An adrenaline rush popcorn thriller! I love the way Sager takes familiar plots and writes them in a fresh way. Great buildup of tension in the first 3/4 and then a roller coaster of a final act. Each twist was even more exciting than the last and Charlie’s growth was satisfying.

If you struggle with suspension of disbelief, you might want to look elsewhere. I had an issue with one minor part of the ending (like literally the last half a page in my NetGalley ARC), but the preceding parts of the italicized section were a perfect landing for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for an early copy of this novel!


Alright, so, listen.

I know that Riley Sager is not the best author there is out there. I know there are frequent plot holes in his books, moments where you just go "WTF", characters that are pretty badly written.
And yet...
Sometimes, I enjoy just switching my brain off and enjoying a thriller that, yes, might not be perfect, but is still fun to read.

So, sure, Survive the Night has many issues.
Starting with the fact that Charlie gets in the car with a perfect stranger weeks after her best friend was brutally murdered by an unknown serial killer. Who'd do that? No one, that's who. This made me wince, and though I know that it was an essential part of the plot, maaaaybe it would have been a better idea to make it a tiny bit more believable by making Josh someone she – at least – had seen once before.

Overlooking that huge plot hole, though, the rest of the book may have been a tiny bit more enjoyable if it wasn't for Charlie being a dumbass repeatedly, to the point it really started getting frustrating.
And should we even mention the final plot twist that, honestly, every avid thriller reader will have seen coming? Nah, let's not mention it, because it did make for a cool plot twist and justified some action.

All of this could have been ignored and looked back fondly on, if it weren't for the final "plot twist".
If you've read the book, you'll know what I'm talking about, and just... No. Please. No. This is possibly the trick I hate most in the whole wide world of books (and movies, and TV shows), and if I'd been reading a physical copy, I might have thrown it against a wall.

So yeah, even though I've really enjoyed other novels of Sager's, this one was just frustrating.
There were enjoyable times, where I got into the story (and found myself yelling desperately at the characters' stupidity), but overall, it was just too much for me, and not something I'll come back to.

The only realistic part of this book was the university ride share board - I was at university in the early 2000s and we definitely had them even then.
The rest of this book is absolutely balls-to-the-wall insane. Everything is always happening and none of it is really established as far as planting and payoff go.
I did my best to suspend my disbelief through the active campus serial murderer, getting into a car with a stranger that is also a lying liar who lies, unspecified mental illness that causes the protagonist to see vivid movies in her head that she can only distinguish from reality once they end, and throwing out prescribed medicine to manage these mind movies. But then we get to the diner, and I could no longer put a metaphorical pin in the plot disasters.
In the final 100 pages of this book, an excessive amount of story happens - double crosses, stabbings, guns, cars off bridges, houses burning down. On their own , some of these could have been fine, but to throw everything at the wall was excessive. The first part of the story is agonizingly slow with so little characterization that I was kind of ok if every character was killed in a Smokin' Aces-esque massacre (which was what I was thinking we might be building toward what with the everything going on) . Sadly, that wish wasn't granted.
I did think the final reveal was interesting, but it couldn't salvage what had come before.

The most unbelievable book I've ever read, and unfortunately mot in a good way. I like a flawed main character, but this girl was DUMB.

One star because I finished it, and did want to know what happened! One star for the cool movie stuff. If youre a movie buff, maybe there are some layers here that I missed and I genuinely think that you would enjoy it in that case!

Otherwise....no. I loved Home Before Dark and I can't wait to see what comes next though.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-arc!

Prepare thy pitchforks because I’m about to drop a hot take that’s going to absolutely demolish the morale of all the BOTM readers that follow me. The new Riley Sager book, Survive the Night? Kind of a disappoint. A mere 3 stars–no more, no less, and five books in, his use of the EXACT SAME TROPE to show the real “bad person” is getting ridiculous. The writing is FINE, as it always is, and there are some suspenseful moments, but even the big “twist” I found underwhelming, and the second big twist I saw coming from three miles away. Overall, a meh book. Maybe Sager should take a break and try a new tactic?

It’s 1991, and Charlie wants desperately to leave her college campus. So desperately that she takes the offer of a guy in a college hoodie at the ride board and joins him for a six or so hour drive from New Jersey to Ohio. But that guy is not who he seemed, and Charlie, who is running away with the murder of her best friend and roommate, quickly begins to wonder if maybe this guy–Josh–is the Campus Killer. Couple that with Charlie being off her meds, having “movies in her mind” and the confines of a car, and you’ve got a couple hundred pages that might be a good movie, but are just an alright book.

Some spoilers ahead…obviously.

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I was just really underwhelmed by this. The “scene” switches were funny for a second, then they were just reminders that like half this book takes place in a car. Sure, I understood why Charlie thought Josh was the Campus Killer, but no part of me thought it was that easy. Kind of like with No Exit, I assumed there was more to the story. Surprise: there was. The real “perp” was revealed in like the last 8% of the book, and I ONCE AGAIN was not surprised, because in EVERY SINGLE RILEY SAGER BOOK the “bad guy” is the one who the protagonist had sex with/was romantically involved with. Every single time. Like…wow. I don’t dislike Sager’s books usually–I really enjoyed Lock Every Door, but it’s just getting so ridiculously predictable nowadays. If you read more than one of his books–and he does encourage longtime followers–then you basically spoil yourself for the rest.

Anyway…here’s Wonderwall, or something. I’m sure this will be a BOTM pick, and I’m sure people will scream how terrified they were, but a lot of them will be just like me: underwhelmed.

I LOVED this book- just as I have Sager’s other novels before it. This author really knows how to keep readers on the edge of their seats. For a book that takes place, predominantly, within the confines of a car, Sager somehow managed to keep the pace quick, and the plot interesting. I love the way he wove the glamour of classic films into the fabric of the story and kept readers on their toes with an unreliable narrator. I read so many thrillers that I often find that the “twists” no longer take me by surprise... but this book certainty did. Very well done!

What a wild ride that was! I thought I knew where this was going, but I was very wrong!

It’s the early nineties and film student, Charlie Jordan has decided to leave university after the grisly murder of her best friend, Maddie. In her grief-stricken state, Charlie ends up hitching a ride with a near stranger, but it’s not long before Charlie begins to suspect that the man driving her is responsible for Maddie’s murder, and possibly, for the murder of two other students on campus. Taking place over the span of a single night, Charlie has to keep her wits about her and not let her movie-obsessed thoughts take over.

This thriller is so taut and full of twists that I did not see coming. There were some eye-rolling moments where I was definitely questioning Charlie’s choices. But then a twist would be thrown in and I’d have to reconsider everything. The fact that this is set in the nineties when there were no cell phones or internet added another layer of electric tension.

This tale is a prime example of why women should listen to their instincts and not be nice to men who creep them out.

Many thanks to Penguin Group Dutton for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest opinions!

Riley Sager is an automatic read for me! When I read that this book was going to take place in the 90's I was in.

Charlie is a movie obsessed college student who lost her best friend to a serial killer. She feels responsible and wants to leave school. She takes a ride home from someone she soon suspects of being the Campus Killer responsible for her friend's death.

This book was just amazing. The references, the tension, the unreliable narrator. I loved it.

SURVIVE THE NIGHT is set in 1991. Charlie is a college student who has just been through yet another traumatic loss with the murder of her best friend by the Campus Killer. Feeling guilt and grief, Charlie has decided that she needs to go home. At the rides board she meets Josh, a total stranger but one heading in the same direction as she needs to go. With few options, Charlie agrees to take a ride with him to get home.

It isn’t far into their journey when Charlie begins to question Josh’s true motives for giving her a ride. He claims that he needs to be home to care for an ailing father, but some of the things he says hit Charlie wrong. Charlie has doubts about her own perceptions after she was unable to describe the man she saw with her best friend on the night she was killed, so she second and third guesses every suspicion she has about Josh.

Riley Sager is an auto-read author for me and I didn’t read any of the synopsis for this one before requesting a copy. I wouldn’t say this was a favorite thriller read for me as there was quite a bit that I predicted coming, but I still really enjoyed the ride.

This plays on the idea of an unreliable narrator in a way where Charlie is unreliable even to herself. She can’t be sure of what she’s seeing and what she’s imagining in her horror movie loving mind. The reader has much more insight than Charlie into what is real and what is not, but there are still a lot of questions along the way. Sager did manage to throw in some twists that I didn’t expect along the way as well.

While not my favorite Sager read, this was still a lot of fun and and easy, gripping read that I flew through over a weekend! SURVIVE THE NIGHT comes out on July 6!

A predictable "mystery" thriller novel which suffers from silly twists and unbelievable characters. It feels to me that this novel has some glaring blindspots in regards to the thoughts and experiences of women- much of the premise necessitates in a young woman being almost mind-numbingly unaware of the realities of gender violence and the risks of female vulnerability. This novel was an absolute failure to me and easily one of the most infuriating reads I've experienced in a long, long time. I wouldn't recommend this to others.

I always enjoy Riley Sager's books. They are typically well-paced, action-packed, and fun to read. "Survive the Night", Sager's newest thriller, did not disappoint.

Charlie, a college student, is filled with guilt and desperate to return home following the murder of her roommate and best friend, Maddy. She accepts a ride home with a stranger--and at this point the reader must suspend disbelief to follow Charlie into the car with Josh. Her best friend has just been murdered by a serial killer who has not been identified, and she is going to accept a ride with a complete stranger? However, if one suspends disbelief long enough, it does become clear why Charlie was willing to accept the ride.

Along the way, Charlie's distrust of Josh grows, but she also doesn't quite trust herself. Since the tragic death of her parents years before, Charlie has experienced "movies in her mind"--moments, during extreme stress--when she becomes detached from the real world. Whenever she begins to doubt Josh, she isn't sure if it is her mind playing tricks on her or if Josh is actually hiding a grim secret. As Charlie says in the book, things soon "take a detour" and it is impossible to predict where the story will end up.

I really enjoyed this twisty, wild ride.

Definitely enjoyed the story. Not my favorite book by Riley, but well written, kept me guessing and definitely engaged.

Talk about an exciting ride! I loved so much about this book, but my favorite was definitely the setting. It was, for lack of a better term, rad. I loved the 90s vibes, the music, everything!

Charlie was a really interesting character. Did I find some of her decision a little foolish? Sure. But she had gumption.

Josh was another curious character. I liked him, but disliked him at the same time.

Overall, I loved the twists and thought it was an enjoyable read!

Thank you so much for my advanced e-galley!

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review. Can it be possible the Riley Sager just keeps getting better? Charlie's roommate was murdered by the Campus Killer and she was the last person to see Maddy alive. Charlie's guilt makes her want to leave campus as soon as possible so she accepts a ride from a stranger at the college ride board. That's when things go from bad to worse. This was such a roller coaster ride from start to finish.

A rainy day was the perfect excuse to sink into @riley.sager’s upcoming release, Survive the Night!

The thriller genre is not always my first choice, and I’ll never be able to offer any real criticism of the genre because I don’t read it widely enough. But I’ve come to enjoy Sager’s stories and will probably always be keen to reading them.

Survive the Night was a quick read with an unreliable narrator who kept me confused and guessing. I loved the premise and thought it was well executed!

As with all of Sager’s books, this is sure to be a buzzy book this summer and I foresee it in a lot of beach and pool bags! It will release on July 7th, so get your preorders in!

Survive the Night was a unique take on the cat-and-mouse thriller, and although the MC was not my favorite of Sager's (in my humble opinion, anyone who drops so many old movie references into conversation would be insufferable), this was a quick, thrilling, enjoyable read.

After the death of her roommate by the Campus Killer, Charlie needs to get away from school as soon as possible. Her boyfriend can take her if she waits a few days, but she needs to go now, so she turns to the ride share board. Lucky for her, Josh is going on the same direction and leaving tomorrow. As the ride continues, Charlie begins to feel more and more uncomfortable about her ride partner. How well does she know this Josh? It seems like she doesn’t know him at all. Could he be the killer?

Riley Sager is truly a wonderful writer, and he has done it again. While I am still waiting for the next The Last Time I Lied, I still loved this book! Charlie was such a fantastic character, even though there were a few times I questioned her judgement. This one kept me on my toes waiting to find out what was going to happen and if Josh was truly the campus killer. Plus of course it had the Sager twists I didn’t see coming, which is always the best!

I could not love this book any more than I did. From beginning to end, it kept me enthralled. I was constantly being surprised. I loved the format and chapter structure. I’m so glad #DuttonBooks allowed me to read this early. It is Riley Sager at his best!

Typically any Riley Sager book is a five star in my opinion. I’ve been obsessed since Final Girls and own each book. This book fell flat for me. I almost didn’t finish it. The premise is wonderful and makes you feel as claustrophobic as the main character feels but the twists in this were a let down. Knowing who the killer was before even getting through the first chapter to knowing the “bad guy” wasn’t that bad at all... it’s a pass from me.

Survive the Night features a college student, Charlie, needing a ride home in Ohio from campus in New Jersey. Set in the early '90s, there are no cell phones and Charlie's previous experiences and tangential relationship to the campus serial killer, Charlie finds herself in the passenger seat, unsure if the driver can be trusted, or if she will indeed survive the night.

Riley Sager has upped the ante for each release, and my opinion is that this novel has one element too many for my taste. The setting of a single night trapped in a vehicle crossing the state of Pennsylvania, Charlie's obsession with classic films like , and her interesting personality quirk of hallucinating a movie scene as an overlay to her true experience makes for a page-turning and twisty story. And in Sager's now familiar style, all the ends are tied at the end.

This satisfies the want for a thrilling cinematic events, especially in the introduction of each chapter as a move scene direction, and I'll continue to read and enjoy subsequent novels by the author - it just didn't do the most for me.

I received this as an early review copy from NetGalley and Dutton Books. All opinions are my own.