Cheon Seon-ran
Bloomsbury
14 August 2025 (2021)
280
Paperback
Fantasy/Mystery
Bought Copy
When four isolated elderly people commit suicide back-to-back at the same hospital by jumping out of the sixth-floor window, Su-Yeon doesn’t understand why she’s the only one at her precinct that seems to care. Dismissing the case as a series of unfortunate events due to the patients’ loneliness, the police force doesn't engage. But Su-Yeon doesn’t have the privilege of looking away. Her dearest friend, Grandma Eun-Shim, lives on the sixth floor, and Su-Yeon is terrified that something will happen to her next.
As Su-Yeon begins her investigation alone, she runs into a mysterious woman named Wanda at the crime scene. Wanda, hot on the trail of her ex-lover, Lily, gives Su-Yeon the answer: a vampire did it. Su-Yeon is skeptical at first, but then a fifth victim jumps from the window and her investigation reveals the body was completely drained of blood. Desperate to discover the cause of the deaths, Su-Yeon considers Wanda’s explanation—that something supernatural is involved.
The Midnight Shift was part murder mystery, part fantasy tale. I enjoyed the way the narrative unfolded through the different points of view of the characters, since it allowed us to slowly uncover the truth alongside the key players. The book, although fantasy, shone a light on themes of loneliness and isolation, and what might lead someone to want to end it all, or what might draw a darker force towards one. The vampires in this world embodied many of the traditional Western vampire traits, but I liked the unique take on them being drawn to lonely souls and preying upon them. The rules the vampires and vampire hunters worked from were also interesting and blended well with the story. The only thing I wished the book had incorporated was a bit more from the vampire point of view, as we only saw a few glimpses from their perspective. Overall, though, this was a fun and quick, light read that I would recommend to fans of vampire literature looking for something with a fresh take on the genre. I am giving it four stars.
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