Survive The Night - Riley Sager

Survive the Night - Riley Sager

7/10

    CHARLIE JORDAN IS BEING DRIVEN ACROSS THE COUNTRY BY A SERIAL KILLER. MAYBE.

Behind the wheel is Josh Baxter, a stranger Charlie med via the university ride-share scheme. On the road they share their stories, carefully avoiding the subject dominating the news - the Campus killer, responsible for three student murders, has just struck again.

The miles tick by and Charlie begins to notice discrepancies in Josh's story. And why won't he let her see inside the trunk?

As she begins to plan her escape from the man she is becoming certain is the killer, she starts to suspect that he knows exactly what she's thinking.

Meaning that she could very well end up as his next victim. 

A game of cat and mouse is about to play out.

In order to win, Charlie must do only one thing... survive the night. 

Survive the night begins by introducing us to the story's main protagonist, Charlie Jordan. After the death of her friend and roommate, Maddy, she decides to leave Campus behind and return home. For how long, she isn't yet sure. She leaves behind her boyfriend of a year, Robbie, and hitches a ride with a handsome stranger. 

A notorious serial killer is still on the loose, and Charlie knows she can't be too careful. Especially considering the Campus Killer murdered her roommate. 

As she departs with Josh, she becomes suspicious. His story doesn't add up and something starts to feel off. Charlie experiences movie-like hallucinations, where her brain amplifies what she is seeing and turns it into a movie, a response most likely brought on from the trauma of her parents dying. Her grandmother became her sole carer, and together they bonded over their love of movies, leading to Charlie studying them. The visions cause her to doubt her suspicions, unable to decipher between reality and the version created in her head. However, the longer she is in the car, the more sure she is that Josh is, in fact, the exact person she feared he was. 

This book is filled to the brim with twists, every page shocking you more than the last. It almost became hard to keep up with it, and the more Charlie felt like she was losing her mind, the more I did, too. It is exactly what you would call a page turner. It is very fast-paced and I must have powered through the entire book in a little more than 4 hours. The story itself only includes a few characters and follows one timeline which makes it easy to follow. 

The shifts in POV's are cleverly misleading, letting the reader think that they've finally worked it out, where in fact we were miles away from discovering the truth. 

About 3/4 of the way through the story, it takes a wild and unexpected turn. My head was spinning as I tried to keep up, my eyes darting from line to line, desperate to get to the end and make sense of it all. I found Charlie's character to be somewhat infuriating, and was inwardly screaming at some of her poor decision making. However, her strength was inspiring, as was her determination to find out the truth behind what happened to Maddy. Instead of making the easy and probably sensible decision, to run, she chooses to stay and fight, unwavering in the face of the man she thinks killed someone she loves. Her loyalty goes unnoticed and I lived for her character development from the beginning to the end. 

Her boyfriend, Robbie, goes after Charlie after she leaves a coded message indicating that something has gone wrong on the road. He doesn't hesitate to jump in the car, desperately wanting to protect his girlfriend, despite her leaving him only a few hours prior. I was in awe of his bravery and could only hope that one day someone loves me enough to put their own life on the line for mine. 

Everything you think you know about every character you meet in this book, is completely shattered. I was deceived in more ways that one, feeling betrayed by characters I loved, surprised by the one's I hated. Nothing adds up, until it does. 

I can assure you that when you pick up this book, you will not be able to put it down. Although I found the story slightly far fetched in some instances, it is absolutely worth a read. It is jaw-dropping, mind altering, earth shatteringly thrilling. I don't think it is Sager's best work by any means, but you will not regret reading it. I do suggest you go in to it open minded, not expecting it to remind fully realistic, and don't let other's opinions sway you.

I was doubtful after reading a few reviews of it, but as an avid 'thriller' reader, I loved it. It was so beautifully written and Sager's writing style makes you feel like you are in that car with them, feeling everything Charlie is feeling, desperate to escape. 

The ending was bittersweet but appropriate, totally in-keeping with the theme of the book. Thank you Riley Sager, you truly are a genius.