Fall of Night

The Morganville Vampires #14

by Rachel Caine

THANKS TO ITS UNIQUE COMBINATION OF HUMAN AND VAMPIRE RESIDENTS, MORGANVILLE, TEXAS, IS A SMALL COLLEGE TOWN WITH BIG-TIME PROBLEMS. WHEN STUDENT CLAIRE DANVERS GETS THE CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE LIFE ON THE OUTSIDE, SHE TAKES IT. BUT MORGANVILLE ISN'T THE ONLY TOWN WITH VAMPIRE TROUBLE...

Claire thought she'd never get to leave Morganville, but she can't pass up the chance to finally attend her dream school, MIT. After all, getting to invent anti-vamp devices with Professor Anderson - a Morganville exile herself - sounds like a dream come true... until Claire realizes there are sinister forces at play, and she's not the only one with a vampire-related agenda.

Without her friends Shane, Eve, and Michael, Claire finds that surviving a killer schedule may be hard... but with them, it might turn out to be impossible.

Genres: Vampires, Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published May 7, 2013

About the author

Rachel Caine is a pen name of Roxanne Longstreet Conrad.

She has also published as:
Roxanne Longstreet
Roxanne Conrad
Julie Fortune
Ian Hammell

Her Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/rachelcainef...

Her Instagram page:
https://www.instagram.com/rachelcaine...

Reviews

[harlequin {Stephanie} · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Edit* Not what I was hoping for, but somehow it works. Liked it better than Bitter Blood, but after the mind melting twists and turns of the previous books it's no wonder 13 was a bit flat.

One thing that did upset me was the unnecessary drama between shane and claire. They have been a solid from the beginning. Myrnin being absent throughout 90% of the book didn't help me get over this plot bomb from the last book.

Long time fans with an open mind will still enjoy this book.


Two more books!

[Maria V. Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me to still be reading a series after 13 books, is a pretty big deal. I love this series because of the characters and probably could read chapters of them just hanging out and playing video games. But that's not going to happen - not with this group.

Basically Claire finally goes to MIT and we see the world outside of Morganville, trouble finds her almost immediately, which is my only complaint. I would have loved to see her as a MIT student, making some friends and just taking a breath for the first time in this series. Just a chapter would have been lovely - there are moments, but she's way to twitchy, which I understand, but still...a girl could hope. The action accelerates quickly and it's non-stop until the last pages. Warning, there is a major cliffhanger at the end so make sure you have the next book, Daylighters on hand 'cause you're going to want to read it next.

I really enjoyed the chapters from Shane's POV and was happy that there were only the two POVs this time.

[Taschima · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fall of Night was, as always, full of action and adventure, with enough risk to get your blood pumping. It was different than other titles, while on the heart of it it remained the same. Set entirely outside of the boundaries of Morganville you would think Claire would get a second of peace away from the vampires and the dark/twisty thing that is her life. But then again that wouldn't make for a great novel, and Fall of Night is certainly a great addition into the series. Claire needed to get outside of Morganville, if only to experience what it feels like and to know exactly what she wants for her future without external forces making the decisions for her. What she decides at the end may shock some, and dazzle many more.

It is weird reading a Morganville Vampire novel that is not set in Morganville. You don't get to know what is going on around town, you only get to see what Claire sees and knows from her stay in Boston. But do not worry guys, it's still as exciting as if she were back in Morganville because it's as if Morganville troubles follow her everywhere she goes. The next novel, Daylighters, is probably going to have a healthy recap of what was going on in Morganville while Claire was away (believe me, the town was turned upside down by the end of Fall of Night, and not in a good way). I cannot wait!!

There is not a lot of Eve and Michael for over half the book, there is absolutely no Amelie, and Oliver only appears briefly halfway to the end. There are only two POVs in this novel, Claire's and Shane's. You can only imagine how mortified I was to discover that I would have to spend half the book in Shane's head [Ms. Cane couldn't have come up with a better way to torture me], but...

Surprisingly I have no complains when it comes to Shane in this title.



He was actually kind of sweet, and supportive in Fall of Night. Then again, he always manages to correct himself in one book only to disappoint me all over again in the next one, and I bet next book is going to be his worst one yet. Just you wait and see.

On the other hand there is Myrnin, oh sweet and wonderful Myrnin who keeps a spider as his pet. I want Myrnin to be happy so badly, with Claire, which is in part why I am in the "we hate Shane" club. Gotta warn you though, there is a new lady friend. An old vampire flirting with my Myrnin. HE FLIRTS BACK! Claire better get her act together because Myrnin will not wait forever, and if she isn't careful she will loose him for good. Which is what she deserves, but they make such a perfect team...

The ending was unexpected, and shocking. Just when you think nothing else could possibly happen, or go wrong, guess what? Rachel Caine comes up with a new idea of how to make things even more screwed up! But isn't that why we love the series? There is always a problem to solve, and the solutions are never what you think they should be. I can honestly say that even in it's FOURTEENTH book the Morganville Vampire series is as thrilling as ever, and I, yet again, cannot wait for the next book! Morganville by the end of Fall of Night is being run by the HUMANS. They took over with the help of an anti vampire agency of sorts, and while this should by all means be a good thing in my heart it just feels wrong. That is the vampire's city, and as such it's how it should stay

Old Update:

Me, today, when I checked my mail and saw that I had a package from Penguin, opened it, and realized what was inside:



1 hour later...



Fall of Night... I shall devour you.

Here's hoping that Shane dies a horrible death, Claire becomes a vampire, and Myrnin gets his happy ending.



Kidding, KIDDING... sort of ;)

[Sydney]

Er....make-up with Shane already! I swear if she doesn't do that in this book...

After reading book:
Wow. Woah. Okay, then. Some serious shit just went down there. That was an intense cliff-hanger and random turn in the who series with Daylight dudes. It was a good book, though, and good plot. I loved Shane's POV and Claire's POV and the switching out of the two. I also love their relationship in this book. Much more mature and adult-like. Love it and read it in 8 hours. I can't wait for November!

P.S. Does anyone know if the next book coming out is the last? If it is I'm going to cry so hard when I read the end. It better be a good ending, too!

[Jaki · Rating 4 out of 5]

She’s a tricky woman, that Rachel Caine! When I first read the blurb of Fall of Night, I was a little bit concerned. Claire’s given permission to leave Morganville and is off to MIT. I envisioned a whole book about Claire, and missing all my favourite characters and the town of Morganville too! How can that be? I thought in a panic. No Morganville? No Myrnin? No Eve? How can Ms Caine do this to us?

I should have more faith. :D Yes, Claire is off to MIT, to study in an advanced graduate program, under Professor Irene Anderson – who is herself, an ex-Morganville native, and who pretty much worked for Myrnin as Claire does. And while Morganville itself doesn’t star in the novel, we do get to revisit with its citizens. (Happy Snoopy Dance!!)

You see, I’m not a fan of Young Adult novels, especially Young Adult paranormals. In fact, I have to say that I don’t like them at all. 99% of the ones I pick up or read about, are cut from the same cloth. The plots never differ, the characters are all the same. There’s instalove, there’s love triangles and there are parents who are either totally oblivious, or absent or abusive. *Note to teenagers – parents are not oblivious of what you up to! We always know….we were teens ourselves once….

But Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampire series has grabbed me. Right from the very first book, I never felt I was reading something aimed at Young Adults. I am probably twice the age of the demographic of these books, yet I never ever felt it. No instalove – here’s a secret: I always felt Claire and Micheal would be the ones to hook up. Could have knocked me down with a feather when it was Claire and Shane. No love triangles – I loathe love triangles, cos let’s face it, how often do these happen in Real Life? And while Claire was young, she wasn’t a silly, self-centred, immature character. She was intelligent. She was clever and sweet and wonderful and oh how I would have loved to have been Claire when I was younger!

So here’s Claire, leaving Morganville at last, knowing she will desperately miss her friends, and at the same time, feeling the relief of being out of the dangers Morganville holds. She contacts her former best friend from pre-Morganville and moves in with her. It’s a testament to how Morganville has changed Claire, that she finds she no longer has much in common with the former BFF and it’s a very uneasy relationship.

She has her machine, the one that changes vampires mental capabilities, and oh when it is used at one particular point during the book, my heart wanted to break. Is the machine a good thing, saving humans from the bloodlust attacks of vampires? Or is it something worse, something that can end up be used for pain and bad things instead?

We have a couple of new characters, one I’m not too sure I liked much as she is the epitome of the gorgeous, bad-ass, Urban Fantasy female lead that I’m starting to get a bit tired of in the genre. Plus she has a bit of…history with Myrnin. Get away from my Myrnin, you skank!!!!

*cough* Ah yes. Right then. Where was I? My sweet crazy totally loopy Myrnin does appear in the book, which is as it should be. :D Without Myrnin, this series would probably lose about 45% of its appeal to me, I think. I would still read – and enjoy – a Morganville Vampires book without him, but it just wouldn’t be as sweet tasting to me.

All in all, Fall of Night is another worthy entry into the series. If you’ve never read them before, start with the first one Glass Houses, don’t start here. You need to learn about the characters, and you need to watch Claire’s growth from frightened little bookworm wondering what the hell she’s gotten herself into, to the wonderful, smart, intelligent, reasoning, strong bad-ass young woman she is now.

And you need to fall in love with Myrnin the way I did, bit by crazy bit. :D

[MissBecka Gee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that was better than I expected.
The last time Caine took the characters out of Morganville it was a disaster.
This time it worked.
I'm getting used to the new narrator...just in time to start the very last book lol.
To my dear Myrnin...

[Holly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, I am just...shocked and disappointed. Definitely not words I normally use to describe the Rachel Caine reading experience. Where do I begin when describing all the ways this book--this series--just went wrong?

And just to clarify: I realize this book was supposed to have a slightly different feel to it, since the main character was leaving the main setting. That in itself I don't have a problem with. (A similar situation occurred in book eight, Kiss of Death, and that's one of my favorites in the series.) What I take issue with is all the stuff that happened once Claire got to MIT. Starting with:

-Okay, first of all, I understand that they're not used to living outside of Morganville, where there's actual laws and stuff, but was it really necessary for them to become entangled in all this side crap, like Elizabeth's stalker situation, Shane getting beat up by some random group of guys, etc. I mean, how much bad luck can a person have? And now Claire's possibly wanted for murder, and Shane for illegal weapons possession. You'd think they'd be a little more careful.

-Jesse/Lady Gray and Myrnin. White I make no attempt to hide that I'm a "Clyrnin" shipper, I realize that's NEVER going to happen with Shane in the picture. Still, Myrnin's new little fling struck me as being too...convenient. Clearly, Rachel Caine created the character of Jesse solely for the purpose of tying up the whole love triangle issue before the rapidly approaching end of the series. And it doesn't even make sense. Myrnin is one of the oldest vampires around. He knows everyone. Why did he act so surprised to see "Lady Gray" again? More importantly, why was he only attracted to her now? That seems rather out of character for him, considering how he'd been obsessively pining over Ada for so long, even when she was dead. Myrnin barely allows himself to get distracted enough to hint at his admiration and possible love for CLAIRE, so why does he suddenly have all this time and desire to flirt with Jesse?

-The Daylight Foundation. Ugh. Yeah, that's it, Rachel. Go the way of every other vampire series and have some mysterious, cutthroat organization out to commit vampire genocide for the good of mankind. In fact, I take that back--they're not even cutthroat. Cunning, yes. Ambitious, yes. Cutthroat? Not so much. Maybe it's the fact that despite being so well equipped and funded, we never heard of them until book fourteen. Just my opinion, but it kinda prevents me from taking them seriously. That and the whole CIA wannabe thing (black vans, shades, suits). I think I take Captain Obvious and Co. more seriously. At least those guys are creative.

-Not appreciating that final crushing blow of betrayal from Hannah at the end there. I can see how shocking betrayals make good plot twists, of course, but seriously, Rachel Caine? We've already had so MANY characters who pretended to go with the flow, and were later discovered to be ruthless rebels. Aside from the Glass House Four, for lack of a better group name, there have been so FEW (human) supporting characters who you could always root for and trust to do the right thing. After Richard's death, Hannah was pretty much the last one. And maybe Richard's death had something to do with her snapping, but it still doesn't seem at all like her. Heck, she was always the one going AFTER the rabble rousers.

To sum it up, it just didn't FEEL like the Morganville I know and love. The trademark humor was gone; lackluster at best, the situations and scenarios were overdone, the characters weren't true to themselves. All I can say is that I hope the last book clears all this up in a satisfying way, because I am NOT liking the direction this is going. Unfortunately, I don't have high hopes.

*Also...the whole farm in the country setup? Did that not remind anyone else of the season four premiere of Vampire Diaries, when the Founders' Council rounded up a bunch of vampires and imprisoned them in cages at Pastor Young's farm? I'm not trying to imply that Rachel Caine is stealing ideas--on the contrary, she's one of the most creative authors out there--but perhaps she could have found a more original alternative. (I mean, they're THE DAYLIGHT FOUNDATION. Shouldn't they have a bunker, or something?)

And some smaller, parting thoughts:

-How many times do we have to fake-kill Oliver, Michael, and Myrnin to get the point across that Claire cares about them?


-How many back and forth phone calls will it take before Claire and Shane quit immediately assuming the worst of each other? In this book, Claire was doing exactly what she was accusing Shane of in the last book, and I'm surprised she didn't realize it, smart as she is. It made me lose a teeny amount of respect for her. Not to mention it dragged on for half the book. "Oh, she didn't call back. She must be mad at me, so I won't call her. Oh, he's not calling me, so he must be cheating on me, so I won't call him." Maybe I'm biased against the Claire-Shane pairing here, but they were just so OBNOXIOUS in this book.

-I find it kinda hard to believe that Amelie, as the badass vampire queen of Morganville, with all of her contacts, didn't realize Professor Anderson had turned against them while in Massachusetts, much less smuggled samples out of Myrnin's lab.

Okay, maybe those last few points weren't as short as I meant them to be, but you get my point.

[Lia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've never reviewed a book on goodreads before, but I just finished this book, and feel I have to vent.

I didn't like this book. I'm in no way saying it's a bad book- it's written decently and as usual, the interactions between characters and the dialogue work perfectly fine. It's just... I didn't like it. It just felt off to me, in an indescribable way. There are however, a few gripes I can describe.

A small thing is that we don't see much of the whole gang, especially Michael and Eve. I don't blame Rachel Caine for this, it was the right move to make with the plot and everything; but maybe that threw me off a little. We didn't get to see much of their usual interaction. Oh and when they do get together- they're not in sync like the scooby gang we all know and love. As has been the case in the last few books, it's a little bit awkward, things go wrong that must all be Claire's fault, and Eve decides Shane and Claire are always trying to kill Michael. My favourite line in the book was Claire's "I'm sick of people not trusting me." It wasn't an emotional scene, or a pivotal moment or anything, but I felt that line packed a punch. I couldn't help but think "Yes Claire, I'm sick of these fools not trusting you too." They've come so far together, the 4 main characters, and the other vampires even- I hate that they're still like this. Especially with Claire, who has fixed 1001 situation in the past and saved all of their lives.


Then, Shane. Each of the Morganville books can go one of two ways for me- I can either love Shane, or I can hate Shane. Only, for the latest few I have hated Shane quite a bit. So, in this book despite him being a likable character and a decent P.O.V, he just rubs me the wrong way sometimes. That whole secret, sneaky stalker act he had going on was ridiculous.

A similar situation in the first 5 books would have been fair enough- within the first 10 books would have been annoying. But God, i would have hoped he could mature past this. But 14 books in, 13 adventures past, he's hiding in the shadows to keep an eye on his fiancé because he loves her too much not to work kinda near her and stand across the road from her house to watch it from the darkness ever so often. Oh and then he gets drunk and beaten the shit out of by a group of average guys. That's perfect Shane- If Claire's in trouble you can always stumble upon the the evil vampire, vomit on him, and then pass out.

He actually does the same thing as Claire's roommate's Stalker, who's a villain. They stand within feet of eachother, watching this dark house with two teenage girls inside. I... It... What? That was stupid. Stupid, stupid Shane.

And this is usually where I'd go on to soliloquise about my love for Myrnin as an alternative love interest. I was prepared to up until he popped up in the second half of the book. I didn't believe she'd do it, but she has. Rachel Caine as introduced a last minute female character to give Myrnin his well wrapped, HEA. In a bow. Don't worry folks, it doesn't happen in this book- but I can smell it coming, and I'm not happy.

I have resigned myself to the fact that Shane and Claire are going to end up together. Fine, okay. But GOD. All I ask is that we let Myrnin be that wacky, affectionate and very dangerous boss man that pops up and charms us all. But alas, no. Forget than unhealthy Ada obsession. Forget that whole thing where his genius means he finds it incredibly hard to appreciate or acknowledge people. Forget the fact that his fondness for Claire was something slow, and subtle that shocked everyone who knew him because it's so rare. Because, here, look, a hard as nails and old as dust red-headed chick who likes to punch things! And now, ladies and gentlemen, Myrnin can flirt.

No no, not his endearing rare warmth, or his witty and shocking statements that we all role our eyes at but secretly find hilarious. No. We've been wrong for 13 books- Myrnin's not socially awkward or damaged beyond repair. He's healthy- he flirts.

I don't care what back story they give these two- or their interactions in the future. I'm disappointed that if this was the plan, that Rachel Caine would start this so late in the series. I feel like Myrnin deserves more than a rush job HEA with a neat little bow. If this woman is special enough that everything we know about this character goes out the window when we meet her- than i would have liked to have at least heard about her in the past. But it's too late for that now. Rachel Caine, please pull this off. Please? For Myrnin?

[Emi.acg · Rating 1 out of 5]

Valí con los audiolibros, la app que ocupaba me fallo cuando iba en la mitad xd de todas formas igual mejor, porque me sentía un tramposa por estar escuchando el audio 🙈😅 además que la traducción es pésima, es como si hubieran puesto el texto completo en Google translate y después al pdf, así que entre poner atención a lo que escuchaba, intentar darle sentido y a la vez hacer mis cosas, mi cabeza quedaba horrible al final del día.

Y pues en libro, no mucho que agregar. Entre lo que entendí igual estuvo mejor que el último en cuanto a las relaciones entre los amigos ya no habían tantos problemas. Apareció un nuevo grupo enemigo y quedó en nada los estudios de Claire, nos vamos a Morganville otra vez junto a una nueva vampira. Shane me sigue cayendo mal y los demás protagonistas por ahí van también jajaj Asumo que ahora vendría el conflicto final y ya estaríamos, uno más 🙌🏻

[Sue Tint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! 4.5 to 5 stars! I just finished this 14th installment of this beloved (especially to me) Morganville Vampires series this morning. I have come to absolutely fall in love with these characters. And while this installment took us outside of Morganville for the entire book (with the exception of the very beginning and very end - and that was basically on the outskirts of town), it was an excellent move for Ms. Caine to do. I think taking Claire out of Morganville was a perfect way to refresh this series (although, after 14 books, I think the series was holding its own, honestly). Be forewarned that this review will include some mild spoilers.

In , the 13th MV book, Claire made a shocking decision, based on the events that transpired in the book - including Michael (who was not in control of his mind) telling Eve and Shane that Michael and Claire had "hooked up", sort of, and then Shane (like an idiot) believing it actually happened, instead of believing Claire when she said nothing happened (oh it was all a misunderstanding); as well as Claire just plain being fed up about feeling used in Morganville by everyone - she decides to leave Morganville!

From the Publication book description:

'Claire never thought she’d leave Morganville, but when she gets accepted into the graduate program at MIT, she can’t pass up the opportunity. Saying good-bye to her friends is bittersweet, especially since things are still raw and unsettled between Claire and her boyfriend, Shane.

Her new life at MIT is scary and exciting, but Morganville is never really far from Claire’s mind. Enrolled in a special advanced study program with Professor Irene Anderson, a former Morganville native, Claire is able to work on her machine, which is designed to cancel the mental abilities of vampires.

But when she begins testing her machine on live subjects, things quickly spiral out of control, and Claire starts to wonder whether leaving Morganville was the last mistake she’ll ever make...'

This book tells the story in alternating chapters, between the 3rd person perspective focusing on Claire and Shane's first person POV. We have seen Shane's POV in the past, but this was a different Shane in this book. A more mature Shane, who has realized that he made a stupid, quick decision to believe something that really is so unbelievable, and realizes just what he may be losing. Shane loves Claire so completely, that he supports her decision to leave all of them, and to go to Boston on her own. But that doesn't mean he's keeping too much distance. The "goodbye" scene, (that Claire tried to avoid) was so heartbreaking. But, it gave this hopeless romantic some hope about Claire and Shane's relationship.

"Look, I hate goodbyes, too. But sometimes, we need them just to survive." He meant that, and it left her wordless and stunned, and all she could think to do was kiss home one more time, gently.

So, Claire goes to Boston, all by her lonesome, decides to room with an old friend from high school, Liz, who has changed, but probably not more than Claire has over the 2+ years she's been in Morganville. As much as Claire tries to let go of Morganville and become the college kid she should be at 18 years old,, she realizes it's just not her. And, she further realizes that her home is where her friends are, where Shane is,,, in Morganville.

We met some new characters in this book (Jesse is kick ass!), some of which we may see in the next and final installment of MV, and we had very little contact with the Morganville gang - Eve, Michael, Myrnin, Oliver (and none of Amelie). But, this book was more about Claire, and her growth, as well as her relationship with Shane and the decisions she is forced to make. Shane is always arms-length away from Claire, sending her videos and texts and talking on the phone. And, some of those exchanges became, for me, the most open, honest exchanges between the two (but mostly from Shane bearing his soul to try to win Claire back - while also giving her the space she thinks she needs). The video he sends to her..

"So anyway," he said, "Claire, if you're seeing this, and you're not so pissed at me you just delete the whole thing without watching...I miss you. I miss you so bad it hurts. I keep walking around the house and wishing you were here, and that I could-that I could figure out how to fix the screwed up stuff I did. Until I can do that, though, I guess what I'm saying is that I miss you. That's all. So, if you're lonely there, not out partying and meeting fancy Boston guys, maybe we can be lonely together."

And, when they finally reunite in person (because you know they will), it is bittersweet. And I'd love to tell you why, but, no way... get out and buy this book and read it! I think this is one of the best in the series. The ending leaves us on a cliff hanger, and I'm very curious to see where Ms. Caine takes this last book. I have to say, I'm also super nervous about it too! I'll leave you with a thought from Shane that share my concerns:

Betrayal had a bitter, horrible taste all its own..I wondered if Claire was tasting it, too. If I was feeling this, what could she be suffering? Because she was the one who felt things too deeply, cared too much. I hoped she wasn't just as wrecked as Myrnin when all this was said and done.

[Ferdy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slightly Spoilery

The Morganville Vampires series is the longest series I've ever read - I never anticipated it being quite so long when I first started it years ago, so I'm rather glad that Fall of Night is the penultimate Morganville book… There's nothing quite like the feeling you get when you've finally finish a series.
I've had my ups and downs with the Morganville books… I wasn't the biggest fan of the last couple of installments but I have to admit that overall I've enjoyed the series — the books are action packed and entertaining, and the vampires actually act how vampires are supposed to act.

Fall of Night is set mostly outside of Morganville, as Claire leaves to study at MIT. I was glad that there was a change in scenery as I felt there wasn't all that much left to explore in Morganville… Also, I was curious to see how Claire would interact in a vampire-free world… Even though she didn't grow up in Morganville, she's been involved in their particularly brand of crazy for so long that it's hard to imagine her elsewhere - Claire is a Morganville girl through and through.

It was good to see Claire away from Shane, Eve and Michael. I felt like Claire kind of lost her identity in the last few books due to her always being stuck in the middle of their issues. Especially Eve and Michael's relationship woes which kind of bogged Claire and the last few books down. I actually preferred it when the gang were single and not dating each other (the build up towards a relationship has always been more exciting than an eventual relationship, for me anyway).

Also, Claire really needed time away from Shane, the way he acted in the last book was awful - Claire usually lets Shane get away with all sorts so I liked that she stood her ground this time and left him.

I'd almost forgotten that Claire was smart — early on the series she came across as very intelligent but ever since she became serious with Shane, she's come across as less intelligent to me. It's probably because I've never been a big fan of Shane's. I think Claire could do a lot better than him… And no, I'm not particularly taken with Myrnin and Claire either.

I liked that Claire got back to her nerdy routes at MIT - there's not nearly enough truly intelligent heroines in YA. Because Claire was in the normal world, I was a little bit worried that she wouldn't have any adventures or excitement… But I shouldn't have been because her time at MIT was just as mad as Morganville. Claire ended up having to deal with dodgy scientists, a suspicious boss a creepy stalker and a melodramatic and weird roommate. I actually really loved Claire's interactions with her insufferable and needy roommate — she was rather funny.

On the other hand… It was somewhat disappointing that Claire didn't get to have a normal college experience or life outside of Morganville and vampires… I would have liked if she got have a taste of normal college life.

I wasn't fond of the first person and third person POV switches between Claire and Shane - it was rather jarring.

I really missed Monica. She's by far my most favourite character - I feel she's shown the most growth in the series… She started of as a psychotic bully and she's er… become less of a psychotic bully.

All in all, a fairly entertaining read.

Originally posted on Confessions of an Opinionated Book Geek.

[Izzy K · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t put these books down if I tried, and the plot and characters are perfectly balanced as usual. Claire’s finally managed to get out of Morganville and go to MIT, but trouble always follow. They’re relationships aren’t very strong at the end of the last book, and the repercussions of not fixing that are played out perfectly. We meet a new vampire and see how Claire functions outside of Morganville, and I honestly can’t imagine finishing this series.

[Amber J · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this one. It just wasn't the same being so far out of Morganville. I know it's not the first book of the series to take place outside of Morganville. But for some reason, this one just felt like it was missing something. That cliffhanger though. The last book is going to be epic, I can just feel it. Can't wait.

How I choose my rating:
1* Didn't like it at all. These are rare as I usually just don't finish any book I dislike this much.
2** Didn't like it. Again usually DNF if I dislike it this much, but occasionally I feel it still has potential and I try to stick with it to the end.
3*** I liked it. It wasn't great but it was enjoyable enough. It is unlikely I'll ever reread it but I might finish the series if it is a part of one.
4**** I really liked this book. Maybe not a work of genius, but highly entertaining. I might reread this at some point, and I will almost always finish the series if part of one.
5***** I loved this book. I found little to no issues with it at all. I will probably reread this and possibly more than once. I will definitely finish the series if it's part of one.

[Dark Faerie Tales · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Dark, funny, action-packed drama. Be prepared for a seriously crazy cliffhanger.

Opening Sentence: The billboard at the border of Morganville hadn’t changed since Claire had first driven past it on the way into town at the tender age of sixteen.

The Review:

Fall of Night is the penultimate novel in the Morganville Vampire series. This is the first novel in this series that I have read but I have read Rachel Caine’s Weather Warden Series which I thoroughly enjoyed. As someone who has never read this series before I was never lost in what was happening in the story, I do wish that I had a better understanding of the overall story. One day I will go back and read the rest of this series from the beginning. The first half of the story was a little slow, setting up what Claire in doing in Boston, but when all Hell breaks loose the story is non-stop action until the ending. Fall of Night could have been a standalone story up until the crazy cliffhanger ending!

This story starts with Claire leaving Morganville. She wants to get away and see if she can make it in the real world without all the vampire madness. She also wants to step away from her boyfriend Shane. She wants to know if what she feels for him is real and also to kind of torment him for some bad decisions he made which included not trusting her. Claire is going to MIT in Boston for an independent study program. She wants to use her smarts to create something good.

Shane just can’t let Claire go without backup so he secretly follows her up to Boston. For someone who doesn’t want Claire to know he is there, they seem to make the same friends in the big town of Boston. As many times as he wants to jump in and let Claire know he is around, he understands that Claire wants her space, to be her own person.

The reason Claire is in Boston is to perfect a machine that she has been working on. A machine that in my eyes could only be used for bad. I’m not quite sure how Claire never saw it that way. As soon as she described it, I was like “Oh great, this thing is nothing but bad.” Enter the Daylighters, an organization that wants to destroy all things vampire. You can kind of predict that everything goes downhill from here on out.

Some major players and key characters added to the story are Professor Irene Anderson, Jesse and Pete. I absolutely loved Jesse. A vampire who seemed to be in control of her powers and was great in all situations. Her interaction with Myrnin was cute and entertaining. It had me laughing.

I really enjoyed reading a Rachel Caine book again. I could tell it was her style as soon as I started getting into the story. I felt like I was actually in Boston with Claire and Shane. The descriptions and dialogue are engrossing. I would definitely check out the rest of this series.

I will say since this is the first time I am seeing this world, I don’t know for a fact how true the characters are to themselves and how they have been since the beginning. Claire was tough where she needed to be (confronting a stalker and a nasty professor caused some really funny scenes) but I did think she was naïve. She couldn’t possibly think her weapon would only be used for good. Shane was an idiot for following but thankfully she ended up needing his help or else I don’t think that would have been good for their relationship. The book did alternate between Claire and Shane’s POVs.

Overall, Fall of Night is dark, funny, action-packed and filled with some serious drama. My jaw dropped during that crazy cliffhanger. So be prepared to have the last book on hand, Daylighters. I’m trying to avoid spoilers but I really want to know how this series ends but I would like to read it from the beginning first.

Notable Scene:

She picked up the hot pie and was walking back with it when she spotted the creepy Professor Davis sitting at an outdoor café, enjoying a coffee with a girl young enough—again—to be his daughter. She looked captivated, too. Starry-eyed and naïve, and willing to believe that Professor Davis was that missing daddy figure in her life that would solve all her problems.

Claire couldn’t resist.

She changed course.

Dr. Davis and his new conquest were so into each other—or at least, she was breathlessly into him, and he was enjoying it — that it took at least a full minute for either of them to notice Claire when she paused at their table. Dr. Davis even pushed his coffee cup toward her, as if she were the waiter, before looking up in annoyance, then confusion, and then – gratifyingly –worry. He straightened up in his chair, and she smiled at him.

What would Eve do?

It was easy enough to channel her best friend’s talent for snarky destruction.

“You’re not returning my calls, Patrick,” Claire said, in her best injured, pouting voice. “I thought you were going to come by to talk about our problems.”

“Claire,” he said, which was an obvious and rookie mistake; it meant he knew who she was, and she saw the chagrin settle over his face as he realized it. He turned toward the girl he was with, no doubt to protest his innocence.

Claire didn’t give him the chance. “I ran into your wife at the mall and she says she is not going to give you a divorce, so what am I supposed to do about the babies? Just you wait. I’m going to make sure you step up and be a good father to our twins! You promised!”

She didn’t wait to see the results of the bomb she’d thrown; she just held her head high and walked on with the pizza and didn’t look back. She didn’t have to. The scrape of the girl’s wrought-iron chair legs on pavement, and Patrick’s injured, wounded protests were as good as any picture. It might not matter, and probably wouldn’t; she’d torpedoed one date, but he’d have another one tomorrow, or the next day.

FTC Advisory: New American Library/Penguin provided me with a copy of Fall of Night. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last 166 pages brought this to a 4, before then, we were looking at a 3.

The Morganville Vampire series has always been one of my favourites, but Bitterblood just wasn't up to scratch. So when I started Fall of Night, for the first time ever, I was going into one of these books with little enthusiasm. And for the first 277 pages, it unfortunately lived up to my expectations.

But enter Oliver and Myrnin and this book took a turn for the better. The pace was faster, the action picked up and I didn't want to put it down. The way a Morganville book should be. It's just a pity it took so long to get to this point.

Claire has moved to Boston to attend MIT and study under Professor Irene Anderson, a previous assistant of Myrnin's, and a character I never warmed up to. But Claire thought she'd left the vampires behind in Morganville, she was wrong. And so we meet Jesse, otherwise known as Lady Grey (Does that name ring any bells with anyone from previous books? I thought it sounded familiar?). She is quite the awesome character and I really liked her.

But the vampires weren't the only thing to follow Claire to Boston. Shane does too. Even though part of the reason she felt the need to leave Morganville and distance herself from him was to distance herself from him and his trust issues and to experience some self growth out on her own. I really didn't like this stalkerish side to Shane. He gets a job and a room, finds out where she lives, and regularly passes by! No, I didn't like it! But I was even more surprised by Claire's reaction to it.

I've loved all these characters all through the series, Shane, Claire, Eve, Michael and Myrnin. And even Oliver and Amelie because without them, it just wouldn't be the same. And I know that the release of the next and final book in the series, Daylighters, will be bitter sweet. But because I didn't enjoy Bitter Blood too much, and this one was so slow to take off, I wasn't holding out much hope for it, but the ending of this one has really lifted my expectations. Now I just have to decide who I want to win, the humans or the vampires?

[Ave Binks]

Okay, I absolutely LOVE this series, but I'm going to take a break from getting/reading this series for a while until I'm sure Claire and Shane are solidly back together* b/c that was my main reason for reading this series- a couple that was always together so we didn't have to worry over the drama crap of the "will they, won't they?" And so help me if Claire finds someone at college to have a fling with while she's figuring out what to do with Shane..., sigh, well lets just say I'll be very disappointed and have feelings of misplaced trust in a great author whose story telling abilities are better than that. Also my other reason was Myrnin, and it doesn't seem to be in this one either! >:(

*I know, that sounds so stupid; to throw away the pleasure of reading these books because the main couple aren't together at this time!! BUT they've just been through waayyy too much to go through all this relationship crap so late in the game. And it just takes away from the over all story, as we saw with Claire obsessing about how she and Shane may have broken up- she spent the entire book (#10) a sad, moping, useless mess and it took away from the over all story.

-Okay rant over- Boy I hope I'm wrong and can eat my words later!:)

Edit 5/12/13: I'm happy to say I can eat my words! This book looks amazing!!! XD

[Kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I realize this series has a cult like following. I have always really liked it, but at 150 pages in and I had to put it down. The great thing about this series was Morganville and the friends, this book is taking place in Cambridge, and I just couldn't read it anymore. It was BORING! Even a Vampire or stalker couldn't make this book less boring. I may try to pick it up again at a later date, but this series went down hill for me much the way the Southern Vampire series did from Charlene Harris. :(

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

ok this series can end ANYTIME now. I am over it. I like to see Claire get away but she realizes that she can't stay at MIT. Morganville as much as she doesn't want to accept it - is her home. It is very odd to have a Morganville book not really in Morganville. I really like to see Shane in this one but seeing him sad is not fun. Shane has always been one of my favorites. I don't want Shane sad :(

[Dezra Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been awhile since I was in this world and I fell back into it easily. This one did make me dislike the main character Claire more though.

[ALPHAreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Following from the events of ‘Bitter Blood’, when lives were lost and friendships put to the test, Claire Danvers is following-through with her decision to leave Morganville, and attend the MIT graduate program in Cambridge.

Claire has made the monumental decision to leave her friends behind – including newlyweds Michael and Eve, who want to start acting more like a married couple (less roommates should help with that). But Claire is also determined to leave her beloved boyfriend, Shane, behind too. Because Shane made the worst mistake not too long ago, believing a lie that Michael told about his relationship with Claire – and now she needs to be away from the most important person in her life, to try and find who she is without him.

In Cambridge, Claire has moved into an apartment with her pre-Morganville best friend, Liz. But straight away Claire is off-balanced by the fact that her blue room apartment is nothing as homely as the Glass House. Then there’s the fact that Liz has turned into a flake, dressing in schoolgirl outfits and decidedly disinterested in books. She also has a stalker – a man named Derrick who keeps an unwanted vigil of their house.

Claire will be assisting a Professor Irene Anderson during her MIT graduate program – another ex-Morganville resident, and another assistant who survived tutelage under Myrnin. They will be working on Claire’s VLAD machine – a mood-altering device that should help humans with unruly vamps.

Meanwhile, in Morganville, Shane can’t stop missing Claire (and worrying about her). He also feels like the awkward third-wheel in Michael and Eve’s marriage. So he makes the momentous decision to drive to Cambridge and keep an eye on Claire … from a distance.

‘Fall of Night’ is the fourteenth book in Rachel Caine’s young adult paranormal series, ‘Morganville Vampires.’

It always happens that when I crack open the latest ‘Morganville’ instalment, a small part of me worries that this might be the book to mark my waning interest. There aren’t many series that have been around since 2006 with consistent releases, and still manage to not only maintain, but consistently grow its fan-base … so I always go into ‘Morganville’, with a small pessimistic part of me that’s waiting for the magic to dissipate. But I’m happy to report that ‘Fall of Night’ is not that book – and, actually, it looks like Rachel Caine has just given this series a second-wind…

In ‘Fall of Night’, Caine is again taking the characters out of Morganville. She did this in book eight, ‘Kiss of Death’ – taking the awesome foursome on a killer (literally) road-trip that opened their eyes to the fact that the grass is not necessarily greener on the vampireless side. The big difference, of course, is that in this 14th book, Claire is all on her lonesome – and by choice. Not only is she outside of Morganville, but she has left her friends behind too.

Now, Claire has always been a strong, remarkable young woman. She prefers brains over brawn (but also knows how to throw a punch) and she’s a very level-headed, quick-witted warrior. But, ever since Michael, Eve and Shane gave her the safety of the Glass House in book one, she has been part of a unit. Now that we’re 14 books in, I can see it makes a lot of sense for Caine to take Claire out of that home-base and show fans what she has become while living in Morganville. With Claire’s independence, fans can really appreciate that she loses none of her strength away from the awesome-foursome friendship unit. She might lose a little of her heart, but even away from Morganville Claire has a steel backbone and strong moral compass.

The heart though, is another matter … but again it makes sense that we see Claire and Shane put to the test. They’ve been an item for a long, long time and have become very co-dependent - so it was actually really nice for Caine to separate them and see how they go. Of course, it’s mostly Claire doing the separating since Shane can’t stay away for long (it’s more protective than stalkerish though – honest!) but it was nice to reaffirm why they are together, what remains when they are apart and the strength that binds them. For anyone doubting Claire and Shane being together for so long, and at such a young age – I think Caine puts a lot of those worries to bed in this book.

And this is also a book of new faces. Claire and Shane both befriend two Cambridge locals who work with Professor Anderson, and at the bar where Shane gets a job as busboy. Pete is a bouncer and rough teddy-bear, then there’s Jesse – a fiery red head with killer curves and a badass streak a mile long. When Derrick, Liz’s stalker, starts encroaching on Claire’s new territory, Pete and Jesse are there in lieu of Michael, Eve and Shane to have her back;

‘I can smell the crazy on that man from here. I have a nose for it.’ In the dim light, a passing car’s lights hit Jesse full in the face, and lit her up like a billboard. Her blue eyes were very, very bright, and for a second Claire had a Morganville déjà vu … but this was the real world, and Jesse was just a badass. Like Pete.
Maybe that was enough.

I loved these two, especially Jesse. She poses an interesting twist in the story, and while some fans will probably grumble about her appearance I can’t wait to see how she shakes things up for a certain someone….

Caine is also touching on themes of the eighth book, ‘Kiss of Night’ – in that the Morganville kids learn that the outside world is just as tough and full of danger. Shane, especially, is somewhat surprised by the violence he encounters from regular humans;

For some reason, I thought that Morganville was the equivalent of ‘Dead Space’ Level Twelve, and having survived that, I didn’t rate the nerdy, vampire-free streets of Cambridge at more than a Level Two.

The difference with ‘Fall of Night’, however, is that some of the outside violence may be leaking into Morganville … but fans will just have to wait for ‘Daylighters’ releasing in November to find out more about that.

All in all ‘Fall of Night’ was another Morganville book that got my heart racing, my hands sweaty and my interest piqued. What can I say? Rachel Caine has done it again.

[Aly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can taste the end!! This is the second to last book in the series and I'm seeing the build up to the finale. The introduction on the Daylighters and the changing town. We also saw Claire and Shane leave Morganville for the first time in the series and it was interesting seeing them function in a regular city. It did seem out of character for Claire to attempt to leave town without saying goodbye to her friends and I didn't love that. I also missed Morganville and I'm glad we will get to see it again before the ending.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I loved the change in this book, it was so different to the others, with different characters and a whole new place. The book started out following just Claire, ad eventually the rest of the original characters came in, including some new ones. New creatures were introduced as well as, new places, new threats and new labs. The mysteries were ongoing and I enjoyed every minute.

This book definitely deserves 5 stars. It shows how all of the characters have become independent of one another and it was refreshing to read this.
People who you originally thought that you could trust became the people that you couldn’t trust, and this was done in a very clever way.
The ending was WOW, I just can’t wait to read the next book now!

[♥Linsey Pop♥ - mybooksnthings.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Linsey @ My Little World - Books 'N' Things

I can't believe we're approaching the end of this series and I for one am going to miss the residents of Morganville... Yes, all of them. But we're not quite there yet.

In book 14, Fall of Night, Claire has decided to get out of town in order to re-address her life and figure out what it is that she really wants. This sees her attending MIT and living in Cambridge away from all of her friends, including boyfriend Shane. Or so she thinks. She moves in with her old BFF from high school and begins a life away from the dangers of Morganville where she hopes to just have a bit of normalcy while she gets on with her studies and figures things out.

Oh no... Never going to happen. After all, this is Claire Danvers were talking about here.

Things soon start to get weird and unexplained events begin to unfold around her leaving her to question who she can actually trust and feeling more alone than ever.

Through the first part of the book we see Claire finding her feet while settling in to her new university and adjusting to a life without the people she loves. After her honesty is questioned (during events from the previous book) she needs time to forgive Shane and also needs to know that she can trust him again. At first the only interaction we get between Claire and Shane is through text's and phone conversations which in some ways -- even though Claire and Shane were apart (which was a little strange as we're so used to having them pretty much always together) -- I found that they had some of their biggest moments as a couple during this part of the book. Shane has always been my favourite out of the male characters and I've always liked his playfulness and the fact that he doesn't take anything too seriously but it was really nice to see him really grow in this book. His new maturity just makes him even cuter.

I also really liked the switch from Claire's POV to Shane's POV, all though I would have preferred Shane's to stay in third person past tense (like Claire's) and not change to first person present tense as it isn't my favourite style. But that's just me. I've never really been a fan of reading first person present tense but it didn't bother me too much.

I really enjoyed this instalment of the Morganville Vampires and I think that Rachel Caine has done a great job of taking us out of the normal surroundings of Morganville, and away from some of they key characters from previous books. I personally found it quite refreshing to be in another environment especially as we got to meet some new characters. One I particularly liked was Jesse who was pretty badass from the moment she first appeared and I hope we see a lot more of her in the next book.

This is another great story from Rachel Caine. There was plenty of action, adventure, some surprises and what a great cliffhanger to leave us with! Certainly has me excited for the final book Daylighters. If you're a fan of the Morganville Vampires then you will no doubt really enjoy this instalment. If you haven't read them yet and fancy reading a series with a unique take on the Vampire genre, with some very loveable characters (I wish I was part of Claire, Shane, Eve and Michael's gang!) then I highly recommend them to readers of any age. I'm a thirty-something who loves this Teen/YA book series so... don't ever think you're too old for this genre!

[Amy Jacobs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fall of Night is the 14th book in the Morganville Vampire series by author Rachel Caine.

I am a huge fan of this series. I feel connected to Shane, Claire, Eve, Michael and yes Myrnin. There town is complicated and full of suspense and not much down time to just relax. But that is what makes them the best characters when they have to deal with problems in a vamp run town.

In Fall of Night, Claire travels away to MIT. She needs to find her way on her own and see what life is like outside of Morganville. What she finds though is another game of chess being played between scientists, vampires, and undercover organizations. They are all deadly and they want one thing. They want the Vampire Gun also know as VLAD that Claire created. They want it to start the war between humans and vampires and could care less for the reasons and rules that Claire had it built for. This group of people are wanting to disable the vampires permanently. The results in the final mock-up of the gun can have serious side effects though for the vampires.

I really enjoyed this installment in the series. This book is shown with alternating chapters from Shane and Claire. We get to enjoy Myrnin arriving to rescue them all. Olive finds his way into the group as well to help lead the group. Also Jesse and Pete help the gang out and Jesse does have a deeper role than what we think. While there is action and suspense with a little bit of sexy times thrown in when needed, it does leave the book left with unanswered questions. With the way the book ends, you can't help but wonder how they gang is going to make it to the next book. Is it the Daylight Foundation taking over? Where is Amelie now when Morganville is having a major war between humans and vamps with the humans being the ones with the upperhand.

I can't wait for the next book and I do hope we will get to read more about Myrnin and how crazy that contraption actually made him. Is he really going crazy again, or is it all a defense to keep the humans on their toes. Guess I will have to sit around and dream of the next book in the series coming out sooner.

[Markus W · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say I was pretty disappointed. It's not exactly that the book was bad, it just seemed kinda pointless. We have a bunch of new characters introduced that turn out to contribute next to nothing to the story line and would appear to only appear in this book. I mean can anyone tell me the point of Liz or Pete or Derrick? I mean it looked for a while like there would be some story line developing with Liz and Derrick, but then it just fizzed out and wam bam he's dead. Utter pointless.

Then there is the personal development or lack thereof. We get Claire spending half the book worrying about not being a doormat and how she can't just forgive Shane when he looks at her with puppy eyes and then when it turns out that he didn't give her space but has practically been stalking her what is her reaction? To immediately forgive him...

Then there is the fact that it would appear that the main plot development of the overall story line appears to have happened off screen, I mean it would appear that instead of what happened in this book you could substitute in "Clair and the gang goes on vacation for a few weeks" and you would basically have the same result.

End of rant

[Siobhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please can someone get rid of Shane already? Those who have read my other reviews know I am annoyed by his character but it is taken to a whole new level in this one (even beyond the Bite Club annoyance). Honestly, Claire for such a supposedly smart character how are you blind to his behaviour? It is creepy, even by the strange sleep-watching Edward Cullen supposedly romantic a generation came to accept as the norm. Seriously, the guy got to me far too much in this one and it wasn’t good at all.

Outside of my mass of annoyance for Shane, it was an interesting story. I’m so glad we got to see the vampire world outside of Morganville as I’d been wanted something more for a long time (their side trip in Kiss of Death doesn’t really count as viewing the vampires in the world).

With new interesting characters added a lot is added into this one that comes to play in the last book. You can really see where things are heading with this one, but outside of Shane annoying me it was a good read.

[Alaina · Rating 2 out of 5]

BECAUSE ONLY ONE MORE BOOK AND THEN I CAN DO SOMETHING ELSE WITH MY LIFE.

YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

Okay, so Fall of Night wasn't that bad of a book but it also just bored the shit out of me. Claire gets to leave Morganville, again, and I really liked the change of scenery. However, I felt that Claire didn't leave her friends in a good way and I was kind of glad that Shane went after her. But I didn't like how Claire basically didn't try at MIT because she couldn't get her mind off of Shane. People like that annoy the fuck out of me. I get that they are in a relationship but no one should distract you that badly. Plus, why would someone miss Morganville that much?!? I mean we all know Shane doesn't want to live there...so oh well, he can move out to her or something. I don't know and I also didn't really care. I just can't wait to get to the last book.

[Yodamom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great fun with the Morganville gang when they Claire leaves home and heads for Boston. Where Claire goes trouble follows. She is finally at MIT her dream realized. Sometimes our dreams turn out to be nightmares. Everything is not what ti seems which it the way of the world. The hidden dangers strike, and some of them will not come out okay. It's all Claire fault, she may lose it all. Her research, her love and maybe her friends lives.
It was fun, edge of my seat squirming action and several ahhhh, moments. The finish was one big cluster of Omg, cliffhanger.

[Prami{reader and dreamer} · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHAT. THE. HELL?! This book was like riding a roller-coaster. Too many feels. It's really sad that we'd have to wait another six months for the next book to come out. I don't know what and why the hell that happened in the last! Nevertheless I loved everything about the book. The first half was quite slow seeing the crew was scattered but the second half kind of made up for the part. I'm curious as to what happens next.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really?!? MAY FREAKIN 7th? Do you know how far away that is? Too far. I need to know what happens! I just finished Bitter Blood. It was great! I bet this book will easily become one of my favorites. SO YOU NEED TO COME OUT ALREADY! I love this series!!