Riley Sager Spotlight

My very first ARC I received via NetGalley was "Final Girls" by Riley Sager and I was beyond excited when I got the email that I had been approved. My very first ARC?! In January?! For a novel that comes out in July?! I was dumbfounded and quickly devoured the entire thing. And I did again the following fall and again the one after that and every single October month I have either read this book or listened to the audio again and again. Clearly, it is one of my favorites. To me nothing says Halloween like Riley Sager's books and some of the slasher movies that his writing reminds me of so much. Since my one-day-devour of Final Girls, I have loved every single thing Sager has written and would love to tell you guys a little bit more as to why he is just one of the ultimate authors that is an immediate go-to for me. 

A few months after the publication of Final Girls, I was lucky enough to travel to meet Riley Sager for a Thrillerfest event that was a panel of my favorite authors and as my first big author event, I was over-the-moon excited to be finally meeting this genius. I went to the event, met another fellow blogger who I absolutely adore and was able to make my way through the panel without passing out. You see, when Riley Sager got up to speak I found myself just as immersed in his story as I was Final Girls. I loved the backstory behind the novel, I loved how he seemed to have these little insights into his writing process, and the four hour drive was worth it. When I finally got up to the table for him to sign my copy, I was shaking and nervous - I mean, I look up to this genius man and had barely slept the night before. 

"Who should I make it out to?"

"Gare, please."

"Wait...as in Gare from Instagram?!"

Before, I knew it Riley Sager and I became instant friends, got some pictures together, and had a great chat about my blog, his writing, and everything in between. Us fellow Swifties need to stick together. Since then, Sager has released two other devilish and brilliant novels that kept me immersed and creeped out and I can honestly say his storytelling capabilities get better with each terrifying tale. We've exchanged plenty of messages over the years and I can say that he is also someone I consider a friend, something that I am so thankful the Bookstagram community has given me; which is, the opportunity to befriend some of the people that I look up to as a reader and a writer. 

My favorite piece of information from this meeting was Riley's story. You see, Riley Sager is a pseudonym. Riley was writing other novels before and not getting the outcome that he wanted, until one Halloween night. Similar to myself, he loved to watch Halloween on you guessed it - Halloween night. While watching it, his mind traveled and within a few weeks, Final Girls was born, released, and majorly successful. What an amazing backstory for a novel and author that I admire so much. 

What I'd like to do with this spotlight is give you my mini-reviews of Sager's work, why it will work for you, and what to expect when you travel down each story. Be prepared, because once you start, it's beyond difficult to put down a Riley Sager book. I definitely consider his novels "weekend reads" because trying to read them throughout the week proves difficult when you'r reading hours past your bedtime and barely surviving the work day just waiting to get home to pick back up where you left off. Check out my mini-reviews below and why I love each of these titles as well as a special look into Riley Sager's next release coming Summer 2020!

FINAL GIRLS (2017)

Synopsis: Quincy Carpenter is one of three women who have never met that the media have dubbed Final Girls - women who have survived horror movie-like ordeals. Ten years ago, Quincy and her friends traveled to Pine Cottage and shortly after their arrival, everyone was killed, leaving Quincy as the lone survivor. Now, Quincy is managing and sort-of getting her life together until one of the other three Final Girls is found dead and the other is on Quincy's doorstep. 

Review: What else can I say?! This is the perfect psychological thriller for fans of slasher movies. Quincy and Sam are brilliantly written and this story has major teeth. There's a perfect blend of psychological thriller, murder mystery, and a slasher-esque storyline through the flashbacks from what really happened at Pine Cottage. Between the unbelievable characters, Sager's flawless writing, and the multiple places this one goes, it is the perfect spooky book the minute the leaves start to change.

THE LAST TIME I LIED (2018)

Synopsis: Emma is a rising star in the New York City art scene and her series of paintings are quite popular, especially when Francesca Harris-White finds them and begs Emma to come to her summer camp, Camp Nightengale to teach art. Sound innocent? No way! 15 years ago when Emma was a camper in the same camp, three of her cabin mates completely vanished into thin air with Emma being the last one to see them alive. Desperate for answers, Emma agrees to Francesca's offer and little does she know, the terror may not be quite over just yet. 

Review: Gone Girl meets Friday the 13th in this really chilling tale. Take everything that you love from Final Girls and kick it up a notch. I loved the setting for this one and Camp Nightengale almost acts like another character and really solidifies the creep factor within this story. I was dumbfounded reading this one because I absolutely loved Emma and every single character in this story. Everyone was fighting to outshine the others and then combined with the setting and the twists and turns in the final quarter of this one - another stellar novel with a sensational ending. 

LOCK EVERY DOOR (2019)

Synopsis: Jules is like most of us - broke and heartbroken, but she gets a job offer that is unlike anything else and something she can't even think to say no to; an apartment sitter in one of the most popular apartment buildings in the city. Although the cast of characters that live here are a bit mysterious and the rules are dreadfully strict, Jules bonds with another apartment sitter Ingrid. Soon enough, Ingrid goes missing and Jules is found bravely sticking her nose where it doesn't belong searching for answers regarding Ingrid and the mysterious past that surrounds this building.

Review: This one is definitely the most complex and psychological of all three - and it's my favorite. You see, I think with this story that Sager really found his own unique way of telling a story because all of his novels are stunningly cinematic but this one takes the cake in a gothic and creepy way. I felt like this is the one that I really wanted to take my time with and yet still immerse myself in and it was  such a great reading experience. 

HOME BEFORE DARK (7/7/2020)

Synopsis:

What was it like? Living in that house.Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity—and skepticism. 

Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father's book. But she also doesn’t believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don’t exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father's death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors, lurk in the shadows. And locals aren’t thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie’s father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself—a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father’s book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction. 

Alternating between Maggie’s uneasy homecoming and chapters from her father’s book, Home Before Dark is the story of a house with long-buried secrets and a woman’s quest to uncover them—even if the truth is far more terrifying than any haunting.

So there you have it, why I love every single novel that Riley Sager has put out and why he is one of my go-to authors who I'll always support. As if I haven't gushed enough about Riley, he did participate by providing some words below so check out why this great man has to say, including some of he actors and actresses that inspired some of his characters. I had mentioned this spotlight to Riley and asked him if he wanted to provide me with some actors an actresses for a special collage with each novel for this spotlight and he went above and beyond with the information he gave me. Thank you so much to Riley for participating - this means the world to me! 

A Note from Riley:

I’ve been fortunate in that all three of my books have been optioned for film and television. While an option is never a guarantee that a book will be turned into a movie or TV show, I still try not to talk too much about which actors I’d cast as my characters. 

First, I worry it sets up undue expectations in readers’ minds. If one of my books eventually does make it to the big screen, I don’t want people to have a preconceived notion of who should be playing a certain role. 

Second, I have no input into the casting process. Very few writers other than J. K. Rowling do. The director and producers pick who they think is the best person for the job. All the author can do is sit back and hope for the best.

Finally, I’m very conflicted about the whole book-to-movie thing anyway. I’m one of those people who think a book is enough. I don’t need to see my favorite story turned into a movie. Especially when you consider how few movies turn out to be as good as—or better than—the books they’re based on.  

Having said that, I do use actors as models for some of my characters. It helps me sharpen the people I’m writing about, both in my head and on the page. A lot of times it’s something small—a certain physical attribute, or the way someone talks, or an aura they have about them. It doesn’t mean these actors are necessarily right for these roles. In most cases, they’re not. But I thought it might be fun to show you the real people who inspired some of my characters—and to see how much or how little they resemble their fictional counterparts.

FINAL GIRLS

• Quincy—Kristen Bell
• Sam—Laura Prepon
• Coop—Joel Edgerton
• Nancy—Jamie Lee Curtis

THE LAST TIME I LIED

• Emma—Anna Kendrick
• Theo—Jake Gyllenhaal
• Chet—Bill Skarsgard
• Franny—Rosemary Harris
• Vivian—Emma Roberts 

LOCK EVERY DOOR

• Jules—Jane Levy
• Ingrid—Billie Lourd
• Dr. Nick—Jake Gyllenhaal
• Greta—Glenn Close
• Marianne Duncan—Susan Lucci
• Dylan—Jimmy Tatro

Feel free to check out Riley's website below for even more information on this brilliant author as well as my full-length reviews for his three sensational novels. 

Thank you so much for reading!

Riley's website: https://www.rileysagerbooks.com

Final Girls: http://gareindeedreads.blogspot.com/2018/07/riley-sager-final-girls.html

The Last Time I Lied: http://gareindeedreads.blogspot.com/2018/07/riley-sager-last-time-i-lied.html

Lock Every Door:  http://gareindeedreads.blogspot.com/2019/07/riley-sager-lock-every-door.html