Nightdancing

by Elizabeth Garner

A couple fall in love at first sight - a magical encounter. They search for a home, and soon they are building a charmed life together on the fringes of Wimbledon Common. But when summer arrives, and with it, two gregarious neighbours, their haven is transformed. In the course of lazy days of sunshine and long, hedonistic nights, the boundaries between the two households blur, and the lovers' faith in each other is put to the test. Deep-seated tensions surface, which gradually give way to fears that echo through their days, and haunt their nights. NIGHTDANCING is an unforgettable portrayal of the transforming power of young love, and the darkness that can be born of an ordinary relationship.

Genres: Fiction

372 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Elizabeth Garner was born in Cheshire, grew up in the north of England and now
lives in Oxford, where she works part time as a script editor. Her first novel
NIGHTDANCING won a Betty Trask Award, and was shortlisted for the Authors'
Club First Novel Award.

Reviews

[Katie Grainger · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was not at all what I expected from reading the cover. The couple who features in the book are never named, it is narrated by the male of the couple so his partner is only ever referred to as she which is quite irritating after a while! The book takes more odd turns including the dream sequences which did nothing to further the story and just irritated me. The boys next door were childish and spoilt and I never really warmed to them. All in all I think this book was a mix of ideas that just didn't really work.

[Danielle Melnyczenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

This isn’t a typical love story, it’s about trauma, spectrum and mental health issues and the relationships that surround them. Two wounded people with different coping skills, learning to engage with the world and each other. I liked that they had no names, allowing a deeper connection with your own sense of self rather than just an observer. The dream sequences were heavily descriptive but with reason, intricately woven, laden with emotion. It’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea but it was mine.

[Caroline Kitcatt · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can’t finish it, definitely not my kind of book

[Bett · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this novel as I had loved Alan Garner's books as a child (although it doesn't necessarily follow that I should love his daughters as well!)

It started with some promise but lost me quite quickly when the dream sequences became unbearably long (up to 12 pages sometimes) and seemed to reoccur with predictable regularity. The "Heroine" of the story who seemed to be the female embodiment of the "Green Man" of the forest climbed out of her bedroom window via an ivy vine so many times in the protagonists dreams that I'm surprised he didn't end up strangling her with it - I wanted too!

I am also deeply irritated by books that churlishly refuse to reveal the names of not one, but both of the main characters! The female lead was only ever "She" and the narrator referred to by others as "mate" or by "She" as "My lovely man". How annoying!

They both deserved each other was my conclusion, and good luck to them!

[Ellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The blurb made the book sound really good, sadly I was disappointed with what I read. The love interest of the main character, I found to be a naive and pathetic woman, while I didn't rate the lead much higher for allowing her to continue with her odd, childlike behaviour. I really wanted to like this book but I just couldn't.

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

A bloke and his girlfriend get pissed with their neighbours, go to bed and he has a long, involved, boring dream.
REPEAT TIMES ABOUT A MILLION.

I couldn't even finish this.

Actually if the dream sequences were removed it wouldn't have been a bad read, but that, combined with the tedious vapidity of "HER" (she who is never named) made me throw this to the floor.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hated all the characters in this book and just couldn't understand why the narrator was so obsessed with his lady.