A review by brianna_4pawsandabook
The Escape Room by Megan Goldin

4.0

Welcome to the Escape Room. Your Goal is Simple. Get out Alive

I have such mixed feelings about this book that I'm still struggling to wrap my head around a rating. On one hand, this book was compelling, a page turner, and wasn't entirely predictable. There were plot twists I didn't see coming and it got really dark, really quickly. On the other hand, there were definitely parts of it that didn't make sense, the writing style was a little jarring and sometimes redundant and I felt like we had a huge build up only to be dropped off so quickly at the end. It felt like freefalling on a roller coaster.

There are winners and losers in this world. The winners are the one percent who get to live the dream. The losers are everyone else.

The characters from the beginning were unlikable. Every single one of them. The book focuses on two timelines, both taking place at Stanhope and Sons firm in New York City. These characters are entitled, rich assholes. Simply put. But there's something really refreshing about that. One timeline focuses on 4 people stuck in an elevator, who seem to be playing an involuntary game of the "Escape Room" with clues and puzzles. The second timeline follows Sara several years prior who starts out as a lowly analyst and works her way up the corporate ladder at Stanhope and Sons. The corporate life was interesting at first, but it did get a little boring as it went along. There was also a lot of emphasis placed on how people are perceived, particularly women in the corporate workplace. There were multiple conversations about how women needed to dress in the corporate world and how it was so much more difficult for women than it was for men. A valid point, but it got redundant. I also found it a little jarring at the beginning as the chapters switched between timelines because one timeline was in 3rd person and one timeline was in 1st person. However, I totally understand by the end why the author made that choice.

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting

Overall, I actually enjoyed this book. It wasn't exactly what I was expecting going into it, but it definitely messed with my mind. If you enjoy thrillers that really dive into the minds of the characters, and the reasons why they go to these extreme actions, you might enjoy this book.

CW: Rape, sexual assault, being drugged, suicide, murder, car fire, burning alive, gun violence, claustrophobia, survivor's guilt, depression, alcoholism, drug use