Review: The Never List by: Koethi Zan

The Never List by: Koethi Zan (2013)

320 pages

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Source: I received an ARC copy from fellow blogger Christine over at Buckling Bookshelves. Thanks Christine! This did not affect my honest review. 

Purchase: Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository

Goodreads Summary: For years, best friends Sarah and Jennifer kept what they called the “Never List”: a list of actions to be avoided, for safety’s sake, at all costs. But one night, against their best instincts, they accept a cab ride with grave, everlasting consequences. For the next three years, they are held captive with two other girls in a dungeon-like cellar by a connoisseur of sadism.

Ten years later, at thirty-one, Sarah is still struggling to resume a normal life, living as a virtual recluse under a new name, unable to come to grips with the fact that Jennifer didn’t make it out of that cellar. Now, her abductor is up for parole and Sarah can no longer ignore the twisted letters he sends from jail.

Finally, Sarah decides to confront her phobias and the other survivors—who hold their own deep grudges against her. When she goes on a cross-country chase that takes her into the perverse world of BDSM, secret cults, and the arcane study of torture, she begins unraveling a mystery more horrifying than even she could have imagined.

My Review

The Never List is a great beach read for those of you who are looking for a thriller that will make your heart race and give you a reason to stay on the beach just a little bit longer because you have to get to the ending. I will not be going into great details with this review because I don't want to spoil any of the OMG moments that this book will bring you.

Sarah, hhmmmm, I’m not even sure where to begin in describing this intense and complex character. She slowly faces her many fears and starts to gain control over her life again once she finds out the man who locked her in a basement for three years is trying to get out on parole from prison. She decides that there is no way she is going to let that happen and she sets out to find some clues of how dangerous this man really is, starting with the letters he sent her from prison. I really felt for Sarah and the other girls that were locked up in that cellar, my emotions ran high throughout the entire book. There is no lack of emotional storytelling or dynamic characters in The Never List.

There are many OMG moments in this book, starting with the very first page. This is a graphic novel so it isn't for the faint of heart. The book is a puzzle where the reader gets to walk right beside the characters on their journey to find a way to get the evil monster who tortured them locked up forever. The story is a mix of flashbacks of the past and the present. The stories of the past and present unravel wonderfully and is not hard to follow. I can guarantee that The Never List will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. You will be appalled by what the girls go through locked up in that basement and you will cheer them on when they are trying to make sure he stays locked up in prison forever, and there will even be a few times where you will think Sarah is pretty dumb, like in a horror movie where you yell at the character to not open the freaking door. But most importantly, you will be shocked to the core by the ending. You won't see it coming.

The Never List is an amazing thriller that will keep you sweating until you get to the crazy blow your mind conclusion. Sadly after the mind blowing conclusion there isn’t a lot of closure given, which was frustrating. I would have liked to see an epilogue or something. Anyway, you really should make The Never List be your next thriller of choice.

** I received an ARC copy from fellow blogger Christine over at Buckling Bookshelves. Thanks Christine! This did not affect my honest review.