Nightingale's Lament (Nightside, Book 3) [Mass Market Paperback]

Simon R. Green (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 27, 2004

In the Nightside, the hidden heart of London where it's always 3 AM, Detective John Taylor must find an elusive singer known as The Nightingale. Her silken voice has inexplicably lured many a fan to suicide--and Taylor is determined to stop her, before the whole neighborhood falls under her trance. But to catch the swift-winged Nightingale, he'll have to hear the deadly music--and survive.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

John Taylor has just solved the mystery of two friends' deaths when he is called to another case. Charles Chabron wants Taylor to contact his daughter, Rossignol (French for nightingale), a young singer who has fallen under the sway of the ruthless Cavendishes, a husband-and-wife management team. Rossignol used to sing upbeat, happy songs, but now her set is so melancholy that people leave her show and commit suicide. After visiting Rossignol at the Goth club Caliban's Cavern, where she performs nightly, Taylor knows something is wrong. When he goes to the Cavendishes' management company, a pair of somnambulists beat him mercilessly, leaving him near death and with no one to turn to but Pew, an old enemy. With the help of Dead Boy, a deceased mugging victim who now fights criminals, Taylor tries to locate the Cavendishes' former protege, Sylvia Sin, and find a way to rescue Rossignol from the couple's clutches. The latest installment in Green's Nightshade series is a delight--exciting, action packed, truly suspenseful. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Ace (April 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0441011632
• ISBN-13: 978-0441011636
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #95,104 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Horror > Occult
  • #44 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery > British Detectives

More About the Author

Simon Green is the author of the bestselling DEATHSTALKER cycle, the New York Times bestseller ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES, and many other novels. He lives in Bradford-upon-Avon in Wiltshire.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Totally awesome, April 29, 2004

By 

Wm19 (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nightingale's Lament (Nightside, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

I've just read all three Nightside novels by Simon R. Green, and they are totally rocking. The world of Nightside is somewhat similar to Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden world, but there are very significant differences:

In Jim Butcher's world, the wizard Harry Dresden relies on amulets and potions and things he prepares beforehand, as his "magic". Without those prior preparations, Harry is just as vulnerable and defenceless as any human. Harry gets beaten up very often, and after 5 books in the series, is just as unlucky a schmuck as when he began. A constant out-of-his-luck detective type. After five books, I get tired of seeing Harry never being rewarded for his deeds, always being the big loser.

In Simon R. Green's world of Nightside, that square mile in the centre of London where monsters and gods live, John Taylor doesn't do wizard/witch amulet/potion type things. Taylor's has a psychic gift, that allows him to find anything. This doesn't sound like much, but the author explains that Taylor can find any object, secret, exit, and death. So even with an immortal, Taylor can use his gift to find how to kill them. Plus, he can do other things with his gift too. In the really scary world of Nightside, Taylor is a legend. His mother wasn't human, his father was. Unfortunately, he doesn't know what/where his mother is. The augaries at his birth said that he would come into his kingdom, that he would somehow rule Nightside. So Taylor has a very strong psychic power, and the mysterious and frightening power of something even more in waiting. He gets beaten up occasionally, but unlike Harry Dresden, he isn't a wimp, he can fight back with his power and after 3 books, his good fortune grows. I like that, when a good guy gets ahead, shows some positive progress in the series.

Plus, the world of Nightside is truly beautiful/frightening. The author uses very strong imagery, very powerful and evocative. The characters in Nightside are amazing. Unlike many other authors, Simon R. Green doesn't just pick up monsters from regular culture and throw them into his world (like vampires, werewolves, witches, etc.), he makes up his own monsters. Like Sara the Sorrow, who long ago gave up her humanity and is now the Unbeliever, not believing anything she sees, so that if she looks at you, the power of total lack of belief lets her unmake anything, anyone. Anyway, these are great books, and especially if you like detective mysteries, psychic powers, very strange inhabitants of a very strange place, the promise of a prophecy and a would-be king and don't mind gore, this is the book for you.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sing A Song Of Sixpence, June 4, 2004

By 

Marc Ruby™ "The Noh Hare™" (Warren, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Nightingale's Lament (Nightside, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Dodging the enforcers after accidentally (on purpose) shutting down 12 percent of The Nightside's electricity. John Taylor, the dark world's premier finder accepts a new assignment, to talk to the daughter of a client - singer so powerful that listeners in the audience have been known to commit suicide. Now going clubbing on the Nightside can be fun, exciting, and, if you're not lucky, fatal.

Rossignol is the singer's stage name. Once upon a time her songs were happy ones, but now she works for the Cavendish twins and they want to use the power of her voice. If she happens to kill a few dozen people in the process, it doesn't bother them in the least. It's John and Dead Boy to the rescue as they look for clues to the Cavendish's strangle hold while righting a few unexpected wrongs.

In this third volume in the series, Simon Green finally gets all the bits right. Nightingale's Lament lacks the overblown noir rhetoric of the previous two volumes. This gives the story an easy believability that is critical to the success of dark fantasy. Green's slightly tongue in cheek noir becomes more compelling when the characters behave in a natural fashion. Natural to The Nightside, that is.

As usual, Green spends a great deal of time creating and developing his characters. Besides Rossignol and the Cavendishes, there's Julien the newsman, Dead Boy, who was too mad to die, and numbers of peculiars that only a secret city in the heart of London could play host for. Keep an eye out for this and future episodes in the career of John Taylor, who can find anything, whether you want him to or not.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars To Sing of Sorrow, April 14, 2004

By 

Arthur W. Jordin (Smyrna, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nightingale's Lament (Nightside, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Nightingale's Lament (2004) is the third urban fantasy novel in the Nightside series, following Agents of Light and Darkness. In the previous volume, Taylor found the Unholy Grail for the Vatican and thereby raised a siege of the Nightside by angels both high and low. His reputation has gone off the scale and the resulting fee was large enough to lease an upscale office, hire Cathy (see Something From the Nightside) as his secretary, and install computers with a superiority complex to take care of the routine stuff.

In this novel, Taylor comes across more as Simon Templar --- AKA the Saint -- than as a tough private eye. First he is persuaded by Walker to work on a case for Prometheus, Inc., generator of twelve percent of the power used within the Nightside. Company equipment is being sabotaged by an unknown --and undetectable -- person or thing. Prometheus is owned and operated by an old acquaintance, Vincent Kraemar, the Mechanic. Walker wants results and Taylor definitely produces some big results, paying off an old debt in the bargain. However, Walker is not really happy with the way Taylor solves the problem.

After that case, while hanging out in Strangefellows and avoiding Walker, Taylor is approached by a man who believes that his daughter has fallen into bad company. Under the name Rossignol -- Nightingale -- she has been acquiring a reputation of her own, but recently she has changed, breaking off relations with friends and family, never answering phone calls or letters, and spending all her time in the Caliban Club where she sings. Moreover, her singing has changed; now she sings only sad songs and her listeners are so moved that some have committed suicide shortly after leaving her show.

All these changes started when Ross signed a new contract with Mr. and Mrs. Cavendish. The client wants Taylor to check into her situation and help her if such assistance is necessary. Cathy confirms the client's portrayal of Ross' career and Alex tells him more about her life and the Cavendishes.

Taylor visits the Caliban Club and talks to Ian, Ross' roadie. Then he visits Rossignol herself and later catches a show. He can't find any indication of magical influence, but Ross is obviously depressed and distracted. During her performance, moreover, someone commits suicide, splashing blood and brains over her shoes.

In this story, Taylor investigates the Cavendishes, including tracking down another promising diva who was previously under contract to them, but disappeared without a trace the previous year. He drops by the Night Times to find out the gossip from the newsies, especially the managing editor (and owner) Julian Advent. He even pays a visit to the Cavendishes, where he is very ill received.

Taylor has always had a compassionate streak, but Rossignol somehow inflames it into an obsession. However he has to do it, Taylor is determined to solve Ross' problem. He even goes so far as to involve the Dead Boy.

Be warned that the author has gone overboard with obscure references. Perhaps not knowing about Bananarama tribute bands is a good thing. However, one hopes that the reader gets the blind Pew wordplay; it is practically in the public domain.

Highly recommended for Green fans and for anyone else who enjoys fantasy noir detective novels with a touch of camp.

-Arthur W. Jordin