No Exit by Taylor Adams

Title: No Exit

Author: Taylor Adams

Publisher: William Morrow and Company

Rating: 4 / 5

This one is a bit of a doozy. No Exit is a slow burn in the beginning as we learn more about Darby and how and why she ends up at the rest stop with a bunch of weirdos in the middle of a blizzard. I mean, Darby really is an idiot. Who doesn't bring an extra phone charger? Or have one in their car?? Sorry folks but she just doesn't make good decisions throughout this book and it's infuriating. Sometimes I wonder if if the characters in books ever watch horror or thriller movies haha.

But Adams does a great job with building the characters and invoking strong emotions when it comes to each character. I mean, I REALLY hated the villains and felt sorry for the victims. In many other books I don't feel attached to the characters, but Adams got me with this one. Bravo to you sir. While some of the writing was weird in that it made the characters sound childish, I actually believed it given the types of people the characters were.

Overall, the bad guys are pretty obvious and the ending wasn't that big of a surprise, but I still recommend it for thriller lovers. It was actually nice to read a book that was pretty straight forward but not totally devoid of any plot and character development. So if you just want a good little thriller without any crazy frills or deep plot, pick this up!

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Lock Every Door (Audiobook) by Riley Sager

Title: Lock Every Door

Author: Riley Sager

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Read by: Dylan Moore

Rating: 3.5/5

Ok so I'm a bit torn about this one. I listened to Lock Every Door on Audible because we were going on a long road trip and I really wanted to read this book.

Synopsis from Goodreads: 

"No visitors. No nights spent away from the apartment. No disturbing the other residents, all of whom are rich or famous or both. These are the only rules for Jules Larsen's new job as an apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattan's most high-profile and mysterious buildings. As she gets to know the residents and staff of the Bartholomew, Jules finds herself drawn to fellow apartment sitter Ingrid, who comfortingly, disturbingly reminds her of the sister she lost eight years ago. When Ingrid confides that the Bartholomew is not what it seems and the dark history hidden beneath its gleaming facade is starting to frighten her, Jules brushes it off as a harmless ghost story—until the next day, when Ingrid disappears.

Searching for the truth about Ingrid's disappearance, Jules digs deeper into the Bartholomew's dark past and into the secrets kept within its walls. Her discovery that Ingrid is not the first apartment sitter to go missing at the Bartholomew pits Jules against the clock as she races to unmask a killer, expose the building's hidden past, and escape the Bartholomew before her temporary status becomes permanent."

So yeah. Makes good for a good thriller, right? Mmm...yeah? Ok, the book was pretty good. Especially the last part where we really figure out what is going on at the Bartholomew. But MAN does Sager really drag this one out. I felt like there was just so much description and minutia and not enough to forward the plot. This was made especially evident when put in Audible form. I honestly fell asleep a few times from the mixture of description and the narrator's lulling voice. 

And then I just...didn't...like...Jules. She's so naive and literally must have no common sense if she got herself into this situation. It's pretty clear that this apartment-sitter job is shady. Why would anyone agree to such rules? But, despite its flaws, Lock Every Door is a pretty good thriller and I'm glad I finished it. Riley Sager is a talented author and I've loved his books thus far. But this one just isn't my favorite. Oh well! I'll read the next one for sure!

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