This book made my skin crawl....not in a good way.
This book was so full of dull, boring, uninteresting characters.
I did not finish this book. I gave up after 30% into it.

I was so bored, I was clawing at my arms to stop myself from sleeping.

It had too much of Hills Have Eyes nonsense going on.and the insipid characters did nothing to the story.

I will NOT leave a review on goodreads.

Red is traveling in an RV to Florida with her friends to spend a week celebrating spring break together. They lose cell service and GPS capabilities then end up down a dead end road getting a flat tire. After replacing the flat tire with the spare, Red sees a red dot hovering around the RV and yells at the others to notice. They ignore her until they hear the gunshots that take out all four tires. The group runs into the RV for protection. The shooter leaves a walkie talkie for communication and tells them that one of them has a secret they need to share. The secret is going to be revealed, one way or another!

Likes/dislikes:
Oliver is annoying because he’s a know-it-all with a superiority complex. The mystery is interesting to try to unravel when a few characters allude to having secrets. The suspense builds intensely, which makes a riveting read.

Mature Content:
PG-13 for drinking

Language:
R for 20 swears and 105 f-bombs.

Violence:
PG-13 for Someone shoots at the RV and holds the travelers hostage inside. The sniper fatally shoots an elderly couple that stop to help. Bloody shootings. Attack with a knife.

Ethnicity:
Mixed, Korean, Mexican, white, African American

This unfortunately wasnt for me whatsoever. Im such a big fan of the authors other series and was so excited for this one. It was just too fast pace for me liking and I couldn’t really get into the story at all.

Five Survive is another super fun Holly Jackson YA thriller. Six people are driving to a fun weekend for spring break, when they get trapped by a sniper who states that one of them has a secret they need to uncover. I was certain that I had figured out the twist, but I was still shocked because it went further than I even understood!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Five Survive is the latest thriller from the author of the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series. This is a nail-biting thriller, set in an 8-hour time frame, with lots of tension and suspense. It was a little more outside of my comfort zone than her previous series. Although it was fast-paced, it took me a little while to get into the book. I think it was because it took me longer to get attached to the characters. They are not very likeable at first, and I really enjoy character-driven books. I did eventually start to really root for certain characters and feel more invested in the action. I also just felt stressed picking the book up! The plot itself was interesting, but could have been a little more fleshed out. Overall, I still loved Jackson’s writing and can’t wait to see what she writes next.

Holly Jackson does a great job at creating such dark stories with relatable YA protagonists. This book took longer to get into than A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (another of her YA thrillers) but it definitely elicited the tension and build up that a good thriller requires.

If you are a fan of twists and turns, heart palpitating tension, and a dash of claustrophobia then this is the book for you!

Thank you to the publishers for sending me this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review!

Let's begin with what I enjoyed about this book, shall we. The main character, Red, was a very complex and fully developed character. I loved her thought patterns. I believe they were influenced by the trauma of her past and the resulting anxiety that it left, which was very clever. This book was fast to read and kept me hooked the whole way through.

Now what I did not enjoy... I unfortunately predicted who had the significant secret as well as who was going to die at the 25% mark. I found this book both predictable and coming out of left field at the same time. All of the various plans to get out of the situation quickly became boring and repetitive, monotonous essentially. The majority of the plot felt like filler and then becomes unhinged towards the end. A lot of choices in this book did not make sense to me, but hey, it was entertaining.

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

FIVE SURVIVE follows six characters: Red; her best friend, Maddy; their friends Simon and Arthur; Maddy’s brother, Oliver; and Oliver’s girlfriend, Reyna. They’re taking a road trip for spring break when they make a wrong turn. When all four of their RV’s tires are destroyed, they realize a sniper has stranded them on purpose with no cellular connection to call for help. The sniper tells them one of the six friends has a secret and if that person tells him what he wants to know, he’ll let the other five go. What follows is a desperate attempt to figure out which friend is keeping the secret and what exactly they know. FIVE SURVIVE is a frantic cat-and-mouse game between a sniper who is willing to kill for information and six friends who just want to make it out alive.

This is one of the most intense books I’ve ever read. As it takes place over the course of eight hours, it involves non-stop action and reveals. Trying to fit an entire story into only eight hours may have been risky in other cases but Holly Jackson is an incredibly talented writer and she pulled it off without a doubt.

Not only was this book thrilling, but it packed quite an emotional punch. Some of the hardest parts to read involved Red’s grief over having lost her mother. Her mom was murdered five years ago and Red has been drowning in guilt over the last conversation they ever had. Holly Jackson’s portrayal of Red’s emotions was so vivid and I thought the writing style perfectly illustrated the effect Red’s grief has had on her. Since her mother’s death, Red has become scatter-brained, forgetful, and easily distracted. When providing insight into Red's thoughts, Jackson wrote in a way that mirrored Red's mindset--nearly a stream of consciousness that includes fragmented thoughts and occasionally jumps abruptly from one topic to another. I don't always enjoy the stream of consciousness style but I actually loved it here and felt that Jackson struck a perfect balance with its use. It was really effective in giving us a glimpse into Red's mind without being confusing or distracting from the plot.

We also get to know Oliver very well over the course of the novel. From the beginning, Oliver takes on the role of group leader, but as the situation escalates Oliver gets increasingly controlling and angry towards the other friends and we learn that he has a very dark side to him. As much as I hated his character, I thought he was very well-written and three-dimensional. I also thought the way Holly Jackson portrayed Oliver as the threat within the RV in contrast to the sniper outside of it was brilliant.

In regards to the plot, I loved how twisty and unpredictable it was. In an attempt to discover the secret the sniper wants, many other secrets are revealed and we realize that all of the friends have something to hide. The frequent revelations kept me on the edge of my seat and guessing until the very end.

Overall, I loved FIVE SURVIVE and would highly recommend it. If you like fast-paced thrillers or mysteries with a cast of characters who are all keeping secrets, this may be the book for you! (I recommend looking up trigger warnings beforehand as there are some graphic and potentially upsetting scenes.)

Holly Jackson is back with another YA thriller.

Red and her five friends are headed to gulf shores for spring break by way of RV. One of them, or as it turns out all of them, have a secret. Getting lost and targeted by an active shooter will bring to light some secrets as well as true personalities (looking at you Connor 👀 the cringiest). Red will relive and learn new truths about her mom, best friend and the family she thought was like her own.

With every new thing brought to light you will be questioning the loyalty of EVERYONE in the RV as well as questioning everyone NOT in the RV. This book will keep you guessing from the first blown tire.

Perfect bundle with a blanket by the fire read for this winter.

it took a bit to get into it though once i did i was definitely hooked, however it felt a bit younger than i’d normally go for. i didn’t guess the ending, which is how i tend to rate thrillers so i’d say it’s worth the read if this is your type of book.

Red and five friends are driving from Philadelphia to Gulf Shores for Spring Break when they get lost and their RV gets a flat. Little do they know that they are not alone in the woods until they realize a sniper has shot out all four tires and gas tank and has knocked out cell service, leaving them trapped inside. A walkie talkie outside the window tells them, “One of you has a secret I want. Give it to me, and I’ll let the rest of you go.”

The premise of this book was very interesting. However it fell middle of the road to me. It was very slow at the beginning, Red was incredibly boring, another character was so awful that I was praying for the sniper to take them out, and then so much happened at the end I had to go back and read it again. In all, the action parts were very good, but the dialogue between the characters and Red’s internal dilemma were not my favorite parts of the book.

This was my first Holly Jackson book, but I still want to read her Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series.

Thank you Random House Children's, Delacorte Press, and NetGalley for the advanced copy to review. Five Survive is out now.

I really enjoyed this book! Holly Jackson is a phenomenal writer and really knows how to keep you hooked. The story spiraled a bit but all in all it was a very interesting read! I was at the edge of my seat the whole book!

Red & her friends are on a road trip en route to spring break. spirits are high & the group is excited to unwind, until their RV breaks down overnight in the middle of nowhere. with no cell service or anyone nearby for miles, they are unable to call for help. initially, the group is optimistic as they change their flat tire with a spare. but when each of their tires are shot out as they try to leave, they realize that this was no accident.

upon realizing they might be in danger, the group hears noise coming from a walkie talkie outside of the RV. when they grab it, they are given instructions from a sniper hiding outside: one of them is keeping a secret, & if that person comes clean, the rest of the group will survive. tension runs high in the RV, the group finds themselves taking sides, & they quickly realize that everyone is hiding something that the sniper may be willing to kill for.

I thought the premise of this book was super chilling & suspenseful. it was fast-paced & definitely kept you hooked throughout. there was a lot of foreshadowing that led you to believe that everyone in the RV had something to hide, which helped add to the suspense of who the sniper was targeting, and how the sniper knew that person and their secret. it gave off a lot of “trust no one” vibes, which I love.

that being said, I thought some of the foreshadowing was a little too obvious, and led me to predict a few things pretttty early on (but not enough to ruin the ending). there was also one character in this book who deemed himself as “the leader” throughout, and in turn made a lot of the characters seem super weak. my goodness, this character was just the absolute WORST. i’m sure that was the intent, but man, I disliked him so much that he kinda made the book less enjoyable for me. 🙈

other than this agonizingly awful character, I still think it was a really fun suspense read if you’re okay with possibly figuring out some twists along the way. this is my first @hojay92 read, and it certainly won’t be my last! (i’ve heard great things about her Good Girl’s Guide to Murder books) 😈

thanks to @netgalley and @randomhouse for my advanced reader’s copy!

This was an exciting book and thought it was well written. The author did a great job with the characters. She always does a great job writing her books. 5 star read!

This was a fun read with lots of action and reveals; however, I did struggle a bit to connect with any of the characters which ultimately leads to a lower rating. Furthermore, the final reveals and the way they are done (based on the reliability of the narrator in a way that didn't feel as shocking as it should be) were not very exciting since the secret was set up pretty early on. It's a great concept though - a group of friends are trapped in an RV by a sniper who forces one of them to reveal a secret - and the tight timeframe also works to its advantage. In the end this is a fun enough and easy read but not a top recommendation for the genre.

Whew! What an absolute ride of a book! "Five Survive" by Holly Jackson was one of my most anticipated thriller reads of the year, after enjoying her earlier "A Good Girl's Guide to Murder" series. This stand alone novel is a great, adrenaline-filled follow-up, which I could totally see being adapted into a movie.

The story revolves around Red, an eighteen year old girl, and five of her friends, as they head off on a spring break adventure in a RV. The group takes a wrong turn, the RV gets a flat in the middle of nowhere, and all of a sudden they hear shots fired in their direction. A sniper has them in trapped, and the only way out is if one of them shares a specific secret.

This book is extremely fast faced - the majority of the events take place over the course of a few hours (hence, the movie quality). This makes for quite the enjoyable, page-turning, thriller. In fact, it's very easy to knock this book out over one sitting. This isn't the slow burn, unraveling of clues we got with "A Good Girl's," so I appreciate how Jackson is experimenting with different formats.

Not a full five stars because of the fast-paced nature, we do end up sacrificing some of the character development. So I don't feel as emotionally invested in all of the 6 trapped characters as I might have otherwise.

But, overall, this was a really fun, high-octane thriller and a good addition to Jackson's canon.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children's for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I can’t put my finger on why I didn’t enjoy this as much as the Good Girl series. I found myself skimming much of it, uninterested in the details of the fight in the RV. I did think the ending was interesting.

Sizzling paced narrative with an intricate well-developed plot. A real spine tingler. Not to be missed and I highly recommend you read it.

The storyline for this book is very intriguing and after loving her first series I had high hopes for this one.
It started off a little slow but built up to some great intense moments and at times had me right on the edge of my seat but that being said it fell a little flat for me overall.
Part of it being that I couldn’t handle the character, Oliver, couldn’t even love to hate him. I struggled with him from the start.
It is also filled with quite of bit of strong language for a YA. I know that doesn’t bother everyone but I thought it worth mentioning for those who like to avoid it.
The last 1/3 of the book and ending were fantastic. I love how she wrote it and felt she wrapped it up perfectly.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for sending me a copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

My expectations with this book were really high since I loved ‘A good girl’s guide to murder’, but I can happily say that my expectations were met!
At the begging, I felt the story was a little bit too slow pace, and to be honest I wasn’t a big fan of Red’s personality. I felt like her mind was all over the place, jumping from one thought to another too quickly. But once I dived deeper into the story and learnt more about her background, I could understand her and created a really a strong connection with her, I just wanted to hug her and protect her at all cost. However, I feel she’s one of those characters your either love or hate, with no in between.
And actuallly, the same applies for all the characters in this book. All their personalities were so complex and real, they all had a “good” side and a “bad” side, and each reader will connect more, or less, with different characters. I think the author did SUCH a good job bringing them to life.
That being said, there is one character in particular that I hated with all my heart, and I’m sure everyone will agree with me on that 😂
I don’t think this book is for everyone. The whole story takes place inside the RV, so some people might become a little bit claustrophobic reading it. It is also a very graphic book, so I encourage you to read the TW before deciding whether to read it or not.
I enjoyed this story so so much, and it’s characters will stay in my heart for a very long time (which means a lot coming from a very forgetful person like me hahaha)
4,5/5⭐️

Thank you so much Penguin Random House and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!