a hopeful note and though a few aspects of the mystery remained somewhat unresolved, the ending does not feel abrupt or unrealistic in any way. Heartbreaking yet hopeful, insightful and thought-provoking, The Midnight News by Jo Baker is an exceptionally well-written novel that I would not hesitate to recommend to those interested in a story set in WWII England told from a unique perspective.
This is my first Jo Baker novel and I look forward to reading more of her work in the future. Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
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April 30, 2023
So often, stories of the Blitz are all about keeping a stiff upper lip. But Midnight News tackles the other side of the coin, about someone who struggles to keep it all together. Charlotte Richmond has already lost her brother to the war. She's previously suffered a breakdown. She’s now 20, living on her own, holding down a job as a typist at the Ministry of Information. She’s somewhat estranged from her father and stepmother. On her way to and from work, she watches a young man who feeds the pigeons in the park. Tom is an undertaker’s son, with physical ailments that have kept him out of the war. They slowly form a friendship.
The book alternates between the viewpoints of Charlotte and Tom.
I love how Baker gives us the frailty of existence during the Blitz, the worry about others, not just those one is especially close to, but those you merely interact with. Baker truly puts the reader in the scene, giving us a feel for the streets after a raid - how there’s too much light, “too much empty air”.
As the story goes on, Lotte loses more folks close to her and her thoughts take a turn to the macabre. She’s convinced there’s something sinister going on. That there’s another reason people she knows are dying. I’ll admit to being confused at several points in the story. It doesn’t help that Lotte is not a reliable narrator. But the ending ties everything up in a very satisfying way with only one question left hanging.
This is a slow burn of a book, all about the characters. It’s about the constraints placed on young women and what happens when you don’t live within the boundaries set. I’ll admit to being tired of WWII plots but this kept me engaged and anxious. It sort of defies a strict genre definition.
My thanks to Netgalley and Knopf for an advance copy of this book.
The book alternates between the viewpoints of Charlotte and Tom.
I love how Baker gives us the frailty of existence during the Blitz, the worry about others, not just those one is especially close to, but those you merely interact with. Baker truly puts the reader in the scene, giving us a feel for the streets after a raid - how there’s too much light, “too much empty air”.
As the story goes on, Lotte loses more folks close to her and her thoughts take a turn to the macabre. She’s convinced there’s something sinister going on. That there’s another reason people she knows are dying. I’ll admit to being confused at several points in the story. It doesn’t help that Lotte is not a reliable narrator. But the ending ties everything up in a very satisfying way with only one question left hanging.
This is a slow burn of a book, all about the characters. It’s about the constraints placed on young women and what happens when you don’t live within the boundaries set. I’ll admit to being tired of WWII plots but this kept me engaged and anxious. It sort of defies a strict genre definition.
My thanks to Netgalley and Knopf for an advance copy of this book.
February 8, 2024
You know what, I think I love Jo Baker. This is the third book of hers I've read and I enjoyed every one of them so far.
How to even describe this one? It starts out as the Blitz novel, a chilling description of the dread people experienced every night, while waiting for the planes and bombs.
And then... Well, there's A LOT of plot. At first it's a mystery tale, then psychological thriller, then a spy novel etc etc. I'm vague but the book changed directions quite a few times and I couldn't stop reading! And in the heart of it we have a fantastic young woman, Charlotte, who comes from money (she studied in school with Elizabeth Bowen) but mysteriously don't want to deal with her family (another mystery).
What can I say, I loved it, it is extremely plot heavy, fantastically written piece of WW2 historical fiction and I will read anything that Jo publishes. Interestingly in the afterworld she mentioned that she wrote her phd on Elizabeth Bowen and how her books haunted her and inspired this one.
From what I've read from EB, and it's only one book, the style is very different, yet you can't say Charlotte didn't experience the death of the heart. So I kinda see it. And anyhow, this makes me want to try Bowen again.
How to even describe this one? It starts out as the Blitz novel, a chilling description of the dread people experienced every night, while waiting for the planes and bombs.
The RAF will be up there, harrying the raiders, and the gunners can’t risk hitting our boys; maybe falling shells are considered too much of a danger to the population below. But if that’s the case, they should have thought of it already; why bother setting up all these guns if they can’t risk firing them? Was it just to reassure us? To make us think we are defended? So we don’t all run away from London? So we don’t all huddle in the Underground and refuse ever to come out again?
But then a siren, distant, winds itself up into a wail, and another joins it, and another, and another, the fear tightening on her with each step closer to where she stands, leaning out her roof window, staring at the sky.
Later still, they pull out the thin mattresses Belsie has sewn from old blankets and ticking, from where they’re kept in the cupboard underneath the stairs. They make up beds in the hallway. This is the safest spot in the house, a good solid structure; not much glass to fly around, the warden said. Fred has cut a piece of board to fit the fanlight. It doesn’t feel like much, against bombs that can throw a bus into the air or reduce a building to dust.
And then... Well, there's A LOT of plot. At first it's a mystery tale, then psychological thriller, then a spy novel etc etc. I'm vague but the book changed directions quite a few times and I couldn't stop reading! And in the heart of it we have a fantastic young woman, Charlotte, who comes from money (she studied in school with Elizabeth Bowen) but mysteriously don't want to deal with her family (another mystery).
What can I say, I loved it, it is extremely plot heavy, fantastically written piece of WW2 historical fiction and I will read anything that Jo publishes. Interestingly in the afterworld she mentioned that she wrote her phd on Elizabeth Bowen and how her books haunted her and inspired this one.
Years ago, I completed a PhD on the work of the Anglo-Irish writer Elizabeth Bowen. It was really more about the hyphen than anything else; the see-saw gap she inhabited between the Anglo and the Irish. Bowen was also a writer of the war years, and I was fascinated then, as now, by her exploration of the strange states that war generates, whether psychological, physiological, or psycho-geographical. The Midnight News owes a great deal to the years I spent absorbing this extraordinary, not-entirely-placeable woman’s work.
From what I've read from EB, and it's only one book, the style is very different, yet you can't say Charlotte didn't experience the death of the heart. So I kinda see it. And anyhow, this makes me want to try Bowen again.
June 5, 2023
The market for WWII fiction has seemed glutted for quite a while now, but every so often a book of WWII fiction comes along that surprises and lifts the genre out of its usual rut. The Midnight News is just such a book.
Why do I say this?
1. The Midnight News is set in London during the blitz and really captures the exhaustion and terror created by nightly bombings, something I think we need more of at a time of bellicosity, and "survivalism."
2. It offers central characters that have emotional and physical limitations—particularly Charlotte Richmond, who has lost several friends in the bombing. Those friends have more or less taken up residence in her mind, commenting of her every move and undermining her already limited sense of volition.
3. Surprises! Big surprises! I'll say no more. But, surprises!
If you're looking for some reading that moves beyond the usual limits of genre, you'll be deeply satisfied with Jo Baker's The Midnight News.
I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.
Why do I say this?
1. The Midnight News is set in London during the blitz and really captures the exhaustion and terror created by nightly bombings, something I think we need more of at a time of bellicosity, and "survivalism."
2. It offers central characters that have emotional and physical limitations—particularly Charlotte Richmond, who has lost several friends in the bombing. Those friends have more or less taken up residence in her mind, commenting of her every move and undermining her already limited sense of volition.
3. Surprises! Big surprises! I'll say no more. But, surprises!
If you're looking for some reading that moves beyond the usual limits of genre, you'll be deeply satisfied with Jo Baker's The Midnight News.
I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.
February 11, 2023
The feeling of living through the times was brilliant, I don’t think I’ve ever read a novel set during the blitz that so accurately conveyed the feeling of the era. The minute details, the way people talked and related to each other, these were super-compelling and I would have given this a four or five star review for these. I think the overall plot didn’t grab me anywhere near as much. The story was excellent and compelling but was a bit confusing to the point where the final reveal felt hurried and unearned. The “is she going mad?” story felt very familiar (the answer is nearly always no) and the wrap-up gave me more of an “oh” reaction rather than anything else. Great characters, amazing setting, odd plot.
January 27, 2023
I won’t lie, receiving a proof of the new Jo Baker novel had me giddy with delight. It’s probably 10 years since I first heard Jo talk, on the book tour for her soon-to-be bestseller Longbourn. I was a brand new bookseller and Longbourn was one of the first books I eagerly thrust at my new workmates, and then recommended to customers, excited to share that buzz of a brilliant read - they all loved it. I’ve been consistently enthralled by Jo’s subsequent novels, and this latest was no exception.
Set during the blitz, and looking at the collective grief and trauma of the war years, The Midnight News is evocative and deeply moving, brilliantly capturing the shock and unreality of the repeated attacks.
Charlotte is a 20 year old typist, bored by the tedium of her mundane job at the Ministry of Information, grieving the loss of her beloved brother in France, lonely, her best friend distant and too busy to meet. As the bombs begin to drop on London and death comes for people she loves, Charlotte’s unease grows. Who is the man she keeps seeing, is he following her and are these deaths connected?
The Midnight News is unpredictable and surprising, just the best combination. This is such a beautiful story about belonging and identity, about being seen and accepted for who you are. I loved the interactions between Charlotte, landlady Mrs Callaghan and Mr Gibbons, her fellow lodger. They felt like quiet moments of tenderness, their cheerful kindness at odds with the expectations of Charlotte’s family. Both they and Charlotte’s friendship with Tom, the boy who feeds birds, touch on the strange magic of those very real connections we sometimes make with people we hardly know.
Both mystery and love story, The Midnight News is also a glimpse into a young woman’s interior world as she deals with grief, loss and the strain of constant fear. Looking at living through difficult times, it talks about the small acts of kindness which mean everything, the pain but also transformative joy we open ourselves up to by caring for others, and the beauty to be found when we find our place in the world. Hypnotic, captivating, immersive, I adored this wonderful read.
Set during the blitz, and looking at the collective grief and trauma of the war years, The Midnight News is evocative and deeply moving, brilliantly capturing the shock and unreality of the repeated attacks.
Charlotte is a 20 year old typist, bored by the tedium of her mundane job at the Ministry of Information, grieving the loss of her beloved brother in France, lonely, her best friend distant and too busy to meet. As the bombs begin to drop on London and death comes for people she loves, Charlotte’s unease grows. Who is the man she keeps seeing, is he following her and are these deaths connected?
The Midnight News is unpredictable and surprising, just the best combination. This is such a beautiful story about belonging and identity, about being seen and accepted for who you are. I loved the interactions between Charlotte, landlady Mrs Callaghan and Mr Gibbons, her fellow lodger. They felt like quiet moments of tenderness, their cheerful kindness at odds with the expectations of Charlotte’s family. Both they and Charlotte’s friendship with Tom, the boy who feeds birds, touch on the strange magic of those very real connections we sometimes make with people we hardly know.
Both mystery and love story, The Midnight News is also a glimpse into a young woman’s interior world as she deals with grief, loss and the strain of constant fear. Looking at living through difficult times, it talks about the small acts of kindness which mean everything, the pain but also transformative joy we open ourselves up to by caring for others, and the beauty to be found when we find our place in the world. Hypnotic, captivating, immersive, I adored this wonderful read.
November 22, 2023
This novel is set in London during the Blitz in World War II; however, it is far from a typical war story. It starts with twenty-year-old Charlotte and her friend, El, meeting for lunch just prior to the bombing raids. The storyline follows Charlotte around the city as she meets with her friends. It follows her to her mundane job typing reports, at which she is not particularly accomplished. The Blitz begins to claim her friends, and people she knows start vanishing under what she thinks are mysterious circumstances. A man appears to be following her, and she becomes convinced that the deaths are not the random results of air raids. She meets Tom, a disabled man who discretely feeds city’s population of birds, which is not allowed during rationing. Tom tells her to trust her family with her fears, but there is something in her past that keeps her from doing as he suggests. The reader will begin wondering if Charlotte is suffering from mental illness or post-traumatic stress, or perhaps she is in her right mind after all.
It is a slowly developing story that requires a bit of patience, which will ultimately be rewarded. The author drops hints and puzzle pieces that eventually fit into place. It may seem at first like historical fiction, but it begins to blend into something quite different. The reader will quickly become aware that Charlotte is an unreliable narrator. I do not want to say too much here to avoid spoiling it. I think it is best approached as a blank slate. I was not sure where it was all headed, but in the end, I found it totally engrossing and completely different than most novels with the Blitz as a backdrop. This is the second book I have read by Jo Baker, and I definitely plan to read more.
It is a slowly developing story that requires a bit of patience, which will ultimately be rewarded. The author drops hints and puzzle pieces that eventually fit into place. It may seem at first like historical fiction, but it begins to blend into something quite different. The reader will quickly become aware that Charlotte is an unreliable narrator. I do not want to say too much here to avoid spoiling it. I think it is best approached as a blank slate. I was not sure where it was all headed, but in the end, I found it totally engrossing and completely different than most novels with the Blitz as a backdrop. This is the second book I have read by Jo Baker, and I definitely plan to read more.
May 7, 2023
4 Stars
Fantastic writing.
Fantastic writing.
December 27, 2023
Felt it was slow going and missing a little something
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May 30, 202388 pages in and I'm not feeling it. It's more confusing than anything else. To begin I was interested in Charlotte and Tom, then lost interest.
August 24, 2023
I really can’t make up my mind whether I liked this book or not, but I’ll certainly give credit to the author for keeping me wondering what the heck is going on throughout the entire thing.
January 9, 2024
Longbourn is one of my favourite books so I was really pleased to see that Jo Baker had a new book out, and another historical fiction novel at that - which I love!
Set during WWII, The Midnight News tells the story of Charlotte, whose brother has not returned from fighting and, after the loss of another friend, she begins to fear that something more sinister is afoot. She starts to try to piece things together, but when she voices her concerns to family, she is swiftly returned to Summer Fields, a place where she is expected to clear the voices of those she has lost from her head.
I listened to The Midnight News on audio. Jo Baker has written both a fantastic story and wonderful characters, which are brilliantly brought to life by Katherine Manners. I absolutely fell in love with Charlotte, who is a gentle soul but strong-minded and feisty when she needs to be. She knows that Summer Fields is not the right place for her to be, and continues to hatch a plan in her head of how she can convince people about the shadow man. What follows is a tense and suspenseful element of the story - was Charlotte right to be suspicious?
Another really enjoyable story from Jo Baker, and if you're a fan of audio, I can highly recommend a listen of this one - it's like listening to a one woman play!
Set during WWII, The Midnight News tells the story of Charlotte, whose brother has not returned from fighting and, after the loss of another friend, she begins to fear that something more sinister is afoot. She starts to try to piece things together, but when she voices her concerns to family, she is swiftly returned to Summer Fields, a place where she is expected to clear the voices of those she has lost from her head.
I listened to The Midnight News on audio. Jo Baker has written both a fantastic story and wonderful characters, which are brilliantly brought to life by Katherine Manners. I absolutely fell in love with Charlotte, who is a gentle soul but strong-minded and feisty when she needs to be. She knows that Summer Fields is not the right place for her to be, and continues to hatch a plan in her head of how she can convince people about the shadow man. What follows is a tense and suspenseful element of the story - was Charlotte right to be suspicious?
Another really enjoyable story from Jo Baker, and if you're a fan of audio, I can highly recommend a listen of this one - it's like listening to a one woman play!
May 17, 2023
Okay. Too long and wordy. I think the author tried too hard to make story lines where they didn't fit. When the line was on point, she wrote well and those portions were good. Overall, this may have resonated with me more in the winter or rainy day. Another good edit could be a game changer.
There is profanity.
There is profanity.
June 2, 2023
This book couldn't decide what it wanted to be. Historical Fiction, Thriller, Horror, Espionage, Romance... It could have been all those things but it's like the author got distracted and lost her train of thought. An idea would be presented but never fully fleshed out. But the characters were wonderful. Great character development. I have a soft spot for Historical Fiction, especially WWII, so it was an easy read. There were just a lot of weird turns.
August 24, 2023
Really, a 3.5 from me. I enjoyed the book but it had a lot of threads running through it and didn’t feel like I got enough explanation for a few of the story lines. I would have liked a more specific back story on the father.
May 24, 2024
She wants to tell him how women that she loves seem to be dying like cut flowers.
from The Midnight News by Jo Baker
I was driven to turn pages! Atmospheric and moody, the tension of war and the agony of loss, the building paranoia, the evolution of love all told in fine writing, I couldn’t put this book down.
1940’s London during the Blitz is vividly brought to life, the horrible human tragedy, how some are spared while others are pulled piecemeal from the wreckage, various body parts laid in coffins. During the air raids, some settle in their kitchens, sipping tea, while others take refuge underground, or are caught outdoors, incendiary bombs bursting around them.
Charlotte’s beloved brother died in the war. She lives in a boarding house and works as a unskilled typist, estranged from her wealthy minister father and stepmother. Her best El friend is busy, and she tries to forge friendships at work.
One person brightens her day. A boy who comes to the park to feed the birds. It is illegal, but still he brings his crumbs to surreptitiously feed them. The boy has a limp, keeps his withered hand hidden. He notices Charlotte, taken by her beauty, and one day turns to find her sitting next to him on the park bench, talking to him.
When the Blitz begins, Charlotte faces a series of losses. First, the death of a school acquaintance. Then, Charlotte loses her oldest, best friend. The funeral is open casket, which puzzles her; if El died in an air raid, why was she so perfect? And last, her beloved godmother is found dead. In her grief, Charlotte hears their voices in her head, speaking to her.
Then, there is that gray man who keeps following her. Charlotte imagines he is killing those she loves. She turns to the boy, Tom, as the only one she can trust. She responds to his kind gentleness, his intelligence. His undertaker father and mother are proud that he earned a scholarship to university, but classes are delayed because of the war. Carlottee enlists his help in tracking down the truth of the death of El and her aunt. But someone doesn’t want her to discover the truth.
What happens to Charlotte is shocking, what she learns about her father and aunt’s activities disturbing, but with wonderful twists, she is saved and finds a home, love, and safety.
Believe the hype, this is a totalling engrossing book.
Thanks to the publisher for a free book.
from The Midnight News by Jo Baker
I was driven to turn pages! Atmospheric and moody, the tension of war and the agony of loss, the building paranoia, the evolution of love all told in fine writing, I couldn’t put this book down.
1940’s London during the Blitz is vividly brought to life, the horrible human tragedy, how some are spared while others are pulled piecemeal from the wreckage, various body parts laid in coffins. During the air raids, some settle in their kitchens, sipping tea, while others take refuge underground, or are caught outdoors, incendiary bombs bursting around them.
Charlotte’s beloved brother died in the war. She lives in a boarding house and works as a unskilled typist, estranged from her wealthy minister father and stepmother. Her best El friend is busy, and she tries to forge friendships at work.
One person brightens her day. A boy who comes to the park to feed the birds. It is illegal, but still he brings his crumbs to surreptitiously feed them. The boy has a limp, keeps his withered hand hidden. He notices Charlotte, taken by her beauty, and one day turns to find her sitting next to him on the park bench, talking to him.
When the Blitz begins, Charlotte faces a series of losses. First, the death of a school acquaintance. Then, Charlotte loses her oldest, best friend. The funeral is open casket, which puzzles her; if El died in an air raid, why was she so perfect? And last, her beloved godmother is found dead. In her grief, Charlotte hears their voices in her head, speaking to her.
Then, there is that gray man who keeps following her. Charlotte imagines he is killing those she loves. She turns to the boy, Tom, as the only one she can trust. She responds to his kind gentleness, his intelligence. His undertaker father and mother are proud that he earned a scholarship to university, but classes are delayed because of the war. Carlottee enlists his help in tracking down the truth of the death of El and her aunt. But someone doesn’t want her to discover the truth.
What happens to Charlotte is shocking, what she learns about her father and aunt’s activities disturbing, but with wonderful twists, she is saved and finds a home, love, and safety.
Believe the hype, this is a totalling engrossing book.
Thanks to the publisher for a free book.
June 6, 2023
The one good thing about this book is that it's not your typical WWII novel. (There have been so many WWII novels lately, so this is a pleasant surprise in an oversaturated market.) That being said, I found it to be quite a bleak book, with only glimmers of happiness. Personally, I hate unreliable narrators, so I spent the majority of the book frustrated that I didn't have a clear handle on what was happening. I'm sure this book will appeal to many readers, but it didn't sit well with me.
June 26, 2023
4.5 stars really. I will never tire of reading about London during the Blitz and never stop being in amazement of how they handled it. Would have loved to have had much more of Charlotte's relationship with at least two of the characters! There was one thing that I felt like was implied that was never actually addressed by the end, but I can live with that.
May 2, 2023
Jo Baker, bestselling novelist of Longbourn, is out with a breathtaking tale about a young woman haunted by grief and suspicion during the London Blitz – The Midnight News. Twenty-year-old Charlotte Richmond takes a room in the city and a job as a typist at the Ministry of Information to escape her controlling father. As sirens go off and bombs fall across the city, Charlotte grabs her gas mask and other essentials and heads to the basement kitchen to wait out the raid with her landlord, Mrs. Callaghan, while another tenant, Mr. Gibbons heads to the post to prepare to search for bodies amidst the rubble.
It's a lonely existence, her friends are distracted by families and husbands and air raids, and her best friend, Elena, has recently been avoiding her. After the deaths of several friends, darkness envelopes her. As Charlotte walks the cratered city blocks of London on her way to work, she feels anxious. Someone is following her; she is sure of it. A menacing, dark figure looms around corners and in alleys. Is it her imagination or has she unwittingly become a target for someone or something? Is she somehow connected to the deaths? As the deaths stack up, Charlotte wonders whether she is losing her mind – the bodies, the constant fear of death, and the mysterious man all threaten her tenuous hold on sanity.
The only bright spot in Charlotte’s existence is meeting a young man who sits on a park bench feeding the birds. She feels drawn to him. Tom, too, seems to be merely existing. He has been accepted at University, but because of the bombings, classes have been cancelled. In the meantime, he helps his father at the mortuary . . . and feeds the birds.
The Midnight News is unlike any other World War II era novel I’ve read. Part love story and part mystery, I found Jo Baker’s plot intriguing, her characters engrossing, and the twist at the end of the novel masterful. A riveting story about resiliency and survival.
I highly recommend The Midnight News for fans of All the Light We Cannot See, The Nightingale, and The Lilac Girls. This is Lin Salisbury with Superior Reviews. Listen to my interview with Jo Baker on May 25 at 7:00 pm and the 29th at 6:00 am on WTIP 90.7 Grand Marais, or stream it from the web at www.wtip.org.
It's a lonely existence, her friends are distracted by families and husbands and air raids, and her best friend, Elena, has recently been avoiding her. After the deaths of several friends, darkness envelopes her. As Charlotte walks the cratered city blocks of London on her way to work, she feels anxious. Someone is following her; she is sure of it. A menacing, dark figure looms around corners and in alleys. Is it her imagination or has she unwittingly become a target for someone or something? Is she somehow connected to the deaths? As the deaths stack up, Charlotte wonders whether she is losing her mind – the bodies, the constant fear of death, and the mysterious man all threaten her tenuous hold on sanity.
The only bright spot in Charlotte’s existence is meeting a young man who sits on a park bench feeding the birds. She feels drawn to him. Tom, too, seems to be merely existing. He has been accepted at University, but because of the bombings, classes have been cancelled. In the meantime, he helps his father at the mortuary . . . and feeds the birds.
The Midnight News is unlike any other World War II era novel I’ve read. Part love story and part mystery, I found Jo Baker’s plot intriguing, her characters engrossing, and the twist at the end of the novel masterful. A riveting story about resiliency and survival.
I highly recommend The Midnight News for fans of All the Light We Cannot See, The Nightingale, and The Lilac Girls. This is Lin Salisbury with Superior Reviews. Listen to my interview with Jo Baker on May 25 at 7:00 pm and the 29th at 6:00 am on WTIP 90.7 Grand Marais, or stream it from the web at www.wtip.org.
April 21, 2023
Review TK
October 29, 2024
I normally love historical fiction but just couldn't get into this one. The writing style was kind of hard to follow and I just found myself not being interested in the story or the characters. After about 100 pages I just gave up.
November 17, 2024
DNF I just could not get into this book.
September 14, 2023
Only took me 20 days to read a 300-ish page book….
After much slacking in the reading department, I’m back into it at the perfect time; those fall vibes are creeping in slowly but surely.
As everyone, mostly everyone, knows, I’m a huge historical fiction fan and that will NEVER change. This book is PERFECT for fans of psychological mystery and historical fiction because both are explicitly presented in this novel. It’s very different from pretty much any WW2-era fiction novel I’ve ever read, so I was really intrigued by it.
The story follows Charlotte, a 20-year old woman who is navigating the London Blitz during the Second World War and is losing many people that are close to her but she can’t figure out why. She enlists the help of a man named Tom to track down how her friends are being killed off and her dead friends live as voices inside of her head.
Needless to say, the book is CRAZY, in terms of plot line but it was so good and I really enjoyed it.
After much slacking in the reading department, I’m back into it at the perfect time; those fall vibes are creeping in slowly but surely.
As everyone, mostly everyone, knows, I’m a huge historical fiction fan and that will NEVER change. This book is PERFECT for fans of psychological mystery and historical fiction because both are explicitly presented in this novel. It’s very different from pretty much any WW2-era fiction novel I’ve ever read, so I was really intrigued by it.
The story follows Charlotte, a 20-year old woman who is navigating the London Blitz during the Second World War and is losing many people that are close to her but she can’t figure out why. She enlists the help of a man named Tom to track down how her friends are being killed off and her dead friends live as voices inside of her head.
Needless to say, the book is CRAZY, in terms of plot line but it was so good and I really enjoyed it.
September 11, 2024
WWII story set in London with an unreliable narrator for the heroine
I felt that the setting was done very well by the author: as someone who's country is now suffering from war 🇺🇦, the descriptions of bombings, air raid sirens, the uncertainty, the fear, the tiredness and shock of it all was spot on.
But as it was, the story wasn't really gripping. It failed to engage me, to the point where I didn't want to read it, but had to basically force myself to do it. Certain parts were interesting, of course. But the explanation at the end and the "open ending" were a bit disappointing 😕
I felt that the setting was done very well by the author: as someone who's country is now suffering from war 🇺🇦, the descriptions of bombings, air raid sirens, the uncertainty, the fear, the tiredness and shock of it all was spot on.
But as it was, the story wasn't really gripping. It failed to engage me, to the point where I didn't want to read it, but had to basically force myself to do it. Certain parts were interesting, of course. But the explanation at the end and the "open ending" were a bit disappointing 😕
Read
July 20, 2023DNF - got to page 130 and that's it for me. Prose flows but is simplistic while I just fail to connect with Charlotte enough to be embedded. The London blitz occurred during the year 1940. It was horrific. Somehow this rather makes it mundane. Or nearly.
May 9, 2025
As bombs drop on wartime London during the Blitz 20 yr old Charlotte is trying to keep out of trouble, doing her bit working at The Ministry of Information, living on her own in a small attic room and spending time with her friend drinking gin. She needs to keep her head down and not get into any trouble - she knows what will happen to her if she makes a nuisance of herself again.
But as more and more bombs are dropped and people are dying, Charlotte seems to be losing her grip on reality - she's hearing voices, is someone stalking and endangering her friends? She doesn't know who to trust anymore... until she meets Tom, a young man who feeds the birds.
This is a pretty enjoyable little historical/psychological thriller - enough mystery, danger and gentle twists to keep you guessing until the last few chapters, and with an ending I did not see coming.
But as more and more bombs are dropped and people are dying, Charlotte seems to be losing her grip on reality - she's hearing voices, is someone stalking and endangering her friends? She doesn't know who to trust anymore... until she meets Tom, a young man who feeds the birds.
This is a pretty enjoyable little historical/psychological thriller - enough mystery, danger and gentle twists to keep you guessing until the last few chapters, and with an ending I did not see coming.
July 20, 2023
When you read her books it is slow going until the end then it all comes together and its great.
February 25, 2023
I absolutely adored this story by Jo Baker. It explores, in intricate detail, how it was to be a young woman in the 1940s during world war II. Ultimately, it is a love story but it is Charlotte's story alone that captivated me. The plot is jam-packed, with so many twists and turns and the beautiful imagery used meant I truly felt a part of Charlotte's world. This book had me welling up more than once and I was hooked from start to finish. Very lucky to have previewed this book thanks to Better Reading. :)
November 16, 2025
Set against the harrowing backdrop of the Blitz in London, Jo Baker tells a tale of grief, mystery, and madness that keeps you guessing right until the very last page. Not what I was expecting but still a very worthwhile read.
April 11, 2025
I started reading this at a time when I just... couldn't...the storyline of loss was too familiar. Picked it up again recently and still found it very emotional, but for different reasons...the trauma of the main character and the resolution of it was very heartwarming. I really enjoy Jo's writing.
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