A fun story with engaging elements, but a few weak points in my opinion. Warning, this novel is a lot bloodier and violent than I had expected from the premise.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I thought it was interesting, I think the writing is where the novel shone the most. The writing was quite engaging and had me hooked in the events. However, I couldn't find myself caring for the characters except for maybe one, but then that didn't end well. After reading the story and having it all revealed in the end, I will say I was slightly confused over the entire setting? Like, it just felt disconnected to how the reason for them deciding to stay locked in the library didn't seem to play that big of a role?

I did kind of enjoy the way it derailed, but again, the way things ended up developing didn't make much sense to me. In terms of the way the characters developed, it didn't make much sense as to how that character all of a sudden developed to that point. I also will say the ending was disappointing, but in the sense that it didn't end the way I would have liked. So that could be a good thing? Personally not a fan though.

As for the ending and the reveal, I personally wasn't a fan. I do think it's an ending that one can come to guess, like I had from the way the story was developing. The reason why I felt disappointed was because not only do I find those kinds of twists disappointing, but I also personally tend to expect more because of the disappointment I feel. Like yes, it ended that way and it was lackluster, but what else or how else should I look at the ending because it ended that way? And I don't think the novel really developed or ended with that in mind.

So overall, well-written and engaging writing, characters hard to care about, interesting plot but perhaps could have done more with the ending and the premise.

This story unfortunately was not for me. I do think others may enjoy it more.

Thank you for my gifted copy.

I am definitely a fan of locked room mysteries & this had an interesting sounding blurb. It feels like a more grown up Christopher Pike or R.L. Stine, so if you grew up reading those, this could be for you. My only real big issue is that none of the characters are very likeable. So you’re following a group of mostly obnoxious people. The paranoia & “cabin fever” of it all & how the characters turn one another was the best parts for me. I felt the premise was good but the execution left me wanting. However I did like the ending. Overall it was just ok for me but the author’s writing was strong, so I could see myself reading another one if the plot interested me.


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Read if you like:

* Christopher Pike
* R.L. Stine
* Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare

Seven students sneak into their university's rare books library the night before graduation to perform a Greek ritual believed to free them from the fear of death. The library is closed, but they choose it for its ideal setting. As they begin, the lights go out and one student suddenly dies. Trapped in the dark with a killer among them and nothing but books for protection, the group must unravel the mystery and find a way to survive the night before they can embark on their new lives.

When I first read the synopsis of this mystery thriller with academia vibes, I was immediately intrigued. The concept promised a perfect blend of suspense and intellectual intrigue. However, while the book had its strengths, the execution left a bit to be desired for me.
One of the main issues I encountered was with the characters. Differentiating between them proved to be challenging, as their points of view often blended together. In a genre where character distinction is vital, this was a significant drawback. I expected a diverse range of personalities typical of academia-themed stories—mean girl, rich kids, the poor but brilliant underdog—but these dynamics were noticeably absent. This felt like a missed opportunity, particularly for a book set in such an environment.

Despite this, the atmosphere was a definite highlight. The academia/horror blend created a chilling vibe reminiscent of "Scream" meets "The Secret History." The spooky ambiance was consistently well-crafted, keeping me engaged and on edge throughout.
There were some predictable moments, but one twist genuinely surprised me, which I loved! It's always a pleasure when a book can still catch me off guard, adding to the overall enjoyment. While the character development could have been stronger, the thrilling atmosphere and unexpected twists made for an enjoyable read. I had a great time and found myself vibing with the spooky, academic setting from start to finish.

Thank you, NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

That Night in the Library was a gruesome tale about bored college students looking for a thrill and finding murder and death instead. Told in multiple points of view, the book was confusing at best and slow at worst. All of the characters bled into one another. There was not enough back story to make them likable, so when one died, the reader was not invested enough to care.

This is an adult book and contains mature language and situations.

I received an advance reader copy for free. All opinions are my own.

Overall this was an okay read. 7 college students locked in a basement to preform a Greek ritual, WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

I really enjoyed the setting and the mystery aspect, as well as the multiple POVs

There were some pacing issues at some points it felt like everything was happening at once and at other like nothing was happening.

"One night locked in the library. What could go wrong?

On the night before graduation, seven students gather in the basement of their university's rare books library. They're not allowed in the library after closing time, but it's the perfect place for the ritual they want to perform - one borrowed from the Greeks, said to free those who take part in it from the fear of death. And what better time to seek the wisdom of ancient gods than in the hours before they'll scatter in different directions to start their real lives?

But just a few minutes into their celebration, the lights go out - and one of them drops dead. As the body count rises, with nothing but the books to protect them, the group must figure out how to survive the night while trapped with a murderer. That Night in the Library is a chilling literary mystery that transports readers to a world where secrets live in the dark, books breathe fears to life, and the only way out is to wait until morning."

As The Doctor would say when being hunted in a library and you're in need of weapons; "You want weapons? We're in a library. Books are the best weapon in the world."

On the night before graduation, 7 college grad students, lock themselves in the basement of the scholastic library in order to perform the Elysian Mysteries, hoping to be free of fear. But almost as soon as the ceremony begins, the lights go out and one of the students drops dead. But who killed him?
Possibly because they had been fasting and then dropped acid, the situation goes from bad to worse. And people keep dying. And the conclusion will leave you needing more of a conclusion.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this e-arc.*

This one was too all over the place. The cast of characters all have a voice and it's overwhelming. I had trouble keeping them straight. And it veered so far into suspended belief it was just too much. I felt like this book jumped genres and tried to be too many things at once.

Had a little more horror/occult vibes than I realized! I didn’t particularly like any of the characters which made it hard as well.

Unfortunately, this was not one of my favorite recent reads. I think it just wasn’t for me.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #PoisonedPenPress for the book #ThatNightInTheLibrary by #EvaJurczyk. Seven students, decide to do a Greek ritual the night before graduation. This ritual has to occur in the basement of the library. As the night goes on and the lights go out, one by one they start dying. Who will be left to survive and who is responsible. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

Admittedly, it has been a while since I read any sort of murder mystery, and picking up That Night in the Library reminded me just how much I adore them. Especially, when they come rife with dark academia and occult vibes.
Personally, I love how the plot isn’t too quick to jump into the spooky bits. Instead, the reader is introduced to each character gradually through short chapters from said character’s perspective. These chapters serve as a means of fleshing out each character’s motivation for participating in the ritual, as well as giving us some backstory without feeling too exposition heavy. Admittedly, having seven characters thrown at you right off the bat could seem daunting, but having the narrative slow down and introduce them in such a way makes it far easier to care about each individual—except Michael, fuck that guy. Not only does this draw out the tension, it also makes it far more devastating when people start turning up dead.
For me, I absolutely adored this book, and could not put it down. I wholly recommend it if you love a good scheme heavy mystery mixed with something darker and more ritualistic.

That Night In The Library is about a group of students brought together by a librarian/student, desperate to re enact the story of Demeter and her daughter Persephone .who was tricked by Zeus and taken to the underworld. She stayed there six months of every year. The ritual would leave you feeling unscared of your death.
I enjoyed it once it got going a bit. We were told about each character, and their personalities, and how they came to be invited to the library before the story got going. Throughout the story then, the chapters were arranged into characters and how they progressed.
I liked the concept of the plot but I think it’s quite tricky to base a book around one night and keep the reader engaged. I personally struggled until there was more going on! Someone else could really love it!!
Many thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this arc copy for review consideration via Netgalley.
#Netgalley, #PoisonedPenPress, #EveJurczyk.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Sourcebooks Landmark for my advance electronic copy. My opinions are my own.

Seven students gather for a special ceremony in the basement rare books section of their university library. They have pieced together what they can find on the Eleusinian Mysteries and are implementing it together to free themselves from the fear of death on the eve of graduation. But they've barely started when something goes wrong, and the first student falls dead. Trapped together until morning, their fear of murder rising, will they be able to survive until morning

Full disclosure: I'm not a horror fan. And I somehow missed that this one was a thriller with a hint of horror. It was a bit "Lord of the Flies" and more disturbing than I'm a fan of. I was expecting something more like "And Then There Were None," so I was thrown once I got into it and had to recalibrate. Having said that, I also need to say that Jurczyk did an amazing job at creating atmosphere, had perfect pacing, the characters were well-developed, and the plot was engrossing. There was jealousy and stupidity and hubris in spades, the perfect mix for a horrifying night, locked-room thriller (and maybe horror too?)

What a disappointment this book was! I’m so mad at myself for wasting my time on it. I could have dnf’ed it, but I kept hoping that somehow it will surprise me in the end. But I was wrong.
All the characters were getting on my nerves from the first pages. All of them were unlikable, plain and excruciatingly stupid. I don’t understand how almost all of them ended up being academics. The sheer stupidity of their actions made me cringe every single page. I think they all shared one brain cell.
The plot had so many plot holes that I could see the milky way 🌌 through them. Everything felt like a fever dream but in a bad way. More like a fever nightmare.
Majority of the things that happened were so random and unnecessary. Actually, all this book was unnecessary.

The night before graduation, seven students contrive to spend the night in the basement of their university’s rare books library. One of them want to perform an old Greek ritual and has convinced the others to participate. Before they can even begin preparations, though, one of them drops dead, resulting in a lot of finger-pointing. Since there’s no way out until morning, they’re stuck – and grow more panicked as the body count rises.

I read this author’s first book, The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, when it came out two years ago and, despite its current low rating on Goodreads, liked it enough to look forward to reading her next book. Sadly, I didn’t enjoy this book as much as her first.

I didn’t really like or care about any of the students involved, so I really didn’t care what happened to them. The story jumps from character to character, making it hard to keep track of what was going on, an essential part in solving a mystery. I can’t say how I would react in a similar situation, but I was appalled at how quick they were to accuse each other of being a killer – and how quickly they ganged up on one person if someone else had what appeared to be a convincing argument. When it was revealed, the solution seemed far too simple and hard to believe at the same time.

I’m not sure that I will read any more books by this author, but if I do, it will be after hearing what other readers think.

**I received an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**

Actual rating: 2.5

Eva Jurczyk's sophomore novel, That Night in the Library, is a locked room murder mystery by way of a dark academia thriller. Seven students meet in the basement of a rare books library with intentions of carrying out an Eleusinian ritual the night before graduation. When they begin to die one by one, survival becomes the top priority.

Every character was incredibly messy in this novel. Ordinarily, I would be welcoming of that in a dark academia. I love morally grey characters. But much of this misadventure was an acid-fuelled fever dream, very nearly literally. I really didn't connect to any of the characters and the pacing was rather odd. The novel began very slow and became the unstoppable wheel once it gained speed. Mostly, the events of this novel could have been prevented in so many ways that this was just the perfect storm of nonsense to lead to the various deaths.

I was interested to find out the cause of the first death, and was pleased with that particular twist. The rest was just... a lot that was unnecessary.

Overall, this one wasn't for me, but I can see where other people might appreciate more of the literary styling than I did.

Title- That Night in the Library by Eva Jurczyk

Publication Date- 6/11/24

Publisher- Poisoned pen Press

Overall Rating- 3 out of 5 stars

Review- Review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was really looking forward to reading this book, the premise sounded amazing and the synopsis really appealed to me. Unfortunately the reality did not quite live up to the hype for me. In this story we are following a group of seven students on the night before their graduation. They get together in the basement of the rare books library to perform an ancient ritual. Locked in, they soon start to realise that they may be in trouble and as the body count rises they must figure out how to survive the night.

Let's start with the positives, the setting is suitably atmospheric and creepy and the action is well paced. I was never bored with this ‘locked room’ mystery and wanted to continue reading right to the conclusion. I enjoyed the Greek mythology sprinkled throughout.

Where this story fell a little flat for me was mostly the characters, they never felt fully realised or realistic and I found it hard to care about any of them. They made terrible choices but were also strangely bland. On top of that, the dialogue between them didn’t feel natural nor were their motivations for being there. This book seems to be confused about what it is trying to be, it’s a confusing mix of mystery, literary and horror and doesn’t quite hit any of it’s targets. I’m not mad that I read this book but I am a little disappointed that such a fantastic premise fell short for me.

I was lucky enough to listen to the audiobook of this locked room mystery as I read along. This book was good but it didn't wow me as much as I'd hoped. I LOVED the library setting for the locked room. I'm not a huge Greek mythology fan but I did still enjoy this element of the ritual. With lots of gory parts and a great ending, I do believe the writing held a lot of promise. I look forward to seeing what the author writes next.

An entertaining twist on the trope- it's a locked library thriller! Seven grad students, a midnight ritual, and murder. It's gothic, it's creepy, it's well paced- and it will keep you guessing. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.