If you are a thriller/mystery junkie this has everything you look for: Secluded island, plus a storm approaching, also survival game of hide and seek and a character that has to overcome the odds… look no further period!
Needless to say, a very entertaining and addicting read!

A deadly game of hide and seek? count me in. This story was so propulsive and heart-pounding that I had to put it down a few times just to be able to breathe again.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second Lisa Unger book and I enjoyed it. I have several of her books on my shelf because all of her book premises are so tantalizing. This one hooked me pretty quickly. We have a wide cast of characters in this book and all of them are flawed but I would say our main character, Adele, might be the least flawed or at least the character you can most sympathize with. An influencer with a problematic past and present who is known for taking things to the extreme is having an extreme hide and seek game on an island. The winner gets 1 million dollars and plenty of followers and sponsors. This is a game for influencers and Adele, who needs the money for her kids thanks to her ex-husband, just cannot turn it down. She has a modest following of her own and has participated in other influencer events, but this one might be the one that gets her head above water. When the contestants arrive, things are not as clear cut as a simple game of hide and seek and there is some obvious drama going on with their host and his team. I was fully invested in this book, Adele and her children, and all of the questionable members of the host's team. I was able to predict some of the plot points but I had a good time getting there either way. I also like the way a mmorpg game came into play with the real world game.

I do love a reality show type book - this was giving Mr Beast competition and I found that to be really interesting. I was a bit sad there was none of the actual competition because shit hit the fan before that but I thought it was pretty good. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Lisa Unger’s Close Your Eyes and Count to Ten had me hooked with its eerie island setting and creepy hide-and-seek game. The atmosphere was 🔥—stormy, claustrophobic, and perfect for a thriller binge. Adele was a strong lead, and I loved her fight to survive. That said, I did wish the actual ‘game’ got more attention, because sometimes the subplots overshadowed the suspense. Still, fast-paced and twisty enough to keep me flipping pages late into the night. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.


I went into this with high hopes, completely expecting to be reading about the high stakes game of hide and seek spoken about from the very beginning. So much emphasis was placed on the game that four internet influencers were being invited to join, and where the last hider found would win the one million dollar prize. The company hosting the event at a creepy, run down, abandoned hotel on an island seemed very Mr. Beast Challenge-esque. But the challenge never actually takes center stage. The entire book, which is told from just about every character's POV, really centers around the extreme game company's staff and founder. So, not getting to witness the game was super disappointing. There are also other aspects to this that are really hammered on, and yet they have no real bearing on the story at all. I'm not sure why they were even included. As far as thrillers go, this one wasn't all that thrilling.

Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 is a tense, atmospheric thriller that pulls you into the nightmare of a live-streamed game of hide-and-seek on a crumbling island resort. Adele makes for a compelling lead - her desperation to provide for her daughter gives the story real emotional weight, even as the dangers of the game escalate. The decaying hotel setting is vivid and claustrophobic, and the commentary on influencer culture adds an extra layer of unease. I found it both unsettling and impossible to put down!

Lisa is always a must read! Really enjoyed the character development and the twists and turns. Adele is like every mother and will do whatever it takes to protect her child.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

Not my favorite Lisa Unger book. Had a hard time connecting to, or really liking, any of the main characters. It was an easy and entertaining read, but after reading so many thrillers, this one felt a bit formulaic. I still had fun time reading it, i just wish there was a bit more depth and intrigue. I would love to be more invested in the story, and i think you do that by making me care about the characters, and i feel there were just too many of them to focus in. This went wide when it should've gone deep!

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to review " Close Your Eyes and Count to 10." This is the first book that I have read by Ms. Unger and I had big hopes of reading an exciting thriller. I found the book to be tedious. I felt that the ending was rushed and the plot didn't build up to the ending. The book gave off a vibe of trying to teach the moral of " do the right thing." Sorry only 2 stars from me.

The idea of a deadly, high-stakes game of hide-and-seek on a storm-battered island has so much potential, and Lisa Unger does set up a tense, cinematic atmosphere in the opening chapters. The concept blends survival thriller with social media spectacle, which could have made for a sharp, timely story.

Unfortunately, the execution felt underwhelming. The pacing lagged in places, the danger never truly felt urgent, and the twists were predictable. Adele had a strong motivation as a mother, but the character depth wasn’t enough to make me fully invested in her journey.

While the setting and premise were intriguing, the story didn’t deliver the level of suspense or originality I was hoping for.

A group of people are invited to play hide & seek at a dilapidated hotel on a remote island in a foreign country; what could possibly go wrong? It was engaging enough to want to finish, but not my favorite by Ms. Unger. I was hoping it'd be a bit more about the actual competitions and competitors, and less about the game makers. Still, it had a few tense moments and a pretty solid read

Lisa Unger has long been one of my favorite authors, and Close Your Eyes and Count to Ten is yet another reminder of why I keep coming back to her books - masterful suspense, razor-sharp writing, and characters so real they practically breathe.

From the very first page, I was hooked. Unger creates tension like no one else, slow-burning, psychological, and utterly unshakable. The twists in this novel aren’t just shocking; they’re smart, emotional, and deeply earned. She doesn’t just play with your mind—she gets under your skin.

What sets this book apart, though, is the emotional depth beneath the thriller surface. The trauma, the memory, the sense of unease. It all builds into a story that’s as much about survival and identity as it is about fear. I found myself completely immersed, flipping pages late into the night, unable to stop.

Close Your Eyes and Count to Ten is Lisa Unger at her absolute best: dark, gripping, and unforgettable. If you’re a longtime fan like me, this one will only deepen your admiration.

And if you’re new to her work? Prepare to be hooked.

I have to start by saying that I absolutely ADORE Lisa Unger. Unfortunately, this wasn't my favorite of hers.

The setting was A+! It was eerie and atmospheric. I think my biggest issue was that there were A LOT of characters and a lot of POVs. It became overwhelming to try to remember everyone and frankly to care about each character. I think it would have been more successful if the book had focused in on just a couple POVs.

The plot started out strong. I was really invested for the first portion of the book but slowly began to lose interest.

Overall, it was a decent read but not my favorite of Unger's books. Regardless, I will never hesitate to pick up a book by her!

This book wasn’t bad, but I struggled to stay interested throughout reading it. I thought the subplot of Adele’s husband being on the run was pointless, and the story would’ve been better without it. I thought surely he would be involved somehow with the main plot, with Extreme or Enchantments, but he just… wasn’t. Some of the plot points were far-fetched, like Blake’s online friend just happening to be able to go rescue Adele from enchantments. The pacing was not consistent, and the story just randomly jumped into the actual ‘hide and seek’ part without any warning, and it lasted about 5 seconds before devolving into something else.

A lot of the mysteries were solved in one sentence in like the last chapter of the book, such as the murderer and who was leaving items for Adele to find at Enchantments. There wasn’t any tension or build up, it was just kind of… revealed. Overall, definitely not one of the better thrillers I’ve read, but I have read a lot worse. 2.5 stars.

I read this book in one sitting. No joke. I LOVE a competition story and I LOVE books set in abandoned places. This book was a 5/5 for me. Add in the whole "where is her husband?" aspect and I was IN. I don't know that I have ever read a book by Lisa Unger prior to this, and wasn't sure what to expect with her storytelling. I was pleasantly surprised. I will 100% be picking up her next book and I hope it's as twisty as this one!

While this one started out a little slow, it soon picked up the pace. This book had me hooked until the very end. I love Lisa's books and look forward to reading more from her.

The smell of mist and mold was overpowering as she walked through the dark hallways of the abandoned building. The wind outside beat against the structure, causing it to groan in protest. It wasn’t going to be standing much longer with this storm raging and she needed to get out before it was too late.

Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 is a thriller following a cast of characters playing an ultimate game of hide and seek on a social media platform called Extreme. When a raging storm crashes the island they’re on, a body turns up, and secrets from the past are threatened to be revealed… things turn for the worse.

The premise of this book sounded fun, but I found myself not completely invested. The characters annoyed me, the twists were things I saw coming, and I feel the ending was a bit odd. I don’t think anyone truly learned from their actions. I will say the message behind the dark side of social media and how harmful it is to please people in your life, which leads to devastation, was a good message to take in.

Read if you like:

• Thrillers
• Games/Challenges
• Social Media
• Multiple POVs
• Secluded Island Setting

CW: Murder, Death of a Loved One, Physical Violence, Infidelity, Blackmail, Bullying, Mental Illness.

I enjoyed this book, however, wasn’t my favorite by this author! I enjoyed the audiobook version more than the physical!