Reviews

Mislaid in Parts Half-Known Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Mislaid in Parts Half-Known Review

I was so excited to dive into this novella because it continues Ansty’s story, which is one of my absolute favorites in the series. At the same time, I was a little hesitant—odd-numbered installments, which focus on the school and quests, usually don’t hook me the way the even-numbered prequels in other worlds do. But this one turned out to be such a pleasant surprise. Ansty’s journey to find her place at the school after everything she’s been through was so moving, it honestly got me emotional. Some of her scenes left me with a lump in my throat—they hit hard in the best way.

One of my favorite things about Mislaid in Parts Half-Known was the deep, heartfelt conversations between the characters as they questioned whether they truly wanted to return to their worlds. It was great to see more of Kade and Emily (I really need a spin-off about Emily in Harvest!), but I also found myself warming up to characters like Cora and Sumi. Sumi, in particular, stood out—I loved how the most nonsensical character somehow delivered the most logical lines. And getting to revisit the Shop Where the Lost Things Go, one of my favorite settings, was such a treat. That said, I was a little let down by the visits to two new worlds, especially the dinosaur one, which didn’t quite live up to my expectations.

Overall, this novella left me feeling inspired to revisit earlier installments—I think I’d appreciate them even more now. There are still so many incredible worlds waiting to be explored, and I’m so curious to see where the next story will take us!

⭐️3/5 stars Middle of the road for me!

Reviews

Middle of the Night Review

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on Middle of the Night Review

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?

Ethan was a bit of a bland main protagonist. There was nothing inherently wrong with him and his character, he just didn’t really have much of a personality. Honestly most of the men in this book were bland and interchangeable. All of them sounded pretty much the same to me and even though it didn’t really affect the story that much it didn’t have me that invested in what could/might happen to Ethan or the rest of them.

I’ve seen a lot of rhetoric surrounding Riley Sager’s writing and this book as well and I guess I go in with pretty low expectations and a suspended disbelief already established so I can kind of just go along for the ride. Because throughout the course of this book I honestly didn’t know what was going to happen next. I don’t go into a Sager book looking to disect each character and their motivations, I literally just enjoy the story for what it is and this was pretty entertaining. Like I said I wasn’t on the edge of my seat the entire time but the dual timelines had me intrigued and the overall mystery was enough to keep my reading on!

⭐️3/5 stars I’ve read worse, this was just fine!