Twelve powerful people are kidnapped and imprisoned in an empty hotel.
Each one of them has three choices:
Live out the rest of their days peacefully in the hotel,
Die by suicide so the rest of their companions can go free,
Or murder one of their companions so they alone can go free.
The Only Way Out is Death follows the story of these twelve people from the perspective of a young lawyer, Kiriaki, told as the events unfold. She has to forge messy alliances, navigate complex relationships and feuds, and, above all, try to stay alive. Meanwhile, the mastermind of this death game is lurking just out of view, watching them closely, making sure they are primed for murder.
Will Kiriaki find the mastermind before it's too late for her?
Will she outmaneouvre the cutthroats before they cut her throat?
There are twelve selfish lives in the hotel.
Will it end in twelve selfish deaths?
I received this book to read and review as part of the 2023 BBNYA competition and the BBNYA finalists tours organised by the TWR Tour team. All opinions are my own, unbiased, and honest.
BBNYA is a yearly competition where Book Bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors. If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website or Twitter.
Book source ~ BBNYA
Varun Gwalani
15 April 2022
Mystery | Suspense
298 Pages
My Rating ~ 4 bites and a nibble
Twelve Type A people, three impossible choices.
1. Live out the rest of their days peacefully in the hotel.
2. Die by suicide so the rest of their companions can go free.
3. Or murder one of their companions so they alone can go free.
How bloody will this get before the end?
It took a bit to get into this as there are a lot of people to keep track of, but once I got them straight in my head I was off and running. This is a page turner in the way of Agatha Christie and a locked room mystery. Twelve people are stuck in a hotel with no way out. They have three choices: live out the rest of their lives in the hotel, commit suicide, or murder someone. Since these people aren’t really the type to sit back and live in a hotel for the rest of their days, that leaves two options. They also aren’t the type of people to commit suicide, so that pretty much only leaves murdering someone to get out. It’s like Survivor on steroids.
Once everyone realizes this is their reality, the action starts fast and furious. Told from one POV (a lawyer named Kiriaki) it’s hard to say what’s going through the minds of the other eleven people, but really, there’s plenty of mystery to go around. The characters are interesting and the mastermind is fairly clever. This book gripped my attention tight with the intrigue and twists and turns. Just when I settled on a conclusion, the tables were turned. The ending is excellent and one I did not see coming. Nicely done!
Varun Gwalani is the author of six novels: Believe, The First Storyteller, The Story Circle, The Novel Year, Who Saves the Hero? and The Only Way Out is Death. Each book is a different genre, with his latest book "The Only Way Out is Death" being a murder mystery thriller.
In addition to being an author, Varun has been a teacher of creative writing and English for several years now. He's an advocate for mental health awareness, having given a TEDx talk and written several articles on Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
Varun also loves reading, board games and video games, and he can often be find blending these interests by playing a visual novel. He would also like to tell you about the thing he hates the most: writing in third-person.
BBNYA is a yearly competition where Book Bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie or small press authors. If you are an author and wish to learn more about the 2024 BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website, Twitter BBNYA, or follow this link to enter! Please make sure to carefully read our terms and conditions before entering.If you are Book Blogger or reviewer you can apply to be part of the awesome 2024 BBNYA panel via this form. Please remember to read the terms and conditions before signing up.
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