Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: Summary and book reviews of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt, plus links to an excerpt from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and a biography of John Berendt.

Shots rang out in Savannah's grandest mansion in the misty, early morning hours of May 2, 1981. Was it murder or self-defense? For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares. John Berendt's sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction. Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case. It is a spellbinding story peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters: the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman's Card Club; the turbulent young redneck gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the "soul of pampered self-absorption"; the uproariously funny black drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young blacks dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight. These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a sublime and seductive reading experience. Brilliantly conceived and masterfully written, this enormously engaging portrait of a most beguiling Southern city has become a modern classic.

Media Reviews

Newsweek - Malcolm Jones Savannahians still rehash this decade-old case, and small wonder. No Gothic novelist could concoct a riper tale. . . . With all this, Berendt has fashioned a Baedeker to Savannah that, while it flirts with condescension, is always contagiously affectionate. Few cities have been introduced more seductively.   New Statesman - Boyd Tonkin This is very much a Southern story. Berendt underlines the sultriness, snobbery and sensuality of the town where Flannery O'Connor grew up. What's most interesting, however, is the way that the greatest of all Southern quarrels threatens to break out from the edges of the text. For Midnight is finally about race; perhaps more so than Berendt intended.   Glenna Whitley - The New York Times Mr. Berendt's writing is elegant and wickedly funny, and his eye for telling details is superb....Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil might be the first true-crime book that makes the reader want to call a travel agent and book a bed and breakfast for an extended weekend at the scene of the crime.   New Statesman - Boyd Tonkin This is very much a Southern story. Berendt underlines the sultriness, snobbery and sensuality of the town where Flannery O'Connor grew up. What's most interesting, however, is the way that the greatest of all Southern quarrels threatens to break out from the edges of the text. For Midnight is finally about race; perhaps more so than Berendt intended.   The New York Times - Glenna Whitley Mr. Berendt's writing is elegant and wickedly funny, and his eye for telling details is superb....Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil might be the first true-crime book that makes the reader want to call a travel agent and book a bed and breakfast for an extended weekend at the scene of the crime.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by College Student
GREAT BOOK ABOUT SOUTHERNERS
I had to read this book for one of My college classes. I LOVED IT. This is how southern people are, We all gossip and we do elaborate (a little) stories. However, we are tactfully truthful. We would not say anything behind people backs that we...   Read More

Rated of 5 by LisaO.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
Savannah/Tybee Island having been my families favorite summer getaway for years it was a joy to read such an enthralling story about a place that is so dear to me. The discriptions of the town that Mr. Berendt so perfectly dipictes, conjurs up the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by chris
I think the plot is strangley confusing

why does williams 'disappear' for 10 chapters, did he really murder?

There is a lot of psycho-sexual confusion, williams is obviously gay, danny is his boy. Chablis ? male or female ? What...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Jan Bailey
Before two weeks ago i had never read the book or seen the movie. A friend suggested since i was going to visit Savannah that i should read it. I went to the library and got the book on CD. We were blown away.... it was awesome. I love the way the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Jeannine
I heard from so many people what a wonderful book this is. I read it but didn't really enjoy it. I'm glad I saw Savannah before I read the book, because it certainly wouldn't make me want to go there. Lots of weird, strange people within the book's...   Read More

Rated of 5 by john
this is a superbely written book. it is a delightful mixture of both humor and intrigue

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Books with similar themes

• Gothic
  
• True Crime
  
• USA 
  
• South 
  
• Mis. Ala. Ga. 
  
• 1980s & '90s