Race of the Escape is exactly what I look for in a middle-grade/ya horror. The characters were clever and enjoyable, were written similar to children I can picture in my life, and the friendships were genuine and entertaining. The horror here isn't overly scary while still feeling real, and appropriate for the middle-grade age group.

4/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In Race for the Escape Ami and four teammates try to find an answer in an impossibly difficult escape room game. But as they go through the game, the stakes continue to climb, and realize they might not all get out alive.

As someone who loves escape rooms and middle grade books, I knew I had to read this. It's a very quick read, coming at under 180 pages. This is a middle grade book that I would recommend mostly for tweens.

This book is quite difficult to review as most of it hinges on its final messaging, and its final twist, which I don't want to disclose. If you want to get this book for your child, let me know and I'll message you those details, on a high level the book focuses on the environment.

From the first page of this book to the last we're reading about Ami trying to get through an escape "room". The action is practically non-stop. With each page, it gets harder to put the book down. As a fan of escape rooms these parts were quite fun for me, I tried to solve the puzzles along with them.

The story is mostly theme and action driven, there's little beyond those. The characters, the friendships etc. all stay very surface level in favor of the main focus of the book.

The caveat here is that I'm not really the target audience for MG books. I do love reading them, and I don't always find the age gap an issue, but this one especially feels like it's mostly for kids. As you get closer to the end the messaging of the book becomes more and more obvious. In the final chapter it's all spelled out for you to almost a preachy extent, which makes it feel more juvenile.

I did appreciate the hopeful note this book ended in, even while I disagreed with how it was delivered.

Overall rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Random House Children's and NetGalley for the eARC!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-ARC of this middle grade novel.

Perfect for fans of the Mr. Lemoncello and Mysterious Benedict Society series, Race to the Escape is an extreme escape room where danger lurks at every turn.

I read this book in one sitting! This was a fantastic, gripping middle grade that had me hooked from page one. I loved the adventure of this book with the different settings and it kept me guessing, wondering what was going to happen next. I did NOT expect the twist at the end and was completely shocked! If I am a 30 year old woman reading this book and enjoyed it so much, then this is going to be an amazing read for the target audience.

*I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc*

Ami loves escape rooms. This one turns into a Jumanji + Lara Croft medley and starts picking off her fellow players one by one. Can Ami Find the Answer and Save the World?

Seat of your chair adventure/thriller for Middle Grade readers. Will recommend for purchase for school library.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Children’s for the ARC of this!

Christopher Edge is one of my favorite middle grade authors, I love the science fiction twist to everything. This was no exception and I thought it was very engaging and fun - my kids kept begging me to read more and more aloud to them - both said it was great and “scary” though my guess is they just didn’t have the right word for tense/suspenseful. Perfect for a child obsessed with escape rooms or as an introduction to sci-fi thrillers, this short book will keep readers on the *edge* of their seats.

I liked the premise of an adventure mixed with escape room type elements. I think that the ending was a bit of a letdown for me. To take the turn into mostly being about climate change was a bit anticlimactic after all of the suspense and excitement of the rooms and the puzzles. Overall, I think that there are many older middle grade students that will understand the greater significance and enjoy the adventure of the story.

Race for the Escape is a blazing fast read–even by middle grade standards. With a lower page count that feels like a novella and then literally non-stop action, there is no time to get bored or for the reader’s interest to wander. Using the setting of an escape room as the basic premise, the author, Christopher Edge, definitely has his destination and theme firmly in mind. All the reader knows is that something is “off” about this escape room and frankly, that this seems a tad intense at times and extreme for a group of middle-schoolers. There isn’t time spent on character development because this book is ultimately about a message and a theme.

With a diverse ensemble of players in the escape room, this book is a good selection for readers who enjoy puzzles, mysteries, and some nail-biting action. But don’t be surprised if things go a bit differently than you expect.

Review of a Digital Advance Reading Copy Received from the Publisher

Race for the Escape is the newest book by author Christopher Edge and takes place in an escape room type setting. We follow five older children as they try to solve puzzles to advance to the next room, each room seemingly more dangerous than the one before. The kids quickly figure out that this fun escape room may end up to be a lot more deadly than they imagined.

There are some middle grade books that I feel appeal to a larger audience and there are some that will only entertain the age range the book is aimed at and this book os sadly the second. I wanted to love this book so much. The concept sounded so fun. I love books about games and puzzles so I was so hyped to start this. I quickly found that the puzzles were quite bizarre in nature with no way for the reader to try to figure them out with the characters. I also felt like this book lacked in overall development which made it hard to enjoy as an adult reader.

That being said, I do think the average middle grade child would love this book. There is definitely a fun sense of adventure and someone who doesn’t care about a lot of explanation in their book won’t mind the lack there of. This book has some sci-fi elements so it is perfect for a preteen who wants to try sci-fi. There is also some reveals late in the book that you don’t see a lot in middle grade so I know for most kids reading this, it will be one of the first times the read something like that.

I think the overall message was important and I can see a lot of kids getting a lot from this book. It just wasn’t a great reading experience for me.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review.

3.5 stars for this fantasy adventure. I absolutely loved the premise of the book, but the plot felt a bit too disjointed for me. The twist at the end definitely took me by surprise. I can see kids who like puzzles, clues, and games, enjoying this story.

<em>Race for the Escape</em> has such an excellent premise I had to request it from Netgalley: a group of kids go to an escape room but then discover it's more than just a game: there's some important Answer they need to find, and if they don't, it could literally cost them their lives. Unfortunately, the premise is the best part of the book. A confusing, nonsensical plot, an inability to make me actually care about the characters, and a lackluster ending make this one a hard pass from me.

I spent most of the book vaguely confused by what was going on, in that it doesn't make a lot of sense. As a brief example, one of the rooms in the escape room (which is really more of an escape building) catches on fire, and once the children figure out where the exit is, they are all relieved and move on as if they are perfectly safe. It is not once brought up that one of the rooms is the building is STILL ON FIRE and, you know, fire spreads. Usually I attribute illogical in middle grade books to the author assuming a young audience won't care, but I am pretty sure even a middle schooler understands that if one room in a building is on fire, you need to get out of the building entirely, not just that room.

Weird situations like this throughout the novel had me scratching my head and, sadly, not finding the whole escape room concept that clever. I was looking forward to the puzzle aspect of the novel, and there are a few riddles and games and such, but when the whole overarching plot doesn't make sense, it's hard for small puzzles and clues to really elevate the book.
I also struggled with the characters. Protagonist Ami is fine, and she randomly exhibits useful talents that make her fun to root for, but something about the writing meant I never really connected with the other characters, and when they start getting picked off by the real dangers of the escape room I . . . simply did not care. I do think some reviewers are going to call this book "dark," especially because it is a middle grade novel, because of the whole "kids dying" aspect. But I just shrugged my shoulders and kept on reading because the stakes never really felt that high to me, and I was never actually invested in the kids.

Finally, the ending really ruined the book for me. On one hand, the ending makes some of the nonsensical things that occur previous in the book actually make sense. On the other hand, it's extremely preachy (and about something that's sort of obvious). I hate lesson books as an adult, and I think kids are also sensitive to this, so fans of the book are going to need to be readers who don't mind books that have a message the author wants to hit them over the head with.

I think the whole escape room premise will draw in a lot of readers, and many of them may still like the book in spite of its other flaws, if they think escape rooms are cool enough. This one was definitely not for me, though, which is disappointing.

The biggest of the best Escape Rooms can't compare! Ami is sent to the event "Escape" as a birthday gift. Four other kids show up, and the Host gives them their task; to find the Answer and save the world.

When things go wrong in the beginning, the players discover that this game is more serious than they thought. They almost don't make it out of the first room alive!

There is definitely a drive to read to the end, but between rooms there are long stairs or ladders (for no specific reason) so they are great times to take a break.

Working more or less together, the kids make progress, but don't seem much closer to the Answer as they start optimistically (or cheerfully), then more desperately to exit each room. There is no time to contemplate what danger there may be--requiring the world to be saved--because the players have to fight for their lives almost immediately.

If you read the book and shelf it, it's pretty good as an adventure. If you think more deeply, the gaps and spaces in the plot show.

3/5 Stars A quick and entertaining light read, if don't think too hard about the plot.

Thanks to Random House Children's Books and Delacorte Press, and NetGalley for the free preview of the ebook; the review is voluntary.

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That twist!!! 😮

This wasn't for me as I never really got into it fully despite the promising premise. I found myself bored and skimming most of the book. The characters felt very stereotypical i.e. of course Min and Ibrahim are the intelligent ones, right?!

I loved the last chapter though! I never saw it coming and felt it was brilliant, but it seems I'm in the minority 😂 It made up for my lacklustre reading experience and pushed my rating up to 3 stars instead of my intended 2 stars.

However, I did enjoy all the little tidbits about Mayan civilisations. Those who loves solving puzzles and video games might love this more!

Not my favorite by Edge, the punchline felt similar to the Infinite Lives of Maisie Day so I anticipated the twist before it happened. However, it is still a fast-paced, slightly horrifying adventure for young readers and the trippy transitions fondly reminded me a little of Alice Through the Looking Glass. Like most of Edge's books I feel like they're solid recommendations for kids looking for spooky but also short and exciting, like kiddie sized Black Mirror episode.

Ami is excited for a night of adventure as she enters The Escape, a new supposedly impossible to beat escape room. Inside she meets four other kids and the challenge begins. They’re told that the world is at stake and they must find the Answer. It soon becomes clear that there is more stake than they thought as they discover that the dangers in each room are very, very real. Ami and her new friends face a sinister library, ancient Mayan ruins come to life, and prehistoric and extinct animals that aren’t so extinct. Will they escape? Will they find the Answer to save the world before it’s too late?

This was a fun adventure book. It moves fairly quickly and is fairly short (just under 200 pages). It has action, adventure, and information. I enjoyed that I was learning as I read but the information was delivered in a fun way where you don’t necessarily realize you’re learning. The book also took an interesting turn at the end that I wasn’t expecting, but it allowed the author to make his message and purpose for the book clear. The main theme is that kids Chan change the world. The whole point of the escape room is to get a child’s perspective on some of the world’s biggest problems in order to help solve them. Overall, I enjoyed the book and think I will look into adding a copy to my classroom library when it’s published in July 2022.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Random House Children’s Delacorte Press for allowing me the opportunity to read a digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book had a great start and instantly pulls the reader in. You are intrigued by all the players and want to know more and what you learn keeps you guessing. The escape challenges are thrilling and encompasses a lot of topics kids are interested in or could spark an interest in. The ending was a bit of a twist that I am not sure I like completely on term of entertainment, but I love the message for kids.

Having completed many escape rooms over the past few years, I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this book. Reading it reminded me of the experience of going through an escape room— fast paced, thrilling, and often puzzled. One of my favorite aspects to completing an escape room is the time after, when my friends and I deconstruct the experience trying to replay everyone’s role to make sense of what role each person played in solving the challenges. As I read, I often found myself stopping to reread and try to make sense of what was happening but the author’s notes at the end were comparable to the replay of an escape room and made the reading experience transform from something frantic/puzzling to something meaningful. I think that students would enjoy the fast-past adventure story but be left with something meaningful to ponder and discuss. I’ll definitely be adding copies to my classroom.

Race for the Escape was a perfect middle grade adventure book about a group of kids that go to and escape room and have to participate in dangerous tasks not just to win the game, but to save the world. This book was fun, exciting and deeper than I expected. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this advance reader copy.

Description from NetGalley:
When Ami Oswald arrives at The Escape--a new, supposedly impossible-to-beat escape room--all she wants it an evening of adventure for her birthday. She deserves it, after all her hard work. But as soon as the game starts, Ami and her four teammates realize they may have gotten more than they bargained for.
Now, the only way Ami and her friends can get out is by solving the mysterious riddle the Escape's Host has given them: Find the Answer, save the world. But the Answer could be anywhere, and in this game, a single mistake could be deadly. Because, as Ami quickly finds out, the danger in these rooms is very, very real.
Join Ami and the rest of the Five Mind as they face ancient Mayan warriors, a sinister library, and even prehistoric beasts in their quest to find the Answer and save the world, before it's too late. Can you escape the Escape? The world is betting on your success…
This book drops you just like Ami is dropped into the escape. I love escape rooms and can see a lot of that “everything is a clue” in how both Ami and I approach these kinds of puzzles. The book is not very long and grabs you from the get go, without slowing down. The different rooms and puzzles are also great.
Overall: 3.5/5

Race for the Escape by Christopher Edge is full of plot twists and turns as Ami and four other children try to solve the ultimate Escape Room. Good characterisation and multiple puzzles and an unforseen ending make this book different and one to recommend.