Midnight Crossroads by Charlaine Harris

Published: May 6th, 2014

Publisher: Ace Hardcover

Pages: 305

Copy: Library

Summary: Goodreads

From Charlaine Harris, the bestselling author who created Sookie Stackhouse and her world of Bon Temps, Louisiana, comes a darker locale—populated by more strangers than friends. But then, that’s how the locals prefer it…

Welcome to Midnight, Texas, a town with many boarded-up windows and few full-time inhabitants, located at the crossing of Witch Light Road and Davy Road. It’s a pretty standard dried-up western town.

There’s a pawnshop (someone lives in the basement and is seen only at night). There’s a diner (people who are just passing through tend not to linger). And there’s new resident Manfred Bernardo, who thinks he’s found the perfect place to work in private (and who has secrets of his own).

Stop at the one traffic light in town, and everything looks normal. Stay awhile, and learn the truth...

Review:

Charlaine Harris, creator of the much loved Sookie Stackhouse series (True Blood anyone?), has entered the stakes again with the first book in an entirely new series. Midnight Crossroad is a mystery story about a rag-tag bunch of misfits who live in this small town in Texas.  When I say rag-tag, that doesn't really tell you the half of it.

We have Manfred, who is a psychic of sorts. Fiji, who is a witch, of sorts.  Lemuel, who is a vampire - yep, you've got it - of sorts.  Olivia, who is .... well actually, nobody really seems to know exactly what she is. Bobo has landed in Midnight after running to get away from his past.  Joe and Chuy run the Antique Mart and Nail Salon, and there's a hint of something not quite normal there too.  Let's not even mention the Rev, who runs the small wedding chapel and pet cemetery.  Oh, and then there's Madonna, Teacher and baby Grady who run the diner and do odd jobs respectively. Who else? Oh yes, Shawn and his kids, Creek and Connor, who own the gas station - definitely something odd there too. Oh, and let's not forget Mr. Snuggly, the talking cat - he is just hilarious.

Getting to know these disparate and intriguing characters was a lot of fun and the eventual solution to the mystery of Bobo's girlfriends' disappearance took me completely by surprise.  A fairly lighthearted story, with some definite dark undertones, I'm certain that Midnight Crossroad will delight mystery and urban fantasy fans, and I'll happily read the next in the series.