Not a big fan of this one, I didn’t like the main character throughout the before portion of the book and during the captivity part I still didn’t really like him. I get that the author was trying to make him unlikeable but I think she did too good of a job because while I thought the things that were happening to him were brutal, I couldn’t really connect with the character

I was blown away by Robin Roe's "A List of Cages." And if I loved that, "Dark Room Etiquette" impressed me even more.

The first fifth of this book produced such a prominent feeling of dread. It was so eerily clear that something awful was about to happen. I couldn't stop reading. There were times I wanted to because this read is very anxiety-inducing, but the two times I put it down, I couldn't stop thinking about it. I read this 500-page book within eight hours from when I picked it up.

This book is not for the faint of heart. If you're not in a great mental space or dealing with trauma, I'd recommend waiting. However, if you're in a good place, this was a very thrilling, thought-provoking, dark, and heavily meaningful read. Roe details the process of a traumatic kidnapping from before, during, and after, which is the most important part. There is not much content out there that focuses on the aftermath, the recovery, which for our main character, Sayers, is far from easy.

Sayers, or Saye, is a spoiled jerk of a character at the beginning of the book. I really wanted to just punch him. However, the kidnapped Saye was a completely different story, and it was heartbreaking being in this poor kid's head and seeing him go through the things he went through. But it was also good to see him beginning to go through a recovery process at the end of the book with a friend who truly cared about him.

Saye's mental shift in this book is incredibly real, terrifying, and confusing to think about. Roe is truly a talented writer.

This book pulled very physical reactions from me: I was always gasping or saying things out loud (when I was by myself, of course), and it's a great thing for an author to produce such an engaging read.

I've been waiting for this book for months, and it did not disappoint. I am very pleased, aside from a few qualms, with the plot and turnout of "Dark Room Etiquette."

When Robin reached out to offer me an ARC of this book I thought it sounded really interesting, but I had no idea the emotional journey this book would take me on.⁠
Sayers is a wealthy, privileged teenager who is easy to dislike. He's rude, aloof, and has no regard for the people that he and his friends hurt. ⁠
After his kidnapping, the harrowing story that unfolds is quite difficult to read, however, somewhere between the sadness and tension emerges a story of hopefulness and survival. ⁠
It is impossible to put oneself into the shoes of Sayers, yet the layers of emotion that Robin draws out in the reader are identifiable. ⁠
I could not put this one down. What started as "I'll read a few chapters" turned into me reading this one in 24 hours. I cannot recommend this one enough for your TBR list!

Kidnapping trope, but let's make it focused on the victim and his experience and PTSD afterwards instead of the kidnapper themselves.

This was a well-written book that really delves into the emotional impact and lasting effects of trauma, but in a way that teens can read it and relate to. I did think the book was too long and could have been chopped in half to around 250 pages and still been as impactful, but that might be just me. The middle dragged for me and I found myself skipping ahead.

Might be more suited to older middle grade readers and their parents. I can see this being a great parent/child bookclub read because there's lots to discuss.

The author's note at the end really made this story just a little more important!

Rating:5/5
Pub Date: 10/11/22
I was gifted an eARC of this book for my honest review.

I always wondered how I would handle a trauma like Sayers had to. I thought of myself as someone who was strong enough to handle anything. Do you think you could handle having your life ripped away from you and never knowing again if you will ever see the people you loved?

I started to read this book then I stopped not because it was awful but because I was not in the right state of mind for it, and I am so happy that I waited. WOW this book was amazing, and so emotionally damaging but in a way that really opens some part of you and helps you to be more understanding to people who have been dealing with trauma in their life.
I hated Sayers in the beginning of the book, I thought he was a spoiled rich alphahole. Then I wanted to pick him up, and just hold him in my arms and tell him that everything will be alright. Robin Roe did a fantastic job really bringing her MC from being someone who is loved/hated to someone that is more understanding and willing to help others around him. Sayers really did change his life for the better after that traumatic experience, and we get to watch the aftermath of that trauma and how he was able to overcome it. For me Sayers character growth was the best that I have read all year.
While reading this book you might feel anger for the actions of Sayers in the beginning to grief & heartache. From having joy to having overwhelming doom & suspense of not knowing what is to come. From being afraid & wanting to comfort those who were attacked in this book. I cannot express all the emotions I had while reading this book, but I can tell you that I cried and not just once a few times for all the pain, fearfulness, to the happiness at the end of this book.
I really loved how this book didn't just focus on the trauma that Sayers went through but also the aftermath of the trauma. The hardships that he had to overcome after being set free and having to return to his life was really an eye opener for me.
I can't say too much more without giving out any spoilers so I will just stop right here.
I want to Thank Robin Roe for allowing me the opportunity to review this amazing book and NetGalley for using their program to do so. This book was on Goodreads Most Anticipated YA Books for the Fall List, and I can tell you without a doubt I know why it was. This is a book that I hope all YA, mystery thriller, suspense lovers will pick up and read. I do not think you will be disappointed.

I knew very little aside from the brief synopsis before reading it and I think that was a benefit. Sayers Wayte was such a complex character for being so young, and this story was brutal and heartbreaking and disturbing in so many ways. I stayed up way too late reading it and have found myself thinking about it since finishing it. There were many times I thought I had things figured out and was usually off base with my expectations in the best way.

I was so excited to get to read this book so early and let me tell you, it did not disappoint. As soon as I started reading I could not stop. I finished it in less than a day, a couple of hours tops because the story is that good. Now, first off let’s get one thing straight, the book is in the thriller genre. So if you think you’re gonna be reading something other than a thriller you’re mistaken, I was constantly on edge going to see what happens next and there were times when I would think but how is it possible that more things could happen.
The way that the book is written is very clever and also covers some sensitive topics as well. Highly recommend this book to everyone.

This book is dark, heartbreaking and uncomfortable at some points but it's also hopeful. I wish it was a tiny bit shorter but it was very well written and put together. The prologue sucked me in. I enjoyed this author's note at the end: The characters in this book are each doing their best to cope with their individual experiences, but trauma can feel like a dark room. We live in it, or maybe it lives in us, and it can become a place we're not sure we can ever escape. I'm looking forward to reading more by Robin Roe.

This is one the quickest 500-pages books I’ve ever read. I am not the biggest fan of big books, I am actually team 300 and something pages and I am a big lover of novellas and short stories. Especially when it comes to contemporary and thrillers, I am always hesitant when I see a high page count. However, this book needed all the pages it had and the pacing was very well done, because you literally can’t put this book down.
The book can be divided into three parts: for the first 20% you get to know Sayers and you also come to kinda hate him; he is not a good person, he thinks he can get away with anything because of his status and his money and he lets himself be influenced by people that are worse than him, ignoring all the red flags they display.
Then, he gets abducted and you start to feel for him. It’s hard not to feel for someone who is kidnapped and locked up in a house without windows. This middle part was my favourite part of the book; I have consumed my fair share of true crime and listened to survivors’ accounts of their time in captivity: it’s always devastating and reading about it it’s no less hard. The way Sayers loses his grip on reality is perfectly depicted and the Stockholm syndrome symptoms are masterfully thrown in there. As the reader, you recognise them as such, even if the main character himself obviously does not. Also, during this second part there was a plot twist I didn’t see coming at all and I loved how the story evolved thanks to it.
The third part of the book I am not going to discuss, because it would probably be considered spoiler. What I will say, though, is that I was not expecting it to be there, but I appreciated the author decided to show that to us. I wasn’t the biggest fan of some choices she made regarding the characters and their journey, but I understand her intent and I want to hope that in the future one of the characters does what I wish they had done immediately. I know it sounds confusing, but if you’ve read the book you’ll know. If you haven’t this is your sign to pick this book up as soon as it releases, so you can understand my point.
What I think was done best, aside from the psychological aspect of the book (you can tell Robin Roe knows what she is talking about, and it’s always nice when authors know their shit), were definitely the characters. Both Sayers and Caleb are masterfully constructed: Sayers has one of the hardest character developments I’ve ever read and I think the author handled that perfectly. He is one of the most traumatised characters I’ve ever encountered, but still he has to unlearn some of his bad habits from the past and it was interesting to see.
Earlier this month, I found a very exciting DM in my Instagram inbox: Robin Roe, the author of A List of Cages, was asking me if I wanted to receive an e-ARC of her latest book, Dark Room Etiquette. The book was already on my radar and of course I said yes, because it sounded right up my alley. I am honoured she reached out to me, and I want to give her a big shoutout because she really is the sweetest and you can tell how much this book means to her.
Caleb is everything you expect him to be and then some; the most outstanding thing the author has managed to do, as far as I am concerned, is that at times you kind of understood him, but then you realised that you were thinking that and got the chills. It felt like being locked in the house with Sayers and like you were starting to develop some sort of Stockholm syndrome of your own. Truly amazing and scary at the same time, I think it just goes to show that we do not know how we would react in a similar situation and that probably, for all our big words, we would just act like Sayers in the end, because the mind wants to protect itself and this is one of the ways it does it.
The writing was also really good and it kept you reading and reading and reading. I read the last 60% of the book in one sitting, after the longest work day ever, and if that does not mean the writing was compelling and engaging, I don’t know what does.
Overall, this is such a profound depiction of trauma, it’s much more than a contemporary or thriller. I highly recommend this book to literally everyone, but be sure to check the TWs out, since as you can imagine there are so many of them they wouldn’t fit in a single page. If you think you’d be fine with the content of this book, please go ahead and place your preorder, I guarantee you will not be disappointed by Dark Room Etiquette.

Sayre Wayte has everything. Money, looks, and brains, but he is just bored. He has hints of being a good person but ultimately fails to do more than not be an active participant in bullying the less fortunate (like everyone). He is 16 but has the jaded perspective of a world-weary man.
Then the unthinkable happens. He is taken by a man who says his whole life has been a lie. He becomes a prisoner with no choice other than to embrace his captor, even if it means losing himself. This is an unflinchingly brutal and honest look not only at trauma but its aftermath.
There was more than one time that I was yelling at my kindle, begging Sayre to make a different choice. Did I also despise some of the secondary characters for what they did? Yes indeed. There was a relationship that grew, and that friendship was everything. Lots of triggers here, but ultimately the story ripped my heart out and then slowly put some of the pieces back together. This did not read like a book that was 512 pages. I just flew through it. 4.5 stars.

A dark tragic tale of hope, identity and a boys courage to overcome the odds. I went in expecting more of a YA thriller but instead found a profound, deeply thought provoking book with heart. As someone who works in the mental health, I found this book realistic in its portrayal of trauma and recovery. It took a little while for the book to grip me but once it did I was hooked. I loved the authors writing style and found the book easy to read and found myself flying through the pages. I read it over the course of one afternoon. Prior to this book, this author was unknown to me but after the strength of this one, I will for sure be looking out for other books.
Thank you to Robin Roe, the publisher and Netgalley for an arc of this book.

4.5 stars, rounded down

Wow, this book does NOT mess around. Robin Roe has no problem exploring the disgusting and raw side of humanity, but shows us the beauty and goodness too.

Sayers Wayte is an extremely rich, extremely privileged teenager. Things are going his way - he’s popular, has a girlfriend, and is about to be homecoming prince. Only problem is that he is insufferable. He’s the epitome of apathy and does nothing when his friends bully other kids in school. After a fit of rage and an altercation with his friends, he drives off on a deserted road and gets kidnapped, resulting in loads of mental and physical trauma.

The first third of this book is written so well that while reading, I had this overwhelming sense of dread. You just know something is about to happen, like the moment before a jump scare. Afterwards, it becomes an extremely fast paced read that I didn’t even notice it was 500 pages long. You become so close to Sayers that you feel his confusion and pain immensely.

Overall, this is a wonderful look into humanity, redemption and healing. I’m so glad I read it and I know I’ll be thinking about this for a long time.

Rounded down to 4 stars only because there were a few elements that didn’t work for me. (See in spoilers below)

SPOILERS:
- Sayers seeks God and religion after his kidnapping but never goes to therapy (although it’s hinted that he might start)
- Sayer’s mom sues the hell out of a kid for a threat at school, effectively bankrupting his family (I don’t think this character needed more reason to hate Sayers and suing someone for a off-hand threat seems excessive)
- Sayer’s mom did not care about his recovery at all? She totally bailed to Mexico for a trip while he was having panic attacks and not coping well. For a mom that was supposed to be his best friend it felt so cold and horrible, but maybe that was the point

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

*There are TW to this book so make sure to look them up before reading

Sayers Wayte thinks he has everything, a lavish life, good friends, a girlfriend, and parents that seem to relatively care about him. Until one day he is kidnapped by a man who tells him that everything he believes about his life is a lie. Sayers knows that he needs to feed into this man’s beliefs or else he may not get out alive, but how much can you fake the beliefs and memories before you start to really believe them yourself.
*
Wow. Just wow. I have no words for how much I loved this book. Roe is such a fantastic writer that you are just immediately sucked into the story line and she doesn’t let you go the entire time. She does a fantastic job at exploring the topics of trauma and when people experience traumatic events how it can shake up their entire worldview and affect every detail of their life. You can definitely see how much research she did regarding trauma and the recovery process for people who have experienced traumatic events. Not only that, but she did a great job showing the readers how even a similar traumatic event can lead to different responses.

I cannot speak highly of this book. It is haunting and horrifying but in a beautiful way. Roe has such a way with words and gives the reader such hope throughout the novel. I definitely think it is an important book and can definitely open up conversations regarding trauma.

This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (read_betweenthecovers) in the near future!

God. This is a book that…everyone should read. It was the complete opposite of what I expected going in and I’m just sitting here barely processing what I read. This book broke me. It made me sob and want to throw up and it is haunting and horrifying but it is filled with so much hope at its center and you have to believe with everything you can that it will turn out okay.

This is not an easy book to read. It is not a fun book to read. But it is wholly, deeply something that more people should talk about. I never read author’s notes but I read this one and I just. Just read this book.

Five stars for an absolutely stellar writing experience. Thank you to Robin for an eARC- you’ve gained a fan for life.

👀 Q: What’s the last book you were so consumed by that you let daily responsibilities (like laundry) fall to the wayside?

✋🏻 THIS BOOK.

⚠️ Dark Room Etiquette is absolutely amazing, but first, content warnings: kidnapping, bullying, trauma, mental illness, suicide, torture

Ok, I know that sounds awful, but holy smokes this book is amazing.

🏠 What’s it about?
Sayers is a super rich high school kid who can get away with anything- speeding, bad behavior, poor grades. It’s gotten to the point that he’s bored with life, so he falls in with a group of guys who start bullying other kids. Its gut-wrenching to read.

But then, one night, Sayers is kidnapped and taken to a house far away from everything.

✋🏻 I don’t think I can go much further than this without spoiling the story. And trust me, you don’t want me to. I will say there are moments in this story where my jaw truly dropped, and parts of the book that I will be thinking about for a long time.

👉🏼 This story also explores affection, forgiveness and empathy. It also tackled post-trauma response and recovery.

👀 Once I started reading Dark Room Etiquette, I couldn’t stop. The chapters are short and every single second made me wonder what could possibly happen next. And Roe’s writing is just so good. I can’t fathom the amount of research it took or where her head had to be at to write this book. But just wow!

I love that Roe brings in everything from psychological tricks to prayer and trauma response. It makes it all feel so eerily real.

❤️‍🩹 And we all need more Evan’s in the world.

This isn’t a book I would naturally gravitate to, but it is one I loved and absolutely would recommend.

4.5 Stars

When I sat down to start this book, I knew a couple of things: this is about a sixteen-year-old kidnapped boy told that his former life was all a lie and that he needed to adapt to his new environment to survive. I thought I came prepared for the emotions I would feel along this journey - I was not.

First, the book is unsettling. Even before the kidnapping, I felt uneasy due to conflicting emotions. Sayers is a highly complex character; you see his weakness, strengths, and humanity. Presented as a teenager from an incredibly wealthy background, I appreciated how his privilege impacts his behaviour at school and with his family and friends.

Secondly, Sayers has to adapt to survive, and how he does so impacted me immensely. As the plot progressed, I could appreciate how a knowledge base and background research would be essential to write this story. The book presented some theories in psychology that impacted Sayers in the story, some he recalls later on.

Third, many characters were multi-dimensional - you could see a clear contrast between their personalities at the beginning and end of the book. In fact, some characters were almost unrecognizable by the end and others, such as Garrett, were static. Sayers' personality experienced many changes; some of the directions his mind went brought me to tears.

Finally, I like that this was a story not just of the event - the kidnapping, but responses to trauma and the aftermath. Learning to cope in an abusive environment was Sayers' key to survival. Sadly, the intense trauma he faced hindered him in some very unexpected and heartbreaking ways. At several points, I desperately wanted to plead with Sayers on what he should do - I can imagine other readers having the same response.

Please review the content warnings before reading this book. This book is such a memorable, emotional, and intense read. It is my first time reading the author's works and I look forward to reading many more!

Thank you to NetGalley, Robin Roe, and HarperTeen for providing this review copy. All opinions are my own.

I just could not get into this book. All the bullying and the attitude was over the top and i found the characters so pretentious and mean. And they bounced around so much. Is the MC a good guy or a bad guy. It was hard to tell. I didn’t care about any of them frankly. And i was waiting for something to happen outside of bullying. And i just couldn’t continue. I thought this would be a haunting tale but it was just horrible behavior.

The human mind is truly fascinating and in ways terrifying..it can be moulded and twisted and form an entirely new reality. I was ready to feel all the emotions going into the book, but what I wasn't ready or prepared for was the intense dislike I had for the main Character, Sayers (Saye) at the beginning. He was a stuck up, entitled, selfish and cruel person so when he was eventually kidnapped I found myself battling to feel 100% sympathy for his situation. Sayer's experience and trauma is so well captured by the author that my opinion began to change as the book went on and it was somewhat dark and disturbing seeing this former entitled person being reduced to a child like and hollow being. You can sense his fear, his despair and his confusion which as a reader is very harrowing.
while this book is quite dark, it also portrays the aftermath of Sayers trauma- His battle with being free, which is not something you would expect and also the change in his persona. Yet again the author was able to capture all these emotions so well, that following Sayers journey after freedom made it very emotional reading.
While I would 150% recommend this book to others, I would suggest checking the trigger warnings. One of the best books I have read in a while!!

Wow. This book is deeply disturbing and difficult to read at times but wow I am so grateful to have read this story. It at times reminded me of My Dark Vanessa in how children are groomed to behave differently than they would otherwise. This book is incredibly well written and well put together. I'll definitely be reading more by this author.

Thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

ALL THE STARS!!!!

OMG! Prepare yourself for a long and probably disorganized review because I am BURSTING with so many thoughts right now! #sorrynotsorry
To give you an idea, I took 19 pages of notes while reading… 19!
That story gave me so many thoughts and feelings I needed to write them. Also I literally couldn’t stop reading once Sayers had been abducted. I finished my read in the evening, heart thudding, shoulders aching for having been tense all the time and looking like a sad panda as I had bawled like a baby the last 30% of the book!

That story was INTENSE!

OK let’s backtrack now that this is out of my chest.

I had read A List of Cages, Robin’s first novel, years ago, influenced by so many of you and it made it to my “best books of the year”.
I then waited to see what Robin Roe would publish next. And waited. And waited…
Until one day Robin reached out to me and asked if I was interested in getting an ARC of her next book.
I was stunned that she remembered me, flattered, humbled but above all else, very enthusiastic!

I dove into Dark Room Etiquette head first and nearly blind.
I knew it was about kidnapping and survival of course but I had NO IDEA of what awaited me!

First, the prologue was excellent. We get a whiff of what is awaiting Sayers and it instantly gives a dread feel to the book.
Then the first chapters give us an idea of who Sayers is before being kidnapped.
And let me tell you that at first glance, Sayers was NOT the kind of hero that I usually love!
It’s not that he was intrinsically bad but more that he was so oblivious of his actions or non-actions that were hurting people that I was…flummoxed and outraged! I simply thought that Sayers was a little pr!ck.
Yet, knowing this was Robin’s story, I couldn’t help thinking, or maybe hoping, that he would have a hell of a growth.
And it wasn’t as if people didn’t try to show the way to Sayers, like his friend Luke or Mr. Rivas, his Latin teacher, telling him wisely : ““What I’m trying to say is having money doesn’t mean you should do nothing—it means you can do anything.”
But I think Sayers was so wealthy he was bored. And he had such freedom from his parents that he felt adrift, present yet not. And when teenagers are bored, they make bad decisions or make bad friends.

And then, one day, the kidnapping happens.

That’s where I stop with the plot as I don’t want to spoil anything.

From that moment on, Sayers's transformation is chilling!

What follows is a hell of a psychological thriller dissecting all that you would do or rather what your mind would do to survive! It had me on pins and needles, horrified more than once!
I can’t count the time I thought: “Oh no Robin, don’t do this, don’t do this, don’t do this to me!” Yet she did. Never did she shy away from a difficult scene to hit us in the chest with the feelings, the dread, the tension, the horror but also… the hope.
Robin did an amazing job showing us mind manipulation and all the strong and mixed feelings someone can have for his captor.
If she showed us the victim’s POV in “A List of Cages”, we will now see through the criminal’s eyes. And having a peek at his past, at his ordeals make it hard to totally hate him. Because at the end of the day, even the worse criminals have a past, a story. And if it will never excuse what they did, it will create some empathy with them as fellow flawed human beings, hence generating conflicted emotions, just like what happened to Sayers.

I could truly go on and on about that story (19 pages of notes remember?) but I’d just like to say that Robin crushed my heart, ground it in a fine powder, sent my blood pressure through the roof and had me depleting my provision of tissues. I left that story exhausted and dazed. I also couldn’t help but hope for Sayers.

If you are a fan of very intense psychological thrillers, or even a fan of “A List of Cages” go for it! I promise you will thank me!
Just be aware that there are many triggers and sensitive topics in that book!

Also, I would like to thank Robin, from the bottom of my heart, not only for offering me that early copy (and I promise it had no influence on this review) but also for being my buddy reader, even if she didn’t plan for it!
I told you I needed to write my thoughts while reading well, I couldn’t help message Robin all along with my reactions because I NEEDED to vent! And she gamely and very patiently listened to all of my rambling 😉

Also, a last thank you Robin for accepting to be interviewed! I am leaving the link to the interview here:

And to conclude (I know, I know, this is loooong) I will leave you with this excerpt from Robin’s notes at the end of the story:
“And it means reminding ourselves that no matter what’s happened to us, we still have the capacity for so much joy—because there is always a way out of a dark room.”

PS: Robin, I would love a big epilogue one day… maybe like a Christmas gift??