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A review by agiali
Middle of the Night by Riley Sager
5.0
I will never love another book quite like I love this one. Tears were shed out of wholesomeness and fear. I had NIGHTMARES because of this book. Sager made this book impossible to put down and unforgettable. This is my favorite thriller of ALL-TIME.
Let me first preface this review with a few things: I don't think this book is going to be loved by the masses, especially by Riley Sager fans and high-pace thriller lovers. I also have only read two of Sager's previous novels, Survive the Night and The House Across the Lake so I don't have much to compare when it comes to his other novels.
Middle of the Night takes place 30 years after our main character, Ethan, lost his best friend, Billy. While they were camping in his backyard, Ethan woke up to find a slash in his tent and Billy was gone, yet his belongings remained. He'd soon realize Billy never went home and would never come home again.
Now, in the present, Ethan is 40 and back in town after leaving his wife, Claudia to take care of his childhood home while his parents (recently moved to Florida) set up a sale for the house. However, Ethan isn't the only one back in town. Suffering from insomnia and nightmares of Billy's disappearance, someone is lurking in the middle of the night. Is someone playing a prank on Ethan? Or has Billy finally returned to Hemlock Circle?
I am distraught. I wish I could give you spoilers because MAN you won't understand what I went through unless you read it. I have never been this freaked out by a book EVER. There have been a few books where a scene has freaked me out and I'm like "Oh", but Middle of the Night was an entirely different experience. To better paint the picture, this is a digital advanced reader copy. I exclusively read my Kindle at night before bed. BIG MISTAKE WITH THIS ONE. The first 60% of this book had me shaking in my metaphorical boots. I didn't know what direction this book was going in and the way Sager wrote Ethan's paranoia made me ANXIOUS.
By the end of this book though, I was in tears. I've never read a thriller that ends in that way, which I know will tick off thriller readers, but for me, the last two chapters made me so emotional that I WePT.
I was not expecting this to become an all-time favorite book, especially my second favorite book of the year so far, but here we are. This book has made me a Riley Sager fan and I am so excited to continue on with his backlist!
(This title is set to release on June 18, 2024, from Dutton! Thank you for the opportunity to read this in advance!)
Let me first preface this review with a few things: I don't think this book is going to be loved by the masses, especially by Riley Sager fans and high-pace thriller lovers. I also have only read two of Sager's previous novels, Survive the Night and The House Across the Lake so I don't have much to compare when it comes to his other novels.
Middle of the Night takes place 30 years after our main character, Ethan, lost his best friend, Billy. While they were camping in his backyard, Ethan woke up to find a slash in his tent and Billy was gone, yet his belongings remained. He'd soon realize Billy never went home and would never come home again.
Now, in the present, Ethan is 40 and back in town after leaving his wife, Claudia to take care of his childhood home while his parents (recently moved to Florida) set up a sale for the house. However, Ethan isn't the only one back in town. Suffering from insomnia and nightmares of Billy's disappearance, someone is lurking in the middle of the night. Is someone playing a prank on Ethan? Or has Billy finally returned to Hemlock Circle?
I am distraught. I wish I could give you spoilers because MAN you won't understand what I went through unless you read it. I have never been this freaked out by a book EVER. There have been a few books where a scene has freaked me out and I'm like "Oh", but Middle of the Night was an entirely different experience. To better paint the picture, this is a digital advanced reader copy. I exclusively read my Kindle at night before bed. BIG MISTAKE WITH THIS ONE. The first 60% of this book had me shaking in my metaphorical boots. I didn't know what direction this book was going in and the way Sager wrote Ethan's paranoia made me ANXIOUS.
By the end of this book though, I was in tears. I've never read a thriller that ends in that way, which I know will tick off thriller readers, but for me, the last two chapters made me so emotional that I WePT.
I was not expecting this to become an all-time favorite book, especially my second favorite book of the year so far, but here we are. This book has made me a Riley Sager fan and I am so excited to continue on with his backlist!
(This title is set to release on June 18, 2024, from Dutton! Thank you for the opportunity to read this in advance!)