Five Survive is a thriller that will be enjoyed by young adults. The story took awhile to get into and seemed predictable and repetitive, but the second half picked up pace. Each of the characters is unreliable in his or her own way, and learning about their histories adds to the suspense as readers try to figure out what is going on. We will be ordering this title for our high school library.

Holly Jackson, author of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, is back in full force with this stand alone thriller. Red and her friends are on an RV road trip from Pennsylvania to Florida for Spring Break, until things take a deadly turn in South Carolina. Jackson’s newest is reminiscent of a mobile Breakfast Club but with much higher stakes than another Saturday in detention. The teenage characters range from the underdog heroine to the aggressive alpha male and all play their roles deftly in this tense thriller.

I fell in love with Holly Jackson when I read her AGGGTM- even the narrator,Bailey Carr! I secretly hope she’s the narrator to this gem as well! I was not disappointed with this story-I didn’t intend I would be 🥰. AMAZING as always

My level of obsession with Jackson's books cannot be expressed. I read this 400 page book in a day and a half and it would have been way faster if I didn't have to work and take care of a child. I did not want to put it down. The definition of a wild ride. If she ever stops writing thrillers I will never recover. 10000000/10. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I already knew I was going to love this one because the AGGGTM series is one of my all-time fave reads. It was very high stakes and so anxiety-inducing. I think I was just a bit too anxious throughout the limited time to really let myself go full speed. I think this a great YA thriller for those wanting to read something fast paced and giving 'No Exit' vibes.

Holly, girl. I am so sad....I was OBSESSED with the AGGGTM series. I literally ate it up, but this was not it for me. Five Survive was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and I couldn't even finish it....I was literally so bored the entire time and I gave it many, many chances. Maybe it was right book, wrong time...but I digress. Maybe I will try again later

Overall I feel like this book was okay. I have very mixed feelings. It felt repetitive and slowwwww. I felt like I was losing interest the first half of the book and was forgetting things through the story. Yes, the twists and the ending were great but it felt like such a last minute decision. Was it worth it??? I’m not sure. The characters were hard to connect with but I like the unreliable aspect of them. Interesting plot idea.

I loved Holly Jackson's "A Good Girls Guide to Murder" so I went into this book with high hopes. It took me about half of the book to finally get into it, but when I did, I was hooked and I actually stayed up until 4:30 am so I could finish it! I did not like the main character Red as much as I liked Pip in AGGGTM, but she was still a good character with some depth. I thought Oliver was a great character that we all love to hate. I really enjoyed the twist at the end and I'm really glad that the evil doer got hers. Overall, this was an entertaining thriller. Holly Jackson is a must read author for me and I'm already looking forward to her next suspenseful novel!

Five Survive is a book that I was extremely excited to get ahold of and review and it didn’t disappoint. As the book begins, a group of six friends are on a road trip for spring break. The majority of the story focuses on Red and her relationships with the other characters. We quickly gain insight into what kind of person each character is and how they fit into the group dynamic, which is very important as the story progresses. The group loses cell signal and takes a series of wrong turns before their RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere. The friends soon realize that they’re not alone…they’re trapped by somebody that wants answers…somebody who won’t stop until he has what he wants.

Initially, I felt like there were a lot of coincidences that occurred in order to get the group into the situation and to a degree there were, BUT everything that Jackson included in this story was intentional. We get glimpses of each character, their backgrounds, and their history together throughout the book and all of that information is included for a reason. As I read, I found that each of the characters had SOMETHING that they were keeping secret, which made it nearly impossible to guess which secret their captor is after. Of course, nobody wants to reveal their secret to the others so the space in between is filled with conflict, escape planning, and escape attempts that really escalate the plot. When the grand reveal occurred, I was definitely surprised, which I think is always a desirable element in the thriller genre.

I’m a high school librarian and after reading my eARC of Five Survive, I went and pre-ordered a copy for my school. This is one I’ll be talking up to students that enjoyed A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and other “murder mysteries”.

Thank you to NetGalley, Holly Jackson, and Random House Children's for the opportunity to review an eARC of Five Survive.

I devoured A Good Girl's Guide to Murder earlier this year, so I had high hopes that Five Survive would be another favorite.

Five Survive follows six teenagers in a 31-foot RV heading to spring break. But then, the RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere with zero cell service. As the group replaces the busted tire and tries to leave the remote area, the tires are shot out one by one, and they realize something sinister is at play. The sniper leaves a walkie-talkie just outside the RV and says that someone on board has a secret and nobody can leave.

As the night goes on, the group begins to unravel.

Although I enjoyed Five Survive, the middle dragged on a little more than I liked. Once the person revealed their secret, things got especially interesting, but I can't say much without spoiling it. Some of the characters are deeply unlikable, which made parts of Five Survive much more entertaining for me. I can see how some people might not enjoy that aspect, though.

I recommend Five Survive to anyone who wants a crime thriller set in a confined space over a short time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Holly Jackson has done it again. I was sitting on the edge of my seat because of how fast pace everything was. I enjoyed the writing style but I think there could have some better explanations on some aspects. It was fun, intense, and honestly I continued to gasp as things were revealed. I expect nothing less from Holly Jackson and I can't wait for more from her.

I love Holly Jackson, but I could not get through this. Honestly, I read halfway through and this locked box mystery was reductive and poorly written. Do not recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Childrens/Delacorte Press for an advanced reader copy of this book.

I am with others who loved Holly Jackson's first novel, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. Even though I wasn't crazy about her second and third book of the series, I really enjoy her writing. She has a talent for mystery writing. I was excited when I was able to get my hands on her latest novel, Five Survive.

Six friends are on a trip to Spring Break in an RV. When they hit a dead zone and all GPS activity fails, they take a wrong turn and get a flat tire. As the friends leave the RV to investigate, they start getting shot at by a sniper who wants answers. One of them has a secret. Who is it?

I liked the idea about the RV trip, but the entire sniper premise seemed unlikely. Most of the characters were dislikeable- the decisions that they made.

The ending was a grabber, and I am sure teens will enjoy the twist.

I absolutely loved Holly Jackson's first novel, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, and while I didn't like the sequels as much, I really do enjoy her writing, so I was excited to get the ARC for her latest novel, Five Survive. Some of the people I follow on Goodreads were giving it good early reviews, so even though the plot sounded a bit far-fetched, I gave it a go.

Let me tell you: I was annoyed/underwhelmed/irritated/dissatisfied/insert-negative-emotion-here throughout the first 80 percent of this book. But! I'm glad I finished it, because the end is the best part. Jackson doesn't tie everything up in a nice little bow, but what she does is so satisfying after going through all of that early garbage.

The premise here is hugely implausible, beyond the suspension of disbelief (at least to me), and at no point in the novel did it begin to make any more sense. Secondly, I found most of the characters to be some degree of dislikable, even Red at some points, which I don't think was Jackson's intention. She just kind of irritated me. And finally, I get that this is YA and they're teens, but they kept making the dumbest decisions possible, over and over again, and I was getting so fed up! Ugh.

So, all in all, the end saved this book from a horrible rating. But my final thought is that I really do like Jackson's writing and storytelling—to me, this just wasn't a story worth telling.

Fan of murder mysteries? This will be your next favorite read! Five Survive is from Holly Jackson, author of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. The story is extremely fast-paced as it is set over just eight hours on a road trip bound to turn deadly because as the title suggests..only five survive. Six friends go on a spring break trip in an RV only for it to break down in the middle of nowhere. Did someone trap them there on purpose? Who is lying? The tensions are high among these friends. Who is going to make it out alive? The character development is excellent. I enjoyed the setting of the RV and the unnerving feeling of it being in the middle of nowhere. The drama is at an all-time high with excellent twists throughout. Highly recommended! Be sure to check out Five Survive today.

thank you to NetGalley and Random House Childrens/Delacorte Press for an advanced reader copy of this book.
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Red Kenny is on spring break! Her best friend Maddy, her crush, Arthur, Maddie’s brother, Oliver, his girlfriend, Reyna, and classmate, Simon embark in their RV on their way down to an epic senior spring break.

But one of them has always known that they would never make it there. One of them is a killer.

When the RV breaks down and they are stuck in the middle of nowhere, the six of them quickly realize that this was no accident. They are under attack by a sniper who has them trapped.

With hours until daylight and no cell service, will they survive the night?
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Holly Jackson does it again! I totally fell in love with her AGGGTM series this year and was so excited to get an ARC of this new one. I read it in just a couple of days - I couldn’t put it down!

I thought Jackson did such a good job of writing the RV well. I was skeptical about whether or not the stagnant setting would be boring but I was so wrong! I felt like I was in the RV with the group, scared, and uncertain. Though the whole story took place over just eight hours and only one middle-of-nowhere setting, it had such a tight grip on me!

Jackson does such a good job of writing her characters. Though, I didn’t love Red, I felt like she was sitting in front of me. She felt so real. Her grief, her determination, her strength, and her scatterbrained nature.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and, if you are someone who enjoys YA, I would definitely recommend. I felt I was able to guess quite a few of the big plot points but there were still some surprises left for me by the end!

After enjoying A Good Girls Guide to Murder I was looking forward to this book, but I was disappointed. I made it halfway through then called it quits. It just moved too slow; not enough action to keep me interested.

After becoming obsessed with A Good Girl's Guide to Murder earlier this year, I was determined to read whatever Holly Jackson wrote next. Five Survive is another YA book. I flew through it in only a few days. It's a fast-paced, chilling read that takes place over the course of eight hours.

This book was entertaining and kept me on my toes. Despite most of the characters being unlikeable and having secrets they hid from each other, I still cared about what happened to the main character, Red, and a few of the others.

The few things I didn't like were the ending and a few minor plot details that weren't fully explained or resolved. However, this took little away from how well done the book was, and it's still worth the read for YA thriller lovers.

Holly Jackson is clearly a talented author, and I'll continue to read anything she publishes.

*Thank you to Delacorte Press, Holly Jackson, and NetGalley for the free eBook ARC in exchange for leaving an honest review!

Red’s mother was a police captain who was murdered. Now, Red, has found refuge in friend, Maddy Lavoy. Still, it is hard for Red to witness the warm family dynamics Maddy and her brother, Oliver, share with their mother, an assistant DA and Red’s late mother’s best friend.

Moving on, it’s spring break and time to party. Red, the Lavoy siblings, and three other friends, Reyna Flores-Serrano, Arthur Moore, and Simon Yoo, borrow a 31 foot RV for a fun journey to Gulf Shores. But they lose all internet connections and are hopelessly lost in the wilderness. Added to that is a tire that looks like it exploded. But there is more to it than just being lost as they find themselves in the crosshairs of a long-range rifle held by a sniper demanding that one of them reveal an important secret. Red battles internally with her guilt and grief over her mother’s death, as her companions become increasingly volatile and paranoid as the group tries to figure out whose secret is the one the hostage taker is after. Lord of the Files anyone?

As the events unfold in the confined space, I found the dialogue to be sometimes tedious as the hours of night slowly ticked by.. But as I read on, I came to understand that in that RV no one is to be trusted as the mind-blowing truths are revealed.

All in all, this is another thriller Holly Jackson fans will not want to miss.

The story is intensely suspenseful and an intricate puzzle that makes this one a thrill ride.

While Red as a narrator was a little hard to get used to at first, the plot definitely starts quickly and does NOT stop! While the characters weren’t necessarily likeable, their dynamics with each other and reaction to the situation were absolutely fascinating! I did not want to put this book down, and I do love a locked room type thriller, it always elevates the tension!