ARC Review: Four Found Dead by Natalie D. Richards

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Four Found Dead by Natalie D. Richards
Published by Sourcebooks Fire on May 23, 2023
Genres: YA Thriller
Pages: 332
Source: the publisher
Format: ARC
My Rating:
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Blurb:

At the movie theater where Jo works, the last show has ended. But the nightmare is just beginning.

Tonight, Tempest Theaters is closing forever, the last remaining business in a defunct shopping mall. The moviegoers have left, and Jo and her six coworkers have the final shift, cleaning up popcorn and mopping floors for the last time.

But after an unexpected altercation puts everyone on edge, the power goes out. Their manager disappears, along with the keys to the lobby doors and the theater safe, where the crew’s phones are locked each shift. Then, the crew’s tension turns to terror when Jo discovers the dead body of one of her co-workers.

Now their only chance to escape the murderer in their midst is through the dark, shuttered mall. With its boarded-up exits and disabled fire alarms, the complex is filled with hiding places for both pursuer and pursued. In order to survive this night, Jo and her friends must trust one another, navigate the sprawling ruins of the mall, and outwit a killer before he kills again.

My Review

This is my first book by this author, although I’ve wanted to read her for a while. And while there was definitely a lot of tension and suspense in this one, I don’t know that I’ll necessarily read many more in the future. While I get how the author was trying to drop little hints/misdirections throughout the story with bits and pieces of a letter and news stories, etc., I almost needed more actually said or done within the actual story with the characters and what was happening.

There’s also the fact that the main character, Jo, is supposedly planning to be a doctor, however I just don’t see that she seems like it is something she could do based on how she behaves. And while the reasons why she wants to do that make sense, she still doesn’t give off any sort of future doctor vibe. But that could just be my own opinion. There is another character who ends up having a health issue that is definitely one that is interesting and does create some issues at some points, but it almost seemed a bit like an after-thought or an add on to me. Overall it didn’t do a lot for the story in the end. As well as the little bit of a romance that kind of just showed up part way through the story, again, not necessarily needed?

So I gave it 3.5 stars because it was as I said at least action-packed that it kept me reading, but other things just didn’t work for me in the end with how the story panned out.