"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.
Thirty years later, Ethan has reluctantly returned to his childhood home. Plagued by bad dreams and insomnia, he begins to notice strange things happening in the middle of the night. Someone seems to be roaming the cul de sac at odd hours, and signs of Billy’s presence keep appearing in Ethan’s backyard. Is someone playing a cruel prank? Or has Billy, long thought to be dead, somehow returned to Hemlock Circle?
The mysterious occurrences prompt Ethan to investigate what really happened that night, a quest that reunites him with former friends and neighbors and leads him into the woods that surround Hemlock Circle. Woods where Billy claimed monsters roamed and where a mysterious institute does clandestine research on a crumbling estate.
The closer Ethan gets to the truth, the more he realizes that no place—be it quiet forest or suburban street—is completely safe. And that the past has a way of haunting the present."
Thirty years later, Ethan has reluctantly returned to his childhood home. Plagued by bad dreams and insomnia, he begins to notice strange things happening in the middle of the night. Someone seems to be roaming the cul de sac at odd hours, and signs of Billy’s presence keep appearing in Ethan’s backyard. Is someone playing a cruel prank? Or has Billy, long thought to be dead, somehow returned to Hemlock Circle?
The mysterious occurrences prompt Ethan to investigate what really happened that night, a quest that reunites him with former friends and neighbors and leads him into the woods that surround Hemlock Circle. Woods where Billy claimed monsters roamed and where a mysterious institute does clandestine research on a crumbling estate.
The closer Ethan gets to the truth, the more he realizes that no place—be it quiet forest or suburban street—is completely safe. And that the past has a way of haunting the present."
My thoughts: I've read six other books by Riley Sager: I really liked three of them, disliked two, and thought the sixth landed somewhere in the middle. So I didn't know what to expect with this one. But I'm happy to report that I ended up really liking it. Ethan's guilt and grief felt so real, as did his desire to figure out what happened to his friend that long ago night. And Sager does an excellent job of interweaving the past with the present through the different characters' POVs. The way he lets the story unfold builds good suspense and made me want to keep reading. I also really liked the touch of supernatural in it. All in all, this is a fun mystery!
My rating: 4.5/5 stars.
Happy Reading!
The other three Riley Sager novels I really liked:
I did post reviews of the other three Sager books that I've read, so you can find them on my blog if you're interested in knowing what I didn't like about them.
Love it.
ReplyDeletewww.rsrue.blogspot.com
Happy Monday, Regine! :D
DeleteThis sounds really good! I still haven't read anything by this author, but I want to.
ReplyDeleteHe's worth checking out sometime.
DeleteThe only book I've read by this author was "The House Across the Lake" which I liked only well enough to give it three of five stars. This one has an interesting premise and, based on your review, I'm adding it to my reading list.
ReplyDeleteThe House Across the Lake is the only book by him that I haven't read, and I'm not sure I will. Too many other people agree with you about the 3/5 star rating on that one, and I think I would be disappointed in it. This one's better imo.
DeleteI'm glad this one worked for you! I've yet to read anything by this author -- I have a feeling his books aren't for me, but I do see quite a few people raving about them!
ReplyDeleteWell, like I said, some of his books I really liked, but some I really didn't. It's been a bit of a mixed bag. But I keep reading them. ;D
DeleteGreat review, Lark! Riley Sager is VERY popular with my library patrons. Have a good week!
ReplyDeleteI can see why. His books read fast and there's always some unexpected twist in them. Which make them fun.
DeleteGood to know this one was a hit for you.
ReplyDeleteI was glad it didn't end up disappointing like the last book of his I read.
DeleteThis sounds really good.
ReplyDeleteI really liked it. :D
DeleteThis does sound good, though I don't know...I'm not really good with too much suspense...
ReplyDeleteIt's not really scary. Or dark. Just the compelling kind of suspense that makes you keep reading.
DeleteIt must be something about clandestine research right? Glad it was a fun one.
ReplyDeleteHa. That's what you'd think, but the truth is much different.
DeleteI've mainly been mixed on Sager as well, but this one really worked for me. It helped that I share a name with the protagonist haha
ReplyDeleteIt's a great name! ;D
DeleteThis one sounds really good. I love books where something scary happened in the past and then it's 20 or 30 years later. And Riley Sager is so popular. I want to read Middle Of The Night but a 17 week hold on Libby. But I will put my order in.
ReplyDeleteHis books do tend to have long hold lists when they come out. You could try one of his others if any of those appealed to you.
DeleteI enjoyed this one, too! Kind of sad the way things turned out in one way, but I think it ended on a positive note! Happy to see you enjoyed it, too! :)
ReplyDeleteThe ending was kind of sad; and I felt so bad for young Billy.
DeleteI'm really looking forward to reading more from Riley Sager. I liked The Only One Left a lot more than you so I'm really excited to read this one.
ReplyDeleteThis one is good! I really liked the main character, Ethan. :D
DeleteLark, I'm with you. I've read Sager's other books and so I wasn't sure if I was going to like this one or not. Well, I loved it. It's my favorite Sager book :) I'm so glad you enjoyed it as well. It's definitely perfect for a Halloween read. Great post!
ReplyDeleteIt is the perfect book for this time of year! And I really liked Ethan and seeing him try to figure out what happened to his friend. Though that part of it made me sad.
DeleteI've read all of Sager's books except for his first one (FINAL GIRLS) and liked them all. Some better than others, of course. This one is my favorite of his. I'm glad you enjoyed it so much!
ReplyDeleteThis one is good! I did really like it.
DeleteNice review, Lark. I've only read one Riley Sager book and it was okay. I will have to try another one.
ReplyDeleteHe's a bit of a hit or miss author for me, but this one was good.
DeleteI haven't had a chance to read this yet, and I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it. Home Before Dark is one of my favorite spooky thrillers, so I'm looking forward to reading this one!
ReplyDeleteHome Before Dark was really good. I enjoyed that one, too.
Delete