Once Upon a Time in Midnight

by John Urbancik

Welcome to Midnight, City of Night, the city tucked between two mountains in such a way the sun never shines here, the home of men like Mr. Zero and Uncle Knuckles. This is a place where more roads lead in than out. When Thomas Midnight makes a wrong turn and ends up trapped in the City of Night, he’ll do whatever it takes to get out. But the city’s grip around him tightens, and word has already spread that he’s arrived.

Genres: Fantasy

250 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Writer of ghost stories and fairy tales. Born on a small island in the northeast United States called Manhattan, John went on to live in places like Orlando, Richmond, Sydney, and Madrid. He's circled the US in a car, and he recently started learning to play the bass.

But he may be best known for InkStains, the year-long project in which he wrote a story a day every day by hand with a fountain pen. This led to a podcast and then a nonfiction book (InkStained: On Creativity, Writing, and Art).

As of this writing, he's isolated somewhere in Florida working on the end of the DarkWalker series, a vampire novel, and Gothic romance.

Reviews

[Karl]

This is book 297 of 300 signed numbered copies.

This is book 3 of 3 of Brian Keene’s Maelstrom Series 2.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas Midnight, thief, makes a wrong turn while fleeing the men whose money he stole. He wakes up to a room in flames, and instead of being given a new room in the motel, he's taken to a luxury high-rise hotel.

Thomas Midnight has found his way to the city of Midnight, a place nestled between to sheer and ragged mountains, where the sun never shines. Since he's already on the run, he doesn't plan to stay long, but circumstances (and the intriguing lady Lynx, driver for the hotel) make it hard for him to leave.

Then he learns that no one leaves - and the town sharing his name is no coincidence.

Urbancik does a good job of balancing the "travelogue" portions of the book, showing off Midnight, with the mystery and danger of the strange city and what it wants from Thomas.

The main character himself is something of a foil for himself. He's not the brightest bulb in the drawer, and frequently makes moves on instinct that don't stand up to the light of reason. Predictably, in an unpredictable place like Midnight, these actions don't always go his way.

If you enjoy mysterious, spooky, and a more than a little weird, Once Upon a Time in Midnight might just be the book for you. It was for me.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great novel! Nice mix of crime, action, humor, drama with a dash of noir. A nice assorted cast of strange characters. The setting of Midnight, the city in constant darkness, is awesome. Clever dialogue and a good story make this a must read.