The Game was book that I could NOT put down. Each character gets a chapter and each character was so captivating but every time I finished their chapter I NEEDED to get to their next chapter. It was a rotation of never wanting to put this book down. The characters being thrown into the game to save the person they care about the most is terrifying and so interesting to read about. Each chapter I never knew where it was headed. I totally recommend checking out this book that will make you wanna never stop reading!

My thanks, to Harper 360, Scott Kershaw and Netgalley.
I had a blast reading this book! I liked slowly getting to know these "contestants."
Unfortunately, the finale ended up being a fart in a wet bag. It stunk! I just really didn't want to believe it. Not because I was appalled, but because it was "creative writing, 101."
Outlandish? No. Just really lame.

Free ARC from NETGALLEY

SO when does the series come out? It is that good and original.

5 people to play, but 5 people will not stay and he leaves y9ou with a LOT MORE than 5 answers.

Thank you for a worthy read!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of The Game by Scott Kershaw. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Harper 360 for providing an ARC to review.

Five Strangers have the person they love the most kidnapped and forced to play a game that will have deadly consequences.

I gave this book a 3/5. I didn't connect the way I was hoping to with the story. I only cared about certain characters, and the globe-trotting story felt unrealistic. I upped my score because I did enjoy the end reveal and felt it was something different and unique. I wish I could have liked the whole book as much as I did the final chapters. I would recommend everyone give it a try because maybe the writing style will hit you differently than it did me.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review - - What a book!!!
Five strangers receive a message - someone they love is in danger and to save their life they must play this game.. What kind of game is this? How can they win? Can they save their loved one? They want to do anything they can to win but will it be enough?

I love a good thriller and this book peaked my interest. The premise, five strangers have a loved one abducted and they must vie against each other or their loved one will die, sounded promising. Add in that there will only be one winner in this game of life or death, and I was there. I am pleased to say that the execution of the premise is nearly faultless and that this fast-paced book captured me from the start and held me to its satisfying conclusion.

Maggie, Brett, Sarah, Noah and Linda all have one thing in common: a person they love has been abducted. They each receive an untraceable text message warning them against contacting the police and giving them a deadline to reach a remote inn in England. Maggie and Brett live in the United States, Noah in France and Sarah and Linda in England, so for some this is the first major challenge in what the puppet master refers to as The Game. They are referred to only by a player number and told explicitly that they must win the game or their loved one will die. This seemingly pits them against each other but they quickly learn that collaboration is rewarded, thus they form an uneasy alliance as they try to figured out just what exactly the game encompasses.

In this somewhat gritty but utterly suspenseful book, Scott Kershaw draws the reader in, puts the pedal down and never lets up. Like the characters, the reader is also trying to figure out why this is happening and what the characters have done to deserve this. As the book progresses and more is learned about each character, the shadow of the person pulling their strings looms large. Who could be capable of pulling off such an elaborate plan and why, are questions that kept me turning pages.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper 360 HQ for an advance copy of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for a review copy in exchange for an honest review. I was really excited about this one but for me it fell a little flat. It started out so strong, but started to drag a little in the middle. I got lost at times, and felt it was moving a little slow. It picked up a little again towards the end, but still can't bring myself to rate it higher. Please still check this book out as it should not be missed. Again, thank you for a chance to review this book.

The Game was a surprisingly well-detailed story about a group of five people who must face incredible odds to save the person they love the most. The ways through which their lives are unknowingly connected will rock your world. The final resolution was tragic and more than a bit surprising. Overall, this is a quick read that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

I couldn't put this book down! I was pulled right in from the beginning and the twists and turns kept me guessing right up to the end.

I could not put this book down. The summary reminded me of The Chain but I enjoyed this book so much more and the overall premise was different. I wasn't sure who to trust the entire time and was very surprised by the ending. I recommend this one if you enjoy thrillers/mysteries.

I really enjoyed this. I thought the first two-thirds of the book were brilliant. I thought the premise was well set up, and my biggest complaint would be that it ended too quickly.

This would make a great movie! Five strangers receive a mysterious text that a loved one has been kidnapped and they must now "play the game" and one winner can save their loved one. Challenges are horrible and the suspense and action is nonstop. Highly entertaining!

This one starts with a bang! Maggie Dawson, a young mother, wakes up to discover her child missing and then as she is freaking out she receives a mysterious text inviting her to play a game. But Maggie is just the first of five people ‘invited’ to play a game with the chance of saving the life of their loved one. Who is running the game and why were these people chosen to play? The Game is a fast-paced, gripping thriller and one heck of a debut from author Scott Kershaw. This would make a really good Netflix miniseries.

Thanks so much to Harper 360, HQ and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of The Game.

First it's hard to believe that this is the authors debut novel. I rate it 3.5 stars as I really enjoyed the first part of the book and getting to know each central character. The story then tends to slow its pace a bit only to pick up again at the end. The ending is a surprise but I agree with others that there are some unanswered questions that really need responses. Still an enjoyable read. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publishers for an e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Game by Scott Kershaw
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

5 complete strangers. Across 3 different countries recieve the same text message.
" Welcome to the game "
They must navigate their way through seemingly ridiculous, and impossible tasks in order to save the ones they love .
There can only be 1 winner. But theres so much more to this game than any of them can fathom .

At first. I thought. Cool ... a book based on the popular movie " saw " . . . " I WANT TO PLAY A GAME " . But this first thought was so far removed from what actually came of this book . The book was well thought out and imagined . Everything means something, so don't skim or skip anything . Lol
The characters were my only issue . A few of the ' players ' were so unbelievably unlikable. However it made it easier to root for an outcome . . As harsh as that sounds given my prior synopsis. You will understand what I mean when you read this one .

I liked this one so much . It was a strange fast paced puzzle . Trigger warnings include strong gore. Scenes of r*pe and sexual assault. Animal death. Kidnapping . And su*cide . But warnings aside thats what made the book come together. .
If your looking for a quick read than consider the Game . .

How far are you willing to go for the one you love the most ?

Thank you @netgalley and @harper360 for the ARC of THE GAME

The Game hi Scott Kershaw is about five players Maggie, A woman who gave up her son in an open adoption, Brent a man who although in a long-term relationship with a woman is secretly in love with his best friend Craig, Sara addicted to online bingo and after struggling with infertility it’s two small children, Linda a woman who is glory days or behind her she struggles to be close to her teenage daughter and then there’s Noah, he is a man who wants to do the right thing for his fiancé Sophia, but always seems to be coming up against a brick wall. They will all lose the person closest to them by kidnapping and most played the game according to the rules and the first rule is is contact no one and throw away your real phone. There sent coordinates to the lonely Moores in England and Mas all get there by Tuesday afternoon. Maggie and Brett must get there from America, Noah is coming from France but doesn’t have a passport Sarah cannot pull her self together until she does and makes a beeline for the mowers and then there’s a Linda she is adamant come hell or Highwater she’s getting her daughter back. this is the best book I have read and I don’t know how long. I usually can predict or figure out what’s going to happen and I must say I couldn’t with this book not until the end. The clothes they give you throughout the book do not clued you in at all and that makes for an awesome thriller. I am so glad I ask for this book and I am so glad they let me read it. If you love hard drama and thrillers that are unpredictable you’re going to absolutely love this book it borders on horror. I was given this book by Nat Gally and I am leaving this review voluntarily. please forgive any grammatical or punctuation errors as I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are definitely my own.

I’ve had to think about this one for a bit. I’m truly torn because when I started it and made it about half way I was OBSESSED. The players and characters and writing all a trifecta of page turning stomach flipping fun! But. I get to the second half of the book and it starts to lose its flow for me. One of the characters turned into a completely different person for me and it was just kind of weird. The mind blowing twists at the end was kind of a little too far out there for me to truly appreciate. Overall I would recommend it because I really couldn’t flip through fast enough to finish it and it really was captivating despite the end being a bit *blows raspberry*.

The book opens and introduces five players. It’s easy to keep up with the characters as it typically picks up where it left off each time it arrived to their chapter. Someone has been taken that they love and they have to play THE GAME to get them back. Why them?! What in the world is the game?! And why people from across the world?! Dun dun dunnnnn…!

Thank you Harper 360 and netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to preview The Game.
Wow - this is an original story with plenty of surprises
Five people get notified that someone close to them will die if they don’t play “the game”. Each person has someone close to them disappear. Rules are simple - tell no one and follow instructions that will be given to them. Why were these five people selected? Why is the question.
So they play and the plot begins.
Truly original and different.
Kept me reading into the night. Very good. 5 stars!!!

I really wanted to like this book, the premise was extremely intriguing and unlike a lot of books that contain a massive conspiracy-type plot, it was well done for the most part, but there were just too many things in the book that I didn't enjoy to be able to overlook the bad. I kept notes as I read and this review is mostly just gonna be a stream of consciousness of how I felt while reading. There will be spoilers.

There were way too many characters, the 5 player characters would have been difficult enough to follow, but then the author introduced several non-POV characters in each of their lives. Which is realistic, but does not create a story that is easy to follow. Which leads to my next point, in what I assume was a bid to keep the reader on their toes and prevent them from catching on to the big twist, the author chose to essentially head-hop through the 5 players(and add in random chapters from other perspectives as well) regardless of the timeline of the overarching plot. And while this could have been artfully done, because of the number of perspectives, it all just felt muddled and confusing.

I also did not feel the number of references to poop/bowel distress were necessary. I understand that many of them were the author's attempt to showcase how anxious and stressed the characters were, but there are so many other physiological stress responses that he could have used instead.

Another big problem I had were the "PreGame" chapters. If I hadn't known this book was written by a man, I certainly would have been able to guess from those. I have a feeling some of those passages will end up on the twitter account/subreddit MenWritingWomen. Obviously the things going on in those chapters were supposed to be creepy and weird, but the problem is that the perspective was supposed to be that of a teenage girl and the characterization of her was just strange. It honestly felt like it was being written by the average viewer of a young female streamer and what they think/hope they act and think like.

Like many other reviewers, I thought Craig was awful. And that in and of itself is not a problem(I'm not justifying the things he did and said, but not all characters in a book need to be perfect angels), but it meant that I was actively rooting against Brett for the entire book. Or at least hoping that he would get past his internalized racism and homophobia and realize that Craig wasn't worth saving. Honestly I think the book would have been better if Craig had been the one playing The Game and Brett had been kidnapped instead. At least there would have been potential for a redemption arc.

So much time was spent on Noah and then his arc just sort of fizzled out. We never really got an answer for why he was chosen for the game(Linda hinted that he had sold drugs to the porn guy, but it was never explicitly stated) and we also never learn if he made it back to France and what happened to Sofia.

Sarah's ending just pissed me off. While I understand it's never just as easy as "leave", her attempts to justify what Neil did disgusted me.

Overall I wish I could have given this book a better review, but in so many ways it fell flat. However, I know this is the author's debut book and I will probably be willing to give them a second chance in the future, because there was potential here.

I thoroughly enjoyed this fast-paced thriller. It kept me on the edge of my seat. I was highly invested from the first page and couldn’t wait to find out what happens next. I certainly did not predict the mind blowing ending. If you’re looking for a page-turner, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper 360 for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.