The Escape Room
The Escape Room
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2018
Book Brief
Beta357
Novel • Fiction
•
Mystery & Crime Fiction•
Modern Classic FictionNew York City, United States, present day
2018
St. Martin's Press
Hardcover • 2019
Adult
16+ years
Super Short Summary
Four ambitious Wall Street colleagues—Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam—report for a corporate team-building exercise inside a high-rise elevator. When the lights go out and the doors refuse to open, the supposed escape room becomes a dangerous trap. Forced to decipher cryptic clues together, the fiercely competitive coworkers must overcome bitter rivalries while realizing this game may have been designed specifically for them.
Suspenseful
Exciting
Dark
Unnerving
Challenging
Reviews & Readership
52,682 ratings
Loved it
Mixed feelings
Not a fan
Review Roundup
Reviewers widely praise Goldin’s propulsive pacing, mounting tension, layered characterization, and sharp critique of Wall Street culture. The alternating timelines also earn approval for sustaining intrigue. Criticism centers on credibility-straining coincidences, clichéd descriptions, uneven pacing, and a predictable mystery. Escape-room enthusiasts may be especially disappointed: the puzzles are sparse and offer little opportunity to solve along. Some reviewers also find the trapped bankers so unpleasant that the revenge plot loses emotional force, though most still regard the novel as gripping entertainment.
Who Should Read The Escape Room?
This is a strong pick for thriller readers who want a fast, bingeable story, claustrophobic suspense, devious plotting, and vividly drawn characters they can love to hate. It especially suits readers interested in greed, abuse of power, revenge, and the brutal culture of high finance. It is less suitable for anyone seeking realistic plotting, sympathetic leads, or an escape-room puzzle they can solve alongside the characters. Readers should also expect descriptions of sexual assault and violent death.
52,682 ratings
Loved it
Mixed feelings
Not a fan
The investment-banking team’s charismatic leader, a former army medic with an eye for talent and a fiercely ambitious staff.
A member of Vincent’s Stanhope team who works closely with new employee Sara and becomes trapped in the elevator challenge.
One of Vincent’s ambitious investment bankers and among the four colleagues summoned to the escape-room exercise in an elevator.
One of Vincent’s investment bankers, joining the team’s other worried members in the company’s ominous elevator-based escape-room challenge.
357
Novel • Fiction
•
Mystery & Crime Fiction•
Modern Classic FictionNew York City, United States, present day
2018
St. Martin's Press
Hardcover • 2019
Adult
16+ years
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