And the Dark Sacred Night: A Novel

In And The Dark Sacred Night, Julia Glass has outdone herself. Here, Glass starts with the simplest of threads: Kit Noonan sets out to learn his father’s identity despite his mother’s refusal to help him. From this, Glass weaves a rich tapestry by slowly revealing the complicated stories of the large cast of characters surrounding Kit.

Glass does much more than simply write an interesting story which seamlessly shifts from past to present and back, however. A master at her craft, Glass embellishes her work with details that make this work a joy for the discerning reader. A roof leak that ruins the wedding dress of a couple whose marriage is in trouble, a cranky parrot ironically named Felicity present at a tense family gathering, and a half-fallen tree threatening the house during a storm at that same gathering are but a few examples of the evident care Glass takes with her work. Furthermore, those familiar with Glass’ earlier work, The Three Junes, may be pleasantly surprised to recognize certain characters from the earlier work. And The Dark Sacred Night is a novel not to be missed.