We read to escape. To whisk away to lands of fantasy and wonder. We can become surrogate heroes for the space of a story or novel. It's fun.

Sometimes we read for a more profound experience. Some writers, some stories, allow us to confront circumstances most of us cannot imagine otherwise. In the hands of a truly gifted writer we can enter the minds of desperate individuals we might feel contempt for, but with the proper illumination we can learn empathy.

I had never heard of Willy Vlaudin until recently when The Night Always Comes popped up on an Amazon page as something that might interest me. I incorrectly assumed the novel was a thriller. Which it isn't. Not really.

The Night Always Comes is a portrait of urban renewal and the devastating effects it has on disenfranchised people. Lynette is a thirtyish woman who lives with her apathetic mother and her developmentally disabled brother. When property values in Portland soar, the family must either move from their dilapidated rental or come up with a preposterously large down payment to purchase the home. Lynette almost has the means to accomplish the purchase, but her mother backs out at the last minute.

Lynette embarks on a harrowing journey over the course of two nights to acquire the necessary funds to buy the house and finally obtain the security she always dreamed of having. Along the way she encounters horrifying individuals and is forces to re-evaluate unpleasant experiences about her past and her own personality.

Her decisions and actions are unwise and distasteful, and it is easy to judge someone who makes the choices Lynette makes in The Night Always Comes. Easy to judge for people in comfortable reading chairs, in nice homes, with few worries about the immediate future.

Lynette's story is grueling as she prays her dying car lasts a little longer. As she pinches every penny, makes every sacrifice imaginable to secure a permanent home for her family. It's a story I can relate to all too well. I've lived in impoverished conditions. Every word of The Night Always Comes rings true.

Horror? Well, you won't find The Night Always Comes on any horror lists, but it's more disturbing and potent than 99% of the genre materials out there. Somehow, no matter the insanity or violence Lynette faces in her quixotic quest to raise money, I didn't find her story to be depressing. Lynette's fortitude drives the narrative and hope permeates the entire novel. While it would be difficult to describe the end of this novel as a happy one, it does conclude on a positive note. Its message is to fight despair no matter how overwhelming the odds we face.

The Night Always Comes is easily one of the best novels I've read so far in 2021. It may well end up being my favorite of the year. As I stated above, Willy Vlaudin is new to me, but I plan to read his previous books very soon.

Written by Mark Sieber

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