Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - The Midnight Library

I wasn’t expecting to read a book I’d rate so highly after only getting through the first 30 pages. I loved the style, the narration, and the poignant way of diving into one life and zooming out of it. It reminded me of five people you meet in heaven. I love this concept and was positively surprised at how well this was done.

That aside, there were many instances where I related strongly with Nora. “Expectations” being a particular passage inside the book that struck a chord with many, and I am no exception. Please go into this book with no expectations. I’ve picked it up solely because I saw a friend (hi, Léonie) reading it and decided to give it a try as well. I went into it blind, and that was the best choice I could’ve made in order to be able to appreciate the situations detailed inside the rather short chapters. (The short, yet meaningful chapters are the best that modern literature has to offer, lemme tell ya.)

Anyways, 10/10 recommend!

Heed the TW: suicide, hinted self-harm, mentioned sexual harrassment, toxic relationship, mentioned drug and alcohol abuse.

Content Warnings

jasperdotpdf's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I really loved my time with this book.

This was the first book after ~2 months of a horrific reading slump that I've been able to get through very easily. Despite the relatively relaxed nature of the book, this still had me reading while I was walking to and from places, which was actually a first for me.

It's nothing groundbreaking, the ending is pretty cliché and it follows in the footsteps of It's a Wonderful Life, but it managed to deliver on the well-known premise amazingly.

I do wish the book had spent less time explaining the "rules" of the midnight library/the afterlife so to say, since trying to explain such an abstract and vast concept to fit the narrative of a story felt a bit... reductive and convenient for the narrative. Although I do understand why just shrugging and telling the reader there was no real explanation for why Nora ended up in the Library/why things worked the way they do in the book would have also been complicated.

Overall, the small issues I had with it did not nearly impact my reading experience enough for this to be anything less than a really solid book.

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mcooper's review against another edition

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emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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cyntia's review

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reflective

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.25

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smchoate's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective relaxing fast-paced

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

4.0

I quite liked this book. I think we can all see ourselves in Nora, our main character, who finds herself regretting many of her past choices and wondering about the lives they could have led her to. This story is inspiring and engaging, and it's a very quick and fast-paced read. I would encourage anyone to check out content warnings before diving in, as some heavy topics are dealt with, though never in an overly indulgent or dark way.

Some may find the inspiring messages in this book to be too obvious and in-your-face. I felt this way at certain moments, but overall, it didn't bother me too much. Not everything always needs to be super subtle to be worthwhile. The plot was pretty predictable, but again, I didn't pick up this book to be shocked. That being said, this was a satisfying read that I likely won't need to read again.

The other issue I found with this book was the pacing and delivery of the main points in the story. A lot of this is likely due to the premise itself, but there was a section in the middle when things got a bit repetitive, and I was impatient to get on, especially since it was easy to see where the plot was going.

These minor gripes aside, this is a well-written, worthwhile story that many readers will closely relate to, for one reason or another. Overall, I admire what Haig achieved in this novel; it addresses important themes in a touching way and deserves the hype it has gotten.

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mxfahrenheit's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

3.5

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