I can’t remember exactly why I decided that my next book would be Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor. Frequently, I end up putting a book on hold (basically putting my name on the list to listen to it) and take another out for the present moment. I think that might be what happened here. I know the podcast is highly rated, but the novel gets mixed reviews.
I enjoyed the novel itself but the person who read the audiobook’s voice drove me crazy. I want to say it was Cecil Baldwin, but I can’t swear to it. I liked the novel, in spite of this, but it took me awhile to warm up to it.
Night Vale is a place where they are used to the strange and bizarre, but the return of The Man in the Tan Jacket leaving people pieces of paper that say “King City” has put the town at odds. Jackie Fierro, who owns the city’s pawn shop, wants answers about King City and The Man in the Tan Jacket. Meanwhile, Diane’s son has hit puberty and become a shapeshifter, which is making life quite difficult for Diane. Additionally, his father is back in town for unknown reasons, but her son has taken an interest in him, which is bad news.
Jackie and Diane, who end up with a sort of frenemy relationship, must brave the oddities of Night Vale, including the library, in order to solve their respective mysteries.
This novel, while I enjoyed it, was clearly for people familiar with the podcast. I have no issue with this, but it made the start of the novel difficult to follow. I think there may have also been references in there that I didn’t fully understand. It took me a while to fully get into it and understand everything about it.
Once you are able to get into it, the novel is interesting, creepy, and darkly, darkly funny. The middle to the end of the book is much better than the start.
It did make me want to listen to the podcast. I haven’t gotten to it yet, but I will. If the podcast is better than the book, it will be worth it.
words in scarlet ink 