PLOT & PACING:
Middletide opens with the suspicious death of a woman and quickly pivots into the internal world of Elijah, a novelist who’s returned to his hometown to write… and ends up a murder suspect. What unfolds is part character study, part whodunit, and part rumination on the creative process. While the pacing is mostly steady, the courtroom drama near the end feels a bit rushed and the final twist may not shock seasoned thriller fans—but the journey there is still satisfying.

CHARACTER & VOICE:
Elijah is a complicated protagonist. He’s relatable in his rootlessness, but not always the most dynamic narrator. The supporting cast serves their purpose, but this is more about theme than character drama. What elevates the story is Crouch’s ability to reflect the feelings behind returning home—the dissonance of seeing familiar streets through a new, older lens. Think: shades of Andrew Largeman from Garden State with a more Pacific Northwest vibe.

STYLE & ATMOSPHERE:
Sarah Crouch’s strength lies in her ability to capture a moment. Her descriptions of time, weather, and quiet tension are vivid and immersive. She knows how to set a mood, especially in those “between” places—the pause before a decision, the silence in a courtroom, the weight of unfinished conversations. It’s literary fiction with a crime drama shell.

THEMES & DEPTH:
This is a book about coming home, but also about why we leave—and what we hope to gain (or escape) by doing so. Crouch touches on creative blocks, past relationships, homesteading and survivalism, and the lure of simplicity. It’s also about how our personal narratives, what we believe about ourselves, can be easily twisted or manipulated by others.

PERSONAL TAKE:
I appreciated how much this book tried to say in such a compact frame. It doesn’t always hit every note perfectly—especially toward the end—but it resonated deeply at times. The “returning home” theme especially stuck with me. It’s a quiet, introspective story with just enough tension to keep you turning pages.
Also, I’m beginning to think I’m an absolute sucker for book covers featuring foresty, tree motifs. See: A History of Wild Places, A Flicker in the Dark, now this…