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theawkwardbookw 's review for:
Reprieve: A Novel
by James Han Mattson
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*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
In 1997, four contestants make it to the final cell in The Quigley House, a full contact haunted escape room in Lincoln, Nebraska. If they can make it through the horrors that await them, without anyone saying the safe word, Reprieve, they win a large cash prize. This has only been accomplished one other time, in the history of Quigley House. Before they have the chance to complete the challenge, a man breaks into the final cell, killing one of the contestants in cold blood. Told through flashbacks and courtroom transcripts. those present during the attack lend their points of view on what happened that night.
This book is literally McKamey Manor in book form and I was SO HERE FOR IT. I loved the overall creepy vibe I got from this story, and honestly thought it was going to be a 5-star read, but ultimately it fell a bit short for me in the end. This is definitely more of a slow-burn plot, so don't expect to go in to an action packed storyline. This was a lot more complex then I originally thought it would be, there is a lot of social commentary in this surrounding racism, manipulation, greed and prejudice. None of the characters were likeable, which did make it hard to connect with them, which is probably one of my biggest complaints of the story. Another complaint I have is the lack of time actually spent inside the cells of Quigley House. Most of the story takes place leading up to the murder, no where close to Quigley House. The time spent inside the house were definitely my favourite bits of the story and I would have loved to spend more time in the rooms, reading about the horrors these contestants had to go through. The book is marketed as a horror, and I do think the time in spent inside the rooms would qualify as such, but all the other parts do not at all.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
In 1997, four contestants make it to the final cell in The Quigley House, a full contact haunted escape room in Lincoln, Nebraska. If they can make it through the horrors that await them, without anyone saying the safe word, Reprieve, they win a large cash prize. This has only been accomplished one other time, in the history of Quigley House. Before they have the chance to complete the challenge, a man breaks into the final cell, killing one of the contestants in cold blood. Told through flashbacks and courtroom transcripts. those present during the attack lend their points of view on what happened that night.
This book is literally McKamey Manor in book form and I was SO HERE FOR IT. I loved the overall creepy vibe I got from this story, and honestly thought it was going to be a 5-star read, but ultimately it fell a bit short for me in the end. This is definitely more of a slow-burn plot, so don't expect to go in to an action packed storyline. This was a lot more complex then I originally thought it would be, there is a lot of social commentary in this surrounding racism, manipulation, greed and prejudice. None of the characters were likeable, which did make it hard to connect with them, which is probably one of my biggest complaints of the story. Another complaint I have is the lack of time actually spent inside the cells of Quigley House. Most of the story takes place leading up to the murder, no where close to Quigley House. The time spent inside the house were definitely my favourite bits of the story and I would have loved to spend more time in the rooms, reading about the horrors these contestants had to go through. The book is marketed as a horror, and I do think the time in spent inside the rooms would qualify as such, but all the other parts do not at all.