I enjoyed this story. It starts with a death and then a journey to find the killer. It’s a book about coming of age, love, loss, and finding oneself woven into a murder mystery.
Thanks for the advanced copy.

This is story is one part coming of age, one part mystery, one part love story...and I wouldn't want it any other way. I believe this is the authors first published novel and she knocked it out of the park. I look forward to reading more of her books. Oh and that cover... gorgeous! This atmospheric mystery took me by surprise!

Absolutely loved this story. It was so atmospheric and the romance intertwined with mystery was fantastic.

A scintillating tale that weaves love, loss, and revenge into its pages. The plot is cleverly crafted with some unexpected twists. I loved this atmospheric thriller.
Many thanks to Atria and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

“Sometimes, writing is like being in a trance, and you suddenly stop and look up, surprised that you’re sitting in your own house and not actually living in the world of the story.”

First, I love that quote. That’s how I feel reading these stories that these writers create 🥹

Second, I loved this book. I stayed up late to finish it and I’m so happy I did.

Genre: Mystery/Suspense
Synopsis: Erin is the town doctor. When she is found dead on Elijah’s property in the exact way he wrote about in a novel… it’s hard to believe that he isn’t the murderer.

Review: This story keeps you guessing the whole time. I had my suspicions, but I always felt uneasy about it. I was reading this book as fast as I could! Only having (very short) nap times and right before bed (when I’m so tired I just pass out) to read, will really delay finishing a book 😅

This story was twisty, the setting was Pacific NW, there were two timelines and 3rd person POV.

If you like mysteries, pick this one up. You won’t regret it.

Thank you so much to NetGalley & Sarah Crouch for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“Middletide” by Sarah Crouch is a debut novel set in the Pacific Northwest when two fisherman find the body of a prominent doctor hanging from a tree.
The story is told through two time frames. While the writing was good, the plot just didn’t work well for me.

I had seen a few posts hyping this book up so I had high hopes for a great mystery. I didn’t love it sadly. It was good just not great. Elijah is a hopeful writer whose book plot is used to commit murder. The story moves along quickly but it just fell a little flat.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

3.5/5
Middletide opens with the discovery of a body on the edge of failed writer Elijah Leith's property, and it seems as though the crime was lifted straight from the pages of said writer's obscure book.

Elijah left Point Orchards right after high school in pursuit of fame and fortune and a successful writing career. Over a decade later with no success in sight, he returns to his hometown to lick his wounds. He sets to repairing both his childhood home and his relationship with his high school sweetheart.

I loved the setting of Middletide. Port Orchards sounds like the quintessential Pacific Northwest small town. I loved reading about Elijah's progress as he restored the cabin and property. I especially appreciated how the author perfectly handled the relationship between Elijah and Nakita.

However, I must say I'm a little disappointed in the ending. It's probably kind of weird to say that I loved the exploration of Elijah's relationships with his father, Chitto, and Nakita more than the actual mystery part of the story. The mystery/suspense portion of Middletide was a bit underwhelming. Overall, it's a decent read, and I'll be looking for what Sarah Crouch writes next.

Read this if you like:
• Mystery/suspense
• Books set in the PNW
• A book within a book
• Books with fated love vibes

When the body or Dr Erin Landry is found on the property of Point Orchard local Elijah Leith, all signs point to him as the perpetrator. Even more damning is the murder happening exactly as a murder from a novel he wrote. Told in alternating timelines, the story follows Elijah as he tries to remake himself after failing to find success as an author and follows the time after the murder.

I am really glad I read this. I originally didn’t think I would enjoy it because it was compared to All Good People Here (which I did not like), but this story was light years better to me. I liked the back and forth of timelines, and it kept me on my toes as the reader, trying to piece information together. Elijah is an interesting character, and it took some time to determine if I was hoping for him to succeed with the life he was trying to build/if I thought he was guilty or innocent. The setting of Pacific NW was interesting as well.

Revenge. Twist and turns. This was lots of fun and was dark and atmospheric. Suicide was a little triggering for some readers but the hometown vide with revenge was worth it all!

I’ll start by saying I do not think I was the right audience for this book. It had similar vibes to “crawdad” and I did not like that book. I went into this thinking it was a thriller and I do think the cover is very appealing. It just wasn’t for me. I’m sure others will enjoy it though!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria for the arc

This was a good read. I enjoyed it and didn’t figure it out until the end. I loved the plot and using an author’s book against him.

I think this book hit me at the wrong time and maybe I’ll come back to reread and enjoy it more. I was also a little offput by the made up tribe.

This is a debut novel, with multiple timelines that switch frequently. The plot is very slow-moving, crawling for about 75% of the book, with a lot of narrative about eating, nature, and homesteading/living off the land, as well as Elijah's sorry love life. For some reason, the author decided to make up a fictional Native American tribe, which added to the confusion. The characters are all blah, except for the victim. Not recommended unless you enjoy a little bit of mystery mixed with what is mostly high school style romance. Hopefully the author will do better on her next outing.

5/5 stars

Trigger Warnings: Suicide, Child death, Death of parent

I can not believe this a debut book! I was hooked by the first scene where the Doctor of the town, Dr. Erin Landry's body is found hanging from a tree in a wooded area on Elijah Leith's property. This is where the story gets interesting. Did someone frame Elijah or did he kill Dr. Landry?!

I loved the short chapters, small town mystery feel, the characters, multiple timelines and the courtroom aspect. I didn't know who to trust at any given chapter and there was an aspect of 'book within a book' that I loved and was rooting for Elijah to be cleared.

My heart broke for Dr. Landry and her life but I questioned so many things about her. The author wrote dynamic characters that made you think so many things were possible and I love that in stories!

I'm so glad I read this book and I was so invested in the story. The last chapter was amazing and I will read whatever Sarah Crouch reads next!

I really enjoyed the start of the book but almost felt like too much was going on and the story felt rushed towards the end. The story was also very predictable (maybe it's just me lol) and at times it almost didn't seem realistic (thinking of the course scenes here). All that to say, I did really enjoy it and read it almost in one sitting! Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review

I really enjoyed this book. It opens with two friends in the Pacific Northwest. Elijah gets set to leave their small town for college in the big city while Nakita remains back on her reservation. Elijah promises to return in 4 years and when he doesn't show, Nakita wonders if she will ever see him again. He does eventually return to the homestead cabin he was raised in to live a quiet life off the land; however, a body is found hanging on his property soon after and Elijah fears he will become suspect #1.

This book reminded me a bit of Once There Were Wolves with its combination of love for nature and the surrounding atmosphere while also bringing in an element of crime and mystery. Crouch does a great job of exploring homesteading with Elijah and all it entails without getting to lost in the weeds and losing the reader. Nakita and Elijah's backstory is sweet. I loved the second-chance romance that had true depth and character growth to it. While part of the storyline felt a bit far-fetched I let myself just go with it all and really got lost in the narrative. This is a debut novel that shows real promise from this author..

There is such a love for this area of the world and the characters in these pages. The writing was well done and kept me wanting to read to find out how all would be resolved in the end. I can't wait to see what she writes in the future.

I am not entirely sure how I feel about this one. The reviews were not super great so I went into it sort of thinking I wouldn't like it. But I breezed through the first half and found it pretty enjoyable. I guess the twist just didn't really do it for me. It seemed so far-fetched and implausible. Erin was out of her mind. And the reason for her actions seem like a pretty big stretch. She's a doctor for crying out loud. Was she so perfect that every decision she ever made did not result in a patient's harm? Obviously not because of Nakita's grandmother. Speaking of Nakita, I really didn't find any of the characters in this very likable so it made it very hard to root for anyone. The police were bumbling and unprofessional. Elijah is whiny and really screws Nakita over in the beginning. Nakita was a little all over the place with her feelings for Elijah. I don't know. I liked the story less the more I read. The courtroom scene is super short and rather unbelievable.

This hit so hard in the atmospheric department, but the characters irritated me, mainly Elijah…

I absolutely loved the beginning. The first 25% is built up in such a fabulous way. I had to suspend my belief when the guy who leaves everyone behind, including the girl he loves, only to come back years later with almost nothing to show for it but something that causes him trouble… then expects to get the girl who’s heart he broke… I didn’t like the way I was supposed to care for this character when I didn’t like him.

The vibes of this book, though… they were fabulous. I love a good small town mystery and this definitely delivers in that aspect.

Middletide is a 90s-era murder mystery about an author who returns to his hometown only to be accused of a crime that mimics the plot of his novel.

Told in dual timelines, Middletide is the story of a small-town police department trying to solve the murder of a local doctor staged to look like a suicide, and the return of a “prodigal son” to his hometown after a setback. When the separate timelines converge, the reader realizes that the murder and the local man are connected in a rather dramatic way.

I enjoyed the slow coming together of the two stories but felt the plot was weak in a couple of major areas. The first issue I had was with the sappy romance between the main character, Elijah, and the girl he left behind, Nakita. I enjoy a good second-chance romance but felt zero chemistry between these two, and their relationship felt oddly chaste and sterile for two people in their thirties. Equally perplexing was his short-lived entanglement with the beautiful local doctor that led to her death. The other area that felt weak was the entire investigation and court case. I found the motive behind the crime disappointing, and the reveal was just kind of dropped on the reader without any “aha” moment. I’m by no means a legal expert, but much of what occurs in the last twenty-five percent of the book seems unrealistic and too easily resolved.

Overall, I enjoyed the pace of this book and the overarching concept, but I felt it fell apart in the details.