Riley Sager’s ‘Survive The Night’ is certainly entertaining, I’ll give it that.

It starts off with a snapshot of the story half way through (apparently film noir, but for me I was concerned it would spoil the narration and suspense going forward). That snapshot also provides a glimpse into one of the other key threads in the novel - ‘life as a film’, which again had me questioning the entire premise of the book.

Despite my reservations, the book was a definite page-turner, and by the end I was convinced that the initial snapshot of the future was brilliant, and that the film underpinning wasn’t absurd and convenient (convenient in the sense that the plot just wouldn’t work without it and the protagonists behaviour just wouldn’t be accepted as plausible), but was clever and even a little artistic.

Look, if you suspend the rational for a little bit, this book has a lot to offer in terms of entertainment and enjoyment.

I will split my thoughts in a way the main character of Survive the Night would appreciate: in reference to cinema. So here goes:

The Good:
• Super fun premise
• Well set up to predict future reveals
• Creepy scenes were creepy
• Pretty fast paced
• The numerous car scenes did not get boring so I think that was well written

The Bad:
• Charlie is the dumbest protagonist (I can always suspend disbelief a bit for a thriller, but this was beyond!)
• The 'epilogue' was ineffective and made me not want to ruminate over the plot twists after I finished
• Did not care for small sections from tertiary POVs - I'm not sure what these added, and one caused an actual plot hole!

The Ugly:
• Lazy trope of unreliable narrator via mental illness (that didn't come to as much as I thought it would)
• Seriously Charlie makes the STUPIDEST DECISIONS that no-one would make (especially a woman), even a few decades ago

She's unfortunately a 2🌟 for me (but I think there might be more in it for cinephiles as a guilty pleasure)

However, I would highly recommend Sager's previous book Lock Every Door for a protagonist that makes (slightly) fewer poor choices and a more satisfying turn of events!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Hodder and Staunton for providing an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

Love Rileys books and this one didn't let me down, well written and keeps you engaged. Twists and turns all the way through and I would never have guessed the ending.

Well this book takes place over one night, as could be guessed from the title. From receiving my copy to beginning to read it, I didn’t read too many reviews or re read the blurb. So I went in a little blind. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was set in 1991, which meant no mobile phones or internet. It was nice to revisit this time, and I have to say it makes thrillers seem more dangerous as you can’t just call for help on your phone.

The plot begins with the main character Charlie, we learn that her best friend has been murdered on a night out. Charlie feels guilty and wants to leave campus and get home. As she isn’t able to drive herself home she looks for a travel buddy to car share with. Here enters Josh. The majority of the story is between these two characters and told from their points of view.

Because the chapters are written from the two main characters point of view, I got a good sense of who they both are. Personally I didn’t like Charlie and after the first few chapters, any sympathy that I had for her was gone. I found her to be one of the most stupid characters I have ever read about. She made terrible decisions concerning her own safety and I don’t think this was due to lack of common sense I think she just decided to do stupid things. Charlie was a very frustrating character to me. The only positive part of her that I liked was that she used a lot of movie references. These were entertaining and helped to get a better idea of who she was and why she was as she is.

Josh on the other hand was a bit more interesting. I had a few theories about who he was while I read the chapters. I won’t say too much about that because it would lead to spoilers. The writing was easy to read and flowed well.

As we were reading this as part of a book club we ended up reading it much faster than we initially planned.

Overall I have to say that sadly I was a bit disappointed with this book. All the chapters lasted the one night, but then at the very end goes years to the future and tells us what happened there. Again I found Charlie to be continuing to make bad decisions.

I wouldn’t be against reading another book by this author as the writing style and the idea of the plot was good. I just felt to strongly that the decisions made were a little ridiculous. There was also a part of Charlie’s character where she had what she called ” movies in her mind” . It was left unclear whether this was a mental health condition or just part of Charlie’s coping mechanism. ( perhaps it’s the same thing?) I would have liked the epilogue to make this a bit clearer as I felt it was quite a big part of the story that wasn’t explored and explained to the reader enough.

This story was a really surprising one for me, as it was a slow burn for a large proportion of the book, and it felt really predictable. I felt really apprehensive when I read this as it had received a lot of hype and I couldn’t really understand how a thriller based on a single car ride could be anything but predictable. How wrong I was! Although it was a slow burn for the first half of the book, the twists came thick and fast and were 100% unexpected! It was a total rollercoaster as I really thought I had this one figured out and then I was proved wrong... then I definitely had it nailed... but actually didn’t! Towards the end I was just holding my breath in anticipation!

I have to admit that I struggled with Charlie’s character as she tried to come across as risk adverse and safety conscious but in fact, she put herself in some utterly stupid situations. Honestly, the lack of common sense hurt my brain and times and I just wanted to shake some sense into her and wake her up to the situation she put herself in. Her headspace was, at times, a difficult place to negotiate as she was very uncertain of her thoughts and opinions so, as a reader, it felt uncomfortable at times. However, I did grow to appreciate her, and the development of her character was great to witness.

Riley Sager is a master at multiple layer twists as there is never just one huge reveal, instead he opts for smaller yet more frequent reveals throughout the entire book. I personally love this style of writing as it keeps me engaged throughout and my mind races as I try to guess what will happen next. I really really loved the reference to movies throughout the book and this was a constant theme in both the dialogue and the description throughout. Although I am not hugely informed on the ‘classic’ films, it was really lovely to see the Riley Sager’s other passion of films taking centre stage in his novel. I really felt like I not only enjoyed the book, but I now have a huge list of films I need to watch! For me, the pace of writing is hugely important as I love constant drama or friction in a thriller and this book had lots of dialogue, which is a great tool to keep it pacey and I simply love dialogue, so it kept me interested!

I really thought I would not love this book as much as I did! I expected it to be slightly predictable, but I found it to be so unexpected and refreshing! Although I struggled with Charlie’s character, I was able to look past this and enjoy the book for what it was. I definitely feel like I am officially on the Riley Sager train right now as I really enjoyed it and I can’t wait to read more of his other books!

I rolled my eyes a lot whilst reading this book. The concept was fun and different and I really wanted to like it,

The protagonist annoyed me from the start. Why, when your best friend’s killer hasn’t been found, would you get into a car with a stranger? Now, you could say she was desperate to leave her college campus, desperate to go home and isolate herself to come to terms with her friend’s death. But urgh, why? 

The pacing, for me, was incredibly slow. Even though we get thrown straight into the story, it was difficult to get into and I found it boring.

This one just wasn’t for me. I couldn’t connect to the protagonist and I just felt like she was reckless and unlikeable. Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and author, for a chance to read and review this book.

This is the first Riley Sager book I've read and although I've seen mixed opinions on this book, I was pleasantly surprised. The unconventional format was a treat and made the short chapters easy to read and also helped to understand where you were at all times which in turn helps the reader to picture the scene. I was fully enveloped by the story and the characters. I will definitely be checking out more Riley Sager.

This was my first Riley Sager’s book. As I have seen that many people have given lower ratings on this book compared to his other books so I decided to start with this book so that I wouldn’t have highest expectations.

It’s a slow paced and quite frustrating for the first half because nothing much happens and it’s just repetitive. I had figured out who the “campus killer” was at some point. It’s not a greatest thriller it was an okay read for me. Will definitely read more of his books though as I have already bought all of them. Thankyou Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for the arc.

Riley Sager is a auto purchase for me. I don’t even read the synopsis anymore. I just pre order and wait.

This book was fantastic. I read it over 2 days and really enjoyed it. It lost me a little in the middle but towards the ending my heart was pounding and my head was on a swivel.

This book follows Charlie and she uses the university ride share board to get back home to her Grandma. Josh offers to split the cost with her and drive. But Josh starts acting suspicious or is that Charlie hallucinating again? This book was great. 10/10 would definitely recommend.

Wow... I'm so mad I guessed that! Interesting concept, lackluster execution but altogether a very entertaining book. I'm happy we got a conclusion because it seemed iffy for a bit there. Good read!

I just really enjoy Riley Sager a lot, he is a perfect go-to author when I need something fun, easy and fast-paced. There is an ease to his writing that doesn’t demand a tonne of me as a reader, yet is smart enough to avoid my judgmental eye-rolls (normally brought forth by cliches and poor language). Importantly, his books always have enough twists and turns to keep me flipping the pages. Survive the Night was no exception. In its homage to the greats of the silver screen, nineties cultural references and notable similarities to every macabre mystery popularised via true crime podcasts in the last decade, Survive the Night was a lot of fun for an occasional dabbler of creepy fictional content like me.

Now, don’t get me wrong, Survive the Night is bonkers unbelievable and the ending hardly came as a surprise, but it was nonetheless one hell of a ride AND, just in time for spooky season, put me in a serious mood to watch aaaaaall the teen slashers from the late nineties.

Overall rating: 2.5

The premise of Survive the Night really intrigued me, and I was looking forward to a tense read about a girl and the potential murderer in the car with her. However, I ended up being pretty disappointed with the execution of this book.

Firstly, I felt that there was no subtlety at all. There was way too much telling and not enough showing in the author's writing style, every character's decisions and motivations were explicitly spelled out, which took away a lot of the tension from the scenes. I also found the protagonist's obsession with movies too heavy-handed for my liking, and I think the author should have trusted that readers would be able to pick up on themes and clues in the story without being smacked in the face by them.

Secondly, I found the plot a bit boring. All of the twists were pretty easy to predict, and again, what should have been a really tense read was actually not very thrilling, due to the characters spelling out all of their actions and thoughts.

Overall, due to these factors, I couldn't rate Survive the Night higher than a 3, and the 2.5 is mainly just because I liked the premise of the novel, as well as some of its ideas, even if I was let-down by the execution.

This was absolutely great. I really enjoyed this read. It kept me hooked. I'm definitely going to be reading more from this author for sure.

Having enjoyed two of Riley Sager's previous booms, I had very high expectations for this one. However, it just didn't live up to the hopes I had for it unfortunately. Although I did enjoy the plot to begin with - the tension so strong you could cut it with a knife in the beginning - the story was ruined by the lack of common sense our main character, Charlie has. Sure, your best friend was murdered 2 months ago at the hands of a mysterious serial killer, but sure, get in a car with a stranger so you can go home. In what world would someone do that?? And yes, I understand people make poor decisions from time to time, but Charlie makes bad decision after bad decision and it was so frustrating. I've never normally had an issue with how Sager writes his female characters, unlike others, but this was one of those times where I was unimpressed.

The plot twists were fun, however. Once the story got going, I was hooked, despite my dislike for Charlie. I did like the way it was alluded to that she is a maladaptive day dreamer because of the 'movies in her mind', which is something I can relate to and I appreciate that.

But I disliked the ending and it didn't make sense. It's almost as if Sager is saying that gaslighting someone is okay, the way it was revealed that Charlie married her kidnapper. It doesn't make sense.

Sometimes the writing really shone, other times it was really clunky. This book was a mess. I liked it, but I didn't love it.

If you have read any of Riley Sager's books....like I have....you know that at some point in the story, what you thought was going on, goes sideways. Knowing this, I still did not see all of the twists and turns that were mixed into this thriller. Playing games in the car to make the trip go faster takes on new meaning when you think you just might have taken a ride from a serial killer. With so many doors to look behind, how can you EVER figure out how to stay safe?
When her college dorm mate is a serial killer victim, Charlie decides she needs to go home to clear her head and her heart. She arranges a ride with a stranger who has posted a ride sharing ad. You knew this book was a thriller when you started, but WOW! As the ride progresses, the questions outnumber the answers and the "thrill" comes so fast and hard, you will definitely have several "oh, no" moments, right up to the last page.

An absolutely thrilling, nail biting story with such a unique take. I loved the way Sager writes, he takes the usual thriller trope and gives it a twist that is pure him. I love the throwbacks to old movies and the red herrings had me guessing until the end.

Oh my gosh this was my first Riley Sager book and all I have to say is WHAT TOOK ME SO LONG?! Every single page had me begging to know what happened next! I loved the first person perspective and I loved getting to know all of the characters! And the ENDING! Oh my freaking goodness I absolutely LOVED the ending! Now I’m going back to buy all of his previous books!!!

What a roller coaster of a read. This book instantly draws you in and keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole way through! So many twists and turns! The end one I DID NOT see coming at all. My only criticism is that the plot became a little silly at about 75% in. That said, I was still hooked and by then I was so invested that I needed to race through and find out how it all panned out.
Really thoroughly enjoyed this book!

trigger warning
<spoiler> grief, trauma, mental illness, hallucinations, gaslighting, kidnapping, torture, mention of sucide attempt, lethal illness, cancer, being orphaned </spoiler>

A young woman finds a carsharing option to get her home as she quits college. The problem: She doesn't know the guy, and there is a serial killer on the loose.

A lot of people have issues with the protagonist, and while I get that, I was prepared for it because I knew the blurp. I knew I'd need quite a bit of suspension of disbelief:
- she needs a ride but it's in the middle of the week and nobody else is going her way
- it's the 90-ies so no mobile communication
- not only is a serial killer active in the area, her roommate was killed by said person which is driving her away because she can't deal with it any longer
- on top of that, she is mentally ill

I found it weird that she was meeting a psychiatrist, was medicated, but wasn't cautioned not to drive. She casually mentions that since she never uses it for [spoiler] reasons, she didn't bother to renew it as it ran out.
Due to issues mentioned in the trigger warnings, I don't think it's safe for her to drive at all as long as she's unmedicated. Here's the huge but: I am assuming she went to an overworked college psychiatrist, and the acceptance of mental illness and treating of patients has come a huge way since the 90-ies. Even if it were today, I'd say yeah, medical professionals are weird. I think it's more the author not thinking it through enough, but in this case, the depiction doesn't feel wrong.

True to Riley Sager fashion, every character has some plottwists coming, but the final plottwist is kinda predictable and in this case, did not surprise me at all.
I read this in one go, and would not recommend this if you need a longer time. If you know there's nothing else to do, grab a few hours and run with it, and then it's some fun entertainment if you like the genre. And, again, are prepared for the level of suspension of disbelief you need.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

Well, well, well, what a ride! (Quite literally ;))

“Survive the Night” was my third Riley Sager book, after “Lock Every Door” and “Home before Dark”. Was it my favorite Riley Sager? No, I think it was quite a challenge top these last two. From what I could see online, these two books were the favourites of most readers, Was this book bad? No, definitely not! It is quite the page turner and I finished it within 24 hours, It was very entertaining and I quite liked the format and the setting in the 90s.

"Survive the Night" was quite different from the last two books I read form this author as it was not as thrilling or scary. What’s the story about you ask? Charlie, a film obsessed student wants desperately to flee the college she’s in after her best friend gets killed by the serial killer named “The Campus Killer”. She shares the way home with a mysterious stranger, she soon suspects to be the Campus Killer.

While the story was enjoyable, it suffers from the stupidity of its main character. The bad (dare I even say stupid) decisions Charlie kept making made me so aggravated. Seriously, she suspected she was in the car with a killer and finally gets a chance too escape and doesn’t take it! How? Why?

Some plot twists, while surprising made absolutely no sense une therefore seemed unbelievable, On the other hand, I guessed the identity of the killer quite quickly as there aren’t many characters in the story.

To summarise, it was a nice read but sometimes quite forgettable and unnerving.

Thanks a lot the NetGalley for this Arc, in exchange for my honest opinion.