Utterly unexplainable and unforgettable, haunting and evocative, this book will challenge you to examine your notions of love, contentment, identity, extinction, the future, the past... I'll be thinking about it for weeks and weeks to come. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity.

I started reading the pre-publication copy of Terrace Story without knowing too much about it aside from the idea of a magical terrace that appears in the main characters' apartment, but found a series of interconnected short stories. The language was lovely and the stories were full of magical realism, but there was also a lot of ambiguity in them. I wish there had been more character development and cohesiveness in the stories. It could be me but I felt more confusion than satisfaction after reading.

Thank you to Ecco and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. This book will be published on August 29, 2023.

This novel starts with a young couple who move into a small apartment. Cramped quarters and no view to speak of, they make do with what they have. But one evening, a secret terrace appears with a spectacular view that doesn’t correlate with their apartment's direction, set up with outdoor seating. Strangely, it only appears when their friend Stephanie visits and turns back into a closet once she leaves.

Breaking away from this young couple, we follow several other characters that have some relation to them, which inevitably ties them to the terrace as well. The reverberations and repercussions of that terrace haunt the many generations to come in so many ways.

I enjoyed the beginning of this novel but quickly got confused and thought I had accidentally clicked into another book when the new couple began their journey. This was a well-thought-out plot, but a more seamless segue would have been helpful, though.

Overall an entertaining story with slightly disturbed characters who I enjoyed eavesdropping on. I highly recommend it for a beach day or laying out on a hammock with refreshing lemonade.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I finished reading Hilary Leichter's TERRACE STORY weeks ago and have been putting off writing this review because I feel like I'll never be adequately prepared to put into words just how fantastic it is. I'm a big fan of Leichter's debut, TEMPORARY, so I was very eager to dive into her sophomore novel. While the two books are certainly different, the tone that I fell in love with was present here as well. There's a dreamy quality to both stories, a sort of space between real life and make believe that they occupy. The things that are happening to the characters could quickly become too emotionally heavy in different hands, but Leichter knows exactly when and how to use wit to perfect, bittersweet effect. Her voice keeps you reading with a sort of lovely ache in your chest and a rueful smile on your face. Smarter people than me will surely do a better job of explaining this book beyond that, so I'll leave it to them. But basically, I loved TERRACE STORY and am definitely a Hilary Leichter fan for life.

*I received an advance copy from NetGalley.

"Terrace Story" by Hilary Leichter led me on a journey I was fully not expecting. I can't even begin to describe the magical way in which she weaves the lives and backgrounds of Annie, Edward, Rose, and Stephanie together. With elements of magical realism leading to, ultimately, a futuristic backdrop, Leichter explores love, loneliness, desire, relationships, uncertainty, life, death, and the future of the world all in one. Her ability to think outside of the constricts of the real world, and yet make things seem so real, is something I haven't seen another author do in recent years. I am hesitant to go too into detail because I don't want to give any of the twists and turns away, but I highly recommend you put this novel by Hilary Leichter on your "want to read" list ASAP.

Premise sounded great. I like magical realism. But this was disjointed and never really went anywhere. I will stick to Alice Hoffman for magical realism.
I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

wonderful!
This book consists of four short stories that explore different themes of loss and love.
The writing style was vivid, descriptive, and magical. I could not put it down! Looking forward to reading more by Hilary Leichter.

A copy of the ARC was kindly sent to me by Ecco.

Terrace Story, much like Hilary Leicher’s previous book Temporary, is another delightful blend of the fantastical & the slightly weird with the mundane, the predictable, and the average of our lives. Through a series of separate, but somewhat interconnected stories, Terrace Story explores place, home, love, loss, families, and the desire to belong, all with the warmth, nuance, and humor I’ve now come to expect from Leicher.

Terrace Story is a quick read that will be enjoyed by anyone who loves a unique story.

The book reads more like four short stories that are related. I liked that aspect, which felt new and different. The stories evoked so many emotions: sorrow, loneliness, love ….and the writing was really beautiful.

While the first story/chapter really felt strong, I thought that the remainder was confusing enough that it took away from the story.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

This story (stories?) is unreal. It's such a strong example of creating interlocking stories that simultaneously effect, and are affected by one another. Despite the abrupt changes in time and place between stories the reader has no choice but to press on to discover more about the world, all while being chased by the suspicion that something is terribly wrong.

I truly loved the use of a story within a story as a vehicle for the characters inner thoughts and motivations. The central concept of a "Terrace Story" was perfect for these miniature fables that played out over and over again, giving away the characters endings in advance yet making you want to watch it happen in real time.

This is a must-read for fans of Erin Morgenstern's The Starless Sea or the podcast The Magnus Archives!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Hilary Leichter for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my thoughts on it!

This was such a weird collection of interconnected stories, but I loved them. I can't wait to read more from Hilary Leichter in the future, and I'm excited to buy a physical copy of this novel for my shelves.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free e-copy.

📖 ARC REVIEW📖

Terrace Story by Hilary Leichter

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5


This was my first Hilary Leichter read, but certainly won't be my last! I thoroughly enjoyed the interconnected fables that became Terrace Story.

Spanning space and time, Terrace Story covers four different, but intertwined, tales of grief, love, loss, and longing. It is difficult to put into words the experience of reading Terrace Story, but it is unsettling, disorienting, thought-provoking, and magical in all of the best ways.

What I loved:
-Compelling characters that you feel connected to and are intrigued by
-Wonderfully playful, evocative, contemplative writing that keeps you engaged
-How each story built upon and connected themes and messaging from the previous

What I didn't love, but grew to appreciate as I read:
-Feeling confused and like I missed something at certain parts and having to work to better understand connections made throughout the book

Overall, I would recommend Terrace Story to friends that enjoy short stories that don't skimp on depth, beautiful writing, and phenomenal characters.

Shout out to NetGalley, Ecco for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is so much more than it’s description. It’s a book that you need to pay attention to because the little details are important nuggets further along. I really enjoyed the length as well because it was just long enough to unwind the full mystery but didn’t add too much fluff. It was perfectly short.

When I first started reading Terrace Story, I wasn’t really sure where it was going. Admittedly, I wasn’t fully sold until I got to Stephanie’s section of the book. But once everything started coming together, I was so invested on how the rest of the story would unwind.

I really enjoyed how the book was essentially written through different collections of short stories that all related back to one another. This was a fun read.

It was good. But it wasn’t great. I do see how it’s highly rated because there is a lot to like. The stories are endearing and captivating. There are no lulls and the book flows at a constant pace. But there was something missing. More details, maybe? I saw the connections happening and I get what the author was trying to do, but it didn’t resonate with me. I didn’t completely understand it all. Maybe I have to read it again? Maybe I have to take notes of the characters and the timelines?

Stephanie’s story was my favorite. It was the clearest to me and had enough detail for me to follow along (until the end, of course, when she’s through the alightment). There was a lot to unfold, but I really liked her story and what she encountered once on the other side. It was hard to feel compassion for her, though. Her story did not move me.

So many thoughts about Folly and the future and ghosts and, overall, what is happening (that’s both a question and a statement). If you like a book that moves your mind and really makes you think, this is that book for you. Despite being short, there is a lot to ponder.

The story of Rose was too far into the future. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. There wasn’t enough detail for me to picture it. The interview tugged my heart strings but I wanted more!

This is definitely a story about love and loss with a magical, futuristic twist. It’s short enough that’s it’s worth a read. 3.5 stars rounded up.

What would you do if your dingy one-bedroom apartment suddenly developed an inexplicable (and beautiful) terrace through the closet door? Expanding off her terrific short story of the same name, Hilary Leichter delivers a magnificent and moving second novel -- one whose weirdness is perfectly balanced with its incredible beating heart. Every turn was wonderfully surprising, unabashedly strange, and absolutely captivating.

First, thank you so much to Netgalley for the e-arc! I had such a fun time with this book. I do agree with the other members here that the beginning was a bit slow but this story was so unique in its approach to family and death that I definitely recommend giving it a try!

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy of Terrace Story, I was really excited to read this one as I lived in small apartments for most of my adult life and would have LOVED if a magical terrace appeared in my place of dwelling.

This book is done in four parts. The first is about a couple who have a small apartment and one day realize a huge, lovely terrace has appeared when they open their closet. They have no idea how this happened, but don’t look a gift horse in the mouth as they say and so they keep mum about it and enjoy their outside space which has no right to be there.

The other three parts expand on the original story line, but get more and more out there as the book goes along. I enjoyed the book, but I did get kind of incredulous and didn’t really get how the author wrapped everything together at the end, maybe I just missed something? Anyhow, I found the writing great and loved the premise, but wish I had understood where she was going with everything a little more.

Honestly, this is such a fun story if you’ve ever lived in a tiny, cramped apartment. I did in NYC for many years and would have been real ok with magical outside spaces showing up.

First, I’d like to thank NetGalley, Hilary Leichter, and Ecco for this ARC! While I went back and forth on how to rate this book, there’s no denying it’s unique. It made me feel both intrigued and sad, somehow. I think this book is open to its reader’s interpretation and everyone will not read it in the same way. The stories are interwoven, touching on grief, sadness, hopefulness, and love. I don’t generally read short story novels, but this was quite different and I did end up really enjoying it. I’m rating this book 3.75 stars!

I liked this book. While it had a slightly slow start most of the characters were enjoyable and I loved the heightening tensions throughout the story. Would definitely read it again as it was a story built off of the ordinary and not solely hinged on fantastical elements! 6.5/10

If you like odd little books, then you will love this. I'm somewhere in the middle. It's a cute and quirky story, but I don't think the ending pays off. It's part reality, part fantasy. I liked the husband and wife, and I felt their struggle in the financial department, but the magical realism lacked something. I can't put my finger what the story was missing. I appreciate the novel being short and tidy, but I think I needed more character development. I wanted to know the main characters a little better.

Thank you, Netgalley and Ecco for the digital ARC.