I enjoyed reading about these friends with insomnia in common. I only wish it were longer.

Have you ever had trouble sleeping? I definitely have, but the characters in this book (especially Hannah) have it so much worse. Sleep eludes all of them to the point that they all meet up and hangout together in a cemetery late at night.
On one of these evenings, they see rat corpses. Like...a lot of rat corpses. And start on a search to find out what happened to them.

I loved and related to all of the characters for different reasons. They all had a very real sense of humanity and being flawed.

I would listen to again to pick up on some of the things I missed, which I am sure was a lot.

Rio once again proves her prowess in creating an eerie plot and setting with "Graveyard Shift". Not dissimilar from the group of students in "Before We Were Villians", the novella introduces us to a group of nightshift workers suffering from insomnia. In the course of one evening, the group notices a gravedigger in the graveyard long past his shift and subsequently discover a sinister plot coming out of the university's science labs.

Considering this was a novella, there is not as much character or plot development as you would expect with a longer novel. The ending does seem to sort of fizzle out, leaving it up to the reader to imagine the consequences of one night. Despite an unsatisfactory ending, Rio's prose and descriptions are masterful (this was so much of what I loved about BWWV).

I also thoroughly enjoy an audiobook with variable narrators, and this was no exception!

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the creativity behind this storyline with a group of characters who meet in an old, historical graveyard and make a gruesome discovery. The plotting was engrossing and entertaining, but I never truly connected with any of the characters. I do recommend this book for fans of horror who enjoy a faster plot. I did like the narrators, and I made it through the audiobook quickly. Thank you MacMillan audio for the ALC.

Every night in the college’s ancient cemetery, five misfit late shift workers meet up. When a freshly dug open grave appears in the cemetery, they follow the gravedigger to get to the bottom of things. They soon realize the grave is linked to shady nefarious experiments at the college, experiments that have led to tragedies and strange happenings around town. This is a creepy atmospheric modern gothic novella, sure to make your skin crawl! The narration was haunting and spine-chilling. Loved it.
✨Pub Date: 9/24/24 ✨
4.5/5⭐️

This short, Novella was absolutely well done as far as the narration and the tone and temple of the narrator. I didn't find any fault with the narrator or the way it was presented or dictated to me as the reader.

The story itself was very Gothic and ominous. I did find some of the POV's a little more boring than others. And it definitely took me out of the story a little bit when I found the character to be not as interesting. The overall story was very interesting and I really liked the fungi element within the novel as well.

I really liked this theatrical way in which this was written and presented to the reader. Overall, this was a pretty average read for me where I was entertained, but not blown away.

Okay, Okay, Okay!

First things first, can we talk about how much information was poured into this?

Never mind, let's take a couple steps back.

So basically, we’ve got this crew. Their weirdos. And I don’t mean that in a harsh way, if that makes sense? They gather at night to smoke and catch up in this local graveyard because it’s just the right distance away from surrounding buildings. Yah know, with the specific smoking rules and such.

They're not really friends? Not really strangers? But they get together to talk every night. To chat.

The five of them are each very different from one another. That’s where the information comes in. You can really tell that Rio put in the time to research different aspects concerning their lives. Which is insane, seeing how there are FIVE of them and they're very different from each other.

Props Rio. I give you major props.

I won’t get into too many details, but one of the characters shares lots of characteristics with a friend of mine who is going into Library Science. It was like I was reading her life, with some extra bits and bobs of course.

Anyways! I really enjoyed the relationships amongst the characters as well as their realistic reactions to the problem at hand. I listened to the Audiobook, but I’ll probably try my hand at reading the physical copy when it releases simply because I feel like I missed some things. I also prefer Reading over Audiobooks, but I was too excited to wait!

I will also note, it was a multicast Audiobook! Not very many people know those exist and they're not super common. When I realized all of the characters were going to get their own voice, I was even more excited! It gives the listener a chance to really get immersed with the story, especially when the voice acting is done well like it was for this Audiobook. Great performance guys!

For now, I’m going to give this Novella a 3.5/5-star rating. I say that because, like I mentioned previously, I feel I’ll probably enjoy it more once I can read it with my own eyes and go back over certain things at my own pace. Not to mention I got lost in the sauce a couple times when it came to certain character’s inner monologues. The unfortunate side to backing up your characters with lots of information: Though it helps build the characters, it can be overwhelming when you have such a large cast and so few pages. Having to squeeze everything into something so small as a Novella and still clean it up for a satisfying ending couldn’t have been easy. If the book had been longer some scenes wouldn’t have felt so info dumpy.

Overall, it was a pleasure to read M.L. Rio’s writing again and I’m so glad to have been given a chance at early access to it.

My thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the free Advanced copy. This Audiobook is expected to be published September 24, 2024.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

3.5 Stars! I liked this more than I liked If We Were Villains but it still wasn't 5 stars. I feel like this ended super abruptly and could have benefitted from being longer. I did really like the vibes of this novella, as it reminded me of What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher but in more modern times. Some of the lines in this novella had me laughing out loud which sounds funny for a horror story, but iykyk. I will definitely pick up more of her work!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Graveyard Shift by ML Rio was short and sweet, and so too will be this review.
I was hooked immediately by the eerie setting and the eclectic combination of characters. It was the perfect blend of dark academia and sci-fi horror. My only complaint is that I wished I could have spent more time with the characters, more time at Midnight on this university campus, exploring the cemetery.
The book explores medical ethics in an accessible way. For someone with a limited knowledge of this specific subject, I felt like I understood what was going on and was able to recognize how to feel about discoveries without being explicitly told by characters more in the know. Unfortunately, when medical ethics is the topic, it usually comes with cruelty to animals. This was no different.
I am happy that I listened to the audiobook. I felt like the different narrators did each character justice. They were each distinct and added to the atmospheric nature of the story.
Overall, I give this novella a 4/5 and will definitely be seeking out more writing by the author.

*3.5 rounded up*

If there's one thing I can count on with M.L. Rio it's the well-seasoned atmosphere; this will be my go-to fall novella reco. Not a full-blown horror but we've got mystery with lots of spooky vibes.

Points knocked off for the ending as it fell flat compared to the rest of the story but oh how I wish this was longer than a novella. The characters were interesting and the story had enough weight to double the page count. Guaranteed to be a reread for me in a couple years.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC of this book!
This book had everything I was looking for. Fast paced, great character development and the plot was well executed. The books plot was original and engaging and had great dialogue.
This book blew any expectation I had out of the water. I will be following the author for future books.

Let me just start with I think M.L. Rio nails atmosphere. She’s absolutely brilliant at it. But the story was… fine. Dare I say a bit flat. As a person with ridiculous health anxiety I could have done without the suspected breast cancer that served no real purpose or all the edgy smoking. I think as a novel this would have been better. I might have cared more about the characters. So yeah, two stars for the atmosphere and another for the audiobook narrators who did a superb job.

Thank you NetGalley and McMillan for the ARC audiobook.

Reading novellas or short stories is it's own art form. I never know if wanting more is the mark of a great novella. Or if getting just enough and not needing anything else is what makes it. Either way, this was somehow both. And that's the best praise I can give.

This is the kind of book that answers just enough questions to keep you reading, but leaves you with even more questions by the end - so that as you read the last line of the book, you stare at the last page, let the book fall shut, and let out the breath you didn’t know you were holding.

There’s an air of mystery about this book that doesn’t go away when it ends. It reads fast and sharp, every chapter a microscope slide full of a character, each a specimen being cross-examined by the reader.

Through the two works I’ve read by M. L. Rio, she finds a way to end on bombshell statements that twist and claw at your brain long after you put the book down. In other words, Graveyard Shift ends, but the story lives and festers in your brain like fungus - a personal mycological study.

The events take place throughout one night and one morning. We glimpse the story through different characters' eyes, our perspectives constantly shifting as the night progresses. You can’t judge this like a full length novel and say we don’t get enough character depth, there isn’t meant to be. Instead, there are little factoids of information that cling to the characters to make them interesting people and stick in your thoughts after turning the last page.

Thematically, it’s part horror, part mystery, part thriller, part slice-of-life, part science-fiction…it straddles all these genres and carves out a nice spot for itself in the obscurity in between.

I haven’t listened to an audiobook in a long time, but can honestly say I was captivated by this one. While the narrators did a fantastic job bringing both Rio’s writing and characters to life, the words themselves are already so rich and intriguing.

This novella has certainly whetted my appetite for Hot Wax. And maybe a love overdue If We Were Villains reread, too.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC of this novella.

I am torn… I know that I enjoyed this while I was reading it but it left literally no lasting impression. Pretty much all but the most basic plot of this book has just pffft… left my brain. A bit of a shame, because I enjoy this author’s writing!

I did like the hazy, eerie, atmospheric vibe, though!

M.L. Rio is a fantastic author and this horror story does a great job making one question the morality of science. Each chapter goes darker and darker than the last, leaving you wondering how cruel people can be. Also great that it is a short story as it means it can be a quick read.

This did not pull me in. I am usually into this genre and its just didn't do it for me. That was the only issue. The narrators were fine.

I will not be giving feedback on this publicly on any of my accounts as I believe others may really like this.

Thank you NetGalley, M.L. Rio, and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to review.

The cover and premise really drew me in. I was really excited to see how this story unfolded. Sadly, it just never really grabbed my attention. I finished it because it was a short novella, but I felt like nothing really exciting or memorable happened. There are a lot of different characters in this book. I would have enjoyed a little more character development, but understand that is hard with a novella. The full cast narration was helpful in differentiating the characters. It gave each of them their own memorable voice, though several of the narrators were very monotone.

Overall, an interesting premise and cast of characters in this book. The graveyard setting was perfect. I just wish there had been more action and a better conclusion to the story.

I was so excited to read this because I loved “If We Were Villains”, and the premise appealed to me immensely. The intro music did a wonderful job of setting the atmosphere. I also love when author's read their own entries, be it in the form of introductions or acknowledgments, so getting to hear M.L. Rio's voice was a pleasure.

This novella follows a group who share little else in common except odd hours and a love of smoking. An activity they do in the most optimal setting: a graveyard. One night they find a mysterious hole and everything takes off from there.

The nice thing about novellas is that they get to the action immediately and this was no different. I listened to it in one sitting and enjoyed the pacing tremendously. I also loved watching all the pieces start to fit together.

We experience every member of the group’s perspective in third person with dedicated chapters centering around them. I appreciated the full cast audio as it added a richness to the experience and did wonders for my immersion. Though they each felt like distinct characters with clear voices, it was difficult to grow attached in our brief time together. "Graveyard Shift" is ambitious in how many perspectives it chooses to include and contains the most out of any novella I've read thus far.

I almost wished there was one character less, even with their plot relevance. Large casts make for interesting group dynamics but that wasn’t really the case here because they had so little collective interaction. It was more about which element of the puzzle the character contributed to. Some of them felt so real, others felt more plot device than person.

I did struggle with the first chapter because the narrator didn’t work for me. I disliked where they placed their emphasis and pauses. Even though the overall tone fit the spooky atmosphere, there is an expectant quality to the voice that made it difficult to clarify what the relevant part of the sentence was. It was appropriate for the character but irritating overall. I was itching to get past that point of view and move on to another narrator. Their second time around they were much more bearable, reflective of the character's growth and a cool narrative touch.

[3.5 stars] There were certain aspects that were so understated as to almost feel underwhelming. Much of the emotional impact is carried by a few characters such that I wish we had spent more time with them. I feel as if there could have been more tension, everything felt easy. This is understandable, given the length there is hardly time to face massive roadblocks..

The ending was one of my favorite parts and it transformed the whole experience. It made me feel like I was holding my breath. There was a haunting note to the visual created that stuck with me. That is what I will remember most when I think of this book.

As far as I can remember there were no added sound effects so there were no major jump scares from that. This will be such a good end of September to early October read, the setting is so perfect for evening walks and Halloween prep.

Finally, I thought the inclusion of the author’s playlist and the drink recipes was a fun touch. I had a good time reading this and can't wait to see what M.L. Rio comes out with next.

Much thanks to MacMillan Audio for approving my request for the audiobook!

I enjoyed the narrators and the production of this audiobook, but I felt like I didn’t understand the story. Maybe it was just too smart for me—I’m not sure. I’ll definitely try more from M.L. Rio in the future, though.

Started out very strong but then it lost me towards the middle. I was still able to finish, but it wasn’t for me.