*The Midnight Dancers* Book Review

The other night I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning reading a book that I just couldn’t put down. It’s been a while (like a year!) since I’ve actually read a book—a real book, not a book for school. Which is really kind of weird for me because I used to so into reading when I was younger. The past couple of years, though, my concentration has been way off. I’m not sure why.

Anyway, back to this book. It is by a favorite author of mine, Regina Doman, who has written three other books as part of the Fairy Tale Novels series. Don’t let that old-fashioned label scare you off, though. These books are thoroughly modern renderings of the classic stories, and I for one find them more enjoyable than the original fairy tales. This particular volume uses the “Twelve Dancing Princesses” tale as the inspiration on which to build this engrossing and thought-provoking novel. To provide some background, here is a plot summary taken from the book’s website:

Rachel Durham, 18, is tired of her father and stepmother’s staid morality and pristine prosperity. The summer of her senior year, she’s more than ready for a walk on the wild side, and the door opens - literally - when she and her eleven sisters and stepsisters discover a secret passageway out of their historic home on the Chesapeake Bay. At night, boys in boats and a forbidden island beckon from the shore, and Rachel and her sisters jump aboard. The night becomes Rachel’s true world, and her daytime life becomes a disposable mask. Her puzzled father tries to tow his daughters back into line by enlisting the help of Paul, a med student with a seasonal job juggling at the town festival. But Paul realizes that simply blocking the girls from their midnight parties isn’t going to solve the family’s problems. So he embarks on a risky balancing act to gain the girls’ trust – and to make Rachel see that splitting her life between night and light is a dangerous dance.

Okay, so what did I think of this book? I liked it. A lot. Being a huge fan of Regina Doman’s other novels, I admit to expecting nothing less than a stellar read. Still, she managed to surprise me—mainly with the diversity of themes that popped up in this book.

As being someone who grew up in a very conservative household (though definitely not as conservative as this one) I could relate to a lot of the issues that Rachel deals with. Even if I did not directly experience as much of a stifled environment as she did, I certainly know of people first-hand who do live this way. I like how this story shows both how well-meaning the parents are and how damaging it can be for the children. Most of all, I like how Paul recognizes what is missing in this equation of living—the divorce of goodness and beauty. Sheer brilliance! And as Doman shares in the afterward, the inspiration for this book came partly from reading an essay by Dietrech von Hildebrand on this topic. I think this is a very timely observation, too, because in society today very often goodness and beauty are separated, resulting in two extremes. The real “juggling act”, as Paul reveals, is balancing the the two.

As a medical student, Paul expresses interest in integrating both eastern and western methods of healing. His practice of aikido is also highlighted throughout the book. I thought it was fascinating that Doman included this in the book because it demonstrates an openness to other cultures and the fact that eastern practices can very much be incorporated into the Catholic way of life (or vice versa). Too often the two are seen as mutually exclusive, and I really liked how Paul’s interest in these things works with his faith and not against it. (For example, he begins his aikido with an invocation to the Holy Spirit.)

Another thing I liked about this book is that it is not overly preachy. Although Doman is a Catholic, many of the characters in this book are Protestant. However, she never criticizes these beliefs, instead drawing a subtle difference between the two belief systems through examples and natural dialogue. In this way she beautifully weaves Catholic teaching throughout the book (mainly through the character of Paul Fester) but ultimately leaves the reader to make up his or her own mind.

Doman does not shy away from squeamish topics, and that is just one more thing I love about her books. She always manages to present real life moral and ethical issues in a way that is neither overly casual or too self-righteous. In short, her literature makes you think, and this book is no exception. It certainly left me with a lot to digest. But it also left me with a feeling of hopefulness and goodness, knowing that while life isn’t always perfect and that evil does exist, as Christians armed with the truth we have nothing to fear. Besides just providing a page-turner of a read, this book challenges readers to live that truth, and to live it to the fullest.

I highly recommend checking out this review and this review. They bring out  some excellent points that I didn’t cover here…and some that I did—but they say it better than me. : )

Can’t wait to get to your library or order The Midnight Dancers online? You can read the first chapter of the book here!

Finally, this review would not be complete without a shout-out to my dear cousin who first introduced me to these books.

Happy reading!