Five Survive by Holly Jackson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**3.5-stars rounded up**
Five Survive is the latest release from beloved author, Holly Jackson, well known for her hugely-successful A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series.
While Five Survive has a completely different feel than AGGG, it still showcases Jackson’s fluid and engaging writing style. This story is a YA-Action Thriller that takes place over the course of a single night.
It’s Spring Break and 18-year old, Red, and her five friends, Maddy, Oliver, Reyna, Arthur and Simon, are traveling from Pennsylvania to the Gulf Coast of Florida in an RV.
You can tell from the start that Red is recovering from a trauma that has happened in her life. Since she can’t afford to fly anywhere for break, her best friend, Maddy, actually suggests the RV trip. Good-naturedly, everyone else agrees.
It will be fun. It’ll be a real adventure.
And you know, it does start out that way. People are in good spirits. They’re excited for the trip to get underway, but then they get lost.
It sucks getting lost in a 31-foot vehicle. It’s not always easy to navigate smaller roads, let alone turn around. When your tires are shot out, it gets especially challenging.
That’s right. There’s a sniper out there lurking in the dark and they have their sights set on our six friends, who are now trapped in their disabled vehicle. There’s no cell service. They’re far from help. What can they do?
Once they begin communicating with the individual holding them hostage, it becomes clear, this person knows them. How did they end up here? Was this entire thing planned? This can’t be a coincidence.
Things become chaotic. The mood is panic, as you would expect. The sniper claims one of them has a secret that can save them all, but who!?
As the tension climbs, the people inside the RV begin turning on each other. Will they all be able to make it out of this alive, or will only five survive?
I liked this one. I really had no expectations going in, Action stories can be hit or miss for me. I personally felt this was a compelling, though very-OTT, Action Thriller.
I seem to be stumbling across quite a few of these lately and this one was pretty fun in comparison to some others. At times I was rolling my eyes, but at other times I was absolutely glued to the pages.
The audiobook was super solid. It kept me going, wanting to know the answers. There were a lot of reveals I wasn’t expecting and some super unlikable characters, which are always fun for me.
Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t know how long this one will reside in my brain, but it was a good time. A solid weekend read. Super quick, highly improbable circumstances, but engaging nonetheless.
I definitely recommend this to YA Readers who enjoy tense, claustrophobic Action Thrillers. I will certainly continue to pick up anything Holly Jackson writes!