I think that the most effective horror for me is based in reality, so I found parts of this to be truly chilling. I think all women can relate to the main character, Eli’s, fears and how she is treated by her captor. As an added element, I’m a very anxious person and force myself to imagine how I would handle being kidnapped with alarming frequency, so I was sucked into this story immediately. I will say that this started to drag for me earlier than halfway through, and it might be because of all of the stories set in the past when I really wanted to know how things were progressing in the present. This aspect really frustrated me, and I might consider this a new favorite without that.

An updated version of Stephen King's Misery for a new audience. Elison takes a familiar set up (an author abducted by a fan) and uses it to explore new issues such as toxic masculinity, the effect of public shaming/ridicule on the individual, and the dark turn some fans take from admiring a work of fiction to then feeling as though it belongs to them. Well worth the read.

Woah! What the heck?! That was like the movie misery! Geez my heart is still pounding! I can't believe I waited this long to read this book?! I think this is my favorite book I've read yet this year! Omg what a thrilling suspenseful read! The male character was a total nut job! Lol I'm still shaking from this book! I was yelling at my kindle at one point! "Lock him in the basement!" "Lock him in the basement!!" My kids think I'm crazy lol I highly highly recommend reading this book! If you want a crazy heart pounding thrilling read this book is For you! This is my first book by this author and I'm going to go look for more right now! I can't even tell you how much I loved this book! thank you thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me! And a huge thank you to Meg Elison for your amazing words! I absolutely loved this book! Can't wait for more! I wish I could give it ten stars! Lol thank you again!

Terrifying! One of my worst nightmares in a book, but creeptastically and fantastically told by Elison. More Horror than thriller with a #MeToo era factored in. This author know how the scare the crap out of you. Loved it!

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Harlequin Trade Publishing and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

I found this one intriguing, full of suspense. It was the perfect mix of horror, thriller, mystery.

I was so intrigued and excited about the premise of this book. Unfortunately, it was just not for me. I did not enjoy the writing style and found it to be boring. It dragged for awhile and I DNF’ed it at 60%.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book was sent to me electronically for review from Netgalley. This book is horror...thriller...mystery...whodunit...all mixed together. It is frightening as more and more are using cars driven by strangers...probably not as safe as we think...maybe it is an exaggeration...who knows? I know I and my family will be careful checking ID's...That being said, this book is dark and way too descriptive for me...especially about what happens to the woman. I enjoy thrillers, but this one just did not grab my attention. Others may like this one.

The premise of this thriller is intriguing and takes off running from page one - popular author Eli hops into the back seat of her ride share without taking a moment to match the model & license plate to what's showing in her app, and ends up in a nightmare scenario - kidnapped, and by her number one fan. From there, we see so many of women's genuine fears played out incredibly vividly - not knowing who is right next to you every day, who you're dealing with online, who in your life will notice if you're missing, if anyone will at all, violence, sexual assault, defending your own actions when you're the victim, not being believed, dealing with the aftermath of a traumatic situation. This book is a roller coaster, start to finish, and definitely one to check out for anyone who enjoys non-stop tension.

That said, there were several things that did not work for me. The jumping between present and past felt jumbled and hard to follow. The villain was so one-note he was nearly cartoonish. Following his "man angry at women" motivation was easy enough, but understanding how his attachment to fictional characters and Eli's books tied into that was more of a stretch.

Overall, this thriller had a great premise and high tension, but ultimately lost its way in the execution for me.

Thank tou NetGalley and harlequin trade publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book.
2.5 stars rounded up
I’m having trouble writing this review, as the story itself was pretty good. An updated version of Misery perhaps. However, I found it incredibly hard to connect with the main character. I was more drawn to the parts with her assistant or the FBI agent, over her. I dont think the characters were developed enough to feel one way or another about them. I found it fairly difficult to want to pick up the book to finish it, and I’m not sure if it’s the writing or the characters or even me?

With this tagline, I had high hopes for this book: 𝐓𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐲, 𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 #𝐌𝐞𝐓𝐨𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐍𝐔𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐍 𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤, 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

There were some things about this book that worked--the lines blurring between fiction and reality, first and foremost. But this story was just too similar to MISERY. Writer Eli Grey is trying to multi-task and gets into an Uber without taking the time to verify it's the correct car. After downing a dosed drink, she wakes up in a basement. Instead of forcing her to write a manuscript, her captor speaks to her as if she is one of the fantasy characters she created.

Just like Annie WIlkes, he is unfailingly polite, doesn't like profanity, and is determined to blend his fantasies with reality. I kept reading because I was invested in the story, but the similarities just really deterred me from enjoying this book. Many thanks to Mira Books and NetGalley for this early read. 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 for Goodreads. Publishes August 30, 2022.

Novelist Eli Grey hops into a taxi and for some bizarre reason, accepts a drink from the driver. Cue scary music…..When she comes to, she’s chained up in the man’s basement. Turns out her abductor is heavily invested in Eli’s book and the worlds she’s created in them. With no close friends or family to sound the alarm that she’s gone missing, Eli must rely on her wits to get her out of a seriously creepy situation. Reminiscent of Stephen King’s Misery, and while I really wanted to smack the protagonist for taking a drink from a stranger (really?), I liked the fact that she seemed to wise up later in the book

An intense and compelling thrilling story of a young woman’s fight to escape her captor. This story is an emotional one and will have the readers rooting for the heroine.

Number One Fan is about an author who is abducted and held in a basement and his tortured by her captor.
The story moved along but just felt like it was a bit of a struggle until about 3/4th’s way thru the book.
It just didn’t make me WANT to not put it down.
I was rather bored and knew where the story was going the whole time.