Lights All Night Long: A Novel Hardcover – April 2, 2019

This book, at its core, is about power (and powerlessness), and luck. It is totally compelling, jarring, poignant, electrifying. I blew through it in a weekend; it was so incredibly good. Typically, "thrillers" or plot-driven narratives lose me quickly because I don't love the writing and therefore don't feel connected to the characters. In this case, there is a propulsive plot that I cared about because the characters are so vividly drawn that I had to know what happened, It helped that the settings were strange and intense, and I learned so much and all of it was unexpected and fascinating. It's not a sentimental book, and yet it is so moving. Absolutely my favorite so far this year, I will recommend it to everyone!

I very much enjoyed reading Lights All Night Long. I had never heard of the drug that played a large part in the story. I thought that perhaps it was fictional, but after researching it I found out it is very real and disturbing. It was interesting to learn about that area of Russia. The story was very poignant and will stay with me for a while.

To me, this is a novel that expertly weaves three significant plot lines – Ilya coming to America, the mystery of three murders, and Vladimir’s drug addiction – along with the stories of several other significant characters – Maria Michailovna and her husband Dmitri, Gabe Thompson, plus Sadie and the mother who abandoned her. All of these plotlines are skillfully handled so that they come together in the end. Similarly, all of these characters, as well as those of Ilya’s and Sadie’s families, come to the reader as distinct individuals. This is a world, or two worlds, that come alive.The central character, Ilya, is beset by a conflict. Although he wants to go to America and seems to recognize it as an opportunity that can change his life for the better, he nevertheless cares more about his wayward brother Vladimir, and about being accepted by Vladimir and his circle of drug using friends. He even sacrifices taking his exams and is willing to do krokodil to gain their acceptance. It’s only Vladimir’s intelligence, his recognition of Ilya’s potential, that saves Ilya from doing drugs and losing his chance to go to America. In a nice twist, although Ilya wants very much to save his brother throughout the novel, it is his brother who saves him.The parallels between the Russian and American worlds are striking, particularly, I think, for those of us who tend to think America is unequivocally superior to Russia. The comparison of Berlozhniki with Leffie works on many levels. It begins when Papa Cam pulls into “a cul-de-sac where a lone house bit a chunk out of the sky. It was as graceless as a kommunalka.” Moreover, just as Ilya’s mother works in a refinery, so too Papa Cam works in a refinery. Both refineries are visible from the characters’ homes. This is not to say there aren’t differences, as when Ilya notes about the Mason’s house: “the house did seem like something on TV. It was all polish; it lacked dimension, it lacked the smells and sounds and smudges that were life in the kommunalkas.”The most obvious parallel between America and Russia appears in the ravages of drug use. Individuals close to Ilya and Sadie are affected, which brings the issue into the foreground and makes it personal rather than an abstract societal problem.I particularly enjoyed the depiction of the Mason’s church. Initially, the church and pastor are presented in almost perverse terms: “The pastor looked like a porn star . . .[his] sermon was a mishmash of sound bites.” But at the end of the novel, the congregation generously takes up a collection to fund Vladimir’s stay in America, and Pastor Kyle recommends Tomorrow’s Sunrise as a facility that can help Sadie’s mom escape her addiction.Perhaps what I appreciated most was the quality of the prose; on every page it’s rich and detailed in its descriptions of people and places. Also, in a novel that is quite serious in its intent, there is nevertheless a steady stream of subtle and not-so-subtle humor, as when Ilya comments about the Mason’s pool: “But he hadn’t ever thought of this: in America they light their pools...” Or Vladimir on the shopkeeper: “Did you see his mouth? He looks like he’s been sucking cock for a decade.” Or Babushka telling Ilya, “Even you can’t make English sound pretty.”If I were to have any quibble with this excellent novel, it would be with Ilya, whom I didn’t feel a lot of sympathy for because he always seemed relatively passive. His academic success came so easily that it didn’t seem like a real achievement, and even his most dramatic action—driving to see Gabe—came off rather easily. To me, Vladimir was the more interesting brother, and heroic in his secretly recording Dmitri’s subterfuge. But this is a minor shortcoming in a novel that is noteworthy for so many other impressive attributes.

This book had an interesting premise. This is largely the story of Ilya - a high schooler in a depressed Russian town that centers around a refinery. His bleak hometown was described vividly. Freezing cold, communal apartment living (shared kitchen & bathroom areas) - little or no hope or opportunity. His father is deceased, his mother is a graveyard shift cafeteria worker, his grandmother is a coat check girl. Living is hand to mouth, even in this modern era. The author really brought to life the Russian town and the utter bleakness the residents lived under. Ilya & his older brother are obsessed with U.S. pop culture and dream of emigrating.. Ilya, a talented natural linguist gets the chance to come to the U.S. for a year as an exchange student sponsored by the refinery. Serious plot twists and turns take place, most involving his wayward, but lovable older brother , Vladimir. Ilya makes it to the U.S and lives with a Bible Belt Louisiana family, whose town is also associated with the global refinery. Louisiana wasn't as well described as Russia was. It could have been any small Southern town. However, this book was heartfelt, sad, hopeful and entertaining all at the same time. It lagged a bit and reads much like a young adult novel. However, the themes of redemption, the exploration into drug addiction, and the ultimately hopeful tone really smoothed out any rough spots.

This is one of the best novels i’ve read in years. It’s about two teenagers, Ilya from Russia and Sadie from Louisiana. Their worlds couldn't be. more different, yet the author focuses on the communalities of human experience. The writer has an amazing eye for detail and draws her reader into the bleakness of a small Russian mining town with almost a cinematic quality. She introduces us to characters that seem so foreign and even repugnant, yet she weaves us into their lives with such skill that we grow to know them. Her use of Russian words and idioms throughput heightens the sense of reality. As we journey with these young people from Russia to the US, we are caught up in their determination to solve an intriguing and grisly crime. Ms. Fitzpatrick doesn’t gloss over ugly realities nor offer easy solutions. And yet it is out of these horrors that the characters are able to bond in ,if not understanding, then at least, empathy. The characters are complex and the reader is pushed to keep digging for the good, obscured behind years of fear, pain, shame and hopelessness. I thought I had solved the mystery several times before it finally unfolds with an ending which was a surprise to me. It is a great read. I will be looking for more books by this author!

I am very tired because I stayed up most of last night finishing this. It is superbly written, I was wholly invested in the characters, I enjoyed learning about Russian food and phrases. This book combined heartache, mystery, thriller but at its core is about family dynamics. Beautiful.