Why You Should Read The Escape Room by L D Smithson

I've loved the Saw movies since I first saw them. Well, I say that, but really, I love the first one, and then I come back to them for one reason. Not for the gore, because honestly, it's become just a sense of "How much can we get into a 90 minute movie?"; but because of the confusion and psychological tricks played not only by Jigsaw, but by the writers and producers.

The best thing about the first Saw movie was the premise. The villain, Jigsaw, was giving people a chance to get out of a situation, to repent for their sins. These "chances" were vicious, yes, but they were genuine. Each one was possible, though it would scar you for life. The subsequent movies went away from that a little, though the overall message stayed - everyone there was being punished for something they had done.

What does this have to do with a book, you ask? Well, I just finished reading The Escape Room, by L. D. Smithson. Told in sections which flick between the present, a time after the events that happened, where our main character Bonnie is telling her story to a Podcast; to the scene of the incident itself, the story unfolds much the way a Saw movie does - we get more information each and every layer we dissect. The sense that something is not right is there right from the start, but the author feeds it to us slowly, and we may not put it all together by the time the big reveal happens. It was a fantastic book, not anywhere near as gory as the Saw movies, but with a similar feel. One man, who has decided that people need to pay for their sins, sets up an escape room based reality TV show. When Bonnie's sister breaks her leg and can't attend at the last minute, Bonnie takes her place. I won't spoil the ending; I don't know if I could do it justice even if I tried to explain it, but the escape room TV show is much more than it seems. The challenges are fascinating, and I found myself trying to solve the clues along with the competitors.

As someone who has done escape rooms, made escape rooms, and tried to write a book set in an escape room, I was honestly impressed.

Highly recommended, a solid 4.5/5 stars.

Posted by Library Li

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