Only Quincy remained.
All the others were dead.
She was the last one left alive.
Riley Sager's psychological thriller Final Girls is gripping, unsettling, and intense. It centers on Quincy Carpenter, the sole survivor of a brutal massacre at Pine Cottage ten years ago. By surviving this mass killing, she becomes a reluctant member of an exclusive club: The Final Girls. There are only two other members, Lisa and Samantha, who also survived horrific slaughters. Quincy has spent the last ten years proving that she's fine, that she's moved on. But she hasn't. Not really. And then Lisa dies. Murdered by someone who might be after Quincy next. And Samantha shows up on her doorstep, pushing Quincy to remember the past. And suddenly Quincy doesn't know who to trust; she's not even sure she can trust herself.
Well-plotted, full of suspense, and with some unexpected twists along the way, I'd characterize this book as a good read except for one thing. The characters. I wanted to like Quincy, but I found her passiveness in certain situations and her reckless self-destructiveness in others, especially when she's around Sam, completely frustrating. And I thought Sam was a lying bitch through most of the novel. Then the one character I liked from the start turned out to be someone completely different than I thought. Which made me not like this novel quite as much. I'd still classify it as a good read, and a compelling one, too; I just prefer novels with characters that I can like and root for all the way through, which is why I didn't love this one.
Happy Reading!
Similar reads (that I liked a little bit better):
The Never List by Koethi Zan
The Edge of Normal by Carla Norton
I just finished reading this one. I thought it was a good psychological thriller; very intense but I find most of the characters unreliable (some annoying). I sort of figure out the perpetrator towards the middle though that didn't spoil my reading experience as I want to see how it'd end given the circumstances.
ReplyDeleteIt's got good things about it, I just didn't end up loving it.
DeleteI like to have some empathy with characters. I may not like them much, but I still want to feel something positive about them.
ReplyDeleteMe, too! If I don't care anything about the characters why read the book?
DeleteHm, I hate it when all the characters are irritating/unsympathetic/unreliable. Still, I think this one sounds good, so I'm definitely going to give it a go.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was well-plotted and it gets pretty tense at the end. I hope you like it.
DeleteI think I'm going to need to read this one. Thanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteLet me know what you think of it! :)
DeleteRight - those characters. :( A fun read, but kind of frustrating, too.
ReplyDeleteExactly!!
DeleteI'm the same way-- I want characters that I can love and root for. This has kept me from reading some books which I'm sure are actually great books, they just feature unlovable characters. This sounds like a good thriller, besides the character issue ;)
ReplyDeleteIt is good. But it could have been so much better! (Glad I'm not the only one who wants characters I can love and root for.) :)
DeleteI haven't read this one or heard much about it. The premise sounds really interesting. I think I may have to give this one a try, even with its flaws. Thank you for sharing, Lark!
ReplyDeleteIt's got good suspense!
DeleteHa! yes I hear ya about the characters. If they're too 'complex' then it gets annoying. I've quit books over characters like this. I do enjoy a good thriller with a psychological twist, though.
ReplyDeleteThe plot was good...I just wish I didn't want to scream at the characters through half of it! ;D
Delete