Oh, this is delicious. 

On a Friday night at an out-of-the-way office building in New York, four wealthy and successful investment bankers get into an elevator to attend a compulsory work meeting. Layoffs are imminent at their firm, this is not optional. Be there or be canned. 

Only this isn't your average work meeting. It's an Escape Room. And it starts the second the elevator stops rising. The doors don't open, and the clues begin. 

While these four abhorrent human beings work to solve the clues, we begin to discover that there's a lot more to this situation than meets the eye. Told in shifting chapters between The Elevator, and a young woman who started working for the firm many years before. Through her eyes, we see the greed, corruption, and conspiracy that ruined multiple lives and ended in many deaths. 

And we start to understand why these bankers are in this elevator, and exactly what's at stake. 

Excellent, excellent story telling. Both Sarah's story and the elevator scenes were compulsive reads. I never felt like the story switching was inconvenient, or like I wished one storyline would finish so I could get back to the other. I was equally interested in all sides, and desperate to see what happened to Sarah, and what was going to happen to the bankers. 

The big reveal at the end was not surprising, but still delightful. There's an odd pacing to the last 10 pages or so, but it still works exceptionally well.

This is one of my favorite books.  Suspenseful and kept me reading through the night.  I couldn't put it down. Four people are trapped together thinking it's just a company game but realize there's more to their situation.  Things get heated, fingers start pointing and they blame others.   If you enjoy suspense this is a must read.

I must be in the minority when I read the other reviews here. I didn't care for any of the characters! I feel bad saying that because I know it was a fun read for a lot of other people but it was hard to care about the characters. Still it was really well-written and I admire the author for her talent at crafting a plot.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc to review.

This book was exactly what I needed. A fast paced, well written story that had me immediately hooked. I could easily see this story becoming a movie. It is not the most believable of stories, but it was certainly entertaining. 

I would be so happy if a sequel was written to this story, and would buy it immediately. 

I highly suggest this book!

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the ARC I received of this book.

WOW! When I read the snyposis of this book, I knew I wanted to read it. Who doesn't love a great thriller, and one that has you on the edge of your seat?! This was right up my alley!

I'm normally not a fan of present and past days in a book, because it can easily be confusing to a reader. I was pleasantly surprised, as this flowed particularly well. It gave great insight into the characters of the four in the elevator!

A simply taste of revenge was well executed, but it turned out very bloody, with the person exacting said revenge, having no clue what transpired in that elevator.  It leads me to wonder if they would feel bad for their part in what went down.

As I was reading, I could envision every scene as it was playing out, and that's the mark of a great storyteller.

Sara Hall has scratched her way up from her waitressing job into the cutthroat world of corporate finance. She never in her wildest dreams thought she'd be working at a company like Stanhope, where the hours are as ridiculously long as the paychecks are large. She soon realizes that her coworkers are pretty horrible, selfish people, but that's not really a surprise, so she deals with it. Until one of them winds up dead. 

The author uses a clever ploy at the beginning of the novel, which is to give us the ending first. We know how this story is going to end for most of the players, but it's somehow still compelling enough to keep on. 

I put this firmly in the category of "trashy thriller." That's not an insult, it's just not one of those "literary thrillers." Totally unrealistic but still a fun read.

“Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.” -Sun Tzu, The Art of War


This novel follows two different timelines-- the past, as told by Sara Hall-- and the present, which takes place in an elevator with Sylvie, Sam, Jules, and Vincent. 

The very beginning of the novel opens up with a security guard who discovers that the building he is monitoring is not as vacant as he would have thought, as he realizes that someone is on the elevator. Not long after, he begins to hear loud sounds that he believes to be gunfire and calls the police. When the elevator doors open, someone walks out and the police discover a very bloody scene… 

So we know from the beginning that something terrible happens in that elevator and that at least one person survives… but we are left to wonder about all the details that led up to this moment. 

★Enter present timeline --- Sam, Sylvie, Jules, and Vincent, all investment bankers at Stanhope, hastily enter an elevator in a yet-to-be-completed building. They are all in a hurry to be somewhere else and going through their own life stressors, so they are quite frustrated when the elevator comes to a halt and they are given one instruction… 

“Welcome to the escape room. Your goal is simple.Get out alive.”


Begrudgingly shrugging this message off as the introduction to a “team building activity”, the foursome gets to work deciphering clues. But they quickly realize that this is no standard role-playing game… this is a real escape room.. That may have very real consequences if they don’t find a way to make it out. 

★ The past timeline is expertly woven between the escape room chapters as it follows Sara Hall’s experience at her first investment banking job at a prestigious firm called Stanhope, where she quickly meets our four elevator-bound characters. Readers get to know Sara on a very personal level and experience the high-stakes environment of her line of work. As Sara tries to work her way into the inner circles of life at Stanhope and prove she is worthy of this highly-sought-after career, she quickly discovers mystery and corruption that might be the most dangerous thing she has encountered yet… 

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 

I had been in a total book slump before this novel. I would guess that I had cracked open and ‘sampled’ 5-6 books in the course of a week, without being to commit to one I loved. But when I opened up and began reading The Escape Room, I could not put it down until it was complete. 

This is a unique concept for a thriller and what I really loved was that it felt like it had miniature character studies woven into it. As Vincent, Sam, Jules, and Sylvie all reflect on past events and we experience each of their internal dialogue, you realize how nasty, flawed, and corrupt these characters are, while also being utterly human and relatable at times. 

While the behavior can be quite ugly in this novel--it is so important to note that the sexism that exists on these pages is all too real, especially in the ‘climb to the top’ for success in today’s careers. I think all too many women are going to relate to the women in this book and relate to that burning desire for revenge toward those who have wronged us or those that we love.

I have seen many reviewers state that the ending was predictable, but I strongly disagree. While there were several obvious ways that the ending could have played out, it still kept me guessing and there were many surprises thrown in that I was not expecting. My only objection would be that the tailend of the novel’s conclusion felt a tad rushed to me. I wanted a little more details from the ending in regards to what happened to certain characters (hard to explain really without spoiling the ending). But overall, this did not affect the enjoyment of the novel. 

A must-read for lovers of thrillers! 

Thank you to Megan Goldin and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a DRC of this title via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Love the psychological thrillers that have been coming out recently this book is no exception. This book is about 4 co-workers locked in an elevator for a group team building exercise. It does not go as planned. Who will turn on who to make it out alive. Very fast paced. You will not regret the time spend reading this book, the pages will just fly by.

4.5 Stars.  Totally enjoyed it!

"Revenge is a dish best served cold."  Oh yeah.....

I wanted to read THE ESCAPE ROOM since I first laid eyes on it....and was so glad to get my hands on a copy.  For me, it was unputdownable....and yes a few parts were beyond belief....or maybe not....like the interview from hell or fiancé more interested in your prestigious job than you, but the set-ups to terminate, the bonus/salary issues....don't doubt those in the least.

"What's the longest anyone has ever been stuck in an elevator?"  Who knows....  Even under normal circumstances, I'm sure it would be frustrating & stressful....even worse if you're claustrophobic, but under the conditions set forth in THE ESCAPE ROOM for four big-shot colleagues, it's dangerously brutal!

And don't be fooled....THE ESCAPE ROOM is not just some silly story about being trapped in an elevator.  The plot centers around a bright young college MBA graduate who lands the job of her dreams with an exclusive high powered company in NYC and quickly discovers the ruthless, backstabbing world of greed, corporate competition....and much worse. 

Loved to hate all the nasty characters....and the fitting finale.

***Arc provided by St. Martin's Press via NetGalley in exchange for review***

Great, I will never get into another elevator without thinking about this book. I have a mental picture of each characters face and body language. Excellent read.

Thank you St.Martin's Press and Netgalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for fair review.


This starts off with a security guard alone on a weekend shift noticing something strange is going on in the building. At first he things he is imagining things, but when he hears gunshots he calls 911. When the police arrive they think he has gone crazy, until the elevator starts coming down. When it opens none of them are prepared for what follows.


Told from alternating viewpoints and with one being told from the past moving towards the present. We slowly learn about Vincent and his team and the Friday evening they all come together in the elevator to go to the Escape Room. They think this is a simple team building event until the message says you have one simple goal to get out alive.


I am going to leave it that vague, I will say it took me awhile to figure it out. This isn't your normal thriller. To some degree from the first chapter you know that things don't quite end well, but you don't know who is in the elevator nor do you know why. Over the course of the book you begin to figure out as do the characters involved. 


I found myself completely drawn in as the book went on. I will say I wasn't all that surprised by the reveal, I figured it out before it got there, but I still enjoyed it all.

The Escape Room describes the rise, fall, and ultimate revenge of brilliant investment banker Sara Hall.  Each chapter alternates between Sara’s past, and the present, in which 4 bankers from Sara’s firm endure a grueling experience inside a locked elevator.  In order to escape, they are compelled to solve clues which force them to face their awful pasts, and admit to crimes they thought were long-buried.

If you enjoyed Gone Girl, and Grisham’s The Firm, you’ll probably enjoy The Escape Room as well.

A non-stop thriller and revenge, among the Manhattan elite, financial players in a cutthroat industry.  Mix in a sweet revenge plot and you have a gripping and chilling novel.   Exciting, suspenseful and great storytelling from a new author I discovered, Megan Goldin.  I was skeptical, at first when I read the description of the story, but I chose it and stuck with it, and I was disappointed.

The beginning of the story begins with an alarm at an elevator in Manhattan high-rise.  The cops are called and when they arrive, shots are fired at someone in the elevator who dies.  The story than proceeds to go back to an earlier point in the past to set up the incident and the story begins.

The four key characters trapped in an elevator, thinking they're participating in a team building exercise, soon deteriorates into an escape room scenario.  Slowly, they begin to turn on one another, as time drags on.  Even going as far a committing murder.

Unbeknownst to them is that they are the unwilling participants in a revenge plot, designed by Sarah Hart, a former employee.  The design of the revenge must be withheld from this review, so readers may relish in an ingenious plot.

A must read for those who enjoy a modern day murder, revenge, betrayal, greed and how the human behavior can sharply turn and become selfishly deadly, set against the financial high rise towers in the greedy city of Manhattan.

Twists and turns galore!  This novel set in the high stakes, intense, money making field of acquisitions and mergers feels completely believable and factual but the author throws so many curveballs (to mix metaphors) here that you are kept guessing until almost the end. I enjoyed all the characters of the main group and felt they were slowly developed through the back and forth points of view in the chapters just enough to keep us interested. I was also interested in the minutiae of the work setting and the indoctrination of the main character into the mindset of money, money, money. If you want to explore the high finance of Wall Street in a mystery novel take a look at #theescaperoom by Megan Goldin. Thanks to #netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Megan Goldin’s latest novel starts with an ominous scene: a blood soaked elevator in an otherwise abandoned construction site. As we go back in time to find out how we ended up where we are today we are introduced to the cut throat finance world of New York City. Goldin’s thriller was a refreshing change of pace in the thriller realm that kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading.  I thoroughly enjoyed the book and will be recommending it to my friends once it is published.

Thanks to Netgalley, for a copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

The only way to describe this book is a page turner! Ignore any niggling questions about whether there's any real way any of this could have happened - just enjoy the adrenaline rush!

Four characters trapped in an elevator - four characters with no redeeming qualities. Clearly someone is out to get them, and they seem to be deserving of anything bad that happens to them. The only real questions are, first, who has set up this situation, and, second, is there any way they'll get out of it?

It's an interesting way of telling the story - we alternate sections describing the elevator scene with an earlier story line told by another woman, who worked with them before all this happened. It's an effective way of letting us know about the four people in the elevator, and serves to heighten the tension about what's going on here.

Some nice twists as well.

I found The Escape Room to overall entertaining, but found the plot to be predictable.  This story was told from varying perspectives, within colleagues.  I did enjoy the story, but as someone who reads a lot of thrillers, I didn't find this one to be super great. 

Thank you to the publisher, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this book.

YIKES!!  What a twisted tale!  The Escape Room by Megan Goldin is a mystery/thriller that had me thinking twice about getting into the elevator when I went to the doctor yesterday.  Ms. Goldin has produced a book that is well-written, even though it's part 3rd person and part 1st person, it totally works in this story.  The characters are such a variety and your feelings for them will change throughout the story.  
Sarah is a business school grad that is having a hard time finding a job.  When she lands a job in NYC, she's happy that she'll be able to help her parents with all the medical bills from her father's long illness.  Her story is loaded with drama, a few bits of humor, murder and edge of your seat suspense.  I enjoyed reading The Escape Room and would happily read more from Megan Goldin in the future.  Even if it does mean I'll have no nails by the end of the book.  

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received a free copy from NetGalley.  A young women trying to find her way in the world while worried about her aging parents.  An over working power team stuck in an elevator in what they think might be an escape room team building exercise.  Their stories slowly come together.   Interesting twists and turns.  A good summer read.

I will start out my review by commending the writer on their ability to make you hate the characters you should hate and love/feel for the ones that you should care about! Megan Goldin had me rooting for the right people and I appreciated the ease in that. 

Was the story believable? No. Was it fresh and thrilling? Yes! I felt the mysteries in this book building up and was delighted to watch them as they unfolded in passionate ways. I really liked the lead character and I find that is a key aspect in enjoying a book. 

A couple things I didn't like so much: 1. The ending. I just wanted more of a "reveal" -I'll say without spoiling anything. I felt things ended too quickly and without the confrontation I had so hoped for. Despite this, I did enjoy how things ended up for the different characters. 2. The title was a bit misleading! While there is an intention of certain characters taking part in an elevator escape game, the actual escape game has no purpose. I was slightly disappointed in that. I found it would have been more exciting to have it play a major part. 

Overall, I did enjoy this read and would recommend to anyone wanting a good thriller with lots of unraveling mysteries throughout.