Summary: A group of friends attempt to recover after a shooting.
In 2012, I posted about Thin Blue Smoke being my favorite novel of the year. I wasn’t alone, Englewood Review of Books also had it as their favorite novel that year. About 18 months ago I ran across Doug Worgul on BlueSky. I reread Thin Blue Smoke because of that connection and just over a year ago he sent me an early edition of The Night Office for comment. I made comments, but I loved the book and was invited to blurb the book. (My blurb is 3rd in the ebook version.)
I missed that it was released in June and stumbled across The Night Office looking for something else. I bought a copy immediately but didn’t have time to pick it up until I got back from vacation. I am not an objective reader at this point. I have declared my love. I was an early reader and I blurbed the book. But I really do love The Night Office.
Thin Blue Smoke brings together a diverse cast who seem to only be tangentially related because of a BBQ restaurant. But they form a real community that cares for one another. While they all have their flaws and histories, there is real beauty in that community.
I am not going to reveal too much because I want everyone to read both of these two books, but there is a tragedy at the end of Thin Blue Smoke and much of The Night Office is about how the characters individually and together react to that tragedy and how the change that comes about as a result can be part of what leads toward healing.
In my original post about Thin Blue Smoke I compared Doug Worgul to Wendall Berry. I think that is still an accurate description of the feel and slow development of characters and the realistic faith that is developed (with appropriate swearing.) One of my complaints about much of Christian fiction is that it tends to wrap things up in a too nice bow. And while I don’t think the resolution here is a problem, one of the ongoing questions of the book is the problem of evil. There are no comfortable solutions to the problem of evil, either in the book or in real life. But the resolution of the book with the variety of characters does lend itself to working out our callings in community. The Night Office wasn’t published by a Christian publisher and I think that is part of what is wrong with Christian fiction publishing.
There is a real beauty in how flawed people can still use their gifts and histories to bring about beauty in the lives of those around them. We need one another and this is a good set of books to remind us of that.
The Night Office by Doug Worgul (Thin Blue Smoke: Book Two) Purchase Links: Paperback, Kindle Edition