Voices After Midnight

by Richard Peck

Why is Chad so uneasy when his California family rents a town house in New York City? Once there he hears voices—late at night, after midnight in this strange house that's at least one hundred years old.

Then he finds that his younger brother, Luke, hears them, too, and even their older sister Heidi's afraid to stay in the house alone.

As Chad and Luke explore the house, they begin to slip in and out of their own time, back to the winter of 1888. Are the voices they hear crying out for help? Will Chad ignore the voices or plunge into the unknown danger of one handred years before?

Genres: Young Adult, Time Travel, Fantasy, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Childrens, Science Fiction

181 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Richard Peck was an American novelist known for his prolific contributions to modern young adult literature. He was awarded the Newbery Medal in 2001 for his novel A Year Down Yonder. For his cumulative contribution to young-adult literature, he received the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 1990.

Reviews

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

With an atmosphere equal parts mystery and historical, Voices After Midnight takes us to New York City, where past and present commingle in a high-society drama that could cost the lives of two teenagers. Fourteen-year-old Chad, his older sister Heidi, and their eight-year-old brother Luke are going on vacation with their parents to the Big Apple. Upon arrival at the five-story home they rented for the trip, Chad senses something odd about the place, but Luke is the first to understand what's happening. The whispery voices Chad hears at night aren't in his dreams; the house is a portal between today and 1888, where the people who lived here are at a crucial juncture in their lives. Have Chad and Luke been given opportunity to alter the past? If so, why?

Shifting smoothly between centuries takes practice, but soon Chad and Luke are comfortable with it. Emily and Tyler, teen siblings who lived in this house in 1888, are under pressure to decide whom they will marry. Tyler perhaps has eyes for Emily's friend Mamie, but local heiress Consuelo Ebersole makes it clear she would not turn down a courtship from him. Through gala evenings and personal nights at home with the family back in 1888, Chad and Luke watch, unseen, and get a read on the situation. What they know from the present day suggests these romances ended in tragedy. Time is progressing, and if Chad and Luke don't solve the mystery soon, the past will remain as is, marred by a pair of teens dead for no reason. Luke is convinced his family's vacation to New York was destiny, and Chad is inclined to agree. Can they change history in a way that will reverberate one hundred years later?

Voices After Midnight is a smooth, agreeable read. The story had potential to blow my doors off, but logic issues prevent it from doing so. It's never made clear why some people can visit the past and others can't, or why this portal has opened here and now. The ending introduces new complications that are probably impossible to reconcile within the novel's framework. Having said all that, I don't dislike Voices After Midnight, and I'd rate it one and a half stars. I have fun reading Richard Peck from the 1970s and '80s, years before he started winning Newbery awards. His career is timeless.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is kind of a mess, but I'm giving it four stars anyway because 1) it has its moments, and 2) it's extremely memorable. There's an experience shared by many readers (as evidenced by GR's What's the Name of that Book??? group) of trying to recall a book read a long time ago, that-- no matter how many decades it has been-- has stuck into your brain deeply. I call these books Brain Gum, because like gum in your hair, it's not coming out, even if it doesn't quite look the same after a while.

Not all children's books are Brain Gum. In fact, certain books seem to be common Brain Gum fodder and it's not directly proportionate to their popularity. To me, the fact that it's Brain Gum alone is worth at least 4 stars. Brain Gum status requires a book to be unique, distinctive, and with vividly imaginable moments. This book checks the requisite boxes.

That said-- it's quite different from how I remembered it. Specifically, Chad. I don't remember the existence of Chad at all. He's the protagonist. I think I had it in my head that the protagonist was a girl (maybe I was thinking of his sister Heidi?). How many authors hate their own main character enough to name him Chad?

True to his name (sorry, Chads), Chad is really stupid for a 14yo, unless it comes to cars (what a dull hobby for someone not even old enough to drive). No, Chad, obviously people in Manhattan don't have driveways, open a book. Yes, the area with the stairs in front of your house is called a front stoop (how have you never heard the phrase "front stoop" in 14 years of life?). Also, no, bodegas do not look "Third World" lol. Are you a Martian?

Fortunately, his 8yo brother Luke is way cooler and twice as smart as Chad, so Luke leads him around the city, explaining how things work here on Earth, doling out wisdom and subtly snappy comebacks in equal measure.

Chad: "Another thing, Luke. Where do you get words like 'obelisk' and 'venerable?'"
Luke: "They're in the dictionary, alphabetized."

Savage.

One more thing. Their family is WEIRD AS HELL. Maybe they really are Martians and that's how all three kids can time travel. Exhibits:

1) When they temporarily move to New York City (from suburban California), their dog Al (who is an adult dog) has her "first lesson in walking on a leash."

2) Dad: "Do you realize we've never taken a walk before? On sidewalks? As a family?"

3) Luke, about an Egyptian statue outside a museum: "I've never been this close to something so old." Sooo the kid has never been to a museum of any kind? In eight years? Not even with school field trips?

4) When the three kids and their mother go shopping together: "We haven't been out together like this for years. Not since Luke was in a stroller."

Okay, WHAT IS HAPPENING. Who is this family? They've never gone for a walk, not even with their dog? They've never experienced sidewalks? They've never been to a museum? They haven't gone shopping together in SEVEN YEARS? Are they agoraphobic? Are they vampires? Did the parents kidnap these kids from another family and have forced them to live in a windowless basement for the past decade of their lives? Absolutely no explanation is given for these bizarre, offhand remarks that are continually made by the characters. I am extremely concerned for Richard Peck. Is he ok? Have we checked on him lately? Has anyone seen him since this book was published in 1989?

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a pity I didn't discover Richard Peck as a kid, because this would have been right up my alley. Old house? Check. Time travel to 1880s? Check. Funny? Check. A historical mystery? Check. And it's all packed in a nice slim volume - if only someone would reissue it with a better cover! I thought my library hardcover was bad - Chad and Luke peering around a doorway, having just traveled back in time and looking very 1989 - but at least it doesn't give away part of the mystery or employ an unrelated beam of light/flying, like the paperback.

What's great about the story is that Chad and Luke are just able to move through time - there's no elaborate explanation, no machine, nothing - which makes you, as the reader, feel like the same thing might happen to you! Your family might be staying in an old house near Central Park and one morning you wake up to find yourself in the 1930s. Or the 1880s. Or you might be walking through the park and see Revolutionary War era soldiers trudging along. And it's not just a place like New York, either - the same thing happens to the boys back home in suburban California.

Peck also does a great job of making you believe the characters are a family - the annoying older sister, the precocious younger brother, the narrator who's just turning into a teenager, the parents who are loving but occasionally clueless. The settings are nicely described, and you really feel the contrast between the newness of the California neighborhood and the city setting. Now I just to get kids to ignore the cover and check it out.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book in 1998 or 1999. I think this book set up what kind of reader I am today. Old New York building, nostalgic 80s/90s pop culture, time travel, a hint of “true crime” investigation, a dash of a historical romance?!

“Girls only read romance books when they aren’t having one.” Is a quote from this book I have thought about every time I see a romance book.

I loved re-reading this. It aged okay, I saw only one off-color line that was in the beginning. Minimal references to Newhart, the Wonder Years, and Growing Pains might throw off a modern reader.

I wish someone could adapt this to an adult-age novel where we get more into the time travel mechanics - but this is middle grade and is wonderful for what it is.

Now how do I go back in time and save Calistoga Water?!?

[kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no idea how many times I've read this book.

However, this is quite possibly my favorite title by Richard Peck (and trust me, the Blossom Culp series gave this title a run for its money). I was absolutely entranced and fascinated by the time-travel aspect of the story, along with the Great Blizzard of March 1888.

[Millie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My neighbor lent it to me. I actually have the pre-published... yet published copy. Weird that way, but anyway, its very fun and engaging. Time travel, mysterious and the like. Reminds me of the movie, "The Sixth Sense" a little.

Very fun. I really enjoyed it.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here is another book by my favorite author Richard Peck. This is one of his early works written in 1989 but it still holds true to his love of historical fiction. He is a master storyteller. In this book, Chad (14 years old), his brother Luke (8 years old) and his sister Heidi (15 years old) explore the haunts of an old mansion in the state of new York. Chad's father has been temporarily sent on assignment to New York and he takes the family with him for a two week stay. Luke is a sleepwalker and being in a new environment, his dreaming and walking begins to take him into the past when mansions, balls and marrying into well to do families were the norm. But he finds out that it is not just him who dreams, sleepwalks and hears the "voices after midnight". His sister and brother are also time travelling. They find themselves in the middle of the Dunlap family. It is Christmas 1889. They can see everyone but no one sees them. Peck's descriptions of the homes and decor of this time period gives us a good idea of how people lived during that time. For example: "the elevator and I shuddered. It came to a rest on the main floor. Hands pushed open the little doors from insie, and Emily's mother stepped out. She wore a fine dark red dress with a high collar. Little red stones hung from her ears. As she stepped out of the elevator, she swept up her skirts with a graceful hand. There was quite a bit behind her, a bustle. She started in the direction of the back parlor." (page 99). "it was Christmas. A rope of evergreen hung from the mantel. A tremendous tree glistening with tinsel stood in the corner with its star against the ceiling. Actual wax candles were clipped on the branches waiting to be lighted." There are many parts of the book that help you visualize winter 1889 in New York before the real estate boom. I loved this book and recommend it highly.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

The three stars are because it picked up in the last fourth; most of the way through it would have been two stars for me because I felt pretty bored. The story moves slowly, the characters are flat, and their interactions with the past are similar to ones in many similar books. Also, the over-emphasis on hair and clothing styles made the modern setting seem very dated. Now I'm scared that my beloved Blossom Culp books really weren't that good, either. Better not reread them!

[Rebecca Brothers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, this was totally gnarly. I loved it much. I read this book as part of a personal project I'm pursuing. TLDR: I'm going to read all of Peck's book in the order I fancy.

And this is my favorite so far. I fell in love with Peck through a made-for-TV version of his book The Ghost Belonged to Me. The movie, Child of Glass, played on Disney every Halloween and I adored Blossom Culp so much. Her character was amazingly like me, or someone I wanted to be friends with, and nerdy little me saw the book title and Peck's name in the opening credit. And I actually asked my mom to drive me to the library to check out the book. And then...

This book. It's got everything I ever loved about a library book experience. I'm still smitten with the idea of the library being part of this Peck obsession that I'm ordering the old library copies of his books. The older ones are gorgeous: original 70's or 80's cover art, a slightly sassy Sweet Valley High quality to the pictures. This copy came with the library binding, the cellophane wrap on the cover, and the pocket and check-out card in the front cover. Another Peck find also has his signature and dedication to the library that discarded his book long ago.

But I digress. This book is awesome. There are real kids here, kids who are battling puberty and ghostly sightings. There's time travel. There is superstition and Artari and Sega and mall hair. I don't need to give you a synopsis because the story is secondary. It's atmospheric and lovely and I cannot wait to read the rest.

[J.L. Slipak · Rating 4 out of 5]

MY THOUGHTS:

I picked this library edition up in a local thrift store and have the following comments to share.

I enjoyed getting to know the characters in the story in the beginning. However about three quarters of the way, when the conflict and tension should have been building steadily, I found the book boring and decided it just wasn't for me.

The premise initially sounded wonderful but Luke and his unusal ability seemed thrust upon the reader without much backstory. The narrator takes us through the story and gives us bits and pieces as we go about the pecularity of his little brother but really nothing solid as to why he was the way he was. Frankly, if my brother acted like that, I would have gone to a parent with questions.

There really wasn't any world-building done throughout the book, at least not to the extent I needed as the reader. The characters seemed constantly thrust upon situations that had to be resolved but no preparation was done to explain why. I suppose this is how the author thought to create mystery, but for me after a while, it became tedious and boring. I stopped caring about the characters and found myself disliking the story more and more as I went along. That is why I did not finish it.

I suppose for a middle-grade crowd, this book might be enough. So I won't give it a poor score and just settle with me saying, it wasn't for me.

[Shelby Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story revolves around three siblings Luke (8 years old), Chad (14 years old), and Heidi (I can't remember her age but I believe it is 16 or 17). It starts off with the family going on a two-week trip to New York. Heidi is not happy about this which I really don't understand because most teenagers living in California would give just about anything to go to New York. (at least I would) Instead, she wants to stay with her friend Melissa. Anyway, Chad is having weird dreams at home or something, and when they finally leave for New York Chad and Luke start hearing voices at night talking (a boy and a girl) This continues and nothing really happens other than them occasionally opening a door of the rental house and finding themselves in 1888. Also throughout the book, Heidi does all these weird things after she meets a New York girl named Jocelyn who is like a punk emo and Heidi wants to turn into her and throws out all of her romance novels and eventually dyes her hair black (also almost cutting it). Later she is suddenly done with Jocelyn and doesn't come out of her room. (the whole situation with Heidi was weird in my opinion) Nothing picks up until about the last half of the book when they discover that the voices they are hearing are the voices of Emily and Tyler Dunlap.

[Hannah Harrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because my sister recommended it to me. As I read I realized that I was definitely not the target audience for this book. It was written for younger kids and probably published well before I was born. But it was kind of refreshing after two harder reads.

The story was a little hard to follow. But the time travel was fun. I wish they could have developed more of the story about why the kids can time travel. Also- the ending 🙄 I always get annoyed by stuff like that because that’s not how time travel would work! But whatever. It’s not like I have ever actually traveled through time anyway 😅

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done time travel/ghost story. I'm not sure why they sometimes landed in different times rather than the most significant one, but it made for some cool experiences and increased their detective work as they had to figure out which was the most important time and why they were needed. I think he worked with the time travel paradoxes well and even though some may say the ending was too "neat," I think it was quite logical and was somewhat foreshadowed.

[Ayelet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book at least 30 years ago and all I remembered was the kids stuck in the elevator during the 1888 blizzard. If it hadn't been for the ability to search by that description I would never have found it. I had forgotten everything else about the book but it was interesting to read it again. I find it improbable the way they just slip back and forth in time but I do like time travel in general.

[Hope Irvin Marston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though this book is forty years old, it's still an action-filled page turner for middle-grade readers who enjoy time warp stories delivered at a fast pace. I didn't rank it higher because I don't like time warp stories nor science fiction.

Hope Irvin Marston, author of THE WALLS HAVE EARS: A BLACK SPY IN THE CONFEDERATE WHITE HOUSE

[Gris Calderon · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an adult, I enjoyed this book. I know I would’ve loved it even more if I had read this as a middle schooler because it’s the type of book I was into then. It’s a cute story with a few twists that keep it interesting.

[R. Fulleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed the story. It had some surprises along the way and brought in historical events that gave it more life. The supernatural aspect was well thought out.

[Mary Tuttle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always, always like Richard Peck. When he asks you to suspend disbelief, he gives you good reason - and an entertaining method - to do so.

[Lyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richard Peck tells a good story. This was fun, I enjoyed it very much.

[Christina]

It's another book that I can't rate given my views and hindsight. There was nothing horrid -- just outdated for me. But it's a good escape, even for an adult like me. :)

[Karen Bendzus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mystery

[Kailea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute little YA novel with a fairly unique premise and a nice resolution. Luke being a mini-adult cracked me up.

[Gale · Rating 3 out of 5]

CINDERELLA IN REEBOKS!

Wow--this is one fascinating read, less about ghosts than true Time Travel! The plot hooks you right in subtly, then proceeds with inevitable events, to conclude with a satsifying ending. Of equal interest to boys and girls, this book attempts to answer the adolescent quandry: how do you know when a girl has a romance on the side?

Three California-grown kids are suddenly confronted by New York City's pop culture and Victorian history when they vacation there for two weeks with their parents and family dog one summer. The boys hear/dream voices at night and see strange, anachronistic sights by day. Soon they themselves are slipping through temporal portals, first by surprise, then by design. They gain information and perspective about the family that used to own their rented, multi-storied house. Yet their adventures are not always the same year in the Past, nor the same season as in the Present.

Of course their parents are clueless about these historical peregrinations, but it becomes more serious than mere parlor tricks--invisibly observing social interactions of the 19th century. The kids gradually realize that they have a task to accomplish in the Past; they they were chosen to perform some unselfish act for strangers long dead. Soon it becomes a true rescue mission of utmost urgency, yet the kids face grave danger themselves, if they can not get "back to the future." How much must they sacrifice for these strangers who have unwittingly touched their lives?

Do the kids have the right to attempt "unfinished business," thereby tampering with history, even it it proves to be compassionate meddling? At first they exist 90% of the time in the present and slip back or make contact with the past about 10%. But as the novel progresses they spend increasingly more time in historical New York City: the freak blizzard of March 1888. Can they get back in time to accomplish their self-imposed mission, yet not become trapped themselves? And if they succeed, how many family histories will be altered? Peck's tongue-in-cheek humor about teenage lifestyles lightens up an otherwise serious read. This is great stuff--even better than Blossom Culp!

(October 10,2010. I welcome dialogue with teachers.)
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[Barbara Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young adult/teen mystery. Well written, exciting. Interesting New York landmarks. Enjoyable quick read.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Voices After Midnight by Richard Peck is about three siblings who discover that they have the ability to time travel into the past. Chad, Luke, and Heidi travel to New York City with their family for two weeks in the summer. They rent a mysterious one-hundred-year old house and they soon begin hearing voices late at night. As they investigate, they find themselves traveling back in time to around the time of the Blizzard of 1888. They discover that the voices they hear belong to a brother and sister who died in that blizzard and the siblings work together to save their lives. They later discover that the two siblings are their ancestors.

Like in many of Richard Peck’s novels, Voices After Midnight centers on a historical event—but interestingly it also involves time travel. In spite of the time traveling aspect, this story is a historical novel that deals with the Blizzard of 1888. The author’s accurate depiction of this time period and of this historical event give the reader a sense of what life was like at that time. Despite the seriousness of the event, the author includes plenty of the humor that his readers have come to expect in his stories. The fast pace and the humor in this story make this an enjoyable book to read. The time traveling aspect is interesting and raises questions that the author leaves unanswered. Time travel, however, is a complex concept that is difficult to adequately explain and I understand the author's reason for not addressing the questions that it raises in the story. And, since it is not the story that the author wants to tell there is no need to do so.

[Liora · Rating 3 out of 5]

15 year old Chad and 8 year old Luke move with their family from California to a 100 year old house in New York City for two weeks in the summer. From their first night there, Chad and Luke hear strange voices at late at night. Then we discover that Luke has this strange ability to see the historical time of something when he is around old places or old things. So on walks through New York City, he and Chad see things like Revolutionary soldiers and horse-drawn carriages. Chad wonders whether this is a gift or if they have been given a mission to complete. Soon they discover that they do have a mission to accomplish, but I don't want to give too much away..

This was a fun read, with a fascinating story told with lots of humor. I thought I was going to be reading a ghost story, but found a time travel one instead. It was published in 1989 and some of it seems a little dated... such as Beastie Boy shoes, white pancake make-up with black lipstick for the teenage angst/rebel look, Top Gun posters, and Sting references. The New York City descriptions were excellent and very detailed. I particularly enjoyed the chapter set in Central Park.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chad, Heidi and Luke, on a family trip to New York, travel back through time to solve a mystery and rewrite history. Surprisingly, the investigation alters the lives of their own ancestors.


Californians Chad, Luke, and Heidi along with their parents rent a house in New York for a couple of weeks in the summer. Luke, 8 and Chad, 14 begin to hear voices after midnight while they are there. Their investigations into these voices allow them to travel back into time. They travel back to the winter of 1888 and encounter devastation during the storm of the century. History is rewritten when they intervene in a rescue of the ancestors of the New York house they are renting. Unbeknownst to them, they are rewriting their own history.

[Sena Public · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't suppose this book is really all that remarkable, although it was memorable enough that when I couldn't remember what it was I actually asked about it in a "lost books" forum. I did enjoy the time-travel-esque aspect, the switching back and forth between times, and young people being able to make a difference in other's lives. The teen histrionics are amusingly spoofed without feeling unbelievably exaggerated, and if the youngest child is a bit Charles Wallace-y, well, I've always loved Charles Wallace. The main character is perhaps unbelievably mature for a young teenager, but it's in a pleasant way, and probably the way teens want to see themselves anyway, so all's good.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember reading this as a kid and absolutely loving it. Yes, I'm reading a children's book. I need something mindless, so let's see how this one holds up. Fingers crossed that time and adult perspective haven't ruined this book for me!!

Update: I still did enjoy this book, but, naturally, it's more cutesy and obvious than I remember. What did I expect 20-25 years later? (Yikes...25, really?) While it may not have left as big of an impression, I'm glad to report that reading it recently didn't ruin fond childhood memories reading this book.

[Allison Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this when it first was released in 1989 (I was 12). I loved this book SO MUCH. It then took me ages to find it again. Most of my favorite books involve time travel (most recently the Outlander series) so it's no surprise that I adored this one:-) I do agree with some comments about the cover. I like the other cover slightly better but I wish it were updated to better reflect the story. My paperback is pretty beat up so I just ordered a new hardcover copy from a used book site. I'll probably read it again for the 10th time soon.