Okay, so I know I say this a lot, but I was particularly excited to read 'Final Girls' after Stephen King said it was one of the greatest thrillers of the year. I mean what better accolade! So you can imagine my excitement.
The premise of the book immediately engaged me – girls who have all survived a mass-murder attack are now being targeted. Quincy, our protagonist, has almost detached herself from the 'Pine Cottage' attack she escaped, but the narrative is interspersed with the massacre as it happened, leading to an incredibly tense climax.
As you would expect and want from a thriller, you never feel like you can completely trust any of the characters – and you shouldn't. The plot is tight, the end of each chapter had me starting a new one instantly, and the writing is seamless.
When I finished the book I was slightly disappointed; the Stephen King enthusiasm had raised my expectations way to high. In hindsight, this was a really good book that had me gripped. It was an original concept and it was well-written. I would definitely recommend 'Final Girls' to fans of the genre and will be looking out for Riley Sager's next book.

was so excited to read Final Girls, having seen lots of great reviews and having read the synopsis which sounded right up my street. I wasn’t disappointed!

The novel is really fast paced, following two narrative time frames. One takes place in the present day, as Quincy finds out one of the other three ‘Final Girls’, Lisa, has died and meets up with the other Final Girl, Sam, who she has never met before, and the other dates back to the time when the horrific ‘incident’ took place, told through short excerpts spread out throughout the book.

Final Girls is great because it really made me question who to trust and who to believe; I love books that do this! Some of it was quite formulaic, yes, but I felt it really kept me intrigued and wanting to read on. I didn’t find myself getting bored or uninterested with the plot, as I have with various other books recently, but instead really enjoyed both the present day and past storylines as they unfolded. It left me unsure of everything, and I thought I had it all figured out towards the end – but no, definitely not!

I don’t want to give anything else away but just say that this is a fast-paced, fun read with plenty of sinister-feeling moments (which I loved!), taking the reader on an emotional roller-coaster as they follow the ups and downs of Quincy’s life in the aftermath of Lisa’s death.

Quincy is a final girl, the sole survivor of a massacres that killed her friends, so is Samantha Boyd and Lisa Milner, only Quincy cannot remember exactly what happened that night as she has blocked it from her memory. She can only remember immediately before and after the event when she was found by a cop, running through the woods covered in blood.
When Lisa Milner turns up dead, apparently a suicide, Samantha Boyd, who disappeared years before due to the press coverage of her attack turns up on Quincy’s doorstep, determined to make Quincy remember what happened to her.
 
An exciting well written thriller, which uses great characters and dramatic twists and turns throughout, this book keeps you guessing until the final reveal, could Quincy herself have killed her friends?
Quincy is a believable character, who seems to have put the massacre behind her. A successful blogger, with her own apartment and devoted boyfriend, but this is a façade and things are not as they seem and this Façade cracks when Samantha Boyd turns up.
Sam is a complex character, a times tough and desperate, sometimes nasty in her outlook, but at other times she is so vulnerable and lost.
Lisa is a more peripheral character, the first of those to be called a Final Girl (this is the last girls standing in a horror film), she has dedicated her life to helping young girls and women with troubled histories, which is why Quincy finds it hard to believe that she killed herself.
Coop is the cop who found Quincy in the woods that night and has been a part of her life ever since, being there when she needs to talk to someone about that night and things in general, but he is more than he seems even though he tries to keep a distance, but close at the same time.
The story really rushes from point to point, scarcely giving you time to breathe as Quincy ends up on the brink of ending up in jail herself,
Well written, exciting and with a beautiful ending that brought tears to my eyes.

Oh my! I did not see that coming! What an ending. It kept me guessing until the very last. Bravo!

Final Girls is a well executed hat tip to horror film 'final girls' (as they are typically the last ones standing by the end of a bloody massacre), but be mindful if you are squeamish. There are some rough passages along the way in this twisty tale.

Our main character, Quincy, is a final girl who has constructed a seemingly normal life years after her traumatic ordeal. But, as new developments unfold for another final girl, what are the implications on Quincy's fragile existence?

Quite a lot takes place in the pages of this book as we gain insight into the past and present happenings of 3 final girls. I liked the rawness of this novel. Quincy definitely has issues and she comes across in an authentic fashion. A victim who doesn't want to be a victim. My guesses and assumptions about the plot ran back and forth with wild theories flying about. So glad I was wrong as the surprise twist was well worth the wait.

Final Girls is a book that I've had on my virtual shelf for such a long time, waiting for the chance to be read properly - because I'd heard so many good things about it, that I wanted to take the time to read it slowly.

Ha! Impossible...

Final Girls is one of those novels, those page-turners that you just can't get enough of.

It is most definitely not a slow read. It is brilliant.

Quincy Carpenter aka Quinn is a successful baking blogger, living with her partner in a plush apartment that is worlds away from the tragedy of her past.

Quinn is also a 'final girl' - the lone survivor of a brutal murderous attack in which of all her college friends were killed.

So named after the last often lone female standing in horror movies, Quinn shares this accolade with two others, Lisa Milner and Samantha Boyd. She has never met either of them, but has kept tabs on them via the media.

When something terrible is reported to have happened to Lisa Milner, Quinn fears that she and Samantha may be in danger. Samantha turns up at Quinn's unannounced just days later and both of their lives are turned upside down once again.

Final Girls is an unexpected triumph of a novel - not to be missed!

We have all watched those slasher films when the sole survivor is a pretty girl covered in blood screaming at the camera. Final Girls is the story about Quincy, Sam and Lisa, 3 girls all who have been in this situation and were now trying to move on with their life.
The story mainly revolves around Quincy, the latest girl, now living with a defence attorney and running her own baking blog, you would not know what she went through, she was good at hiding her feelings and the only one who knew what she was really feeling was Coop the cop who rescued her. Lisa was the complete opposite, embracing the publicity, she felt that she could help people with her experiences and Sam, went off the grid and did not want to be found. However, this all changed when Lisa’s body was found and the police suspected suicide.
Throughout this book you can see Quincy develop as a character at the start she was very meek and mild and whilst she was trying to live, she could not do it without someone to lean on whether it was Jeff or Coop. However, after Lisa’s death, she became stronger and was learning to stand up for herself, although she still used Coop as a crutch.
From the opening slasher scene, this author takes you on an adventure. I found Quincy’s past of interest and these scenes had the traditional slasher feel to them, the scenes that gives you goosebumps. The author has a knack of leading you down the wrong path and whilst reading this book I must have changed my mind at least 3 times whilst trying to work out who was behind the killings. There were a number of times that I just sat there in shock. This book is fast paced and with more of Quincy’s memories returning as the story progressed I didn’t want to put it down. This is a great psychological read and would make a great film

This is a good thriller which held my interest to the end. The Final Girls are Lisa, Quincy and Sam. They are called this because each one survived a mass murder which happened at a different place and time, with different murderers. The press gave them this name. The story is narrated by Quincy, she has never met or talked to Sam, she has however emailed and spoken on the phone to Lisa. Quincy is coping with her life until Lisa commits suicide and Sam turns up at her doorstep. Why? Read on!

I felt this book was a bit slow paced in the first half but as soon as I hit that halfway mark, I could not put it down.

As soon as you have one idea to the 'who dunnit?' question, Sager takes a sharp turn and leads you in a completely different direction. This book was executed brilliantly and handled the aftermath of trauma incredibly well. I really enjoyed this one.

I’m trying very hard to avoid all these books that have ‘girl’ or ‘girls’ in the title (we’re WOMEN ffs!) but I read this for two reasons. Firstly, it sounded brilliant and secondly, there’s a very good reason that it’s called ‘Final Girls’.
If you love horror movies you’ll know that the ’final girl’ is the last girl left standing once everyone else has been murdered. The term was coined by Carol J Clover in her 1992 book ‘Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film’ and in Sager’s book, Quincy, Sam and Lisa are ‘real’ final girls (in the reality of the book).
The main focus is on Quincy. She is the sole survivor of a horrific massacre carried out on a group of teenagers in a cabin (well, a cottage, anyway) in the woods. She can’t remember everything that happened that night, and she hates being associated with the other Final Girls. And she seems to be coping – she has a home, a successful and loving boyfriend, and she’s developing a food blog. She does take rather a lot of Xanax, and she also keeps in touch with Coop, a policeman involved in the case, but she’s trying to put it all behind her. Then Lisa dies, and Sam turns up. Quincy’s fragile façade starts to fall apart. Quincy finds herself more and more influenced by Sam, and more and more drawn into what has really happened to Lisa, and what really happened that night at Pine Cottage.
There are so many twists and turns here. Just when you think you’ve solved the mystery, that you know what the twist is, you realise you’re wrong. It’s skilfully done and makes this a real page-turner.
The characters are all really well-written and very believable. I didn’t like Quincy all that much –but I didn’t find that a problem. She frustrated me at times, and I was practically screaming at her not to do the things she was about to do – but the fact that she provoked such a strong reaction goes to show how well she was written.
There are some really tense moments, and genuine shocks and surprises. It’s a really intense, gripping and enjoyable read.

I don’t know about you, but I get this feeling after reading a great book, where I need to breathe out and have some free time before I pick up another book. I just need some time to digest what I just read, the same feeling I had after reading Final Girls. It is one of my favourite books this year and I think everybody should read it.

I was hooked from the first pages of this book, as it starts of Quincy’s escape from Pine Cottage. The main characters in this book were Quincy and Samantha (Sam). Two strong survivors of massive slaughter, but there is one small problem, Quincy can’t remember what happened that night.

All the characters in this book are really mysterious and very interesting. Most of the story was told from Quincy’s perspective, which made other characters more intriguing, because the only way to find out about them was through Quincy’s story. I needed to find out more about other characters, that’s why the pages just flew while looking for more information about them. Even though, for me, it was enough to hear the story from Quincy’s point of view, I would’ve loved to read the thoughts of other characters as well, at least at the end of the book.

The plot of this book was amazing to me. You cannot trust what you read, because as soon as you will start to believe in something, Author changes the flow of story, throwing in twist after twist and story changing turns, making this book very compelling and an absolute page turner. The narrative was changing between present and past, telling the true story of Quincy’s survival, and what happened that night in Pine Cottage. I really loved the topics author was discussing in this book, such as: pressure you get from media after surviving something horrible; mental illnesses and lifelong healing, where you can slip at any time; difficult family relationships.

The writing style of this novel was very smart, finishing every chapter with a cliff hanger, building curiosity and suspense, chapter after chapter. Add to this lovely and short chapters and a language, which was easy and pleasurable to read. The ending of the book was very nicely thought through and concluded the story really well for me. The characters and story are so awesome, that in the hands of skilled producer it could be an awesome film, and I really hope that this book will be transformed into one. It deserves it! So, to conclude, this book has a lot of interesting action going on, continuously playing with your mind and not letting you to believe in anything, throwing in twists and turns, making it a very fast paced, compelling page turner, and I think it is an ABSOLUTE MUST READ this year.

Final Girls:

A refreshing story considering the overdone plot lines. Well written and gripping from the off ~ there is no doubt final girls is going to be a favourite! It was amazing!


The book hooked me from the first page - something I look for in a psychological thriller. The concept of being the last one who survives after a horrifying attack or ordeal can be quite overdone when it comes to thrillers. However, this book was different! By 10% of the way through you could tell that Final Girls was different in so many ways.

The characters are as you can guess from the synopsis and the title are brought together by being the final girls left after an attack as aforementioned it can be an over done trope but the characterisations kept me wanting to read more. Especially since there is a sudden death at the beginning of the book ~ making me want to read more to find out the exact details. It was gripping and intriguing and the twists and turns weren't expected.

I think the book tackles the issue that horrifying events happen daily to people globally and yet, it's only a select few who get their names heard in the media and the news. It's always the blonde, 5 year old girl who gets into the news with doctor parents, never anyone who is a minority. I enjoyed the fact that the author knew that, the story Quincy faced was that of privilege.

However, a criticism that came early on for me personally was the 'mentally ill perpetrator' at the heart of Quincy's case. Demonising mentally ill people out to be killers and criminals is a dangerous path to go down. This is only a brief criticism since there is no doubt SOME criminals are mentally ill and I'm sure the author meant no harm. Also the stereotypes of those who commit suicide (Lisa) are damaging as well.

I loved the book so much the final half (yes - half) had me gripped on the sofa and I seriously couldn’t put it down until the end! 5 STARS! The ending was not expecting. Honestly one of the best books I have read this year! I will definately be putting the word out!


Thank you NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for a review.

There has been so much hype recently about this book, it's literally everywhere and with thriller being an ole fave of mine I was itching to get my hands on it, not realising I had a review copy from NetGalley chilling on my kindle, and have had for several months.

Honestly I found it a bit MEH! I like the idea of the three Final Girls although at no point during the book did the three ever get together. 

There was a nice variety of characters ranging from kind and caring to sly and cunning, although I felt no connection to any of them.

I liked the fact that there were a couple of different intriguing story line playing at once but felt that non of them really carried through, nor did the mystery aspect. For me it was lacking a lot of suspense and found it slow-paced. I don't know if that is because I had just finished a BA Paris (super suspenseful) binge and found my self comparing the two.

In summary it was a good entry-level thriller, probably a little slow for hardcore thriller readers. But still enjoyable all the same.

Quincy, Lisa and Sam are Final Girls, the only survivors of three separate massacres. When Quincy Carpenter was in college she went for a weekend partying with her friends at Pine Cottage but she was the only one who came out of it alive. Ten years later, Quincy seems to have a normal, almost perfect, life, with her own apartment in New York, her successful baking blog, and a boyfriend who adores her, although she has an addiction to Xanax and memories gap (and secrets) from that night at Pine Cottage. Although they belong to the exclusive club of Final Girls, Quincy, Lisa and Sam have never met. When Lisa is murdered and Sam unexpectedly turns up on Quincy's doorstep with her secret agenda, Quincy's seemingly perfect life starts to crumble.

I heard so many good things about this book so I was very excited to read it and I wasn't disappointed. I read it in two sittings: every time I tried to stop, something would happen in the story that made me keep reading. As the novel unfolds, you think you know where the story is going but there are so many twists and turns that I was completely taken by surprise by the ending. Quincy is a brilliant, complex, and carefully drawn character and I just loved her. This dark and chilling thriller had me captivated from the first page. Well-plotted, beautifully written and with an atmospheric setting - Pine Cottage is the perfect solitary cabin in the woods from an horror movie - Final Girls will be hard to beat as the best book of the year.

UNBELIEVABLE..... This was really unbelievable good. Did I know that when I started the book - No. Did I suspect it would be? Well, I certainly hoped it would be good. But I didn’t expect it to be this entertaining.
Qincy lives a normal life. As normal as it can be after the horrific night 10 years ago when all her friends where murdered and she was the sole survivor. She thinks she’s lucky not to remember what really happened. Nicknamed to be a “Final Girl” Quincy wants to make sure to proof the world that she is a strong young woman who has left this tragedy behind and is going on with her life. When another Final Girl is murdered her life begins to unravel.
Thrown into the story, starting with the rescuing of Quincy, I was hooked. I couldn’t stop reading and the only moments I put the book down, were when I had to take a deep breath or had to close my eyes because everything became too intense. I wasn’t sure about Quincy, what to make of her. It was clear that she was not that normal she wanted everyone to belief. But did she remember more then she let on? Or was she the one killing the others? I was literally biting my nails. When Samantha aka Tina comes along my suspicion hit the roof. I didn’t know what she was up to, but she was not there to help Quincy. And in fact from the moment she arrives, everything goes downhill for Quincy.
Towards the end I was getting nervous when nothing added up and I feared that a lot of questions would go unanswered. And the BAM! another twist and now everything made sense.
If you like reading psychological thriller with a twist in every chapter, than this is your kind of book.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK!

A very good thriller and a perfect read for holidays. It moves along at a good pace and keeps you guessing. Good characterisation and a great surprise ending. Thank you Net Galley for my copy.I reviewed on Goodreads and Amazon.

Wow! This is THE thriller of 2017. That doesn't even do the book justice. A story where the final girl trope is used in the best way possible. If you are a horror buff, you will be ecstatic. A group of final girls connect over their shared experiences, so when one of the girls kills herself, the other can't accept it. A girl who survived so much wouldn't commit suicide. When the characters all have secrets, it's hard to know just who to believe. This is one completely engrossing story that will not let you go. I am still haunted by it, as it won't leave my thoughts. The story is actually unpredictable in a sea of so many that lack originality. If you enjoy thrillers, horror, or mysteries, do not miss out on the book of the year. Highly recommend you check Final Girls out today!

A slow-burning thriller with a decent final pay-off. 3.5/5.

The premise here is terrific. The question “what happens to the lone survivor once the credits of a horror movie end”? makes for a great set up and interesting story. However, I felt the overall pacing of the narrative was slightly off.

It takes the book 42% of its length to catch up with what we’re told in the blurb. I wondered if this section could have been compressed. And I didn’t feel like the story became truly gripping until about two thirds of the way through. Up until then, the characters just seemed to wander about getting themselves into avoidable scrapes. Every now and then we’re given a flash-back to the events preceding the horrifying murders at Pine Cottage, but this felt as if someone was saying “please stick with the story, we’ll get to the action soon”.

However, one thing this opening act did accomplish very effectively was to make me suspicious of pretty much everyone. In this sense, various strands of the story are handled well, lending just enough credibility to the characters’ claims while leaving sufficient gaps in their histories to put us on edge. I had thought up ways that at least 4 different characters could be the “baddy” – and that’s great. It would have been disappointing if it had been obvious from the word go.

The last third made up for the tension I had felt was missing in the first two acts of the book. This is where the story really takes off and the actions kicks in. This part of the book is what lifted it above being simply a 3-star “ok” read to something more impressive and gripping. I was pleased with the reveal – it all made sense and was well-handled, even if I wasn’t exactly a stunner (I didn’t gasp or think “NO WAY!” when the baddy was revealed, I just shrugged and thought, “Yeah. Figures.”).

I’ve been trying to think about why the first two thirds weren’t that involving and I think I found the main character – Quincy – hard to warm to. Understandably, her past experience has left her isolated and edgy, but I didn’t find her very sympathetic. Only in that final third, when she finally started to take action without having to be cajoled into it, did I start to warm to her.

Overall: if you like your thrillers to be gripping from page one, this will be an exercise in patience for you. If you like your thrillers full of suspicion and slow burn, then get yourself a copy of Final Girls now.

Final Girls is mainly the story of Quincy Carpenter, sole survivor of the Pine Cottage Massacre several years earlier. There are two other Final Girls, both of whom were also only survivors of two separate multiple murders.
How and why their lives intertwine is explained in , at times, somewhat laborious detail. The book is , in places, exciting enough, but there are some narrative misfires and , sorry to say, some clunky prose.
However, if you're looking to pass the time with an undemanding slasher/thriller read this might just fit the bill.