Five Survive by Holly Jackson (Audiobook)

 

Six friends head out for a road trip in an RV. When their RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere they suddenly find themselves under attack from a sniper. Initially they believe it's because they've strayed on to someones property but it soon becomes obvious that they've been targeted because one of them has a secret.

Author Holly Jackson takes her time at the beginning of Five Survive to set the scene. Lead character, Red, is still struggling to come to terms with her mother's murder. Her father has given up on life and Red is floundering emotionally and financially. Her best friend is aware of the strain and tries to help without being too obvious, hence a road trip in an RV for spring break, rather than flying.

Red is a sympathetic character, someone who doesn't put herself forward, doesn't make demands, but I found her constant inner monologues annoying. Red was the only person among the group of friends who really had any appropriate skills for the situation they found themselves in but allowed herself to be railroaded by more assertive members of the group.

The premise of the story is great. When the sniper demands that one of them gives up "the secret" we discover that there may be more than one secret being withheld; secrets which link to a high profile court case involving a local mafia boss. Having the story contained within the space of a few hours in an isolated location keeps the pace moving. The fact that the sniper seems to know exactly what is happening inside the RV also means that the friends begin to wonder if they can trust each other.

While the story-line was great I wasn't gripped by it. I needed to keep reminding myself that this was written for a YA audience. I wasn't enamored of the narrator either, this could be part of the reason I found the inner monologues annoying.

Five Survive by Holly Jackson is available in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for a review copy.