As a fan of Megan Miranda, I was super excited to read her latest thriller. This book had me hooked from the beginning with Cassidy as the main narrator. I loved how it went between then and now.

Thank you so much @MarySueRucciBooks for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 11 Apr 2023)

SYNOPSIS | A group of former high school friends meet up annually to commemorate surviving the tragedy that occurred on a school trip. This year is the 10th anniversary & initially there were 9 survivors, but now there is only 7 and everyone wonders who will be the next to die.

WHAT I LIKED:
- the atmosphere of the impending storm

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- too many characters for me to be invested in
- extremely slow pacing that struggled to hold my attention
- the climax was pretty anticlimactic
- I really struggled to imagine the environment the characters were in during the flashback scenes (maybe I glossed over it, but it didn't feel very well described)

This was the first Megan Miranda novel I’ve read. I found it overall enjoyable and unpredictable. I love novels with twists and this story provided! I did find at times the characters were difficult to follow/keep straight but over this was an easy and enjoyable read.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

This was a slow burn for me. I loved the claustrophobic atmosphere that the author created. The house definitely gives creepy ghost vibes. It’s intense.

Cassidy was the main narrator and seemed to have a flat affect or lack emotion. I’m not sure if this was intentional or not. I felt like some things were repetitive and dragged out but otherwise I enjoyed the eerie ness of it. 3.5/4⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was just too convoluted for me to really enjoy it. I think there were way too many characters to follow. It was hard to really get to know any of them, and it was also really hard to even follow who was who because 9 survivors with 340ish pages is a lot to keep track of, and I kept getting them all mixed up.

Quite honestly, that was a huge distractor for me, and it was hard for me to focus on all the events that were happening, Then, there was so much finger-pointing and things being revealed, that I really just wound up lost because I was so unfocused on the main story.

I really, really want to love a Megan Miranda, but it's been two in a row for me that just didn't hold my interest quite like I wanted them to.

Another Megan Miranda hit! I absolutely love the slow-burn mystery/thriller style and this had me guessing the whole time. The ending really took me by surprise and while I had assumed one of the twists, another one came completely out of left field. I loved it!

I adore books set in my hometown of North Carolina and the Outer Banks specifically. I adore locked door, Agatha Christie murder mysteries even more. This book delivered on both plus so much more. The cast of characters was excellent and the vibes were impeccable.

The Only Survivors is about a group of classmates that meet up once a year in the Outer Banks. They endured a horrible tragedy together and meeting up is their way of checking in on each other. But this year something feels eerie… shady figures are spotted on the beach, things go missing, their rooms feel rifled through. When one of them disappears, the doubt each has toward the others creeps to the surface and the story of the tragedy starts to unfold.

This one took me a bit to get into and felt a little disjointed to start, but by the end I was hooked on figuring out what happened. Will make a great beach read this summer for those that like thrillers!

This thriller was just ok. It leaves you trying to figure out what happened in the past but then the twist wasn't a big deal and kind of dumb. Megan Miranda has many other books that are much better. The whole book felt slow and non climatic.

Seven friends make a pact to meet every year on the anniversary of a tragic accident. Seven days to unravel the story of what really happened that night, told from seven points of view. This was an interesting read, gripping you from the very beginning.

An Intriguing and Intricately Woven Story

SUMMARY
Ten years ago, a group of classmates and teachers on a school service trip were in a tragic accident in the Tennessee Mountains. Ten died when two of the school vans were plunged into a raging river off the side of the mountain. Nine classmates survived, but their lives were changed forever by their actions after the accident. On the one-year anniversary of the accident, one of the survivors commits suicide. The remaining survivors make a pact. They also agree to get together each year at a beach house in the Outer Banks to keep in touch but really to make sure no one tells the secrets about the trip.

Cassidy Bent is one of the survivors. On the tenth anniversary of the accident, she is determined to break ties with the group. She has had it with all the secrets and lies. But when she discovers Ian, her closest friend in the group, had also committed suicide several months earlier, she is grief-stricken and highly suspicious. Now there is only seven of them left. She races to the Outer Banks, where things are strange and uncomfortable. She feels like someone is watching the house. When Cassidy finds a cell phone on the beach that had belonged to Ian, she is stupefied. Then Amaya, another of the survivors, disappears from the beach house, and no one can reach her. With a huge storm approaching, tensions are high, but it is not until Cassidy gets home that the real trouble begins.


REVIEW
The Only Survivors is a fast read with an intricately woven story. The various connections between the characters and the roles they played in the accident and its aftermath keep the pages turning. It’s a continuous flow of suspense.

The writing is atmospheric, with an old three-story beach house set on pilings at the end of a sandy road buffeted by the wind, storms, and floods as the centerpiece. I could not only feel the sand between my toes and the storm clouds brewing but could also feel the immense tension among the characters. The characters are numerous, but Cassidy’s resilience to the accident and her determination to find out what is going on with the group stands out.

Author Megan Miranda has woven a tale that is intriguing and smartly structured. She slowly doles out the truth behind the original accident hour by hour from the perspective of the various survivors. You’ll want to hold on tight for that dark ride. Miranda Grew up in New Jersey, graduated from MIT, and now lives in North Carolina.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher Simon & Schuster
Published April 11, 2023
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

The sense of impending doom is palpable from the beginning, mirrored by the atmosphere in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, where the survivors of a 2013 tragedy have their yearly gathering.
I enjoyed that this narrative alternates between the present and the day of the incident. The flashback chapters provide more insight into the other characters besides Cassidy, our narrator for present day. Readers of this author or thrillers in general will likely guess the first big reveal, but the final one came as a shock and solidified my affection for the book. Good for fans of the “final girl” trope with a twist. Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for this ARC!

Thank you to Megan Miranda, Marysue Rucci Books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story goes back and forth between present day, with Cassidy narrating and a decade earlier from multiple povs.

Ten years ago, a group of high schoolers traveling in two vans crash into a raging Tennessee river. All but nine students perish. Those nine students manage to climb out of the river and up the ravine. They are Amaya, Josh, Ian, Grace, Clara, Oliver, Hollis, Brody and Cassidy. While they were classmates, they all didn’t know each other well. When Clara commits suicide a year later, they make a survivors pact to meet in the OBX each year on the anniversary at Oliver’s parents’ beach house.

On the tenth anniversary, Cassidy talks herself out of going until she receives a text that another of the remaining survivors is dead. As the seven gather at the house for the week, another member of the group suddenly disappears. They all have secrets. Is one of them a killer? What really happened on the day of the crash and who was at fault?

I found this story very slow. I found myself putting it down for days at a time. With about 80 pages left, suddenly the pace picks up. There were so many characters, it was hard to keep track of who was who. In the end, I almost did not care what happened.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5506217751

I really enjoyed this book. I’ve picked up almost every Megan Miranda and I’m never disappointed. I especially love that this was set in OBX which I’m very familiar with. I’d recommend this to everyone!

🌊 A R C • R E V I E W 🌊
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Title: The Only Survivors
Author: Megan Miranda
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (Rounded up to 4 Stars on GoodReads/NetGalley)
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I think this is only my second Megan Miranda book, my other one being All The Missing Girls - weird right? I have a bunch of her books; I just need to read them. I feel like she's a reliable popcorn thriller/mystery author. But one thing I will say - the covers of all her books though - just incredible.
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The Only Survivors is told in a dual timeline of past and present but also while in the past in reverse chronological order (the past starts at hour 8 and works its way to the accident). The setting is perfectionThis one is definitely a slow burn, but there is drama galore and some really unlikeable characters to entertain you along the way. I was immediately hooked, found myself to get a bit distracted in the middle, and was once again hooked at the end. It's most definitely a bingeable read.
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Miranda is great at creating such an atmospheric read. I remember that from her first novel and it still reigns true with this one. This story kept my attention enough, had me questioning everyone and I liked the reveals and where they were placed throughout the story. I really enjoyed how this one was wrapped up; it didn't feel like that average run of the mill ending. 
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Overall, this is an easy bingeable read that I would recommend to all popcorn thriller fans. The Only Survivors came out on April 11 of this year - be sure to check it out! Huge thank you to @netgalley and @scribner for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.
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#netgalleyreview #netgalley #netgalleyearc #electronicadvancedreaderscopy #earc #atmosphericread #thepastmeetsthepresent #reversechronologicaltime #murdermystery #theshallows #outerbanks #carcrash #survivors #whowouldyousave #theonlysurvivors #meganmiranda

This was an excellent read. We got to follow the story of survivors spanning 10 years. We learned a lot about each of the characters and the impact of the recent tragedies. The way the climax came together was satisfying and answered a lot of questions.

This was really great and fast read and I really enjoyed how the story was laid out. The chapters consisted of each day of the weekend that the group gets together to commemorate the anniversary of the tragic accident they were the survivors of as well as flashback chapter through each character’s point of view from 10 yrs. previous during the accident. It was super interesting how the story unfolded and when you get to the cause of the accident it was a surprise and the twist at the end man I didn’t see coming.

Thanks to Scribner and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book in e-book form. All opinions in this review are my own.

A decade earlier, two vans filled with high school students crashed into a ravine and in the water. Nine survived. The survivors meet annually , but two have recently died. The seven remaining meet, but something is off. Amaya disappears right away. Can they keep they promise they made to each other to save each other? Lots of twists and turns in this page turner. Miranda is at her best with this book.

I was iffy about this book before before deciding to give it a try, and unfortunately, it was not my favorite. This is not my first Megan Miranda book either. The plot has too many character POVs and with the dual timelines, I was constantly confused. I listened to the audiobook and had to keep rewinding to figure out what was going on.

There IS a big twist at the end that I did not guess, so that was good for the plot. But, in my opinion, it did not redeem the plot. And there were other “reveals” that happened as well but didn’t make sense to me.

Overall, this book wasn’t memorable. I feel like I’m a few days, weeks, or months, I’ll remember not liking this book and not remember anything about the plot. It didn’t grab my attention and it didn’t draw me in as a reader. Personally, I would suggest other books if you’re looking for a good thriller.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

THE ONLY SURVIVORS
MEGAN MIRANDA
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Two vans that are carrying high school students and teachers to do some service projects, wreck into a ravine in Tennessee. Lives are lost and only 9 survivors remain. These students make a pact to keep secret what happened out there and they come together every year at THE SWALLOWS beach house in NC. The 9 become 7 and no one is very trusting of each other!! While the 7 are at the beach house on the 10th anniversary, one goes missing, a big storm comes and there are lots of secrets!! So many twists and turns will be taken before this book is over!!!

I love the way that this book is written….Seven hours in the past/seven days in the present/7survivors. Megan does not disappoint and had me glued to the pages right till the end!! Highly recommend!!!