REVIEW

The Unknown

by Riley Sager

2 Stars

GoodReads

At a Glance

Published08/04/2026

GenreMystery & Thriller

FormatAudiobook

NarrationMaggie Grace, Patricia Santomasso, and Erin Lin

GoodReads3.83

My Score2

Spice LevelNone

Book Summary

In 1926, five women disappeared from a remote island in Vermont. Now, one hundred years later, it’s happening again.

Struggling actress Marin Keane is shocked when she lands a role in a major motion picture about the unsolved mystery of New Avalon, an island on sprawling Lake Faraday in Vermont. She’s even more surprised when she learns that the role requires a weeklong research trip to that very spot.

Because New Avalon isn’t your ordinary island. A century ago, it was a commune for spiritual mediums—until they all vanished in 1926. The only trace of them was five dresses hanging from the branches of an old oak tree in the middle of the island, one for each missing woman. Some locals say they simply left. Others think they were murdered. But the prevailing opinion, thanks to a diary left behind by one of the vanished, a young woman named Daisy Rue, is that a séance gone wrong conjured something supernatural that took them all one by one.

Not long after arriving, Marin and her castmates, including legendary actress Violet Wright and white-hot director Ronan Peters, begin to realize all is not right with New Avalon. They hear strange noises in the night and notice mysterious symbols left behind by the island’s previous occupants. And after a sudden health emergency leaves Marin, Ronan, and the other actors stranded on the island, the disappearances begin again.

Is it the work of someone trying to derail the movie? Or is the island’s alleged supernatural past catching up with the present? As fear and suspicion mount, Marin turns to Daisy’s diary, hoping it holds the key to figuring out what really happened to the women of New Avalon—and how to keep the island’s terrible history from repeating itself.

[summary provided by GoodReads]

My Review

This was a tricky book for me to rate because there were so many ups and downs. Unfortunately, there were far too many downs, which ultimately led to my 2-star rating. I’m starting to wonder if Riley Sager is the author for me anymore. I still want to finish his backlist so I can say I’ve read him down to zero, but his newer releases just aren’t hitting the mark for me. This book had SO much potential, but ultimately, I was incredibly let down and disappointed with the direction the story took.

As far as content goes, there is quite a bit of swearing but no spice. For sensitive readers, I recommend checking the trigger warnings because there are mentions of sexual assault, mental and emotional abuse, and suicide. Nothing is particularly graphic on the page, but these darker themes are definitely present throughout the story.

My biggest criticism is that I feel completely duped by this book. I went into it expecting something dark, creepy, atmospheric, and supernatural, but that’s not at all what I got. I picked this up around Halloween, hoping for a deliciously eerie read, and at first, it seemed like it was going to deliver. There were some creepy horror vibes, although nothing particularly scary. Unfortunately, everything fell apart for me once the big reveals started happening.

I was SO incredibly disappointed with the direction the story took that I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Without getting into spoilers, I’ll just say that the final 25% really rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe Riley Sager needs to stop writing from the perspective of women because some of the choices he made with this story just didn’t sit right with me. It was absolutely not what I expected, and not in a good way.

The pacing was another major issue. This book was really, really slow. Things didn’t start picking up until around the 60% mark, which is far too long to wait for a thriller to get interesting, in my opinion. I don’t mind a slow burn when the atmosphere, characters, or mystery keep me invested, but much of the beginning was just plain boring. I kept waiting for something exciting to happen, and when it finally did, I wasn’t thrilled with where the story was going.

One aspect I actually enjoyed was the use of dual timelines. The story alternates between the present day and 1926, with the past unfolding through Daisy’s diary entries. It almost felt like a story within a story, which is something I typically don’t enjoy, but surprisingly, it worked really well here. I thought this was one of the stronger elements of the book, and I was genuinely invested in both timelines.

However, jumping back and forth did get confusing at times because there were SO many characters to keep track of. Between the past and present, all the different relationships, and the various mysteries, things started feeling a bit convoluted. I also struggled to connect with any of the characters. I wanted at least one or two to stand out and give me someone to root for, but nobody really did. There was nothing particularly unique or memorable about any of them, and by the end, they all felt pretty forgettable.

What makes this book so frustrating is that the setup had everything I typically love in a spooky thriller. An isolated island, an eerie atmosphere, a mysterious past, unreliable characters, and the possibility of something supernatural lurking beneath the surface. It had all the ingredients for a fantastic Halloween read! I was excited about the premise and really wanted to love where the story was going.

But somewhere along the way, it got lost in its own twists and turns. Instead of delivering a satisfying, creepy mystery, the story became overly complicated and, quite frankly, preachy. One of my biggest pet peeves in fiction is when a book starts pushing an agenda so heavily that it feels like I’m being lectured rather than entertained. I don’t enjoy stories that lean too strongly in one direction and sacrifice the storytelling to make a point. Unfortunately, that’s exactly how this one felt to me, especially toward the end.

To make matters worse, the final reveals weren’t even that surprising. By the time everything started coming together, I could already see where things were headed. For a book that seemed determined to throw twist after twist at the reader, I found the ending pretty predictable. Nothing about it felt particularly fresh or original. We’ve seen these ideas and themes explored before, and I don’t think this book brought anything new to the table.

Overall, this was easily one of the biggest disappointments of my reading year. And that makes me sad because I’ve genuinely enjoyed several of Riley Sager’s books in the past. I know he’s capable of writing a gripping, atmospheric thriller, which makes it even more frustrating when a story with this much potential falls so flat. Unfortunately, his last few releases just haven’t been working for me, and I’m beginning to wonder if I’ve simply outgrown his writing style.

I still have a few of his older books to read, and I do want to finish his backlist, but I’m no longer nearly as excited about picking up his new releases. Maybe it’s time for me to move on to other thriller authors.

Personally, I wouldn’t recommend this one. If you’re looking for a dark, creepy, atmospheric book to curl up with during Spooky Season, there are SO many better options out there. I really wanted to love this, but it just wasn’t for me. What a letdown!