Welcome to Litsy!

And with that I‘ve completed my #GoodReadsChallenge for this year.
Though I did read about 5 short stories recently so I think I still have 5 more books to read to REALLY reach my goal.

This rainy day called for a mocha and some Sager.

#WeeklyFavorites

I just got back from visiting PA. Just in time too since I wanted to read this one next and it was at home.

I always love returning to NJ (in person, in movies or in books). Another solid read by Sager. A quick, page-turning book.

If you want a quick and page turning read you can always rely on Riley Sager! Definitely not my favorite of his but still a solid mystery with that little bit of supernatural I love in his stories. This is one neighborhood where everyone is hiding something! 🌟🌟🌟🌟

10-28-24: My 38th finished book of 2024! Fabulous read. Riley Sager rarely disappoints. Ethan returns to Hemlock Circle after 30 years, to take over his parents house while they move to Florida. Problem is, 30 years ago Ethan‘s best friend Billy was stolen from their tent in the backyard and never seen again. Ethan hasn‘t slept right since. We learn what happened that night in various chapters and what Ethan is dealing with presently.

When I want a creepy bedtime story, Riley Sager never disappoints. This isn‘t my favourite of his, but it was still hard to put down. It landed on my face twice, because it kept me up past my bedtime, two nights in a row. Now I have to find something to keep me up tonight…. 4/5

I love Riley Sager and this one didn‘t disappoint!

#HauntedShelf #DeadSerious
#bookspinbingo #promptmaze #ispybingo #31by31 #spookoween #HalloweenAtoZBingo #HalloweenAtoZReadathon

I‘m having trouble putting this down. I started it last night and fell asleep with the kobo in my hand. So I took it down to my gym and read it during my rests between sets. Now if I can just find a way to keep my husband busy, I might get to read it all today. 🤞

3.5⭐️
It started off slow and was a different writing style than what he usually writes. He usually does women, but this time, he wrote about boys/men and a tragic event.
I think the problem I had with it was that it wasn't his usual writing. It's still good. The suspense wasn't stacked like he usually does.

#bookspinbingo #readaway2024

This was a slow paced atmospheric mystery with paranormal aspects , I like the story but i didn‘t like the audio
#ReadAway2024 book 40

Morning sunlight seeps into the tent like a water leak, dripping onto the boy in a muted glow.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

Riley Sager books have been hit or miss for me. This is one that I really enjoyed. A couple of great twists and it held my interest the whole time ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

#CatsAndDogs @Bookwormjillk

Managed to finish We Used to Live Here & Seventh Bride yesterday. Also about halfway through tagged. Heading to the library now for Day 2

Books Read : 2
Pages Read : 565

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ One of my favorite RS books. Haven‘t read them all, but this one makes me want to read the rest

3.5 ⭐

Of all the Riley Sager books I've read (listened to the #audiobook of) so far this one was my least favorite. Don't get me wrong, it was a good story with mystery and suspense that kept you twisting and turning on who dunnit. I simply didn't find it as exciting or engaging as I have his other books.

I‘ve read a few of the authors books and enjoyed this one too. A few twists I didn‘t see coming and a satisfying ending.

This was sooo good! The more I read by Sager the more I want to read. This was spooky and a great mystery about a neighborhood where something terrible happened 30 years ago. Highly recommend!

@TheAromaofBooks #October #BookspinBingo board
Im sticking to physical books that have been on my shelves for too long or borrowed books.

I enjoyed this one mostly.

Read for reading prompts.

4/5

Although I didn't love The Only One Left, I bought this at the airport because I was hoping that it would be entertaining for a ten-hour flight. I crushed it ?. I like this one way better - the creepy vibes are impeccable and it got a few "oh damn I didn't see that coming" moments out of me.

This book is giving me both the heebies AND the jeebies. Setting it aside for a couple of hours to watch a less creepy movie (Poltergeist). 👻

This is where I‘ll be for the rest of the night!

4 ⭐️
Absolutely loved this book. Everyone is a suspect. Two friends camping in their parents yard. One of them wakes up in the morning realizing his friend is gone. There is a tear in the tent. Now all grown up and returning to his hometown, he‘s being haunted by his missing friend.

What I love about Riley Sager is it looks like he‘s just phoning it in by just making shit up to suit his plot but then he just flips it around and pulls a very clever and plausible resolution out of a hat and I have to stop yelling at him to stop being so lazy.

This is not a normal, just fun crazy times book that Sager normally produces. He got deep. This book is sad and emotional. It deals with grief, loss, and trauma. He did such a good job of keeping the mystery and suspense but also putting in deep emotions and thoughts. There were many twists and turns that kept me on my toes. I actually really liked the ending. I think Sager did an amazing job writing such a beautiful and sad story. 5/5

I just love his books. 🥰🥰🥰

This may be my favorite Riley Sager book. A book about how a missing person affects a whole neighborhood, at its heart, it's about grief and the ways we are haunted by the past. 5 stars.
#ReadAway2024 @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES
#LitsyLoveReads @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@Read4life @TieDyeDude

A spooky ghost may be haunting a guy who can‘t sleep or remember things after his life falls apart and he moves into his parents‘ house. His bestie was kidnapped from the same tent and has been a mystery ever since. While labeled as a thriller, more of a mystery of rumors in a small town around a missing boy. Another Riley Sager book that didn‘t disappoint.

“Unfortunately, those who are the most sensitive are sometimes also the most troubled.”

Back to the mystery/thrillers. I was hoping the Riley Sager would be an add on. #BOTM

I really enjoyed this book. I went in ignoring all the other reviews and I had a great time reading it.

I loved this one 🖤
When Ethen was ten, his best friend disappeared during a sleepover in Ethen's backyard. Years later, Ethen comes back to help his parents sell their house, and weird things start happening, leading Ethen to start investigating what really happened that night.

Ethan and his neighbor Billy have camped in the backyard numerous times over the summer but suddenly one morning Ethan awakes to an empty slashed tent and Billy missing. Years later Ethan returns to his childhood home and suddenly senses Billy‘s presence even though he was never found. This inspires him to solve what really happened to Billy that night with lots of red herrings thrown in. Decent read that could have wrapped up quicker.

Book 56📚 4.4⭐️

I caaaaan‘t believe im saying this but I wanted just a TAD more from this book, spooky wise. But I still really enjoyed it obviously!

When Ethan was 10, his best friend was taken in the middle of the night while they were backyard camping.⛺️
No one knows what happened, but 30 years later when Ethan finally returns, someone wants him to solve the mystery, dead or alive.

Too much of what I want to type is a spoiler - darn! This had a YA feel to it, but that didn‘t hinder my enjoyment. I liked the set up for this story. …I couldn‘t resist a background including the backyard tent set up last weekend as part of my grandson‘s #2 party - when your mom is a corporate event planner, bd parties are a memory-making day for one and all!

This was a great ghost story with heart. I read this slower than I expected but it wasn‘t the story‘s fault. I guessed one twist right away, and the big one I only had half right. I enjoyed the ride on this one. #botm
Book 38 of 2024

#TuesdayTunes @TieDyeDude
Rain Paris is my fave cover artist. She has topped my spotify wrapped the last few years. She makes rock versions of pop songs.
https://open.spotify.com/artist/10TCOjSPs9ywBN1Q083BnB?si=MCi3TBkkRL2X8fOTOtxqVw

Sager can write twists as well as anyone out there, but I stand by my assertion that he doesn‘t write logical clues. Still, very enjoyable especially with Santino Fontana‘s narration!

Two boys are backyard camping. One goes missing, but a body is never found. When the other returns as an adult, he begins to unravel the mystery and uncovers more secrets his neighbors are hiding.

I liked this story! Very spooky all throughout. There were various twists at the end which I don‘t know if it‘s the author‘s style but I can see why some people might not rate it as highly. A happy ending but not too happy though!

The story here is simple - a young boy disappears from his best friends garden where they had both been camping and the unsolved case echoes through the following 30 years impacting everyone in the small community where it happened. An interesting story but for me a bit flat - the flashbacks were cut into small pieces and the loosely drawn current time characters were only loosely painted so I wasn‘t ever that sure I cared who had done it.

The flashbacks slowed the plot unbearably. The atmosphere is diminished. If this hadn‘t been recommended by a reader whose taste normally aligns with mine, I would have dnf‘d with relish.

I get the mediocre reviews I‘ve heard of this book. And it‘s not my favorite Sager book but I love Riley Sager. I really appreciate the ending and the thing with Claudia.

I liked this book. Sager is no literary genius, but he does deliver consistently entertaining mystery/thrillers. Considering this is a genre I read very little of, the fact that I keep coming back for his trope-bending books is notable. The crime trope being riffed on in this book is the missing/abducted child phenomena, especially prominent in the 1980s/90s (the book flips between dual 1994-present day timelines).

I feel like I‘ve been waiting forever for Sager‘s latest! With ‘90s nostalgia, ghost story overtones and a cul-de-sac under the microscope, this one is right up my alley! I couldn‘t put it down! Main character, Ethan, slept in his backyard tent when his neighbor & best friend, Billy, went missing. 30 years later, Ethan is back in his parents‘ house & is more determined than ever to do anything to uncover the truth in this twisting, thrilling plot!

This book was really good! I really liked the cast of characters & my favorite was 10-yr-old Henry! Henry was me as a child! When Ethan was 10 his bff Billy was taken from Ethan‘s backyard in the middle of the night. 30 years later Ethan is back at his childhood home & odd happenings occur. Is Billy somehow back? And what about the mysterious institute that‘s close to home? This was well paced & I was satisfied with the ending! Again I love Henry!