An unknown villain holds NYC hostage as elevators in posh highrises begin free-fall with deadly results. A local reporter takes the lead in attempting to track down the perpetrator, as police have their hands full with other catastrophes.
Surprises abound, the action hums, and the pages fly. This is a great beach read- especially since most beaches lack elevators, and while reading Elevator Pitch, you'll want to stay far away from those death containers! ;)

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
Linwood Barclay brings the suspense in this quick-paced psychological thriller. I never want to get on an elevator even again!

I am a Barclay fan, and this didn’t disappoint. This book is a slow burn; starts off very slowly and introduces a LOT of characters and different storylines. Glad I stuck through it though as I found the last 30% to be exciting and engaging. Great thriller.

Elevator Pitch starts with a tragic event and leads the reader through several tragic events but who is behind these horrible acts? How do your past actions affect your future? The Mayor is soon to find out how the actions of his early adult hood will affect his life.

There was a lot going on in this book. Corrupt politicians, family issues, a police detective with PTSD and a journalist who is not exactly objective. I just didn’t connect with the story. I was interested enough to finish the book and see what happens, but it wasn’t a can’t put it down book. I have liked books by this author before and although this wasn’t my favorite, I will continue to read books by this author. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

Elevators are suddenly going haywire in NYC. Pulse-pounding action kept me turning pages long into the adrenaline-filled night!

Linwood Barclay has a reputation for well written thriller books, and Elevator Pitch can be included in that list. I really enjoyed this story, and actually was surprised by the villain, I can usually guess "who done it" and I did not figure the bad guy out until the last instant. New York City is being plagued by terrorist activities - elevators are randomly killing people and a car bomb goes off, killing three people. Will there be more murders, can they be stopped, and who is doing these deeds? Besides the mystery thriller there is a hint of romance and a dash of family conflict. I have not read Barclay's last several books, and I now must catch up with all his titles. This is petty of me, but the only part of the book I did not like was the last page, without giving away any details I found the very last actions of the main character and her daughter to be unbelievable in real life. Just a little too tidy of an ending.

Loved this thriller. Very suspenseful with an ending I didn't see coming. I'll never again get on an elevator without thinking about it!

Linwood Barclay always gets me. I NEVER EVER can guess whodunit. I read a lot of thrillers and crime dramas, so many of them read the same, sound the same, I can tell from the foreshadowing who the UNSUB will be in about four chapters.

Barclay always gets me, though. And now I second guess myself when i get into an elevator. Thanks for that.

Thoroughly enjoyed, went supremely quickly with a robust storyline. LOVED.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I generally enjoy Linwood Barclays writing, but in this story he attempts to cover too many issues. A driven journalist trying to expose a potentially corrupt politicians, a city’s dependence on elevators, problematic relationships between parents and children, and a detective with PTSD who would rather be an architect. Add to this a subplot dealing with domestic terrorism that does not contribute much to the plot. The point of view is inconsistent, and many of the numerous characters introduces are not well developed. And therefore difficult to relate to. But the premise of the story is interesting enough to keep me reading to the, somewhat predictable, end.

I will never get on an elevator again without thinking of this book! NYC elevators are being tampered with but no one is sure why. Is it terrorism or something more personal? A reporter who has an agenda on the mayor thinks the attacks are related to the mayor's investors. The suspense and mystery with which the book begins are not sustained through to the end, but the story is still exciting and fun to read! Thanks to NetGalley for providing a preprint.

Somehow, the two books I read this weekend both focus on elevators. And both were creepy AF. Linwood Barclay has a reliably entertaining Promise Falls series, but has taken a slight detour for a standalone thriller entitled Elevator Pitch (thanks to Harper Collins/William Morrow and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for this honest review).

The story takes place over a week in Manhattan, starting with what appears to be a horrible accident when an elevator in a high-rise office tower goes non-stop to the top floor, then plummets to the bottom of the shaft (with predictable results).

That was Monday. On Tuesday, the tragedy is repeated in another Manhattan high-rise. By Wednesday, the city is in chaos, and of course terrorism in on people’s minds. When every elevator in the city is shut down, the results affect everyone in the city.

At the same time, a murder victim is found with fingertips removed, and two experienced detectives and a female journalist are in a frenzied race to figure out what is going on. At the end of the week, the newest and tallest skyscraper in the city is scheduled for a huge party celebrating its opening, and all the various subplots and characters move toward the finale.

Stuff that actually COULD happen is the scariest, in many ways, and Barclay has done his usual good job of developing characters, moving the plot along, and throwing in a surprise or two – or maybe it’s just me, I have never been good at seeing plot results in advance.

It seems like it may have been written with an eye toward being turned into a movie, and if done right, it will be a good one. Four stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow Publishing for giving me a chance to preview this title. I’m so happy Mr. Barclay is back to writing standalones instead of series and this is one of his best yet.

Elevators in New York begin to go rogue. They don’t stop at the floor the passengers choose. And on the first day of this book, the car plummets from the top floor to the bottom killing three of the passengers. The fourth dies later at the hospital.

The next day, in another office building, it happens again. A young boy manages to survive, but not until after seeing his fellow passenger decapitated by the mechanisms.

Elevators keep killing people as do explosions. Then the whole city becomes afraid. And you’ll need to read this skyrocketing thriller for yourself to find out what happens.

Mr. Barclay sets the stage well revealing just a little about all the players in the beginning. He’s also very good at casting suspicion on those who aren’t guilty. I think I’ve read all of his books and they just keep getting better and better. There’s no lulls in this one at all, which will keep you up reading all night.

Barclay juggles a LOT of balls in this book but brings everything together in one EXPLOSIVE ending!!! This book is fantastic!!! A heart pounding thriller from the turn of the first page to the last. I read this book in 2 days! One warning: you might not want to get on an elevator for awhile after reading this book! Kudos Linwood Barclay!!!

I love reading a book that has an ending that I didn’t see coming! I didn’t guess the bad guy! What a great book! He is one of my favorite suspense authors! Highly recommend this book!

My parents have read plenty of Barclay's books, but I've never read one. Reading the synopsis for this one and it really caught my attention, so I figured I'd give it a chance. I read it in two days; I couldn't put it down. The characters are all well-realized and written, and there are certainly parallels to current affairs in the States right now. I've always felt uneasy in elevators (tho not as much as I do with escalators, and that's because I almost lost a foot to one) and I know now I'm still going to want to take the stairs if possible, even if the possibility of anything happening is extremely slim. And that's the mark of a book that makes an impression.

Having finished this book in a day, I don't think I want to get into a high rise elevator anytime soon! Linwood Barclay is one of my favorite authors and this one did not disappoint. I could not put it down. Prior to reading this book, i read Megan Goldin's The Escape Room and loved that....now I am even more scared of elevators! I loved all of the characters (especially the relationship that developed between Barbara and Arla through the crisis).

ELEVATOR PITCH is exactly the good, fast-paced, well-developed mystery we expect from Linwood Barclay. Mysterious elevator accidents are occurring in Manhattan, But are they accidents or acts of terrorism and if they are acts of terrorism, who is behind it? Barbara Matheson, journalist and thorn in the Mayor's side, wants to know. But the more she investigates, the murkier things get. and it doesn't he;lp that her daughter has gone to works for the very man Barbara most despises - the Mayor. great writing, fun characters and a mystery you won't figure out until the end - ELEVATOR PITCH has it all.

"Actions have consequences. Maybe not overnight. Maybe not in a week, or a month or even a decade...Eventually, things have a way of balancing out."

Things become anything but normal in New York when there are 3 separate incidents involving elevators located inside Manhattan skyscrapers that result in deaths. The city's residents are mildly interested and guess there's some sort of connection between these events but total panic really ensues when Mayor Richard Wilson Headley orders that all of them be put out of service until they can be checked. In a vertical city, this can lead to disaster. But that's not the only concern of Detectives Jerry Bourque and Lois Delgado -- they're wondering if these engineered elevator episodes are targeted murders or if they're related to a domestic extremist group known as the "Flyovers." Homeland security is investigating as a possible act of terrorism. But no one claims responsibility. And might the elevator tampering be related to the death of a man found bludgeoned and without fingertips on the High Line? Or how about that taxi bombing?

It's a very complicated scenario affecting many jurisdictions and the situational response is being followed very closely by journalist and reporter, Barbara Matheson. She has her own personal reasons for examining all the players and especially those in the Mayor's office. Who is doing this, and why? NO SPOILERS.

What a wild ride of suspense! I could barely stop reading once I opened the book. The narrative is told in alternating points of view, but the motives are only slowly revealed with red herrings that caused my guessing talent to flounder several times. The characters are well-developed and engaging with enough historical detail to make them relatable -- even the ones you won't like so much. The writing is excellent and I've long been a Barclay fan. There are plenty of grisly descriptions and enough deaths to make this a thriller while also serving as a bit of a morals directive. There are twists and surprises. I enjoyed it immensely and fans will be clamoring to get their hands on this one.

Thank you to HarperCollins Publishers for the e-book ARC to read and review. This jumped to the top of my extensive TBR list as soon as I received it.

PS If you have any elevator phobia, this will likely exacerbate. Take the stairs!

This story of random elevators all across Manhattan boobytrapped in such a way that the occupants of said elevators plunge to their death an a freight train (or elevator) headed straight to hell freaked me out. I was once trapped in an elevator in Dallas that dropped six floors before the brake kicked in and I still have nightmares about it. Barclay is good at capitalizing on our everyday fears and kicking them up about ten notches