The Escape Room

An entertaining read that will have you on the edge of your seat until that elevator door opens again.  

SUMMARY
Working at the  Wall Street firm of Stanhope and Sons is like winning the lottery. Stanhope handles the biggest deals in the world and has the most prestigious clients. The pay is fabulous but along with it comes expectations: you have to be attractive, dress a certain way and you must bring value to the firm by closing lucrative deals.  Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam are a ruthless ambitious team of high flyers at Stanhope who fit the mold. To them, getting rich is all that matters, and they will do anything to reach the top. Other teammates, like Sarah and Lucy have come and gone, not quite fitting in at Stanhope. But what is the real story behind  their departures?

Lately, the team’s deals have fallen short and their jobs may be at risk. When they are ordered to participate in a corporate team building exercise that requires them to escape from a locked elevator, dark secrets begin to be revealed. When it becomes apparent they cannot solve all the clues to escape the elevator it is no longer a game. But it was never really a game to begin with.  Temperatures are soaring and Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam are fighting for their lives. Who will make it out alive?

REVIEW
THE ESCAPE ROOM is simply great entertainment that you will want to read. I couldn’t stop myself from turning the pages. Stanhope is a heady cocktail of money, gifts, and prestige.  Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam have been there long enough to drink the money kool-aid, and will do whatever it takes to get more, more, more.  They are the epitome of greedy and selfish characters you’ll love to hate. They don’t care who they step on to get what they want.

The atmosphere of the formidable and overly demanding Stanhope firm and the claustrophobically hot escape room elevator were both deliciously documented and described. I could not help but feel the heat, anger and hopelessness from being in that elevator with Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam.

Megan Goldin weaves a wonderfully descriptive and skillfully crafted tale alternating between the present and the past. The story is riveting and her writing is smart. I absolutely loved the epigraph in this book.  It says it all...”For everyone who has ever been made to feel powerless, trampled upon, or scorned, this book is for you.”

Author Megan Goldin worked as a journalist for Reuters, the Australian ABC and Yahoo! News before writing her debut psychological thriller The Girls in Kellers Way.  The Escape Room is her second novel. Thanks to Netgalley, Megan Goldin and St. Martin’s Press for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. 

Publisher 	St. Martin’s Press
Published 	July 30, 2019
Review	www.bluestockingreviews.com

The Escape Room is different from all the the other books out there. The book is all about power and greed. The lengths to which people will go to to achieve it. It was so interesting to see how the culture and work environment can shape a person’s moral compass. The book was incredibly sad at some points. This is not a feel good book. It’s originality keeps the reader engrossed. I really enjoyed this book and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.

Author Megan Goldin has created a double thriller, weaving two stories together and simultaneously bringing them both to a nail-biting climax. It was nearly impossible to set this book down.

Ms. Goldin expertly creates the convincing story of Sara, a recent grad student who gains employment with a high-flying investment company. The excitement of gaining a prominent job soon evolves into endless days and weeks of mind-numbing work. We are brought along, barely noticing the darker elements slowly mixed with the plot until, just like Sara, the danger has begun to envelop us.

The point of view shifts with each chapter, first with Sara and then with the members of her team at Stanhope. They are in the midst of a work crisis, and are worried for their jobs. The mandatory meeting scheduled for late Friday quickly evolves into a challenge, one the coworkers have no choice but to participate in as unwilling partners.

This is a gripping read, one that should engage your senses as the mysterious thriller unfolds. The plot shifts unexpectantly more than once, and even though I guessed part of the ending, I did not realize everything and I finished the book satisfied with how everything turned out. Four stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a complimentary copy of this book.

This is a fun, wild, romp of a thriller.  It’s not believable, the characters aren’t deep, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t enjoyable.  

The book alternates between two scenarios.  The first is told from the perspective of Sara Hall, a recent MBA grad looking to make her mark in the world of investment banking.  The second follows the four bankers who end up in an escape room as some sort of team building exercise.  But this isn’t your standard escape room.   Their goal is to make it out alive.  

The author doesn’t have any love of investment bankers.  “We didn’t realize we were being wooed for a long, heady love affair with greed.”   These are the people you love to hate.  Gordon Gekko would fit right in here.  

By the 33% finished mark, I had the perpetrator narrowed down to two possibilities and by the 50% mark, had it correctly sussed out. 

It’s an easy read and I sped through this in a day.  It’s that entertaining.  It’s the perfect vacation read.  

My thanks to netgalley and St Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

Absolutely amazing! This book had me hooked from the beginning! 

Imagine being invited to take part in a team building exercise with your co-workers, who are just as hard working and cut throat as you are? Who will all do whatever it takes to get to the top of the corporate ladder? All 4 co-workers are trapped in an elevator, in what starts off as a seemingly innocent fun game of the classic ‘escape room’ that quickly turns into a much darker, sinister game that is not quite as fun as they expected. The elevator doors lock, the lights go out, and cryptic clues are revealed, that turn more sinister than the previous clue. It quickly becomes clear to the 4 colleagues that something much darker than they anticipated is happening.

As members begin the panic, and confusion creeps in about what exactly is going on, paranoia kicks in and things turn deadly serious. Will the colleagues be able to work together to escape and get out alive, or will they slowly but surely begin turning on one another, to ensure they escape with their lives?

What would you do if you were faced with this deadly game? Would you do whatever it takes to get out? Would you do whatever it takes to survive?

The Escape Room had me turning the pages trying to figure out the fate of the 4 on the elevator. Instanly intrigued on how the story of a dead girl, Sarah Hall, played into the story. Magnificent writing, never saw the twist at the end coming!! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity read this ARC! Looking forward to more books by this author!

Wow, just wow! This book was an enjoyable read!

I loved how it flips back and forth between the past and present, slowly giving out information detailing murder, coverups and illegal activities. Without giving away any spoilers, I really enjoyed how the author was able to give a slow buildup.

The downside was the ending. Again, without giving away spoilers, the door is left open for a possible series. Fingers crossed that happens!!!

I just finished this book and I don’t know how I feel about it. The story kept me interested, but I don’t know how I feel about how it ends. It left me up in the air., like I’m looking over my shoulder, waiting for something to happen.  reminds me of how I felt after reading Gone Girl.

The Escape Room is a breath of fresh air in the thriller genre. Extremely original and a blast to read. Definitely recommend this for everyone!

I really enjoyed this book. The plot was something new and fresh. The story was suspenseful from the start. This was a great book!

So, how to do keep readers very intrigued when the whole plot of the storyline takes place in just an elevator? Well by doing just what Megan Goldin did with The Escape Room. You write a "tight" storyline that is not only hyped with tons of intensity but one that is so engaging that it kept me up all night. I could not stop reading until I was finished, which was a matter of a few hours. 

The four main charcters Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam were not that appealing but because the storyline was that great it made up for this little flaw. The story starts in the present and flashes back to the past. Each time a little more is revealed about the past including who Vincent, Sylvie, Jules, and Sam really are. 

What made this book so great is the "unknown". You never knew what would happe next. So I was left waiting in anticipation. The ending of this story does end on a high note. This is nice as I hate to read a book only to be left with a weak ending.

I received an advanced review copy of this book.

I haven’t read a thriller in a long time. This book is fast-paced, engaging the reader from the first page. 

Vincent, Jules, Sylvie and Sam are living luxurious lives. In their pursuit of money, each has done whatever it took to gain it. The four are asked to attend an escape room and as the clues and hours pass, secrets unravel. The team that has worked so closely together begins to disintegrate. 

Despite these characters not being likable, I got caught up in each character’s story. The character behind the escape room is intelligent but the decisions made had unintended consequences. I loved how the author pulled the story together of the four characters and the person behind the escape room together. By the end of the story I was left wondering: who is the bigger villain?

The escape room by megan goldin was a gripping unputdownable book, I loved it and read it within 2 days. I'd highly recommend it to anyone

The Escape Room is an exciting, fast paced thriller that keeps the reader anxiously turning pages as they work to put together the puzzle pieces. 

The book starts with two seemingly unrelated story lines. We meet Sara Hall, who recently graduated with a masters in business and finance but has yet to find a job, and we meet the several characters that are participating in a team building escape room activity. After a couple of chapters, a dramatic reveal links these two stories. 

The author continues to ratchet up the tension by alternating points of view for each chapter, between Sara and the escape room participants. She doles out intriguing tidbits of information in each chapter, which propel the reader towards the end of this dark tale. Overall, I really enjoyed this book, although the ending wasn’t completely believable. Definitely recommend if you like a fast paced page turner - it was a fun book to read! 

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the early copy!

I’d heard buzz about this book all over Facebook and Instagram and have been dying to read it! So first off thank you to the publisher and author for an advanced ebook copy in exchange for my honest review! 

Here it goes! The buzz on this book is spot on! Four investment bankers are trapped in an escape room they think is a team building exercise. It is told through alternating timelines of the present escape room and the flashbacks of another investment banker named Sara. I have to say parts of this book were creepy and just plain disturbing! But I couldn’t put it down. I finished it in about three days. I’m going to say this is my favorite book of the year so far! It’s the kind of book I want on my bookshelves to pull out to friends and say “Read this!” Congrats to the author on writing a good summer “escape”!

A very entertaining thriller but not very believable. This did not stop me from reading though; the story was interesting and kept my attention! A clever story that was easy to follow and didn’t require much thought... it was a perfect book for the ‘reading mood’ I was in at the time. I would definitely recommend if you want a fast paced thriller that is fun.

I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love psychological thrillers!!!! This one was wonderful. Not the most believable, but if I wanted reality I could read non-fiction. I typically start losing attention in books a third of the way in but this one sucked me right in from page one. 

Love how it all came together at the end and ended perfectly. I love a good revenge story.

This is the first book by Megan Goldin that I have read.  I don't usually read 'psychological thrillers', however, the description of this book drew me in, and I have to say it didn't disappoint.  This book is about a group of executives that work for Wall Street Finance.  The executives only care about money and work long hours for lucrative deals.  The story begins with four of the executives (Vincent, Sam, Jules, and Sylvie) going to a building for a mandatory team building meeting.  After all 4 of the executives are in an elevator they become stuck, with no access to the outside world, in this elevator labeled as an "Escape Room".  Throughout their time in the elevator certain secrets are divulged and it turns out that they really need to work together to stay alive through the ordeal.  The book is told in different POV's, which at times confused me, however, after a few chapters I was able to easily follow what was happening.  It was interesting learning not only about the 4 executives  but also about 2 other members of their team (Lucy and Sara).  The greed and backstabbing of the characters was not surprising and I really enjoyed the 'twist' along the way.  Due to the way the story begins you know that there isn't a lot of hope for all of the executives to survive, however, as I was reading it was tough to decide which character I actually wanted to survive the elevator (they all turned out to be extremely self absorbed).  I really liked how the book ended (although I kept thinking something else would happen to throw in another twist).  This book is worth the time reading and kept me engaged trying to figure out what was going to happen next AND who was the mastermind behind the executives being stuck in the 'Escape Room'.

This book is an excellent book filled with suspense and interesting character development.  Thank you to Megan Goldin, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Three employees of a Wall Street investment banking firm and their manager, Vincent, are summoned to a mandatory meeting on a Friday night. With rumors of upcoming layoffs, Sylvie, Sam, and Jules grudgingly meet Vincent for the last-minute gathering. They find they will be participating in an escape room challenge being held in an actual elevator, and the results of the exercise could be used for future staff planning. However, they quickly find out this isn’t a typical escape room adventure and it’s not their careers, but their lives that are in danger. 

Just as four of the main characters learn their escape room event isn’t typical, the reader figures out this isn’t really an adventure story about people trying to work their way out of an escape room. The characters do work out the clues, but that isn’t the main focus of the story. As they try to find their way out of the elevator, we get a look into each character’s life. However, we learn the most about the characters through alternating chapters from the point of view of Sara Hall, one of the group’s former co-workers. At first I wasn’t sure what her connection to the rest of the story was, but that soon becomes apparent. 

As seen through Sara’s eyes, the firm and all of the characters come out looking very badly. Greed and conflict are encouraged at the firm and almost all of the employees have no problem with these directives. Sara tells a story which shows all four of the people now in the elevator behaving despicably in the past. Some of the details are both shocking and strange. I enjoyed the book overall, but it’s necessary to overlook some of the more unbelievable details. Doing that, I was able to sit back and enjoy the twists of the story. Some parts of the book moved slowly, but once it started getting closer to the end, I didn’t want to put it down. I couldn’t wait to see how things would end. The book isn’t what I was expecting, but it has an original premise and is an entertaining novel for readers looking for something a little different.

I received this book from NetGalley through the courtesy of St. Martins Press. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.

I am not one to tell anyone how to write their story. Their story is theirs. However, I think the telling of this story could have been much better if we had less of the elevator and more of the past mixed in. 

This book is told in past and present. I usually like these kinds of storytelling, if done write. I get why it was written this way, but it still felt wrong. I almost think it would have been better had it been told from start to finish instead. I might have connected to the characters and the story more.

This book was slow and predicable. I figured most everything out fairly quickly and was ready for the book to end early on. 

I think some people might enjoy this book. Everyone's tastes are different. This book definitely left me feeling underwhelmed.