Reviews

Survive the Night by Riley Sager

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marieeve1978's review against another edition

3.0

I was disappointed in this book, because I had a lot of expectations. I loved Riley Sager's other books. However, this is a little all over the place. Unreliable narrators are interesting when you do not know they are unreliable. Otherwise, it just feels like losing minutes of your life when you read the parts you know are unreliable.
I also guessed the ending...
But I think the biggest disappointment for me was that I did not care about the main character.

fiercereadsfiction's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Content Warnings

readingonmountains's review against another edition

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4.0

I enjoyed so much about this book! I loved the setting, 1991, a time before cell phones, grunge music on the radio. A film student catching a ride-share home from college, what is meant to be a six hour ride turned into so much more. We’re talking twists, turns, an unreliable narrator and so much suspense! This was a win for me.

cait_readsxox's review against another edition

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3.0

I enjoyed it. I will say I understand why some people dislike this book and I have to agree Charlie isn’t that smart to a certain extent. I knew who the killer was before it was reveal at past the halfway point. I did love the ending. This was a fun read but I definitely feel like I prefer his other books I’ve read by him.

leah_obrien's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense

3.0

manviisreading's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

sydwatabu's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

for_the_hope_of_it_all's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

4.75

astoriareader's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.0

SYNOPSIS

It is 1991. Charlie is a college student. Her friend, Maddy, was murdered, and Charlie is having a rough time processing her friend’s death. Charlie decides she needs to withdraw from school & return home.
Since Charlie doesn’t have a car, she posts her information on a “ride board” at school, indicating she is looking for a ride back to Ohio. A handsome man offers to give her a ride, and she decides it’s a great idea.

MY THOUGHTS

Ughhh, Riley! Please stop writing women protagonists.
Even women who haven’t recently had a friend murdered do not navigate the world like Charlie does. Oh, it wasn’t just having a friend recently murdered BTW – her campus has someone they’ve affectionately nicknamed “the Campus Killer”, as he preys on young women & murders them. So, obviously, the best place to find a ride is said campus from a stranger.
I didn’t like how Sager wrote about Charlie’s delusions. They were not relatable as well because it felt completely made up & not science=based. She “sees” movies in her mind, and she has a hard time differentiating between what a movie is in her mind versus real life.
None of the characters are very deep. They simply lack development.
Everything felt really artificial, and this is Sager’s weakest one yet.
Not a satisfying ending.

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️yikes, unrealistically written woman protagonist.

Content Warnings

gratiamortis's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

just a bit too predictable, otherwise fantastic

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