It took me an extraordinarily long time to finish this book. I could not get into it at first. On the top of it, discovering The Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R Martin diverted my attention further away from it. When I finally came back to The Night Watch and gave it another try, that's when I started to appreciate the quiet beauty of this book. The Night Watch is absolutely different from the other Sarah Waters books I've read - Fingersmith, Affinity and The Little Stranger. There are no shocking twists and turns, no supernatural elements and no edge-of-the-seat suspense.

The Night Watch is the story of four people in WWII London. The story moves backwards starting from 1947 till 1941. I found this book to be more emotionally charged, more realistic as compared to Fingersmith or The Little Stranger. Even if this doesn't capture the reader's attention immediately, I would still say that The Night Watch is one of the best World War books I've read. The author's description of London during the second World War - the deaths, the bombed out streets and houses, the daily life - is poignant and moving. Since the story moves backwards, it was interesting to see how it began and how the characters are connected to each other; but I do wish we had been given more of how the characters ended up. Still, that's a minor complaint and doesn't spoil the book. Though not a favorite Sarah Waters book, The Night Watch is definitely worth a read, if you are interested in this time period.