Five Survive by Holly Jackson

Rating: ★★★★☆

Dates Read: 8/11/23 - 8/15/23

    Red Kenny and her friends are on a spring break road trip. Their RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere with no cell service. It's no accident – someone wants them dead. With just hours until dawn, they must escape or figure out who the target is. As tensions rise, buried secrets come to light, and not everyone will make it through the night.

    It did take me a little while to get into the book, but once I did, it was a whirlwind. The pacing is lightning-fast, and the ending is loaded with unexpected twists that really caught me off guard.

    This book reads like a movie. I should have dedicated time to read it in one sitting because the story unfolds over just 8 hours, and I feel like immersing myself completely would have been even more exciting. The audiobook was also well-done, keeping me engaged and hungry for answers. The story delivered some surprising revelations and featured some characters I couldn't help but dislike, which added an extra layer of enjoyment for me.

    I truly adored this book. While I didn't quite manage to finish it in eight hours for the challenge, that's only because I read through it even quicker – I was completely glued to the pages. "Five Survive" stands out in the realm of YA thrillers, offering the gripping intensity and stakes of an adult thriller while still resonating with its teen audience through its realistic portrayal.

    Our main character, Red, is fantastic, and her perspective fits the book perfectly. The way Jackson balanced characters you root for with ones that you'd happily throttle (you know who they are) was one of my favorite aspects of the story. At first, I thought it would be hard to connect with characters in such a brief time frame, but Holly Jackson proved me wrong over and over again.

    Holly Jackson has done a remarkable job crafting this story within such a tight timeframe and still giving all six characters depth. I really enjoyed this and highly recommend it!