New watch

I have always enjoyed Lukyanenko’s stories, finding his unique take on underlying motivation as a driving factor in his magical system to be refreshing. His background as a psychiatrist makes this a perfect choice for him. I think this installment makes the promise of further possible applications of these ideas in the final installment concerning the Twilight itself. I wish both language and fame barriers allowed for me to discuss some of his ideas about psychology presented in these books with him directly, as I am about to be pursuing my doctorate in psychology.
If you enjoyed the previous books in the Night Watch series I think you will enjoy this one as well. We have a continuing evolution of Anton as he takes on a more leadership oriented role, as well as a lot of fun interaction between him and Arina, one of the Moore interesting relationships I feel. The author is good about incorporating developments in culture and technology in the real world into his fictional world which is progressing at roughly the same time. We see new technology being used throughout, and even socio-political events and changes being incorporated. Though I would’ve liked to see some more of Russian internal politics discussed or examined within the context of the story, as it mostly focused on political upheavals in the United States and elsewhere. Perhaps there are social reasons for this, as I know expressing political criticism of the government in Russia in media is still actively discouraged under the current regime. The usual hallmarks of Anton’s musical choices are of course still ther, helping anchor us in a familiar world.
Overall I would say this entry in the series is less action oriented, which may disappoint some readers, and definitely takes a more contemplative tone with a more mystery focused story.
A criticism I saw from other reviewers was that this (and the next book, which I haven’t yet finished) have the world facing a disaster that only Anton can save it from ala some dues ex machina with him as the quintessential god in the machine. I feel that is an inaccurate judgement, as at the climax of this story it is not Anton as some special character that saves the world, but a decision to make a personal sacrifice that any number of characters in this world placed in the same situation would have ability to make.
The book did a feel a bit more...brief...than previous entries, which is less a criticism and more a desire for more of the author’s writing. Hopefully given the international success of this series (though the movie adaptations were pretty terrible) will help get some of the rest of his voluminous body of work translated into English as I would dearly like to read the rest of it.