Six best friends get together to look for adventure in the form of a game. The stakes got higher as the dares became more embarrassing, and ultimately the results were far more terrifying than anyone planned or imagined. This story has been told many times, by many different authors, some better and some not nearly as well put together as Yates' tale.
The story begins fourteen years after the invention of this cruel game, with an obviously disturbed narrator who can no longer leave his house. Yates does an excellent job with his characterizations, and the reader can feel the narrator's loose grip on reality. The parts that take us back fourteen years are written in third person, and at times things get confusing, but the author always brings it back for the reader. The group of six just might be ready to finish the game they started years ago, and the tension is strong.
Excitement builds and small climaxes happen throughout the story. Chad and Jolyon are the two most interesting characters, in my opinion, and I wonder who Author Yates (who went to Oxford himself) most identifies with, as the story eventually unfolds.
The suspense in this page turner is undeniable, and if you are a fan of psychological thrillers than this is a perfect book for you.
- Beverly
Publisher - Picador Publishing
Date of Publication - August 4, 2015