Books on Guadalcanal and the early days of the American offensive in the Pacific War seem to have become a dime a dozen now. To be blunt, I think James Hornfischer, Joseph Wheelan, and Richard B. Frank have all more recently done a better job covering Guadalcanal, both the naval battles and the Marine Corps fight ashore. As Cox only covers the first couple of months of the battle, I'm guessing he has a trilogy or some other plan in place to cover the rest of the battle which went on into February 1943, but I'm not positive about that.

I will give Cox credit in that he seems to have dived into the research, and probably pacts a bit too many facts and info into a sentence. Whereas most authors would mention a dive-bomber dropped a bomb, Cox will tell you the pilots name, rank, and the exact type of aircraft flown. If he could have fit in the pilots birthplace, mothers and fathers name, and favorite food, he'd probably have done so. That's a bit unfair to say of course, as some people enjoy reading that level of detail. It's not really a bad thing to be so descriptive, but can be a bit much. Most people generally won't retain so much information in a one or two sentence line, but again, not necessarily a bad thing.

Descriptions of the battles on Guadalcanal and in the waters just off its shore are very descriptive and really give one a good sense of what it was like to be a sailor onboard a destroyer or cruiser. Likewise with being a marine fighting the Japanese at the Tenaru River. Overall, the book is very readable and although I didn't really learn anything new, those not very familiar with the Solomon Islands campaign may find this a good place to start.

Mr. Cox, has once again given us a through look at the Navy operations in and around Guadalcanal. The author takes you back briefly to the disastrous day of Pearl Harbor, and how General Macarthur though lost all of the planes he was ordered to protect by spacing out disobey the order, but still some who manage to stay in charge in the Pacific. This even after losing the Philippines with men and women but saving himself and staff, and saying that the U.S. Navy was the fourth best in the World behind Italy. That was the part of the book that really got me. The author then takes you through the planning and landing of the Marines on Guadalcanal, there fighting which would be for months. The battles at sea between the two Navy’s and how when you get to the end you really see that the loss of so many experienced pilots were beginning to take their toll on the Japanese Navy. You also get a look at how the American industry was beginning to start to rear its head. When in the early stages of the battles the Enterprise has to leave because of damage, but when it returns it is a more lethal fighting weapon with 16 new installed 40mm bofors anti-aircraft guns in four quadruple mounts. These would be one of the most effective anti-aircraft guns during the war. The Enterprise would also be are only working carrier after this battle, and would take on the Japanese Navy. The author also gives you a look at the inside of the going on in the Japanese Navy, their loses and changes they would make during the battle. Overall a very good book.

I'm leaving a three star review. Was Morning Star, Midnight Sun everything I expected, No. Was it not worth my time to read? I think it was an ok use of my time. I would have wished the author had gone further on the time time than the battle of Santa Cruz. I can overlook a couple factual errors. In the case of Jeffrey Cox, this time he seemed to be writing in too conversational a style. So, perhaps it just that my reading style wasn't compatible. This book has quite a small focus area, and may appeal more to those directly rather than generally interested.

"Morning Star, Midnight Sun" eBook was published in 2018 and was written by Jeffrey Cox. Mr. Cox has published two non-fiction books on World War II.

I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence. The book tells the story of the first campaign in the Pacific Theater by the Allies – the invasion of Guadalcanal. The story documents the many mistakes made by both sides during the conflict and emphasizes how important communications is.

I enjoyed the 16 hours I spent reading this 466 page World War II history. I found this book gave me a better understanding of what went on during this first campaign in the Pacific. Given the challenges that faced US forces, I am amazed that the invasion was successful. The book is a little dry and is filled with the numerous names of military personnel and ships on both sides of the conflict. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

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Books about large-scale battles and campaigns are difficult to write and read mainly due to the complexity of who is fighting who and when. This author does a masterful job in keeping things clear while being entertaining with his commentary. My only negative comment is that the author tried to sum up the battles on Guadalcanal in the epilogue when I expected a finishing chapter.