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/ Past Monthly Featured Review

Dancing at Midnight

Rating:
☆☆☆☆☆ 5/5
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Title: Dancing at Midnight

Author: Rebecca Graves

Publication Date: October 15, 2020

Genre: Historical Fiction

Cover:

Some covers stop me in my tracks, and this one did just that. The muted blues, golds, and browns of the landscape and log cabin are the perfect backdrop for the woman in the red dress and straw hat. I love how her hand holds her hat as if it is about to blow away. After seeing the suitcase at her side, I wanted to know who she was and where she was going.

Premise

When Carolyn Graves’ estranged mother passes, Carolyn is left to settle the estate, including cleaning out the house she hasn’t visited in years. What begins as a painful walk down memory lane soon reveals family trauma and secrets dating back to the 1940s when Carolyn finds a mysterious box containing a journal. As Carolyn reads the journal, she uncovers a part of her mother’s life that she never knew existed, and, in doing so, she better understands their relationship.

Why I chose this book:

Author Rebecca Graves requested this review. Everything from the historical period to the subject matter appealed to me, and I was happy to add Dancing at Midnight to my reading list.

First Impression:

I was immediately taken with the natural, conversational tone of Graves’ writing style as Carolyn reminisces about her childhood and family relationships. June Parker’s journal continued in this style, allowing the reader to share June’s most intimate thoughts and feelings in a way that allows a deep connection to the character. I quickly found myself engrossed with June’s story.

What I loved:

Family is a theme that runs deep in Dancing at Midnight, as Graves portrays family situations that range from heartbreaking and abusive to loving and ideal. She does not shy away from showing the ugly side of characters while also accurately capturing the feelings of the children in her story as they deal with abuse, neglect, and abandonment. At one point, as June is left at an orphanage, she thinks, “I felt like a damaged object being returned to the factory for disposal.” There were so many moments like this one when I wanted to wrap these precious characters in a hug to remind them that they matter and deserve love.

Perhaps most importantly, Graves beautifully highlights the truth that so many of us have discovered: family can be chosen and does not need to be dictated by blood. This is the truth June and her friends discover as they learn to release toxic relatives and embrace those individuals whom they have come to love as dearly as a biological family.

Additional Thoughts:

Dancing at Midnight details emotional, verbal, physical, and sexual abuse, which may be difficult for some readers to digest. While these scenes were challenging to read, bringing them to the forefront is critical to protecting children and adults from these abuses.

I put off reading the last 20% of the book for several days because I knew Graves would leave me in an absolute puddle of tears…and she did. If anything, this demonstrates how attached I became to the characters and how reluctant I was to say goodbye to each of them and their stories.

Quotable Quotes:

• My precious darling, I hope these journals may find their way into your possession one day, so that you may better understand who I am and the choices I’ve made in this life. I know that nothing could ever make up for the lost years and how I’ve failed you. But by sharing my story, I pray that you will be able to forgive me for what I have done.
Never doubt, my darling, how much I have loved you. It is the reason I had to let you go.
• She had shut out the world to protect her wounded heart, but it couldn’t mask the pain of feeling unloved. I didn’t know what to do except let her cry and know there was at least one person in the world who cared.
• My heart had been fully awakened, and the intensity of that experience liberated every ounce of my soul. I was finally free to love without fear of betrayal or rejection, to enjoy life to the fullest on my own terms, and to hope that a better life was possible. In that moment, all the anxiety of constantly expecting the unexpected faded from existence, as I reached what I had considered an impossible goal for myself. I was completely and utterly happy.

Who might enjoy this book:

Dancing at Midnight is ideal for readers who enjoy stories of self-exploration set within a historical context.

Overall Impression:

Five stars. Dancing at Midnight is a well-written and heartfelt story that explores generational trauma through the journey of June Parker and her daughter, Carolyn Graves, as they heal the wounds that have deeply impacted their lives. Graves includes abusive moments that make the stomach turn along with touching scenes that bring tears to the reader’s eyes, and the final result is an inspirational story that makes one think about how childhood trauma and relationships so profoundly influence who we are as adults and even how we interact with those around us. Graves continues this family saga with The Other Side of Midnight, which I look forward to reading.

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