While I loved the premise for The Escape Room, I didn’t entirely love the execution. It felt a bit too far fetched for my liking and felt like it was too much of a slow burn. I liked Sara’s character for the most part, but the last third of the book felt too easy and the revelations didn’t necessarily feel like they were earned. That being said, I would read another book by this author. It was well written and the premise was smart and different. I’d give this book three and a half stars.

What happens when you put four high end investment bankers in an elevator and turn it into an escape room? How long does the veneer of civilization last when the dollar signs become part of the equation? Who is pulling the strings? With a prologue to establish setting the remainder of the narrative alternates between the escape room/elevator and the story of Sara Hall (set sometime in the past). Filled with ambition, desperation, sabotage and greed; this is a riveting thriller with some rough edges. I give Megan Goldin high marks for this unique use of the escape room concept. The timing was a bit off, but I look forward to seeing what she writes next.

Thank you for St. Martins and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Working in the high pressure world of Wall Street can be extremely lucrative, but it can also be very punishing if you miss a deadline, make a mistake in a report or make a faux pax such as correcting someone's mistake publicly or buying the wrong Christmas gift for someone in the office. This story alternates between the life of Sara Hall, a new and upcoming analyst and four of her colleagues who have been summoned to a last minute team building activity.
This book was fast paced and was a quick read. I really liked it.

I wasn't expecting much from this book especially when I heard the backdrop was the world of finance. I imagined that the material would be dry as a bone. But, was I ever wrong. The book opens with a group of bankers joining up to do a team building exercise, an escape room. From there it delves into the petty, backstabbing, cutthroat world in the office in which the escape room attendees work. I really enjoyed this book, which had a plot that felt fresh to me. 4 stars.

Vincent, Sam, Sylvie and Jules are at the height of their profession. They have worked hard and their ambition knows no bounds. They have received an email telling them that they are to meet for an escape room test. They get into the elevator hoping that this won’t take long and they can get back to their busy lives. But the elevator stops, the doors won’t open and the lights go out. That’s when they realize that this isn’t a game and they’ll have all they do to survive. But these four people have always been dangerously competitive and the stress and fears from their confinement are soon combustible.

This was a fun, fast read. Although some of the plot didn’t come as a surprise to me and the book didn’t get my heart racing, I enjoyed the story. It was like watching a train heading for a wreck – you knew there was going to be a blow up scene and you couldn’t look away. The author does a very good job of bringing her characters to life and slowly building the plot. The only likeable characters were Sara and Lucy but it’s fun having Vincent, Sam, Sylvie and Jules to despise. And such an excellent moral lesson is in this book. Watching these people claw their way to the top with the only goal being to make more and more money was sickening. They worked so many hours, they never had a chance to enjoy what they were earning. Completely crazy but the author ensures that her characterizations are believable. She takes great care to show how these people got to where they are. The scenes in the stuck elevator are the best parts and the author has great fun getting these four ruthless people to turn against each other even more as their suspicions and distrust grow.

Recommended.

This book was different than I originally expected, but in a good way. I was drawn to it because I love escape rooms and I also love reading thriller novels. This novel turned out to be about a lot more than an escape room. Chapters are told in alternating points of view as well as alternating time frames, but it was not hard to follow at all. There were a few surprise reveals that I really enjoyed and I saw some coming and others I didn’t. I enjoyed the writing style and it was a book I didn’t want to put down so I got through it very quickly. Highly recommend!

I really thoroughly enjoyed this fast paced psychological thriller from the very beginning to the very end. It was like a friend I didn’t want to part with and was saddened when I did finish reading.

I wholeheartedly despised some of the characters and events that occurred in this book and hate know how greed does actually manage to change and control people in real life.
But now imagine being stuck in an Elevator with some awful conditions and awful people that you truly don’t like but pretended to because of money and are being forced to play a game as it is now labeled as “The Escape Room”. One that they don’t know who put them into this room and what they must do in order to get out or....in order to survive!

The Escape Room by Megan Goldin proves that revenge really is a dish best served cold. Four investment bankers are en route via an elevator to what they think is a mandatory meeting. However, they soon realize that they are trapped in the elevator in what appears to be a macabre version of an escape room. Will this experience bond them as a group or forge a huge division amongst them? Read and enjoy!

The Escape Room was impossible to put down. Sadly, I had to (although I seriously contemplated canceling my Saturday night plans to finish this story).

The concept was brilliant.
The writing was excellent.
And considering the concept, I related more to the cast of characters than I care to admit. I am sure it also helped that went to two escape rooms with my colleagues, and I worked in a very high stress environment..

Regardless of your work history, this story has everything. Suspense., secrets and lies, manipulation, lovable characters, and characters you want to punch.

This book isn’t at all what you might think, in some of the best ways possible. Sara is a recent MBA grad looking for the next step into her future career, when she by complete luck, snags a job at one of the top financial groups in NYC.
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Flash forward to an Escape Room, happening in an elevator with 4 people who work at this same financial group. The book is told in alternating chapters between the past and present; and Sara’s POV and those in the Escape Room.
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This one is not a thriller with a huge twist... BUT it is a totally intriguing and interesting ride through a mystery of lies and revenge. The chapters are short, and kept me hooked on the story from the very beginning to the end. The story unfolds to explain the reasons why each person was selected for this Escape Room and how both of the timelines fit together. It is definite compulsive page turner, while not scaring you senseless.
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If you like a good mystery, and one you’ll easily get wrapped up in quickly I’d highly recommend this book! Thanks to St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley and Megan Goldin for a copy and galley in exchange for my honest review.

When Sara Hall decides to get revenge against the Stanhope elite who have taken everything from her, including killing her quirky and brilliant friend, Lucy, she doesn’t pull any punches. The Escape Room is a brilliant look at greed, elitism, and entitlement run amuck. And Sara’s revenge is sweet.

This book hooked me immediately! A team of finance power players is sent to a building for a team-building event, which turn out to be an escape room in the elevator. The elevator stops and they must figure out how to get out. At the same time that this story is unfolding, there is a 2nd narrative about a woman named Sara Hall. Sara is a recent business school graduate who is in need of a job and ends up in the world of finance. The whole story has you guessing about how the two narratives will connect and I really enjoyed what Megan Goldin did with this book.

If you are looking for that perfect summer read, this is it. It will keep you riveted and I mean riveted! When the elevator doors open in the very beginning, you know that you are in for a wild ride. What happened?!

Four co-workers at a prestigious finance group meet up for what they think is a corporate team building exercise. They enter an elevator, which stops, and the clues begin. They think they are in an escape room, something one of them has done before. It should be a breeze only it’s not. (I am saying that in a Rod Serling kind of way) The clues are personal and the close quarters start to wear on each of them. Dog eat dog has a whole new meaning.

The chapters go back and forth between the elevator occupants and Sara Hall, a woman who used to work at Stanhope. She tells us her story of getting there and what happens to her. It really made the story flow in a very rich way. It lead you to where you needed to be as the reasons unfolded. It was the perfect way to tell the story. You could feel the desperation in the elevator. It was palpable. You feel the dread of something awful about to happen. It is so well written.

I loved this book and you will too. On a side note, the packaging that my advanced copy came in was genius. It was boxed in an elevator design that opened up into someone looking out of the elevator doors.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this wonderful book. You never disappoint.

What happens when you lose everything -- self-worth, friends, good name, career and livelihood?

A last minute mandatory meeting has been called for the four investment bankers from Standhope and Sons, a top tier firm in New York. It's meant to be a team building exercise as the four face possible retrenchment or perhaps a promotion. When they gather in the lobby of the building they've been directed to -- Vincent de Vries (the boss), Sylvie, Jules and Sam have no idea that they are about to participate in what's meant to be an escape room scenario. But this exercise isn't like any they could have imagined as soon they are locked into an elevator and can only hope to get out alive! With the temperature alternating between stifling heat and extreme cold, with no water or food, no cell service and dwindling batteries, the 4 members of this elite group find some clues that hint at the reason for their imprisonment. Tempers rise, secrets are spilled, and their alliance comes to the breaking point.
NO SPOILERS.

This was a great way to spend an evening. Pure entertainment and a clever plot kept me racing through the pages so that I could read this in one sitting. The characters were intriguing and quite complex giving the narrative a relentless focus as it shifted back and forth in time and perspective. I enjoyed the writing style and the story which kept me guessing as I patted myself on the back for figuring out where it was going while still loving the ride. The conclusion was forgone at one point but highly satisfying. I think this would make a great miniseries or movie! Fast and fun.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-book ARC to read and review. Definitely an author whose work I'll look forward to reading in the future.

First, I want to say fasten your seatbelts and enjoy a true roller coaster of a ride. With that being said, bear in mind that the actual reality of such a thing taking place is highly unlikely. But I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is a true revenge fantasy and I loved the whole concept. It is told throughout the book in alternating chapters between Sara Hall, an employee at a major finance house and four financial advisors at the top of their game. As the book progresses, the four high level financial employees are locked in an elevator, hence the name of the book, The Escape Plan. In companies like this it is not unusual for this to take place. It is a tatic that is used for high level employees to figure out how to get out of the elevator. For 51 chapters it goes back and forth from the four people locked in an elevator and back to the associate at the firm. As the book progresses you slowly begin to see what is really happening but I didn't see the major twists coming till right before the big reveal. I do not want to continue my review because I do not want to give away spoilers. All I want to say, if you are looking for a great thriller, this is for you. I want to thank net galley for this ARC I received for an honest review. (less)First, I want to say fasten your seatbelts and enjoy a true roller coaster of a ride. With that being said, bear in mind that the actual reality of such a thing taking place is highly unlikely. But I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is a true revenge fantasy and I loved the whole concept. It is told throughout the book in alternating chapters between Sara Hall, an employee at a major finance house and four financial advisors at the top of their game. As the book progresses, the four high level financial employees are locked in an elevator, hence the name of the book, The Escape Plan. In companies like this it is not unusual for this to take place. It is a tatic that is used for high level employees to figure out how to get out of the elevator. For 51 chapters it goes back and forth from the four people locked in an elevator and back to the associate at the firm. As the book progresses you slowly begin to see what is really happening but I didn't see the major twists coming till right before the big reveal. I do not want to continue my review because I do not want to give away spoilers. All I want to say, if you are looking for a great thriller, this is for you. I want to thank net galley for this ARC I received for an honest review. (less)

I loved this book it was the perfect book to read over the weekend! I was lost in the suspense and characters! The book was told in two scenarios, one in the past told by Sara Hall a recent college graduate working dead end jobs trying to get hired in the investment banking world. The second is four bankers who each got an email informing them they are needed at a warehouse they all work at the infamous Wall Street firm Stanhope and Sons, who end up in an escape room where they think it’s a team building exercise. Soon they discover this room isn’t a normal escape room their goal is to solve the puzzles and figure out how they are connected and get out alive. Sara’s story was so interesting how she gets hired by Stanhope and Sons they handle the biggest and most prestigious clients. They are expected to be attractive wear the best clothes and work at all hours. When she joins the ruthless team of bankers her life takes an unexpected turn especially when one of the members dies. In the escape room the bankers are given clues and each of them feel like they are entitled but what’s the secret their all hiding and how does it play a role in why they were lured there? I loved this book and the back and forth banter , and how each of the bankers were so arrogant and conniving! I give this four stars. The suspense and the past and present story line was amazing! Make sure you add this to your TBR ASAP! This book will be available July 30th 2019!

As a thriller/mystery, too much was revealed at the very beginning of the novel to make it much of a mystery. That was unfortunate as the writing was compelling and the plot setting was unique enough to make a great story. This is, however, a good summer beach read.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC to read and review.

Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam are high level executives at the Wall Street company. They will do anything and step on anyone to get more money in their pockets, and make it to the top. However, they are all furious when they get an email for a mandatory meeting on Friday evening only to get there and find out it’s a team building escape room. Suddenly they are stuck in an elevator trying to solve how to get out, but the close environment added to their competitiveness and dislike for each each other quickly brings tensions to the surface.
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This book! From page one it had me interested, especially since I have known people that worked at companies similar to the one they are all employed by. Long hours, expectation of giving up your life completely for the job, and being groomed to live a lifestyle you certainly can’t afford without the job. These four characters were so infuriating and I loved seeing them crack under the escape room pressure. I won’t give anything away, but you have to read this book to find out what happens!

2.5 STARS. Unpopular opinion, but I didn’t really enjoy this all that much. I went into it hoping for a fast-paced and unpredictable thriller, but it was extremely slow and predictable. I guessed the ending about half-way through, but I kept reading hoping it would be something else.

Full review will be up on my Bookstagram later this evening: https://www.instagram.com/isabelrosereads/

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. It comes out July 30th!

This was an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller. A group of ruthless investment banking executives are caught in a mandatory team-building excercise which places them in an elevator and they must find a way out. They soon realize this is no ordinary escape room when the first hour passes and they aren't let out. Some clues are found as the group goes from irritate to frustrated to angry to downright scared.

The book plays off the corruption and greed in the world of high finance. I thought the setting was creative and an interesting concept. Goldin did an excellent job with the plot and the characters. I would recommend this to my friends who like thrillers. Hats off to Goldin for a great read!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press through Netgalley for an advance copy.