M.L. Rio does it again; this book is just so dang good. And so…digestible!

Graveyard Shift really packs a punch into a relatively short book. The main characters, all of whom struggle with insomnia and are up at all hours, are unique, vibrant, and enjoyable. At the beginning of the book I was questioning where the story was going and who was who, but as the book progresses, everything becomes clear and riveting.

I wasn’t sure if this story was going in the direction of something fantastical being the reason for the opening scene at a gravesite, and I was intrigued, but it turned out not as I was expecting and I’m glad for it. The potency and meaning within the story becomes solidified when the true depravity comes to light. And although it isn’t as spooky, it sure does feel accurate of human nature.

Overall, this was a wonderfully enjoyable audiobook listen! The full cast narration makes the novella come alive and greatly aids in keeping the cast of characters identifiable throughout the story.

As always, a huge thank you goes out to NetGalley and the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for allowing me the privilege of listening to the ARC if this audiobook.

Graveyard Shift, by M.L. Rio, was published on September 24, 2024. Enjoy!

This book ended up being quite average for me. A lot of characters were introduced quite quickly so it made it a little bit harder to follow because half the time I couldn’t remember who was who. And maybe I wasn’t quite the right audience or it wasn’t the right vibe. But if you’re looking for a quick read for spooky season this one is probably for you!

This novella unfolds over one long, sleepless night in an ancient college cemetery where a group of night shift workers regularly meet for a midnight smoke. On this particular October evening, however, the group discovers a freshly dug hole full of dead rats. Who dug the grave? Who is it for? Before the group goes their separate ways, they spot the gravedigger and decide to trail him throughout the night.

This short form horror/dark academia was a nice change of pace from my usual reads and the eerie, atmospheric writing felt perfect for spooky season lovers. However, if you’re squeamish when it comes to earthy elements and animals, take heed.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for this arc.

M.L. Rio's "Graveyard Shift" is an eerie, atmospheric listen that transports you into a dark world full of intrigue and suspense. The audiobook is particularly effective in capturing the novel's overall tone. Each character's voice is distinct, and the narration skillfully conveys the growing tension and unease as the story progresses. The ensemble cast brings a rich depth to the characters, making their personalities feel authentic. Overall, "Graveyard Shift" is a must-listen for those who want a quick mysterious read. The audiobook format enhances the novel’s unsettling tone and atmospheric depth, making it perfect for listeners looking for a chilling and captivating ride.

I enjoyed this more or less, the story was interesting enough, and I liked the ensemble cast and pacing over the course of one night. My main problems were that there wasn't a lot of tension for this being a thriller, and I didn't feel like I understood the relationships between the main characters. Finally, my biggest problem was with the audiobook narrators. I can be a little picky when it comes to narrators, but I've never had quite so many issues with so many in such a short book. This has a full cast narration, so five different narrators, and I really did not like <i>four of them<i> for varying reasons: a lot were doing voices that felt very forced, one was super breathy and another was using uptalk for non-questions which kept throwing me off. I don't like to judge people's voices, but these issues really affected my experience and enjoyment of the book so I felt I needed to mention it. If you are similarly sensitive-- beware.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this earc!

The premise of this novella immediately drew me in, but unfortunately it was a miss for me. I feel like had this been a longer novel, my rating would be a lot higher!

There were a lot of things that just seemed to go unexplained and unexplored. The characters lacked depth, and by the end I was left wanting a lot more. I’m unsure if this was intentional or simply due to the length of the novella.

I wish so badly this were a longer book! I really think I would have loved it. The writing style was beautiful, and the author does an amazing job of setting a scene that really drew me in. I also felt this audiobook was excellently narrated! I highly recommend this in audiobook format, and I look forward to reading more by this author.

Big thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the gifted ALC!

An interesting assortment of characters, drawn together by circumstance to solve a mystery in their town. Too many characters to make it a very deep novella, but I still enjoyed it.

Thank you to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing me with an arc for review.

i liked the creepy, atmospheric beginning of this book, but very soon it got bogged down in what turned out to be a fairly mundane mystery. i wish this book was longer or shorter!

I don’t read a ton of novellas but when an author I like writes one then I am fully committed. This takes place over one day and has a full group of characters that are easy to keep track of (especially with the audio since there is a full cast.) There was a really eerie sequence involving a rat that made my blood run cold. Overall, this was a quick, easy and spooky story.

This was such a fascinating novella. We follow five people as they cross paths working their respective night shift jobs. One evening as they are gathered in the local church cemetery they find an open grave that should not be there. They are drawn into the mystery and begin to investigate. The story takes place in one night. For being such a short story I was very impressed with how much was packed in. The characters are all interesting. It is so creepy and strange. ML Rio is a great writer. I can't wait to see what they do next. The audiobook was also impressively narrated.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I don't know what this book was actually about. The premise sounded intriguing, but nothing seemed to happen, and then it just ended. I'm not sure if I would recommend this to people unless they really liked the author's first book and wanted to read more from them.

As an audiobook, I enjoyed the full cast of narrators and thought all of them did a great job. I just wish that I enjoyed the story more.

Graveyard Shift was a wonderful short audio novella. The narrators did a fantastic job and having multiple narrators kept the characters more real for me. The story was well thought out and interesting. I love a spooky mushroom horror and M.L. Rio delivered. The theme of dark academia added a sense of dread to the story, The ending made me wonder if everything I had listened to so far was just a characters fever dream.

Mystery meets dark academia with a dash of horror in *Graveyard Shift,* a perfect novella for spooky season. Five people meet every night, strangers except for their ritual of meeting in the cemetery for a smoke break and escape from their nightly routines. On one night like every other the five of them meet, but this time they find a hole—a grave, with no one in it. Unfolding from all five perspectives the mystery in the graveyard begins to unravel and with it, their carefully kept boundaries. 

>> ❤️ What I loved: I enjoyed the way that this story felt both mundane and scary at the same time—it was a great blend of reality and paranormal spookiness all at once! This really worked for me as a short story, and I think the multiple perspectives were a great way to allow things to unravel. I especially loved that the audiobook used different narrators for the different character’s chapters! The narration was excellent all around and brought the characters to life.
>> 💔 What I didn’t love: Personally, I wish there was a little more development to hold the mystery a little longer—however, for under 150 pages this book packs a punch!

I’d recommend *Graveyard Shift* for fans of fast-paced mystery with an academic twist. I’ve been wanting to read an M.L. Rio book for a while, and after this, I look forward to reading more.

**Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 (4-4.5)**

**Acknowledgments & Disclaimers**
✨ Thank you to NetGalley, M.L. Rio, and Macmillan Audio, for providing an ARC and the opportunity to share an honest review of this book.
✨ All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
✨ My reviews and ratings strive to evaluate books within their own age-demographic and genre.

A haunting little story. It’s creepy and kinda gross but mostly it’s perfect for spooky season. A group of insomniacs hang around in a cemetery and wind up involved in investigating violent mushroom-related occurrences around campus—all in a sleep-deprived 24 hours. Also rats.

Audiobooks do not sell well at our store so that is the only reason I will not recommend we stock the audiobook. However, this will be an easy sell to my friends who dual listen and read - I will be stocking the book from the store and then they will get their audiobook from whatever provider.

This audiobook was excellent. I loved the voice casting and the narration, I loved the production. I also loved the book, but that is a separate review. This was a really good, really solid audiobook and I am happy to recommend it.

Graveyard Shift by M.L. Rio (she/her)
Genre: gothic, horror, dark academia, new adult, novella
Rating: 3.25
ARC and ALC review

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for my advance reader copies!

Graveyard Shift is a book to be read or listened to in the dead of the night. Between those witch hour and dawn when the rest of the world is asleep. While this novel is a dark academia story with a brilliant idea and an even better author, it fell flat. The prose of M.L. Rio feels rushed, nothing like her debut,If We Were Villains, which is a five star read and one of my favorite books ever written. One could argue that I went into this novella with too great expectations, that being the reason for my disappointment. However, the longer I sit with this story and its characters, the more I disconnect and dislike it.

Graveyard Shift is a short thing, coming in at only 144 pages. Not only does this story resolve anything within those pages, it also fails to connect me to any of the characters. I will not go into the premise too much, as not to spoil anything, but here is the blurb:

"Every night, in the college’s ancient cemetery, five people cross paths as they work the late shift: a bartender, a rideshare driver, a hotel receptionist, the steward of the derelict church that looms over them, and the editor-in-chief of the college paper, always in search of a story.

One dark October evening in the defunct churchyard, they find a hole that wasn’t there before. A fresh, open grave where no grave should be. But who dug it, and for whom?

Before they go their separate ways, the gravedigger returns. As they trail him through the night, they realize he may be the key to a string of strange happenings around town that have made headlines for the last few weeks—and that they may be closer to the mystery than they thought."

First things first, this blurb tells me more in three paragraphs than the entire novella did. The story never once goes in depth of who these people are or what their occupations are besides the bartender's. Compared to Rio's earlier work in If We Were Villains, the characters feel paper-thin. I never got a description of anyone, no personalities were shown (besides a rushed journalist's temper), and i was left grasping for nothing. The story throws random things and then never mentions them again. Character's actions are never explained. This is a very open-ended book--something I normally enjoy immensely--but was just done so poorly. The blurb also mentions how atmospheric the novella is, and I cannot help but disagree. The book opens with a graveyard covered in darkness, and then.......nothing. The rest of the book is left to the reader to add descriptions. The audiobook was fine. I don't have anything to really say about it besides that.

I do think M.L. Rio is a genius author, her prose and characters of If We Were Villains haunt me to this day. That being said, I think this was a rushed manuscript to keep up the BookTok buzz during spooky season, written by an author who was going through a lot. In novel's acknowledgements it mentions she broke her leg, finished her PhD, moved, etc. While I cannot fault her for publishing this book, I do think the editor and publisher should have not published such an unfinished work. I am glad that I was able to read more of Rio's work, but I am still conflicted on how I feel.

Thank you for reading this long rant and thank you once more to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for my copies of this book!

Since this novella takes place over the course of a single night, I’d recommend reading it in one or two sittings to really capture the intensity.
The characters are well-drawn, but with so many introduced in such a short span, it can get a bit overwhelming. I found it tricky to keep track of everyone, especially in the audiobook format. It wasn’t until a few chapters in that the story really grabbed me, but once it did, I was hooked. I ended up finding the ending unsatisfying. I suspect I would’ve had an even better experience reading a physical copy at my own pace.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance listening copy!

In Graveyard Shift, M.L. Rio delivers a brief yet eerie journey into the shadows, blending "Scooby-Doo" with a touch of existential dread.

The setting is more than just a backdrop; Rio transforms the graveyard into a brooding, almost sentient character. It feels unsettlingly alive, despite its inhabitants being, well, dead.

The characters are a ragtag group that could easily be plucked from a college coffee shop at 2 AM—like the Avengers, but overworked, underpaid, and united by insomnia.

Rio offers just enough insight into the characters to pique your curiosity without fully satisfying it. It’s akin to glimpsing a fleeting shadow in a dark alley—intriguing but elusive.

The novella’s brisk pace might leave you breathless, and the resolution arrives swiftly, like a bus pulling away just as you realise you’ve missed it.

The true strength of Graveyard Shift lies in its atmosphere, with foggy nights and whispered conversations creating a palpable sense of dread. Rio’s prose is infused with gothic charm, and the narrative flows with a poetic rhythm that feels like a rainy evening spent with a comforting yet subtly unsettling cup of tea.

While the novella’s brevity adds to its charm, it also feels like a missed opportunity for deeper exploration. The tension is present, but the mystery resolves before it has the chance to fully develop.

Ultimately, Graveyard Shift is a moody, atmospheric gem with a touch of wit and charm. It’s a gothic tale that enchants and chills, perfect for those who enjoy a mystery with a hint of humour.

I have waited years for something new from M.L. Rio so I jumped on the opportunity to listen to this audiobook early. I love the idea of people being forced together by simple circumstances which is exactly how our cast of characters find themselves investigating a freshly dug grave in an unused graveyard, thus begins our short adventure.
I felt that having a full cast for this audiobook was the perfect choice as it made it easier to track the quick moving plotline in this novella, not only that but every narrator did a fantastic job for me. I truly enjoyed every moment of this story, but I really wish it had been a bit longer. Rio did a great job of packing a lot into a short read, but it led me to feel that this could have been something more and thus the twist and ending would have been a bit less rushed. Overall, a fantastic atmospheric quick read for the fall months.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for access to this title in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5

This story revolves around a group of people forced to smoke in the graveyard since their campus is tobacco free. One night, they find a recently dug hole, and they watch as someone buries something in it. An interesting plot, but I found myself having a hard time caring about the story. I loved If We Were Villians, so this was a bit disappointing.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.