Book Review: ‘The Unknown: A Novel’ By Riley Sager

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Review by Lauryn Angel

The book is in stores now from Dutton. Click on the link to buy a copy. https://amzn.to/4w8CH9c

Riley Sager returns to form after last year’s Agatha Christie-esque historical murder-mystery-on-a-train, With a Vengeance. I liked that book well enough, but it didn’t really feel like a Sager book and didn’t scratch the itch I get every summer for a new Sager thriller. This year’s summer release, The Unknown, hit the spot!

Sager’s tenth novel tells two stories, set on the same island, a century apart. In 1926, the island of New Avalon was a retreat for mediums and spiritualists – until the night that five women disappeared, leaving only their dresses behind. The dresses were found hanging from the ancient oak tree in the middle of the island, located between the four visitor cabins and the main estate. No one knows whether the women disappeared of their own volition or if they were victim to foul play. The diary of one of the women, Daisy Rue, recounts the last days, implying that a séance gone wrong might have contributed to their vanishing, but otherwise gives no indication of what happened to them.

In present day, actress Marin Keane lands the role of a lifetime in the latest film of hotshot director Ronan Peters. Marin is shocked by her good fortune, as she will be starring alongside screen legend Violet Wright (who gave me Meryl Streep vibes at times) and several other talented actresses who are much more experienced (and, Marin believes, talented) than she. The film is about the last days of the vanished women of New Avalon, and so Ronan Peters declares that his stars must spend a week on New Avalon, living in the same spaces as the women they will portray, recreating the circumstances of their last days down to the last detail, which means no electronic devices and no modern clothing.

Once they recreate the séance described in Daisy’s diary, however, strange things start to happen. And one by one, the Marin’s co-stars disappear, leaving only their dresses behind.

Sager’s plot is well-crafted, and had me turning pages into the wee hours – similar to Marin staying up all night to read Daisy Rue’s diary. The plot takes several twists and turns, and until the big reveal at the end, it’s never clear whether the goings-on are perpetrated by humans or something supernatural – or both. I love a thriller that keeps me guessing, and while I did figure out some of the puzzles, Sager still had plenty of surprises in store.

The Unknown is available now in a gorgeous hardcover edition with sprayed edges, a shimmery jacket, and even a foil-stamped case that I can’t wait to add to my collection. Get your hands on it now, and end your summer with the thrill of The Unknown!