Really enjoyed all of the characters, they felt multi-dimensional and real in many senses of the word! The mystery was good. Took a bit to get into the action but the build-up and getting to know our characters was well worth it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars.

Spoilers ahead. I will not reveal anything big - most of the review vaguely alludes to plot, structure, and characters.

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I have to start off by saying Oliver is a jackass - to the point where I almost felt that he was a caricature of the Entitled Rich White Male. It wasn't necessary to make him so over the top - in fact, I think it would have hit harder for him to be subtly sinister. I also got hung up on the strangely overt character description (dark curly hair, light blue jeans). The dialogue is very british, despite this allegedly being about American Teens. The characters were so frustrating - especially Maddy. I found the plot to be very predictable (I guessed who [redacted] was about 30 pages in). The pacing wasn't great - it dragged at times and felt so incredibly rushed at others. The final twist was...okay. I didn't guess who the actual killer was, but there were no hints to it for readers to piece together along the way, which is half of the fun of a mystery. I wanted to see a lot more character development too, as I think that would have raised the stakes and explained some of the incomprehensible decisions that they made along the way. The last chapter was disappointing - I think the story would have really benefitted form an examination of the consequences, not just that letter. Overall, this is like a Beach Read Mystery - it's fun at times. It's fine. But it's nothing special.

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Again, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read a few of Holly Jackson's books before and at this point I have to say that she has such an incredible skill at writing thrillers! The whole time I was reading this book, I was on the edge of my seat. I didn't know what was coming and had such a fun time piecing little clues together. Not to mention the characters! They were so dynamic and relatable that I became really attached to them. If you're looking for a fall read, I highly recommend this book!

WOWWWW I was not expecting this to be so good. It took me a bit to get into it (around 25%)… but holy hell, it was a nail biter, folks. My heart is still pounding.

The end was *chefs kiss*

Thank you NetGalley for the e-ARC. It was fantastic.

3.5 stars rounded up. I ended up really enjoying the twists and turns of the ending, but the first 2/3 of this book (though suspenseful and a fast read) just seemed disjointed and confusing. I had to reread a lot of paragraphs and feel like a few things just didn’t make sense to me. However, I think this would be a really fun audiobook and might give it a listen when it comes out!

Read/Listen If You Like:
🔪 Mysteries and Thrillers
🚐 Road Trips
💗 Racing Pulse
⏳ Countdown Agaist the Clock
💨 Fast Pace

Book Review:
This book was suspenseful perfection! It has perfect pacing that kept me hooked and had me staying up too late two nights in a row unable to stop reading…

This one is delivered with a single POV and definitely gives you unreliable narrator vibes as Red acknowledges she has secrets that aren’t revealed to the reader other than she has them. But just because she has secrets does that mean she is the reason her and her friends are being gunned down and threatened?

This gave such suspenseful vibes as the will they won’t they started just as soon as the group started to turn on each-other and secrets they each wanted to stay hidden started to come to the surface…

I would highly recommend this one if you are looking for fast paced, suspenseful, and un-put-down-able YA thriller!

⚠️ Be sure to check TW’s before reading or message me.

(Big thank you to Random House Children's and NetGalley for giving us this eARC in exchange for an honest review!)

First off, I wanted to say how interesting and captivating this book was. I was super incredibly hooked and enjoyed this book so much. This book felt like it was And Then There Were None meets One of Us is Lying meets Blair Witch Project and I am here for it! I absolutely loved A Good Girl's Guide to Murder and I was so excited to get into another book by Holly Jackson. Starting off, so many secrets and so many twists at the end. I liked that this wasn't told in first person, but was still a third person limited perspective because this book was able to follow one certain character with a lot of importance and it allows the reader to be attached to this narrator, but also have a sense of an unreliable narrator. I didn't love every single character in this book, but they did feel realistic. I feel like the dynamics in this was expected, that they was going to be one person that "takes charge" and the rest just trying to survive. I didn't absolutely love the romance and the end, it just felt like it was not redeemed and that we shouldn't reward that character's actions. However, I absolutely loved the twists to a certain extent. As I got towards the end it felt like I was getting pushed into so many different directions that the story didn't fully make sense. There were so many stories that ended somewhat forced because it felt like Jackson really wanted all the stories to connect in some way. All that said, I did love reading this late at night because I am an absolute sucker for mystery and would highly suggest this book for those who love sudden twists and a who done it type story! And, this is not the story where there is an investigator trying to investigate the crime, it is telling the crime being committed and I found that incredibly enjoyable.

I fell in love with Holly Jackson as a writer when I first read A Good Girl's Guide to Murder and the other two books of the series and when I heard that the third book was the last of the series, I was disappointed, but when I saw that another book, not in the series was set to come out, I kumped at the chance to read it. When you're expecting a certain type of book from an author, you're letting your self down in the expectaion department. I went into this book expecting about GGGTM but got something else and I'm not mad. This book is though provoking which is big considering it takes place over such a short amount of time.

Red and her friends are in an RV on their way to the Gulf Shores to celebrate spring break witht their class. When a wrong turn takes them down the wrong road, they run into a proble, all of their tires are flat and they have no cell service. What are they supposed to do? Suddenly a red dot appears and they all have to fight for a way to survive the night. 6 young adults, one red dot and a secret that must come out in order to save them. Sometimes secrets are meant to remain a secret, but some secrets can get you killed. If only Five Survive, which one doesn't?

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free copy of Five Survive by Holy Jackson in exchange for my honest and free review.

In the first chapter it is not immediately clear what exactly is going on. It takes a few pages before you have a complete picture of the situation where Red finds herself in. It eventually becomes clear that they are going on a school camp with five friends, but are traveling individually for reasons not yet fully known. Many things remain a bit unclear but as the story goes on, the author gives small details to fill in these gaps. So soon it becomes clear that not everyone has secrets and sometimes does not even speak the full truth.

This causes the tension to run high, but on the other hand, the many unclear factors also make it seem as if to to postpone the final denouement as long as possible. Certain word choices ensure that as a reader you know that a person is not sincere or is withholding something important. What this is exactly is sometimes won’t be revealed until after a few more chapters which might cause an anti-climax here and there.

The characters in the story are all interesting. You basically only get to know Red best, despite the fact that she too doesn't speak full truths nor share them fully with the reader. The tension that builds up between the characters is strongly portrayed by confronting them with almost impossible choices, putting them in situations that no one ever hopes to find themselves in. And the fact that the whole story takes place in one particular place gives an original twist to the story and is occasionally very oppressive.

As the secrets reveal themselves, so does the fear, hatred, and danger. Because the truth turns out to be a bit different than you would expect. Certain elements are not really surprising and therefore quite predictable, but there are still some catches that cannot always be filled in in advance. This way the tension is built up bit by bit before everything comes to a climax at the end and then the story ends with an original twist.

Five Survive is an exciting and oppressive story about honesty, secrets and the power and pitfalls of friendship.

This was my first Holly Jackson novel- so I got to go in without any pre-conceived notions, and I am glad I did!

In Five Survive- 6 teenagers head out on a Spring Break trip that goes from bad to worse in the matter of a few moments. What they think is a tire blow-out, ends up being something much more sinister. And one of them holds the secret that will save them. The problem is, they ALL have secrets.

Red, our main character, is quite un-reliable. In her memories, her thoughts, and her literal actions. They're all on this road trip because of her. She is along for the ride with her best friend, her best friend's brother and his girlfriend, a kid from school , and a new addition to their little group.

We get normal, angsty teenage feelings. The excitement that comes along with your first big trip as new adults. And then you get slapped with what would probably be the scariest situation you could ever be put into. Will they survive a night trapped in an RV together? Or will they turn on themselves? Will they figure out who is hiding the secret that will save them, before it ends them?

This book is quite the thrill ride for YA. I could feel their fear and kept trying to figure out what I would do in this situation, and it's hard to say... These kids are living out an actual nightmare- and you get to live it alongside them.

I'll definitely be going back and reading Holly Jackson's other books after this- and can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

This book lacked the thrill and twists that Jackson's other novels had. Fans of her previous novels will still devour this, however I would guide my students elsewhere.

Six friends take a road trip for Spring Break. While they all aren’t the best of friends, they are all friends of friends, some dating, and some friends for a long time. When the RV has a flat in a desolate area with no cell service, no worries they’ll fix it. When it’s fixed and they start driving and all 4 tires go flat, something is wrong. Stuck inside the RV, not knowing who out there is out for you, suspicions are high about the company they are keeping. Is this someone in the RV’s fault? Did someone set them up?

I enjoyed this book. It kept me turning the pages, kept me guessing, and I didn’t see the ending coming. Although not the most realistic thriller I’ve read, it was a good who did it book and seeing how the characters reacted.

Thank you to NetGalley and Electric Monkey for this eArc. Five Survive comes out 12/8!

Thank you to the publisher,and Netgalley for a chance to review this.

Wow, this a fun ride. A fun fast paced thriller. A group of friends are traveling in a RV, but when they hit a wrong turn,and end up lost. Soon after tensions rise when they realize one of them is hiding a secret.
I really enjoyed this book. It was fun,and very enjoyable

This one is the perfect "locked room" mystery/thriller. A group of kids head out in an RV for a Spring Break road trip. The RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere and they have no cell service. Was this an accident or something more sinister? The tension rachets up quickly in this one and never lets up until the wild ending. I really enjoyed this one and didn't figure out the twists at the end!

Six friends. Secrets + lies. A road trip of a lifetime, or so they thought. When their RV’s tired are slashed, the group finds themselves stuck in the middle of nowhere. There’s a sniper lurking in the woods but WHY are they the target? One of them is hiding a SERIOUS secret…and only five will survive.

This was a fast paced, suspenseful RUSH as the hours are counted down. I was so invested in the characters and plot line; anticipating the reveal of which friend was holding on to deadly skeletons in the closet. I’ll admit, at first I didn’t really appreciate the secret behind the motive BUT then, the twists just came coming. Five Survive is the type of thriller that will have you on the edge for the ENTIRE ride! I really liked how the ending was an open letter…I won’t say more so you’ll have to read to find out!

Initially, the third person narrative was hard to follow. I wished this was a first person narrative since there were so many characters to track and I couldn’t focus on who was the lead of this story. After getting past the third party narrative, it was a great story. The suspense of who and why culminated into this epic reveal that I was not expecting. It reads like a horror movie with suspense and thrills that keep you at the end of your seat.

I enjoyed that this author brought a complex story with characters that had many layers to them. I’ve never read anything like this before and it’s been a while since a book like this held my attention. This author is quickly becoming one of my favorites with her sharp writing and unique storylines. She has characters that challenge the line between good and evil and a story that will leave you wanting more. Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for this ARC

Holly does it again. I loved her other books and the fact that she made her characters just as good if not better is insane to me. I was trying to guess the person the entire time and I did at one point but it still shocked me because of the delivery

I am in the minority camp of thinking Holly Jackson ran the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series into the fucking ground with the third book in the series, so I was very skeptical to get into a standalone from her. I was concerned about the way she'd handle a character arc over the course of a single book.

I also just... went into this book without knowing what it was about? I sometimes just decide to do that lol turns out it's giving Eyeshot by Taylor Adams, it's giving Phone Booth with Colin Farrell... it's an inclusionist, set in one day thriller about a group of friends traveling in an RV that gets its tires shot out by a sniper. It was very compelling to read as far as reveals and plot rises and falls went, just as I expected from Holly Jackson.

I also expected her characters to be well developed - regardless of what you think of how things went down with Pip and Ravi in the AGGGTM books, no one can deny that they aren't extremely developed characters.

Welp, she delivered. There are very clear character motivations behind most of the characters in this book, and they're all revealed along the way, mostly at crucial moments, but hints are dropped as you go, too. It's told in third person POV, but from one focal character's POV. Red has a lot going on in life - she's poor, her mom died when she was younger, the circumstances behind that are delved into and they're a lot, her dad drinks a lot because her mom died, basically things just aren't good for our gal most of the time

But she's going on spring break with her best friend, Maddy, Maddy's brother Oliver, Oliver's girlfriend Reyna, and two friends of Maddy and Red's, Simon and Arthur. (I love how British these names are even though this book is set in the US lol) Their friends are all flying to their spring break destination, but these 6 guys are taking the RV, mostly because they wanted to keep it cheap so Red could come.

Then they get one little flat tire, and after that, things go south quick. Folks suspect each other, are even pitted against each other, and they learn things about each other that never would have seen the light of day otherwise. The stakes are appropriately high, and there were lots of times where I had no clue what was going to happen next.

As usual with a thriller, there's really not much else I can say about this without ruining your fun. But I will say I fully recommend this, and think it resparked my faith in Holly Jackson. I was just so crushed by the way her series ended...but as far as endings go, I rather liked the ending of this book, too.

Judging by the success of her previous books, you really don't need me to tell you that this is worth picking up, but just know I am one little guy out here saying it's worth the read!!!

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It's definitely a YA book, but that's Holly's genre.

It was a little far-fetched in places and I'm annoyed we never found out what the heck the curtains looked like, but it was still a good little mystery with twists and turns.

I loved GGGTM, so I was super excited about this one and it fell a little flat for me.

I wish they spent more time discussing their secrets than trying to figure a way out of the RV. Also, Oliver was an extremely unlikeable character (though I know that was on purpose).

It took a little to get into the book and what the purpose/framework was going to be, but once you get about a third to halfway, it really picks up.

3 stars.

Thank you netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was great! It was spooky, which is perfect this time of year! I kept guessing! It was so fantastic!