The Gates of Midnight, Helene Wecker (Review by Abigail Blake)

The final installment to the Golem and Jinni trilogy, Helene Wrecker gives beloved characters to satisfying, if not entirely happy, endings. The Gates of Midnight follows less the trials of lovers Ahmad, our jinni trapped in human form, and golem trying desperately to retain control of herself Chava Levy—and more those impacted by their connection to them and the world of magic.

Thirty years since the events in The Hidden Palace, Chava still lives in New York in a beautiful home she’s intended to serve as a boardinghouse for others like herself and Ahmad, while commuting a few times a year to see him in Chicago.Chava takes on the grieving Kreindel as a boarder, but a rift between them forces Kreindel to grapple with independence and her own beliefs and talents. The jinni took a young Matthew Mounsef to his grandmother Mirna across the globe, who showed little appreciation for his past and quiet abilities. Through some mischief on the part of Mirna,  Matthew grows into adult Thomas Beshara, forgetting his past in New York City and distorting his view of the supernatural. The Radzin Bakery daughter, Selma, now runs a speakeasy out of a back room of what used to be her parent’s bakery.

All three of these characters take center stage in the story while the evil wizard Schaalman grapples with his multitude of former selves to escape the trap Chava and Ahmad previously put him in.  He connives his way back to New York, entrapping more victims with his spell-book and powers along the way. He is only ultimately defeated in a stunning conclusion that brings together all of our characters and the talents unique to each of them.

The Gates of Midnight is a fitting end to this story that also operates as an homage to the multiculturalism of New York. Characters from a variety of different backgrounds and mythologies must work together to find their way to the lives they want to live. It is an ultimately satisfying and surprisingly realistic story for novel that follows the exploits of numerous supernatural beings.