The Night Watch / Sarah Waters 450 p.

Wow - this was awesome, and I'd never heard of it, but just happened to pick it off my Mom's shelf. The story moves backwards from post-war London, through different stages of the Blitz. It follows 4 main characters, each of whom has a 'forbidden' love: either because they are gay or lesbian, or, in one case, because of an affair with a married man. The backwards movement of the plot doesn't feel gimmicky at all; rather, it feels like a logical way to reveal the characters' secrets. (Unlike Time's Arrow by Martin Amis, for example.) Completely absorbing with distinct, sympathetic characters.