(61)Final Girls by Riley Sager

It has been ten years since the night that Quinn Carpenter survived the massacre at Pine Cottage and became a "Final Girl." The press dubbed her a "Final Girl", along with Lisa, who survived a sorority house massacre and Sam, who survived a massacre at a motel.   It has been hard to move on, especially since the details of that night have escaped her memory,  but Quinn is a survivor.  She lives with her boyfriend in an NYC apartment that she bought with survivor money, she runs a successful food blog, and is doing well.  Until the day that her friend and savior, Coop, calls to tell her that Lisa has committed suicide.   Coop was the officer on duty that night she ran out of the woods covered in the blood of her friends.  It has been Coop to be by her side as she reintegrated into the world and tried to move past the events of that night.  It is Coop who makes her feel safe.   It is Coop who cautions her when Samantha Boyd, another Final Girl, shows up on Quinn's doorstep.  Quinn is hesitant to welcome her, but she is really the only person who can even understand a fraction of what she has been through.  When it is determined that Lisa was murdered Quinn's world quickly starts to spin out of control.  Will she be able to finally recover the memories of that night?  Or will someone do everything in their power to keep Quinn from remembering?

HOLY COW!  Final Girls is by far the best thriller that I have read this year.  There was more than one night that I had to close the book rather than read it alone in my dark bedroom.  It truly terrified me.   Quinn is the kind of character that appears to be strong but is really just a hot mess.  She is addicted to Xanax, has a horrible relationship with her mom, and keeps secrets from her boyfriend.  And all of that is before Sam Boyd even shows up.  The book has an "80's horror flick - where are they now?" vibe - but that is not a bad thing.  It is very fast paced - but not so fast that you can't keep up. And the author knows how to build the story so that you just cannot stop reading.   You are hanging on to every word because you, like the media in the book, are morbidly fascinated by the Final Girls.  It all builds to an explosive conclusion that will leave you absolutely shellshocked.  I had NO IDEA how this book was going to turn out, but wowzers did it have a great conclusion. --CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS

Bottom line - While Final Girls doesn't really get explicit with the gore, the graphic nature of the plot cannot be denied.  These characters survived bloody massacres.  Get past that though and you have a well written, incredibly intense thriller about a survivor just trying to live her life.   You will not be disappointed with this one if you are looking to scare yourself and get your heart rate up.

Details:

• Final Girls by Riley Sager
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• Pages: 352
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 7/11/2017
• Buy it Here!