AND HE IS BACK! I have read every book by Sager and I was about to drop him from my author list after the last 2 books just didn't hit for me.
The House Across the Lake-Meh
Survive the Night-LOATHE.

But this one.....folks he HOOKED ME! He took all the best elements; the 80s, creepy, dilapidated mansion on a cliff, murderous playground rhymes and an elderly woman accused of patricide, matricide....all the -cides and I can tell you the only reason it took me 3 days to finish this was because work got in the way. Sager set the eerie tone from the start and added his typical twists throughout the story to keep you raising your eyebrows.

I want to give nothing away, so I just want to say this: READ THIS! I highly recommend and THANK YOU NetGalley & Penguin Group for giving me this ARC and thank you Sager for not letting me down!

The Only One Left by Riley Sager is another one of his gothic thriller novels. I have read a number of books by Sager, and in each book, he continues to surprise and shock us with so many twists we never expect.
The story starts off in 1929, when the Hope family was murdered. Lenora was the only one who survived, telling the police that she did not kill her family. She became the lead suspect, but the police could not find evidence to convict her, becoming a legend, which she never left her estate. Fifty plus years later, Lenora is paralyzed and constantly needs care, and her latest caregiver left.

We meet Kit McDeere, our heroine, who lost her job as a home-health aide, after her mother died under unusual circumstances, which she pleaded innocence. She is given another chance to be a caregiver, but she is hesitant, since she would need to care for Lenora Hope, who everyone thinks killed her family all those years ago; but she accepts the job, as she needs money.

Kit is surprised to find the infamous Lenora confined to a wheelchair, unable to speak or move, except for her left arm; having suffered multiple strokes. In a short time, while caring for Lenora, Kit is surprised that she wants to tell what happened all those years ago; especially claiming her innocence. Lenora communicates with Kit using a typewriter with her left hand, a slow process over time.
Kit begins to suspect that Lenora is not revealing the truth, especially when the remains of the previous caregiver is discovered; Kit is scared and wants to leave, but she needs the money. She tries to learn more from other staff members, who have been there for a long time. The cliffside mansion is falling apart, increasing the danger of living there. To say too much more would be spoilers, as the last third of the book is filled with twists and surprises.

What follows is a wild last third of the book, with so many secrets, twists, turns and deception. The Only One Left was so very well written by Riley Sager, with shocking surprises, as we race to the climax. Sager outdid himself with this book, as it was a thriller all the way.

The anticipation for a new Riley Sager book is exciting and nearly overwhelming. The plots, usually consisting of a woman realizing she's in a strange/perilous/weird/haunted situation and trying to get to the bottom of things while staying alive, are the sorts of tales, written in Sager's relatable (but never "basic") voice and propulsive storylines, that immediately hook you and leave you breathlessly tearing through the pages. And then you get about 3/4 of the way through the book and realize, "Huh. Riley Sager's done it again. I'm gonna hate how this ends, aren't I?" The Only One Left, the story of a caregiver with a troubled past put in charge of caring for an old woman long suspected of murdering her entire family in an enormous crumbling cliffside mansion, is another one to add to the list. The stories sail along so thrillingly and adroitly, you can't imagine how they'll be wrapped up in a clever bow at the end...and that's the thing. They never are. They always go off the rails in the most head-scratchingly unsatisfying way. I know reviews are for readers, not authors, but Rile Sager, if you ever read this--I do actually love your books quite a bit, and I will be chomping at the bit to read every single new one you write. I don't love how most of them end, but honestly, that's a minor complaint. If I've enjoyed the journey--and I always do, Riley Sager-- the ending isn't the most important thing.

A true thriller in every sense of the word! Fast paced and really twisty, it didn’t take me long to burn through this one. I loved it!

Another hit from Sager, I really enjoyed this one and think it will be very popular this summer.
Thanks for the chance to read and review.

Sager is back to form with this one (no spoilers or anything, but it's ix-nay on the host-gays). A gothic mansion that is barely clinging to the cliff it was built on, ready to crumble at the barest hint of the book's climax. Confused identities, a dumbo main character who fancies herself a detective but is still about ten steps behind everyone else, the murderer being the actual last person you expect. Well worth the read.

Amazing!! I was in a reading slump and this definitely brought me back to life. I read this in less than 6 hours. There were parts where I thought my predictions would be obvious but NO, I didn’t see any of the twist. I throughly enjoyed this book, it kept me on the edge of my seat.

I received an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this new Riley Sager book! While I did t devour it in one day like last year’s release, it was a fast-paced and engaging thriller, with a hint of the paranormal.

Kit, still reeling from personal tragedy, is assigned to be a caregiver for Lenora Hope— who is famous for allegedly murder of her whole family in 1929. As Kit is trying to understand what happened and to explain strange noises in the home, she begins to see that not everything is as it appears.

This book is definitely another Riley Sager classic! I was hooked right from the very beginning, and I couldn't put it down. There were just enough twists and turns to keep me interested the whole time.

Absolutely loved this book! There were so many twists and turns! Addicted to this writing. Sager always gets my blood pumping.

Is it truly summer without a new Riley Sager book in your TBR?!

This latest, set in the 80s, features a home health provider tasked with taking care of a notorious suspected murderer (a la Lizzie Borden).

Set in an eerie house that's slowly tipping towards the sea, the suspected murderess mute but able to type (in secret) her story, and a not quite nurse with her own stained past, this latest makes for the kind of super page turning suspense and horror tinged reading fans have come to expect from Sager.

Excellent fun and great for chilling summer reading!

This easily became my favorite Riley book. Final Girl was tough to beat and was one of my all time favorite reads, but this was incredible. Plot twist after plot twist, I found myself crying at the last two pages. AMAZING book. Would give this 10/5 stars if I could.

This engaging gothic thriller may be my favorite Sager book to date! I rarely give out 5 stars, but this one definitely fits the bill. It confirms why he's a must-read author for me. Just when I thought I had things figured out... boom! Another unexpected twist to make me rethink everything. The setting is atmospheric, and you can't help but question every single character. The pacing speeds up as the story unfolds, and the writing quickly pulls the reader in and keeps them actively engaged the whole time. Readers who are familiar with Lizzie Borden will notice some similarities woven throughout the story, especially with the rhyme that's followed Lenora all her life. The secondary characters are well utilized, and even the house plays a major role in the story. The big reveal was perfectly done. I can't wait to read what Sager comes up with next!

The plot started off with a good hook and pulled me in for the first 10 or 15%. Then it got really boring and repetitive with nothing really happening until the final 10 or 15% when all hell broke loose! At that point the story definitely became a roller coast ride of epic proportions, with the story at the end of the ride simply flying off the rails (ie. total loss of reality or belief).

I appreciate this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, Dutton, in exchange for an honest review.

The Only One Left By Riley Sager

My rating:
5/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When Kit is forced to take an assignment at Hope’s End to be Lenora Hope’s caretaker she could never expect what would happen there and all of the secrets that she slowly learns. Lenora Hope was accused of killing her family, but there was never enough proof to convict. Lenora chooses to tell Kit her story and from there, everything comes to light.

Oh my gosh. This was amazing.

I completely got this one wrong and I love that so much. The twists. The amount of things I missed and never expected was insane. I feel like the last 75% of the book was a whirlwind that all made sense once I got to the final page. The last pages?! Goosebumps. This one was so well written and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. If you’re a fan of Verity by Colleen Hoover, this gave me similar spooky vibes. The location was fantastic and Sager truly set the scene.

I am just going to say it. This is officially my favorite book of 2023 thus far as we just about are at the halfway point of the year. Book rut! Gone! 👻

Thank you so much @netgalley and Penguin Group Publishing for this ARC! You can read this on June 20th! Save this post now for a reminder to add it to your TBR or preorder it now!

THIS was my favorite Sager yet. I can not wait to get a copy for my shelf. Such a sold thriller. 10/10

While I did enjoy this one, it was a little slow for me. I did find the twist to be unexpected, but maybe if there had been some more action occurring between some of the characters, I would have been more engaged. I did feel that there were a lot of characters that didn’t play very significant of a role.

This was a brilliant gothic who-done-it, with a thousand red herrings, and a satisfying ending. I loved the crumbling mansion, the creepy employees, the blood stains on the carpet, shadows looming in the windows at night, and the crumbling cliff sides.

I absolutely loved this one and was hooked from the beginning all the way to the last page. The atmosphere was perfect, I was suspicious of everyone, and I had endless theories of how things would come together, absolutely none of which were correct 😂

Kit is a caregiver coming back from a temporary suspension and her first assignment back on the job is to care for the town’s most infamous resident, the elderly Lenora Hope who is rumored to have killed her family when she was 17, although she was never found guilty.

Kit reluctantly accepts the job since she has no other way to pay her bills, but it soon turns into a high stakes mystery that she can’t turn away from, especially as she begins digging deeper into the disappearance of the last caregiver who was looking after Lenora. Things get more and more dangerous as she continues to uncover what really happened all those years ago…

This book was everything!! Creepy time capsule-like mansion, a crumbling cliffside off the Maine coast, the suspicious staff members, all the little clues dropped. Plus so many other factors that had me sooo absorbed into the story.

I definitely recommend if you’re looking for a good thriller to glue your face to over the weekend!! I couldn’t put this one down!

HOLY SHIT. YEP.

"The Only One Left" by Riley Sager was a sneaky five-star rating! WOW.

Kit is a caregiver with her own sordid history. Yet she takes on an assignment caring for Lenora Hope, infamous teenage killer, now an elderly woman who is very nearly paralyzed and mute. But Lenora's got a secret...and she wants to tell Kit.

This book started off slow & I was so worried that I wasn't going to get into it. But DAMN, when it ramped up, it didn't stop. Truly a fantastic book. Such a fast-paced second half with twists I didn't see coming!

Read this baby the day it comes out on June 20, 2023!

Thanks to Penguin Group, Dutton for the ARC!

#netgalley #rileysager #theonlyoneleft