Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Middle of the Night by Riley Sager

33 reviews

dblue236's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This might be my favorite Sager yet, though since I've loved nearly all of them, I may change my mind next time you ask. I loved the Goonies-meets-Stranger Things feel of this book, and while the tropes were not unique, they were fun as hell and I feel sorry for anyone who didn't allow themselves to roll with that and just enjoy it for what it was. This was easily one of my favorite reads so far this year and I already can't wait for his next book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Drug abuse, Drug use, Dementia, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Outing, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

amandas_bookshelf's review

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I thought this was Riley Sager's best novel!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use

Minor: Pregnancy

avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Quick Synopsis:  Ethan is back at his childhood home 30 years after his best friend Billy disappeared from his backyard. Ethan, still having nightmares from that night, begins to think Billy is trying to communicate with him.

Quick Review:  I almost wish the book had supernatural elements, I think that would have made the ending more satisfying. I figured out part of what had happened to Billy, by about halfway through the book. I know Riley Sager's books tend to be ones I either love or I just feel meh about, but this one was a meh book. I think part of the problem was Ethan wasn't that likable.

Narrator Rating: 4.0 stars
  The narrator did an excellent job, though some of his tonal shifts for the flashbacks were irritating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Stalking, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, and Death of parent

While a child is killed in the book, I don't think it would qualify as graphic as it was relatively quick and not vividly described, though it's talked about quite a bit.

I would not use the "murder" content warning as no one is actually murdered even if is suspected to have happened.

sare1125's review

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Dementia, and Grief

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Minor: Kidnapping and Car accident

throwback682's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

This was a tearjerker for me. A lot of twists I didn’t predict (and one I did), although you may figure things out more quickly. It felt a bit long but overall very enjoyable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Confinement, Mental illness, and Dementia

Minor: Cursing, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

bookdrunkard78's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, and Grief

Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol

raven_snow's review against another edition

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This picks up about 50% of the way through and gets better at 80%... But I wouldn't say it ever gets good. Too much kid focus in a vague, I-am-an-adult-but-an-unorepared-for-responsibility way that didn't add meaningfully to the character of the kids themselves. I found the flashback chapters much more interesting than the present day chapters. Some of the final reveals are things I expected, but a lot of them were surprises. The flashforward ending is saccharine and overly simplified.

If this is generally considered a "good" Riley Sager book, then I have no interest in reading another one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Grief, and Alcohol

Moderate: Bullying and Dementia

mainereading's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

An emotional and gripping thriller that gives off slight Stranger Things and Scooby-Doo vibes.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

bookedandbusy's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I absolutely loved this book! One of my favorites yet.  It was eerie and perfect for a warm, rainy summer night! The plot twists definitely left me shocked! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Dementia, and Alcohol

Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Kidnapping, and Car accident

paronomaniac's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Grief

Moderate: Death, Dementia, and Murder

Minor: Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Racism, Kidnapping, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol