Nightcrawling – Leila Mottley

Expectation: A modern take on the world’s oldest profession. 

Reality: Depressing and somber, the story went places I didn’t expect, but outside of the main character, I didn’t care much for what was happening. 

My Take:

“Nightcrawling” is an imperfect yet powerful novel. There were many things I enjoyed about it — specifically the writing and our main character, Kiara — but the story only captivated me about a third of the time. 

Let’s start with the positive. It’s an impressive debut, even more so because Leila Mottley was only 17-years-old when she wrote it. 

Inspired by a true scandal involving the Oakland Police Department, she built a narrative around relationships — both intimate and transactional — and how each one served a different purpose to Kiara. 

From navigating her burgeoning queer identity to making sacrifices — both physical and mental — to stay housed and fed, Kiara’s life is far from easy. She’s been failed by almost every adult in her life yet remains a compassionate friend. 

Rather than being consumed by her circumstances, she claws her way to ongoing survival. Her characterization was alternately inspiring and frustrating. You wanted to help her, or at the very least show her how she could help herself.

Mottley infuses her story with astute observations about loyalty and inequity that prove she will be a literary force in the coming decades. 

However, “Nightcrawling” has its flaws, which I think mostly stem from this being a debut. There’s little character development outside of Kiara, many individuals are caricatures and the plot has more holes than Swiss cheese.

I had to re-read several sections because it seemed I had missed some crucial elements only to realize the topic or situation had been closed and wasn’t going to be revisited. This made the first third of the novel difficult to follow and the last third unfulfilling and rushed. 

The most cohesive part of the story, and the largest section of the novel, was Kiara’s involvement in the Oakland Police Department scandal. It was riveting, fraught and provided the novel with energy, but this was often stymied by ancillary plots and new characters that felt like piling on an already terrible situation. 

I say this fully acknowledging my own privilege. Maybe everything that Kiara experienced is more true to life than I took it to be, but I’ve also read enough to know a strong editor could’ve worked with Mottley to trim a few sections without losing the power of the story. 

All that to say, I would definitely read another novel by Mottley, but my recommendation of this novel is heavily asterisked for expectation tempering. 

If you decide to tackle this, I highly recommend the audiobook. Joniece Abbott-Pratt was simply fantastic. Her portrayal of Kiara is one of the reasons why I became invested in this story — shortcomings and all. Even though the other characters didn’t receive the same level of development by Mottley, Abbot-Pratt gave them all a distinct personality which made them feel more elevated. 

Rating (story): 3.5/5 stars

Rating (narration): 4/5 stars

Formats: Audiobook (library loan)

Dates read: December 24, 2022 – January 1, 2023

Multi-tasking: Good to go, although it’s easy to lose track of characters and situations if you aren’t paying close attention.