First published 1996
Laurie and Jaqe live as lovers in a world that operates by different rules than ours. Their relationship faces an ultimate test when Mother Night arrives. This small, elderly woman dresses in elaborate outfits and embodies death itself. She travels with five companions who have red hair and wear leather. These bikers move through the lives of Laurie, Jaqe, and their daughter like a force of nature. Mother Night separates the two women, creating a rift that threatens everything they have built together. The story follows how this supernatural intervention changes their family. Death becomes a character who brings both sorrow and unexpected moments of lightness. The women must navigate loss while discovering what survives when everything seems broken. Their daughter becomes part of this larger struggle between love and mortality. The tale moves between grief and laughter as the characters face what Mother Night represents. At its center lies the question of whether love can endure when death actively works against it.
Genres: literary-fiction, fantasy, contemporary, magical-realism
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief-and-loss, supernatural-elements
355 pages · Hardcover · St Martins Pr
Content warnings: death