The Unquiet Night

Rating:
Summary: A superb thriller just recently published in the U.S.
Review: An independent-minded young jeweler, a lonely and deranged man, an innocent child--take these three ingredients, mix them together, let your imagination run wild, and boom! You have the well-oiled engine which begins running from the moment you open up Patricia Carlon's superb 1965 thriller "The Unquiet Night" (only published in the U.S. in the last few years). Carlon, an Australian writer, has published only a handful of books and this is the only one I've read thus far--but it's made me want to pick up her other work as well.

The tale is set in Australia. Rachel Penghill is the independent young jeweler, feeling a bit at odds with her boyfriend, trying to make a go of her business, and spending time with her nine-year old niece to try to take her mind off her own problems. Thus is the action set into place (after a very scary first chapter which actually involves another female character--can't say much more without giving too much away). Martin Deeford, the off-balance, enraged man Rachel has the misfortune to meet up with, is convinced of something about Rachel which actually turns out to be untrue--but he doesn't know this yet, and his beliefs about Rachel are enough to send him stalking and finally finding her.

I can say little else without giving away too much of the plot, and I will say that I found the ending unsatisfactory. Without going into detail to ruin it for those who haven't read "The Unquiet Night," the ending somehow struck a false note for me--as though Carlon had simply and suddenly tired of the book and decided to slam the covers shut. Other than that though--and it is a fairly minor quibble--this is a taut and worthy thriller.

Rating:
Summary: And yours may be too
Review: Don't start this book shortly before going to bed - it sucks you right in and you'll be up all night and spooked as well as tired.

Though short and a quick read, this book covers a lot of ground by presenting lots of short scenes, which really keep the pace up. In fact, though there's quite a lot of internal dialogue, I'm really surprised this book was never made into a movie, because the cover blurb comparison with Hitchcock is an obvious one. The technique of presenting multiple viewpoints is done very effectively. The writing is (rarely) a bit awkward (or maybe typos?), but this reader at least was so engrossed in the unfolding plot that I skimmed right over them. In some ways Carlon's style reminds me of Patricia Highsmith, one of my favorite authors.

The only disappointment is the ending, and I won't say why.

Rating:
Summary: A bone-chilling thriller!
Review: The Unquiet Night has bone-chilling thriller written all over it! I couldn't put it down -- the haunting scenes made me curious about what would happen next. What I first considered to a desperate attempt at reading something different and obscure turned into one of the best reading investments I've made in quite a long time.

Set in Australia, Carlon tells the story of Martin Deeford -- a lonely and deranged man who seeks the company of someone who can understand him. He sees Rose as his saving grace, but his disarming attempt at having a faithful listener ends in murder. Martin thinks that the murder will never be traced back to him -- but little does he know that the nightmare has just begun...

Patricia Calon writes with a penchant for mind-boggling suspense. Hers is a talent that shouldn't be taken lightly. Her writing is quite similar to Penelope Evans's (The Last Girl and Freezing). I shall spread the word about this wonderful yet underrated piece of work. Good thrillers are scarce these days, and we must embrace hidden treasures such as this one...