About The Book
Ten years after surviving a brutal massacre, Quincy Carpenter is trying to move on with her life, despite being part of the infamous “Final Girls” group. But when Lisa, a Final Girl, is found dead and Sam, another Final Girl, shows up unannounced, Quincy must confront her traumatic past and uncover the truth before history repeats itself.
Buy The Book: https://amzn.to/4hd1JxD
My Rating
Unfortunately, this book frustrated me quite a bit. I believe it’s Riley Sager’s debut novel, and it definitely reads like one. The premise is intriguing, but the main character really got on my nerves, making it hard for me to enjoy the story. Oddly enough, this seems to be a recurring issue for me with Sager’s protagonists.
The book follows Quincy, a final girl who survived a mass murder but has no memory of the attack. When she hears that another final girl has died, apparently by suicide, she reconnects with the only other survivor she knows of, Samantha. However, once Samantha enters her life, Quincy starts remembering her attack and quickly realizes Samantha might not be trustworthy.
Quincy comes across as really naïve for most of the book. Sure, she tries to act like she’s fine, even though she’s dealing with unresolved trauma, but I feel like someone who went through what she did wouldn’t be so trusting of Samantha. There were times I just wanted to shake Quincy.
Samantha, on the other hand, was an intriguing character. I liked her personality and wanted to know more about her. Her backstory, for me, was the most captivating part of the entire story. Besides Samantha, the other side characters weren’t that important, except for Quincy’s boyfriend, who I actually felt bad for at times. There was also the cop who saved Quincy the night of the attack, and let’s just say he and Quincy have a special bond.
“You can’t change what’s happened. The only thing you can control is how you deal with it.”
The story includes flashbacks that help the reader piece together what Quincy forgot about the massacre. I wouldn’t necessarily call her an unreliable narrator, but as the story went on, there were moments when I wasn’t sure who to trust or what twists were coming. Riley Sager has a way of making me second-guess who’s telling the truth and who’s lying, which, in my opinion, makes for a good thriller.
However, I found the ending quite predictable. I figured it out about halfway through and was hoping for something more surprising, so I was disappointed with how the book concluded. In my opinion, there wasn’t much suspense throughout the plot. Although the story did become more exciting as the plot progressed, I found it difficult to stay interested for most of the time.
Overall, I’m trying to remind myself that this is a debut novel, especially since I’ve enjoyed other books by this author much more. Despite the plot having promise, it didn’t shock or surprise me, and I saw most of the twists coming. Still, I’m glad I read it, even though it wasn’t the most thrilling experience. If you like the final girl trope, you might enjoy this book, but I wouldn’t call it a must-read.
In the comments, let me know if you’re a fan of books that revolve around “final girls.” If so, share which one you’d recommend. Don’t forget to like and share this post, and help my blog grow by following it.
Until The Next Chapter,
Bunny
Grady Hendrix