This book is set in the 1990s and features college-aged (or thereabouts) characters Charlie (female named after a movie character), her recently murdered roommate and close friend Maddy (through flashbacks), Charlie’s boyfriend, a stranger & weirdo male Charlie gets into a car with to ride across country, and later a character found along the way on the trip. The story begins with Charlie explaining that she can’t stay at college any longer; her dorm room is a constant reminder of Maddy’s death and the guilt she feels associated with her murder.

This feeling has culminated in a series of “movies in her mind,” meaning she has dissociative periods in which she is sort of hallucinating but more so just disconnecting from reality inwardly for brief(ish) periods of time. Cinema/movies are a recurring theme in this book, as Charlie is a film major and she uses movies as an escape from an apparent lifelong series of major trauma, such as her parents dying in a car accident leaving her an orphan to be raised by a cinephile grandmother. Now that her best friend has been murdered and she feels partly responsible for leaving her behind at a bar, Charlie decides to leave college to return home to Grandma, but since it’s the 1990s and Charlie doesn’t drive (parents dying in car accident is why), she has to use a rideshare system. It’s in the middle of the semester so it’s hard to find someone… so she gets in with this good looking, probably totally normal fella.

Oh, we forgot to mention one thing. Maddy’s murder wasn’t just a one-off suspicious case. Apparently, there has been a string of murders for a while now. They all are connected by a similar MO, particularly the removal of a tooth. With this news fresh in her mind, she does indeed get into the car with the strange man with no way to contact anyone other than the optimistic phone booth on the way home.

Fast forwarding a bit, this story essentially talks part in bulk on the “road trip” back to her home state. Charlie is paranoid and finds a lot of red flags during the ride. They stop at a diner. A nice, well-meaning waitress asks if Charlie is okay. Eventually, she decides to phone her boyfriend she left behind with a code phrase meaning she’s in danger; he races out to find her. There’s some dramatics between Charlie and her driver/captor.

Mild spoilers after this point.

There are some strengths to this book. Particularly, there are some recurring themes that tie together the story nicely: movies/cinema, “drive like hell,” the “movies in her mind.” However, ultimately this book was just one of those that left me scratching my head.

The characters are bit wonky. The storyline falls into ridiculousness right after the diner scene. However, there were some good things I thought about the plot:

I liked the premise of the “locked room” style being in a car on a twisted form of a road trip in a time & day setting in which cell phones and other related tracking or communicative technology was not as advanced or relevant. I thought it was a harrowing thought to be trapped essentially in a car with a stranger who could be dangerous, coupled with the sense of not knowing where you are. I think the additional aspect of Charlie’s mental capacity not being very good also made this worse for me.
I liked the twist of the real villains. I did not see the twist of why Charlie was just so happened to be in this car with this person, but when it started unfolding, I thought it was only about 45% believable. It just seemed very melodramatic. Not only is she consumed by grief, but she’s also a cancer ridden grandma who will pluck your tongue out AND deliver her lines like a stilted villain movie character. All the characters talk like they’ve perpetually in a play written by an Oscar Wilde loving theatre major.
I liked the premise of the “movies in her mind” trait as a representation of untreated PTSD/dissociation. However, it does get quite old and repetitive after it’s used 938294892384 times and I honestly was preparing myself to reach the end of this book and it say something like “and it was all in her mind. The End.”
This book wasn’t Sager’s strongest moment. I am not the only person who thinks so. However, it isn’t all cringe. There are some moments where I felt compelled to read on, spurred by the anticipation of figuring out what was going to happen to Charlie. It seems like I’d wager most people who found this book to be weak are probably ardent readers of thriller/suspense and just found it kinda cliche or lackluster.

At the end of the day, I gave it 2.5 stars. I think it’s slightly below average, especially for Sager. It’s not horrible, but not great.

It’s the 90s. Your best friend has been murdered. So have two other girls at your university. By the same person. So, obviously, the first thing you do is hitch a ride out of town with a stranger. 🤦🏼‍♀️⁣
⁣
True to form, Riley Sager’s lead character is an idiot - call me crazy…I still liked it 🤷🏼‍♀️ I don’t know guys. I know she’s dumb. And I didn’t love the “movies” in her mind. But I really liked this book! I thought it was suuuper fun, fast paced, and suspenseful. And I loved all of the references to old movies - especially the emphasis on Hitchcock’s Shadow Of A Doubt, which I feel like no one ever references! I thought it had great tension, interesting characters, and good twists, even if they weren’t too surprising. This was a stay-up-too-late book. I read it in a day. And like…I really liked it! I thought it was way better than Home Before Dark and Lock Every Door - Sager kind of went back to his original vibe from Final Girls and The Last Time I Lied, which are my favorites of his, so this one gets a thumbs up from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Another great thriller from one of my favorite authors of this genre! Riley Sager always keeps you guessing until the very end and I was turning the pages as fast as I could. I didn't see the ending coming which is an extra star in the rating for me!! Can't wait for your next book!!

I didn't get to this ARC in time and ended up listening to the audiobook instead, so that's important to keep in mind because it may have affected my review.

I'm a fan of Riley Sager's work, but this was my least favorite so far. I found myself so deeply annoyed by the main character, Charlie, because she made a series of the dumbest and most unlikely decisions a person could make. There's a serial killer on the loose? Oh, I'll definitely get in a car for a cross-country road trip with a stranger. Makes total sense.

The "mind movies" were a confusing part of this book for me, too -- I'm all about an unreliable narrator but I feel like I need to at least have some idea of what's going on, as the reader.

And about the ending: The first big twist? Major. Loved it. Didn't see it coming. The second one? Too much. I wasn't about it.

I feel bad disliking a Riley Sager book, and I hope the next one gets me back on board the Riley Sager train!

This protagonist was so stupid, I realize this was the 90s and sometimes people were too lack with their safety but not this level. Women get attacked and hurt throughout history and are usually careful. So why the heck besides plot would she get into a strangers car, when there are buses OR just wait OR CALL A FAMILY MEMBER AKA her grandmother.

I just didn't love how she made the worst decisions and Josh was so weird with his motive and then the killer reveal, it was just not enjoyable.

Riley Sager writes compulsively readable thrillers that feature aome of the best twists in the business and Survive The Night is loaded with them! This was a tricky one to pull off with focusing mainly on two characters and mostly set in a confined location, but Sager pulls it off masterfully and crafts a novel loaded with tension.

**Thanks to the publisher for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.**

FUCKING RAD. Riley Sager's books always pair well with movies; this book actually features 200000 movie references. ALSO A PLOT TWIST.

I’m not a huge horror / scary book fan but Riley Sager knows how to write. I loved this one. Not as much as one of his others but I did enjoy it and I think others will too.

All I could think the whole time I was reading SURVIVE THE NIGHT, was what a great tv series or movie this would make!

I’ve enjoyed so many of Riley Sager’s books, and thought this one was very reminiscent of a campy thriller I watched growing up.

My main complaint is having yet another woman targeted as unreliable, and the storyline was tough for me taking place in a 24-hour period. I just don’t know that those plots work for me.

*many thanks to Dutton and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

A great, seculded mystery: two strangers in a car, one might be a killer, and the other might be his terrified target...or might do something about it.

Full of flashbacks, questionable visions, movie and song references, and 90s themes, it's a dark, fun, clever, twisting tale.

Survive the Night ~ Riley Sager released June 29, 2021
It's 1991 and Olyphant college student Charlie Jordan is just trying to get home. She's running from yet another tragedy. This time it's her best friend Maddy's murder. The Campus Killer stikes again and it might be Charlie's fault. Charlie, who is a film student, also has a "condition" where she blacks out and sees movies in her head. It's sort of a defense mechanism, but a dangerous one and she's just tossed out the little orange pills that help keep them at bay.
After meeting Josh at the college message board for ride shares, Charlie decides to leave campus and her boyfriend, maybe for good, to get in the car of a stranger. Nothing to see here folks, seems pretty legit... don't look in the trunk of the car... nothing to see there either... everything is fine... perfectly fine....
The first half of the book is definitely a slow burn. Getting to know Charlie and sketchy Josh and Maddy. You will thoroughly enjoy the trip back to 1991 and all the classic movie references. But when things "take a detour" it all goes to hell in a handbasket. Maybe you'll make some connections and see some things coming, but let me tell you the ending will have you gobsmacked. This book will hold you hostage in a car speeding down the highway late at night while Nirvana croons Come As You Are from the stereo and what's real and what's just a movie in Charlies head... only time and pages will tell. This book is packed with nostalgia and tension. Riley Sager has done it again. This was definitely a 5 star read for me.
Will you dare try to Survive the Night?

***Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
I love everything Riley Sager writes, but this is definitely my least favorite. I appreciated the twist and the unreliable narrator made me question the plot. Overall, not the worst, but not his best.

I will read anything Riley Sager writes!! He's a master in his craft and just checks all my boxes! Loved the twist at the end!

It hurts me to say this because I love Riley Sager's writing, but this book missed the mark for me. I couldn't get into this one at all. I did not enjoy the characters and I found myself struggling to get through it. I think this one was just an off one for Sager, because all of his other books have been fantastic. Sadly, I wish I could give this one more positivity.

Wow! This book took me by surprise! I spent 3/4 of the story gripping my seat and hoping the main character wasn't going to do what she was going to do, yelling at her in my head to get out of the car and run as fast as she could, etc. etc. This feeling continued until the last 1/4 of the story when everything tipped itself upside down and I was completely blindsided. The ending!! Couldn't have come up with a better ending if I tried. I truly loved know that what I read was not exactly the story, but also it was. No spoilers! But gosh- Sager can do no wrong!!! Another hit, thats for sure!

Nope. Just nope.

I only finished reading this book because I wanted to know the twist, the ending, what was really going on and that ending? Nope.

The first half of this book is full of so much (TOO MUCH) repetitive inner dialogue. A new twist on the unreliable narrator- she sees movies in her head. Nope.

A girl’s best friend has just been murdered by a serial killer and she’s going to get in a car with a random stranger? Nope.

I don’t want to say too much because I don’t include spoilers in my reviews but the few ending reveals were the final deal breakers for me. Too tidy, too wrapped up in a bow, too easy.

I will say, I read through this fast because I wanted to get it over with. I was hoping for a brilliant surprise twist but nope.

I was enthralled by this until the rather ludicrous plot twist. I've enjoyed his previous books, which were contrived in a more plausible way.

Charlie is headed home from college and needs a ride. Being the 90s, she checks the Ride Share bulletin board on her college campus, meets a tall and handsome guy going her way. Off they go on a ride through PA Pocono Mountains from NJ to OH. Sounds like an easy drive, right?

Oh, I forgot to mention that Charlie plays "movies" in her mind. And since she's the narrator of this story, we as the readers can't tell if what's currently happening is one of her "movies" or reality.

This story takes place in a 24 hour-ish timeframe. Each chapter is separated like screenplay directions (interior car - night).

It seemed to take me a long time to read this book, even though it wasn't very long. I just didn't get into it and this might be my last attempt at a Sager book.

In my eyes, Riley Sager can simply do no wrong. Every book is so well written, well-developed, and well-done.... this is no exception. I raced through this as I have done with previous titles, and actually went back to reread it and see if I read too fast originally. I'm happy to report that the book is just as fantastic the second time as it was the first. At this point, he could write pretty much anything.... and I'd read it. Do not miss this book, and absolutely do not miss this author!

Absolutely loved everything about this book. The constant twists that Sager threw at you kept you on your toes and guessing until the last possible minute. This book gave you goosebumps, and for me, that's one of the best things a thriller can do. One of my favorite thriller writers. I will constantly recommend this one!