The Midnight Show - by Lee Kelly & Jennifer Thorne (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An immersive, page-turning novel about surviving as a funny woman in the male-dominated world of comedy--and what happens when the most promising female star of her generation disappears.

"An utterly addictive read."--Amy Tintera, New York Times bestselling author of Listen for the Lie

ONE OF MARIE CLAIRE'S BEST NOVELS OF THE YEAR SO FAR

In the 1980s, women were not supposed to be funny. But when a group of college improv comedians gets the chance to join a new late-night show, it's Lillian Martin who stands out. The new show was called The Midnight Show and it would air every Friday night, live from New York, and change the landscape of TV and comedy forever.

But first it would change Lillian's and her friends' lives. When the show becomes a runaway hit, the cast is thrown into the spotlight. Suddenly, they're skipping the line at the city's hottest clubs and posing on the cover of Rolling Stone. Lillian, in particular, seems destined for bigger things--until one winter night in Lower Manhattan, she vanishes, leaving nothing behind but questions. Was Lillian a victim of her own excesses? Was it a mugging gone wrong? Or could she have been killed by someone in her own inner circle?

Forty years later, Lillian's disappearance has still never been solved. But when a budding journalist looking to examine Lillian's story from a modern lens begins asking questions, she stirs up decades-old drama--as well as tightly-held secrets some comedy legends would much rather stay buried.

A propulsive story of fame and friendship told through a variety of media--compiled interviews, articles, transcripts--The Midnight Show takes readers behind the scenes of the cutthroat world of comedy in 1980s New York and asks if the rush of getting a laugh is all it's cracked up to be.

Review Quotes

"Saturday Night Live fans will devour this account of a similar show's cast drama that spirals into tragedy. Sharp, witty, and totally fresh."--People

"In the vein of Daisy Jones & the Six and The Favorites before it, The Midnight Show is told via interviews, articles, and transcripts, a format that never fails to fully immerse us in a very specific moment in time."--Marie Claire

"If Saturday Night Live launched a generation of comedy legends, this novel imagines what it takes to make it there. Set in the 1980s, it follows a female comedian navigating the cutthroat New York comedy scene with grit, ambition, and sharp wit."--Brit + Co

"The Midnight Show is an utterly addictive read--I couldn't stop thinking about it once I started. Kelly and Thorne expertly capture the cutthroat world of late-night comedy in juicy, hilarious detail, with special attention to the women at the center of it all. I loved it!"--Amy Tintera, New York Times bestselling author of Listen for the Lie

"Dark, dazzling, and impossible to put down, The Midnight Show captures the high-wire world of live TV and the secrets festering just offstage. With inventive storytelling and characters that feel achingly real, it plunges us into 1980s New York with all its glitter, gossip, grime, and glory and a mystery that refuses to stay buried--an absolute knockout."--Chandler Baker, screenwriter and New York Times bestselling author of Whisper Network and The Husbands

"Book clubs, behold your next great read. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll immediately want to talk about it with everyone you know. At times comedic, at times tragic, but always unflinchingly human. A spellbinding, wildly imaginative book."--Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, USA Today bestselling author of Till Death Do Us Part and The Girls Are All So Nice Here

"A brilliant, electric ride. Reading The Midnight Show feels like being backstage at the birth of Saturday Night Live--complete with swagger, secrets, and the thrill of live TV. Nostalgic, razor sharp, and full of twists I never saw coming. Kelly and Thorne are at the top of their game with this one."--Sara Ackerman, USA Today bestselling author of The Guest in Room 120

"The Midnight Show is my kind of escapism: meticulously crafted, hilarious yet grounded, and filled with characters who are my actual friends now--I don't care if they're fictional. Late-night comedy fans will find this extremely delicious, but so will feminists and nostalgists and people who enjoy being wildly entertained."--Holly Brickley, author of Deep Cuts

"Juicy and addictive."--Cynthia Weiner, author of A Gorgeous Excitement

"Fans of Daisy Jones and the Six should take a look."--Publishers Weekly

"For the reader who can't miss a sketch or a punchline, The Midnight Show delivers a sharp blend of nostalgia and mystery. Set in the high-energy world of 1980s New York comedy--reminiscent of the early days of Saturday Night Live--the novel pairs its rich cultural backdrop with a decades-spanning disappearance that still haunts those left behind."--BookTrib

About the Author

Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne are the co-authors of the novels The Antiquity Affair, The Starlets, My Fair Frauds, and The Midnight Show. Independently, Kelly is the author of the acclaimed speculative fiction novels City of Savages, A Criminal Magic, and With Regrets. Thorne is the USA Today bestselling author of Diavola, Lute, and the forthcoming Newbourne Park, as well as several books for younger readers.