Hello, Bookworms! I am back with a book review. After enjoying A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder, I kept the new release on my radar. Thank you to Harper Collins for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review of the book. Let’s get into the review!
Book: Five Survive
Author: Holly Jackson
Genre: Fiction, Thriller
Age Limit: 14+
Pacing: Medium-pacing
Trigger Warnings: Death, Murder, Violence
Goodreads Summary:
Eight hours.
Six friends.
One sniper . . .
Eighteen-year-old Red and her friends are on a road trip in an RV, heading to the beach for Spring Break. It’s a long drive but spirits are high. Until the RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere. There’s no mobile phone reception and nobody around to help. And as the wheels are shot out, one by one, the friends realize that this is no accident. There’s a sniper out there in the dark watching them and he knows exactly who they are. One of the group has a secret that the sniper is willing to kill for.
A game of cat-and-mouse plays out as the group desperately tries to get help and work out which group member is the target. Buried secrets are forced to light in the cramped, claustrophobic setting of the RV, and tensions within the group will reach deadly levels. Not everyone will survive the night.
My Review:
The whole story is set in the time frame of eight hours and an RV. This setting was so interesting, and I think the author did a commendable job of narrating the whole story in a small setting, which made the story unique. Now for the six characters. Well, they weren’t likable. I didn’t like the main character and some other characters, like Oliver. Oliver is shown to be the detestable one among the other characters, and normally authors do add those kinds of characters. But after some point, I found it very irritating in the story. It ruined other elements of the story.
The character developments were pretty bland since the story takes place in one setting. I feel that she could have given more backstory, which would have been great input for the main reveal. One thing I liked in the story is that there was one character who was never present in the RV, but through conversations, the author introduced that character.
In the first half of the book, the author was still building the situation and preparing the readers for a climax in the second half. While reading the book, My emotions while reading the book: stress, anger, and cringe. Some scenes really gave good shocks, but throughout the story, the characters made me so angry to the point where I would close the book, take a moment, and then continue to read it. Some moments made me cringe. Coming to the pacing. Around 80 percent of the narrative is dialogue, so it was a quick read. The ending was unpredictable. Hats off to Holly for managing to put plot twists in such a small setting.
Lastly, “What did the curtains remind Red of?” The author never answered this question!
What I Liked:
- The setting of the story.
- Introducing a character through conversations between different characters.
- Shocking plot twists in such a small setting
- Fast pacing due to dialogue narrative.
What I Did Not Like:
- OLIVER.
- There were some cringy moments.
- More backstory could have been given.
- Bland character developments.
Who Should Read This:
If you are starting with the thriller genre, then this book would be perfect for you. If you are in the mood for a fast-paced read which is set in the span of less than 24 hours, then Five Survive is the one for you!
My Rating:
Hope you enjoyed reading the review. Have you read this book? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Happy Reading!
Rabhya.
Rab's Bookish Planet 
great review, I think what’s making me avoid the book is how the characters may come across as cliche or underdeveloped bc they’re stuck in one setting the whole time. I like Holly’s other series but this one may not be for me, really enjoyed reading your thoughts on this one!
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Yes, that’s true. Thank you so much! Happy Reading!
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