Rating: 
Summary: Pure entertainment
Review: Berendt has given us an absorbing and entertaining book with this. He is a compelling story teller and a confirmed stylist. This is one of those guilty pleasures that everyone should read, even if you might blush if discovered reading anything less than Dostoevsky.
Rating: 
Summary: A riveting read....
Review: I thought John Berendt did a very good job of weaving a rich tapestry of eccentric characters and a fascinating setting, into an original true crime story. The book is based on an actual murder that set the precedent for OJ Simpson's defense, that is challenging the police and Medical Examiner's handling of the crime scene evidence.Berendt spent eight years in Savannah, researching the book that originally started out as an article and it shows! In fact, maybe it shows too much...that is, what I gather, most of his critics have a problem with - INFO DUMP. Berendt does give reams of background material, but I never found it slow going. After reading this book you could picture Savannah and Berendt spun the same kinds of word pictures of each character. You'd swear you knew them all after reading this book. Jim Williams, a wealthy antiques and collectibles dealer, was charged with the murder of his live-in assistant (and part time male prostitute) Danny Hansford and the trial set off a local firestorm. As in the OJ case there were no witnesses - Williams charged self-defense, the prosecutor charged murder and the case went to trial...FOUR TIMES! The original sticking point was the total lack of gun powder residue on Danny Hansford's hands, indicating that he never fired a gun and that Williams may have simply murdered him. Throughout the trials, Williams maintains his innocence as the prosecutor builds more and more circumstantial evidence that shows increasing animosity between Williams and Hansford, Hansford's wild demeanor and bad temper. In one trial, a single juror, a woman who'd had to defend herself against a violent ex-husband, held out for acquittal, resulting in another hung jury. The fourth trial was moved to Augusta, Georgia - "the heart of the Bible Belt," where the homosexual overtones where not expected to play very well. In Berendt's story, Jim Williams begins telling him how Danny grabbed a gun in which the firing pin had been filed down and Williams reached into his desk for his own gun and fired, fearing the younger man's rage. But Williams lawyer comes in with a blockbuster piece of evidence - neither the police at the scene, nor the hospital staff had bagged Danny Hansford's hands at the scene. In fact, they'd been bagged with plastic bags, which would allow any gun powder residue to be washed away by the condensation. Williams was off the hook! The book is a fascinating murder mystery, set in a fascinating town, with an array of exotic characters. There's Minerva, the voodoo princess, who helps Jim Williams commune with Danny dead spirit. Joe Odom is the house squatting, local entrepreneur. Lady Chablis (Frank) is a black transvestite who puts on burlesque shows at some of the local venues. There's even a man who walks the leash of a dog that died years ago, in order to keep receiving the $25/week for walking his late bosses pet. This book is certainly worth reading if only to see the way our legal process actually works. Just as in the OJ case, money appears to triumph over justice in the end. But what else is new? When or where has it been otherwise? After spending nearly two years on the hardcover bestseller list, I guess most folks have read this...if you haven't, by all means check it out. It's a very well crafted read.
Rating: 
Summary: A Mysterious Place
Review: I read "Midnight" in preparation for a visit that I will make to Savannah: I do not think the city will disappoint. What comes to mind when reading this book is that truth is stranger than fiction. The residents of Savannah are a novelist's dream. Indeed, as John Berendt points out the isolation that Savannah has cloaked itself in has proved fertile ground for nurturing eccentricities. Tourists coming to Savannah see the beauty of the city and are told only what their guides want to reveal, without guessing what lies behind the façade of fountain decorated squares. It is like a Garden of Eden that the residents jealously guard and keep to themselves. Mr. Berendt is an excellent writer with a gift of narrative: he does not waste words. His word portraits of the citizens of Savannah are brilliant. I think it is wrong to describe this as a travel book (although it did have the effect of bringing people to Savannah in droves), but I must confess there are places described in this book that I am interested in seeing. Neither do I think of this as a crime story, although Jim Williams takes center stage. Perhaps "Midnight" is best described as a memoir of a place and time with all the excitement one could desire from an urban adventure. As far as comparing the book to the film made in 1999, they are two different and not similar forms of expression. Suffice it to say that the details in the book differ with the movie, but it was surprising that so much of the book was translated to the screen, along with dialogue taken directly from the text. In short, an interesting and unforgettable journey that just might convince you to travel south.
Rating:
Summary: An amusing read and travelogue
Review: This is a great romp through Savannah's crime and culture. It's a great vacation book and so well-written. I also loved `Mississippi Mud' by Pulitzer-Prize winning author Edward Humes, a colorful true-crime odyssey through another deep south city, Biloxi, Mississippi, and it's tawdry cast of characers and crooks. Both books read like wonderful, can't-put-down novels...
Rating:
Summary: Sassy, Sexy, Sinful...
Review: I have lived in Savannah for a few years and he described diffrent aspects of the Sizzling City to the Gray Spanish Moss hanging off the large old trees lining the sweet streets of Gerogia. The book woke up that sleepy little town and made it famous. That is one of the best books I have read in a long time.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book =)
Review: To start off, I'd like to say that I thought this was a very well written book. The characters were interesting, the storyline kept my attention, and the book was just ammusing. Savannah seemed to be the perfect place to set this story in, I really dont think you could get the same affect if it took place in a different city. Each character took on a different personality, all very unique. The Jim Willaims trial was what this entire book concentrated on, but it was all the different relationships and situations that made the book. I would reccomend this to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Laughing along with Berendt
Review: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil introduces the reader to some fantastic yet real characters amidst the beauty and seclusion of historic Savannah. Although the book is not the best for fluidity, Berendt makes sacrifices in order to include all of the adventures he took part in while seeing refuge from the bustle of New York life. An utter delight.
Rating:
Summary: Appealing to all ages.
Review: While I was only a sophomore in high school when I read the book for my first time, I was still drawn in by the vivid imagery of Savannah life, both good and bad, that John Berendt is able to paint into our minds by his first hand account of the people and places in Savannah. One year later, my paperback copy is practically falling apart with all the use it's been through. After reading this book, however, the urge to buy a plane ticket to Savannah was the only thing I though of for a month, just to see the beautiful houses that were spoken of.
Rating:
Summary: it's the 'riche' that counts...
Review: Being a fan of Clint Eastwood, I saw the movie when it came out and liked it very much. I finally got around to reading the book and was VERY much surprised. It's almost a completely different story, and ten times better than the movie... The characters are so rich and interesting and they are described with such honesty. I had the opportunity to visit Savannah a few weeks ago and was immediately taken by its charm. It's like a clean New Orleans. So, reading the book makes me want to move there and be friends with all of these eccentric southern people... The old money and the nouveau riche. like Jim Williams said, "it's the riche that counts" So, I would recommend this book to anyone who loves the south as much as I do, (and to any yankee who might have a morbid curiousity concerning what all that fuss was about back in 1861). Understanding the south and southerners is not a feat easily accomplished. However, this book is testament to that even a New Yorker :^) can warm up to the old south given the right circumstances.
Rating:
Summary: The title of this book is rather odd
Review: I think the title of this book makes it out to sound much more serious than the books ends up being in actuality. There's no evil in this book, and the only things that happen around midnight are not anything you can take very seriously. In the end, this book manages to be lighthearted even when discussing things that are considered "serious." As someone else mentioned, it's a great silly book to read while relaxing on the beach because of its tone. Though it's not serious, it is very well-written and the characters are simply great. I had always wanted to read the book because of the dark-sounding title and book jacket, and when I had the option to pick up a copy for just a dollar at a flea market, I jumped at the chance. I have to say it is not what I would have expected! But I did enjoy it -- it was an easy, entertaining read. I just think that they ought to have thought up a more appropriate title and jacket design.
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