With a title like Survive the Night, you know Riley Sager's latest thriller is going to be intense. In fact, intense may be an understatement because this is one of the few books I have read that literally had me on the edge of my seat. I rarely find a book that I cannot put down, but Survive the Night takes the cake. If taut, heart-pounding suspense stories are your thing, be sure to pick up Survive the Night.
The premise of Survive the Night is fairly simple, but it is put to such great effect and works so well with Sager's writing style that it quickly becomes a tangled web of deception leaving readers unsure of the events that are unfolding right before their eyes. When college student Charlie puts a notice on a ride share board at her university, she doesn't expect to get a response immediately. Before she knows it, she has a ride back home to Ohio with fellow student Josh. Charlie can't wait to leave her past at Olyphant University behind her - her best friend and roommate was murdered by a serial killer, the Campus Killer, just two months before and Charlie believes it was her fault. She wants to escape to her hometown and forget about what happened at Olyphant, and Josh is going to help her get there.
You'd think that being so close to someone who was victimized by a cold-blooded murderer would make Charlie extra cautious about sharing a ride with a stranger, but rather she does some things that may have those of us living in the 2020s raising our eyebrows (this book does take place in the early 90s.) To make matters worse, not long into the ride, Charlie begins suspecting that Josh may very well be the man that murdered her best friend. Is he the Campus Killer, and if he is, how does Charlie make it out of this car alive? Can she "survive the night?"
"Wow" is all I can say about Survive the Night. This book had everything that I look for in a suspense novel - a simple setting (in this case, primarily the inside of a traveling car); intriguing characters (Charlie is obsessed with classic film noir and so am I, so this was a big plus for me); a short timeline (the events of the novel take place over the course of a few hours); and an ominous vibe (is there anything scarier than being trapped in a car with a potential serial killer?!) To top it off, Sager is a masterful storyteller - he literally had chills running down my spine and my heart beating out of my chest. This novel is unsettling and claustrophobic ... but in a good way.
All the while you are reading, you are hoping that Charlie is wrong about Josh, but you are reading with your eyes wide open searching for clues just in case she's not. And last but not least, what's a suspense thriller without a few twists? You get all of that and more with Survive the Night!
Survive the Night is a book I won't be able to get out of my head for a long time. This storyline is so memorable and compulsive that I will be looking for a similar pay-off in every suspense novel I read for the rest of the year! Highly recommended to fans of the suspense genre, those who love film noir and 80s and 90s slasher films, and anyone who enjoys a taut, tightly-woven tale of utter horror.
Availability: Book; eBook & eAudiobook in cloudLibrary
Rating: ***** Stars (I loved it) Reviewer: Brooke, Public Relations Librarian
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GENRE: Psychological Suspense THEME: 24 Hour Stories (A lot can happen in a day! These stories unfold over the course of 24 hours.); Real Life Monsters (Not all monsters are supernatural -- sometimes they are sitting right next to you. Here are stories about seriously disturbed serial killers and psychopaths.); Unreliable Narrator (Readers may not be able to trust the version of events narrated to them in these complex and sometimes disturbing stories.)
TONE: Menacing; Suspenseful
STORYLINE: Intricately Plotted; Plot-Driven
WRITING STYLE: Compelling
LOCATION: New Jersey
TIME PERIOD: 1990s
SUBJECT: Automobile Travel; Best Friends; College Students; Serial Murderers; Survival; Women Murder Victims
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