No Exit (Adams)

No Exit  
Taylor Adams, 2019
HarperCollins
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780062875655


Summary
A brilliant, edgy thriller about four strangers, a blizzard, a kidnapped child, and a determined young woman desperate to unmask and outwit a vicious psychopath.

A kidnapped little girl locked in a stranger’s van. No help for miles. What would you do?

On her way to Utah to see her dying mother, college student Darby Thorne gets caught in a fierce blizzard in the mountains of Colorado. With the roads impassable, she’s forced to wait out the storm at a remote highway rest stop. Inside are some vending machines, a coffee maker, and four complete strangers.

Desperate to find a signal to call home, Darby goes back out into the storm . . . and makes a horrifying discovery. In the back of the van parked next to her car, a little girl is locked in an animal crate.

Who is the child? Why has she been taken? And how can Darby save her?

There is no cell phone reception, no telephone, and no way out. One of her fellow travelers is a kidnapper. But which one?

Trapped in an increasingly dangerous situation, with a child’s life and her own on the line, Darby must find a way to break the girl out of the van and escape.

But who can she trust?

With exquisitely controlled pacing, Taylor Adams diabolically ratchets up the tension with every page. Full of terrifying twists and hairpin turns, No Exit will have you on the edge of your seat and leave you breathless. (From the publisher.)

Author Bio
Taylor Adams is the author of No Exit (2019), Our Last Night (2016), and Eyeshot (2014).

In addition to novels, Adams both writes and directs independent films: in 2008 he directed the short film "And I Feel Fine." On graduating from Eastern Washington University, he received the Excellence in Screenwriting Award and the Edmund G. Yarwood Award.

His directorial work has screened at the Seattle True Independent Film Festival and his writing has been featured on KAYU-TV’s Fox Life blog. He lives in Washington state. (Adapted from the publisher and author's website.)

Book Reviews
[A] nail-biting thriller…. Darby has to figure out a way to save Jay. The only problem, she doesn’t know which traveler is [a] kidnapper or who can be trusted. The action drives to a climatic and emotionally charged ending.… [A] satisfying page-turner.
Publishers Weekly


Which one of the people inside is the monster behind the [kidnapping]…? This well-written, fast-paced thriller by Adams has enough twists to ensure an enjoyable read for even the most seasoned suspense fans. —Marianne Fitzgerald, Severna Park H.S., MD
Library Journal


[A]n enthralling tale that features a wonderfully relatable and gutsy heroine. Give it to readers looking for a female-led drama in the mode of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and its sibling works
Booklist

Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for NO EXIT … then take off on your own:

m. Who was your first suspect as kidnapper? Why? Did you move on to others …or stay with your original suspect?

m. What do you think of Darby as a character? How would you describe her? Were some of the decisions she made frustrating for you? Does she grow/change during the course of the novel?

m. What would you have done in Darby's shoes?

m. All who have reviewed No Exit, confess to being in thrall to it, rushing toward the end, unable to put the book down until the last page. How did you experience the book?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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