Middle of the Night by Riley Sager was an enthralling experience that kept me on edge from beginning to end. The novel masterfully intertwines past and present, unraveling a decades-old mystery that haunts the protagonist, Ethan Marsh.

The story begins with a chilling event: one summer night in 1994, ten-year-old Ethan and his best friend, Billy, are camping in Ethan’s backyard. By morning, Billy has vanished without a trace, leaving behind a slashed tent and a community in shock. Thirty years later, Ethan returns to his childhood home on Hemlock Circle, still tormented by the unresolved disappearance. As he settles back into the neighborhood, strange occurrences begin to unfold, suggesting that the past is far from buried.

Sager’s writing is both atmospheric and suspenseful, drawing me into the eerie suburban setting where secrets lurk behind every closed door. The character development is particularly compelling; Ethan’s struggle with insomnia and his obsession with uncovering the truth make him a relatable and sympathetic protagonist.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This thriller was intense from start to finish. The characters were well-developed, and the mystery kept me guessing. The final twist was both shocking and satisfying.

This book was fantastic at grappling with grief and letting go whilst still being gripping. As someone who's read a lot of this genre, it wasn't the biggest twist or anything like that, but was still unique in the direction it took. The flashbacks were great and really worked for me.

This is my second Riley Sager read and I really enjoyed it! A dark mystery that kept me desperate to know what had happened. Slightly slow but overall a great read and would recommend.

Riley Sager just KNOWS how to write a spooky story!! I was really invested in this one, I felt really connected to the characters and found the mystery super compelling. In this we follow Ethan, returning to his childhood home which is also the scene from which his best friend went missing 30 years earlier. Ethan begins to relive the night Billy was taken, trying to figure out what really happened to Billy as a series of unexplainable event start to make him believe his spirit may be contacting him. Overall I thought this was a great mystery, with super spooky vibes, although the ending wasn't super crazy or shocking, I'm giving this a 3.5 - rounded up to a 4!

As always, Riley Sager delivers an exciting, easy to read but keeps you on your toes read. Brilliantly done, fab characters and the end was brill!!! Loved it

Disappointed. I've always admired Riley Sager for his twists and turns but this one? This one was really great underwhelming. Maybe I set the bar too high I'm not sure but this one just felt mundane.

Ethan has returned to his childhood home where, 30 years previous, his best friend went missing from a tent they were sharing in his garden. Going back to the place where one of the biggest and most haunting moments of his life happened is enough to unsettle anyone, but then things start happening in the house. Things that make Ethan think that his best friend is back.

Let me preface this review by stating how much I love Riley Sager. I look forward to every new book release and I’m yet to be disappointed by one of his books. The perfect blend of supernatural and thriller, they’re always fun and easy to read. Middle of the Night is what we’ve come to expect from Sager. I wouldn’t say it’s my new favourite but I enjoyed the characters involved in the book, alongside the flashbacks to the nineties and the nostalgia that came with it. The mystery was interesting and I did audibly gasp at something unexpected, which is always a bonus!

If you’re looking for an interesting crime thriller with likeable characters and a supernatural hint, Middle of the Night is a must!

This was my second Riley Sagar and overall I had a good time time with it. I liked the small town vibes and going back and forth between the present and the past and you find out what happened to Billy. I wasn’t a huge fan of the main character I did find him a little bit boring in places, but I did like the twists we got and I would have like it a little bit more darker in places but it was a quick read and I think a good intro for someone who wants to try a thriller 3.5 stars

This book has been my least favourite from this author. I felt the plot had great promise but never delivered. I enjoyed the storytelling through two timelines and the friendships amongst the children seemed authentic. However, I struggled to finish it and wouldn’t be able to recommend it.

My thanks to the author, the publisher and to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review Middle of the Night.

"The worst thing to ever happen on Hemlock Circle occurred in Ethan Marsh’s backyard. One July night, ten-year-old Ethan and his best friend and neighbor, Billy, fell asleep in a tent set up on a manicured lawn in a quiet, quaint New Jersey cul de sac. In the morning, Ethan woke up alone. During the night, someone had sliced the tent open with a knife and taken Billy. He was never seen again."

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Over the last few years Riley Sager has safely earned a space on my auto buy author list, so when this appeared on Netgalley I snapped it up! before I even read the blurb

After the initial 'but whyyyyy would you leave your 10 year old child in a tent overnight' I settled into the story quickly, sucked into Sager's familiar writing style which I really enjoy. He has a way with words which effectively creates atmosphere without being too convoluted, and writes well rounded characters. I like that they have (somewhat) realistic reactions to things, which helps reel things in when the plot gets a little out of hand at times!

As with all his other books Sager successfully hooks you in with constant clues - often red herrings - and drip feeds you reveals along the way. I read this as a buddy read and we were continuously making guesses and getting it wrong! especially when you are given multiple POVs. I liked that we got to see what happened that night from all the different angles, which was done in a way which did not feel repetitive. And was a reminder that things are hardly ever what they seem from the outside, especially if you are only witnessing a small piece of the puzzle.

Middle of the Night is a page turner, super creepy at times (there was a super eery part at the start of the book which involved street lights which was very effective!) and creates such a big build up that I expected to be a bit disappointed with the ending... which did fall a little flat - BUT at the same time I was glad of. It felt as if the journey of the story itself was the point, and so I decided I quite liked the subtle ending!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

I feel very meh about this one. The story was interesting enough to keep me reading but it’s not the best of Sager’s work and it left me a bit disappointed.

The pacing is incredibly slow and the writing is often repetitive, with the same few things happening over and over again with little variation in the way it’s written. This book does have a brilliant atmosphere, which is as per when it comes to Sager, and a lingering, creeping sense of dread from the start. But, ultimately, so little actually happens here and what does happen, happens so slowly that I did find it hard to read much of the book in each sitting.

The characters felt flat and bland to me. Ethan didn’t really have much of a personality aside from “traumatised” and the side characters felt like NPCs with little going on. The only character I liked, much like other readers, was Henry because he was so cute.

Some of the plot threads in here went nowhere. Why introduce a creepy institution if we’re not going to explore it more and it has ultimately nothing to do with the mystery.

I liked how the book discussed grief and felt this was really well explored and I was surprised by all of the twists and turns.

Ultimately, this didn’t excite me like other Riley Sager books, which is a shame.

I normally really enjoy Riley Sager's books but unfortunately this one just fell a bit flat in my opinion. I didn't connect to any of the characters, wasn't particularly invested in the outcome and nothing really happened throughout the entire book. The pacing was super slow and I just felt like it dragged on for ages and was quite repetitive. I ended up having to switch to an audiobook version in order to finish the book as I just couldn't keep my attention on actually reading it physically.
I would still recommend Sager as an author in general, just not this book specifically.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Middle of the Night by Riley Sager features Ethan Marsh, whose best friend disappeared when they were children camping out in his family garden. Ethan and Billy were best friends and they regularly camped in Ethan’s back garden. Someone had slit the tent and taken Billy, who was never seen again.
As an adult Ethan still has night terrors and insomnia, when he returns home to Hemlock Circle thirty years later he notices strange things happening in the middle of the night.
Someone seems to be roaming round in the middle of the night and there are signs of Billy’s presence, is someone playing a cruel prank?
The mysterious occurrences prompt Ethan to investigate what really happened that night. He then finds that not everything was as it seemed and more people were part of his childhood memories.
A fascinating look back at a childhood, when friends and neighbours were not what you remember,until you ask people who were there with you do you find out what really happened.
Highly recommended

I’ve become a pretty devout reader of Riley Sager of late – he can generally be relied upon for jaw-dropping, mind-blowing, creepy thrillers which guarantee to end any reading slump. This latest offering is a little different, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

The premise is intriguing – a young boy named Billy goes missing in the middle of the night during a sleepover at his friend’s house. Thirty years later, his childhood friend and the last boy to see him alive, Ethan, returns to the place they grew up.

As soon as Ethan starts to adjust to life in his parents’ neighbourhood, he’s plagued by unsettling incidents which remind him of his past. Ethan wonders if Billy could be haunting him, and believes its down to him to find out what really happened – and finally get justice for Billy once and for all.

Along the way, there’s plenty of sinister twists and questions to keep the reader turning the pages – suspicion and deceit amidst a close-knit community, an obsession with ghosts and the paranormal, and a creepy institute in the woods where mysterious research is carried out.

But, despite all this, at its heart Middle Of The Night is a very human story. It’s actually about the residents and the secrets they keep, it exposes people at their most flawed and vulnerable, and it explores themes of grief and letting go.

“People even express disappointment that the truth was so mundane, so boringly human. There were no villains in this story. Nor were there heroes. Just a neighbourhood of flawed people, some more than others.”

Riley Sager’s Middle of the Night is a thrilling ride that keeps you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Set in a small, atmospheric town, the story follows Ethan, who finds himself embroiled in a web of secrets and suspense 30 years after a shocking event occurred. Sager’s writing is gripping, with a fast-paced narrative that blends elements of mystery and psychological thriller. The characters are well-developed, each with their own hidden motives that add layers to the plot. I particularly enjoyed how the tension builds as the story unfolds, leading to unexpected twists that kept me guessing until the very end.

One of the standout features of this book is Sager’s ability to create an eerie atmosphere that perfectly complements the storyline. The setting itself feels like a character, adding depth to the unfolding drama.

While the pacing is excellent, there were a few moments where the plot felt slightly stretched. However, the final twists more than make up for it.

Overall, Middle of the Night is a captivating read that showcases Sager’s talent for crafting compelling mysteries. I highly recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers who enjoy intricate plots and strong character development.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

I love Riley Sager's writing style and the way this book kept me guessing until the final reveal made it a quick read. I enjoyed the back and forth of the main storyline and the situation from 30 years earlier.

The past storyline being told from multiple points of view was intriguing and broke up the main story which at times was slower. I would have loved to see more of the research aspect too.

BOOK: Middle of the night
AUTHOR: Riley Sager
GENRE: thriller
RATING: 3⭐

I have enjoyed the Riley Sager books that I have picked up so far and had high expectations for this newest release. However, this one didn't quite hit the mark. I enjoyed the setting and have those nostalgia 90s vibes in the flashbacks as well as the creepy woods and asylum, which kept me hooked in the story. But I found the actual plot quite slow and I found myself bored. I was also hoping for a much bigger twist.

As a Riley Sager enthusiast, I am an advocate for going in blind, and if there was any to do it for it was Middle of the Night! If you enjoyed Home Before Dark check out this one.

The 90s nostalgia with flashbacks from the night of the disappearance paired so well with the eerie slow-burn and the classic Sager twists.

Riley Sager never disappoints!
No one knows what happened to Billy Barringer 30 years ago... He just vanished right next to Ethan, his best friend, who was fast asleep.
Now Ethan is back in his childhood home and as more and more strange things occure, he has a feeling that Billy might still be out there...
I adored the dual-timelines and the switching of narratives. And as always there's twist after twist, Sager knows how to keep you on your toes until the very last page. A perfect chilly read for autumn