Degno seguito de "I guardiani della notte", anche dopo questo libro ho avuto l'irrefrenabile istinto di cercare il regista del film e picchiarlo selvaggiamente.

Le vicende si svolgono diverso tempo dopo gli eventi narrati nel primo volume, e questa volta il punto di vista predominante attraverso il quale vediamo le storie è quello dei guardiani del giorno, i famigerati agenti delle tenebre, i cattivi.

Che alla fin fine tanto cattivi non si dimostrano, e fanno capire le loro ragioni.

Ancora una volta il libro si divide in tre racconti, strettamente legati tra di loro (anche se all'inizio potrebbe non sembrare) e con il primo volume. I protagonisti nei due schieramenti bene o male sono gli stessi che abbiamo già conosciuto, le guardie russe, anche se ovviamente l'attenzione, sopratutto nei primi due racconti, sarà focalizzata sulle guardie del giorno.

Alla fine però lascia un po' di amaro in bocca perchè tutto pare ridursi a un gioco di scacchi tra i due capi delle guardie, i due maghi potentissimi della luce e delle tenebre, e tutti gli altri agenti non sono che pedine nelle loro mani. Una specie di complesso gioco "piano Sheldon della luce contro piano Sheldon delle tenebre", che alla lunga rischia di stufare.

2nd in the Night Watch Trilogy (actually I think there are 4 now), and still a bloody good read. Dark and light, good and evil supernatural thriller set in Modern day Moscow. I'll be reading the next one. Or two, or however many there are.

This is a good follow up to the first.

I guardiani del giorno, ovvero dall'altra parte della barricata, il mondo visto dalle forze delle tenebre, che poi non si rivelano molto diverse, in opinioni e atteggiamenti, dalle forze della luce.
In fin dei conti, nonostante i loro poteri magici, la vita quasi eterna e bagatelle simili, non sono altro che uomini e donne, e in loro il bene e il male non sono così inscindibilmente divisi come vorrebbero.
E poi c'è l'amore, che spariglia sempre ...

See my other reviews at Never Enough Books

In modern day Moscow, there live an ancient race of humans who call themselves “Others”. Gifted with supernatural powers, they must swear allegiance to either the Dark or the Light. The agents of Dark make up the Day Watch and are tasked with keeping an eye on the city during the day. Likewise, the agents of Light make up the Night Watch and keep watch over the night.

For over a thousand years an uneasy truce has stood between the two sides. When an artifact is stolen from the Inquisitors – an impartial group of Others who keep watch over both sides – the consequences are dire.

Day Watch is the semi sequel to the aptly named Night Watch. I say semi sequel because the events in the book occur side by side with one another. The events that happen are told from two different perspectives, from the different members of the watch in their respectively titled books.

Having a storyline handled in such a manner made for an interesting read. Interesting in how the characters acted and reacted as well as the thoughts going through their heads at the time. How each side sees themselves as being “in the right”.

The Day Watch and the Night Watch are two sides of the same coin; they balance each other out on the cosmic scales. Neither watch is either truly good or truly evil – another thing I liked about these books – but are both cast in shades of gray. While the Day Watch embraces this grayness about them, the Night Watch seek to try and lighten the color. Again, showing how they are different.

Originally written in Russian, these books were translated in to English. Translation from one language in to another is never perfect, yet I felt these were well handled. The prose in Night Watch felt a bit clunky at times while Day Watch‘s translation seemed a bit smoother.

Day Watch (and Night Watch) are not for the casual reader. These books are a little heavier to read and process mentally. Not every one will enjoy them but the serious reader should definitely give them a look.

The separate novellas feeling here ends up being amped significantly, as each part takes a different POV character, which I honestly respect. Things amp up in the stereotypical backstage secret societies way, but we get to see it from the pov of the folks caught up in it. It's a distinctly Russian take on the urban fantasy genre (including lots of sad songs about death and fallen angels), and honestly, I think I'm going to end up finishing the series, as I've quite liked it so far.

Similar format to the first book in the series with three different stories all woven in together, this time featuring more on the Dark Others. Again the first two stories are more "action" oriented whereas the third one is a lot of philosophising. Overall I actually thought that those stories were more consistently good than with the debut. Either way you look at it, this is one of the most imaginative examples of world building I have come across and will definitely be along for the whole ride.

was slow getting through the book but the end leaves you wanting more.

Een interessante invulling van het urban fantasy genre.

Verhaal was net als bij eerste deel ok. Nogal gedateerd.

Nederlandse vertaling: niet altijd al te best.