The cute little seller at Warwick's in La Jolla referred me to this book as I was browsing at the store. She said it had kept her up at night and that she was haunted by it. Strong words for any book. So I bought it. She was right to a point.
Zan's debut is pretty stunning. It is hard to think this is her first book because her voice is so powerful and smooth. The beginning of the book is fantastically written to a point where I was sucked in immediately. Sarah is a disturbingly mental woman. There's no going around that. Zan builds up her character pretty well even to the point where it almost becomes unbelievable. All the dark and painful experiences Sarah went through is alluded to just enough that you get a taste but not so in-depth that you feel like you're reading trash. As a reader you become very sympathetic toward Sarah. Part of the tension and the thrill of it is the fact that she's not very strong and you worry that she's just not going to be able to pull through.
At some point, however, the book becomes less intriguing. I'm not sure when that happens. I just know by the end I was less involved. Sarah suddenly becomes more apt to be strong. I love good character development, and I was glad Sarah finds herself at the end, but it just seemed too sudden and easy. This girl was a complete mental case (for good reason) and she breaks out of it too quickly in my opinion. I think it would have been better had she just shown signs of getting healed, rather than suddenly being better.
People keep comparing this book to Gone Girl. I don't think it's a fair comparison. They're completely different. This is Zan's first book, though, so I suppose it is good on her that her debut is being compared to Flynn's (correct me if I'm wrong) third or fourth novel. Only good things are in Zan's future as she continues to write and prove herself as an author. She is a great new female voice in this genre. I will certainly read more of her work.

4.5 stars. This is one of the smartest and creepiest thrillers I have read in a long time. I did not see the twist at the end which means extra bonus points in my rating. Gruesome, but mainly in the abstract. No real gore to completely freak you out but tons of suspense. Definitely recommend.

Super creepy! I read the majority of this while babysitting late into the night, and I can't deny that I was a little bit freaked out. This is the first book that I've read by Koethi Zan, and I can confidently say that I enjoy her writing style. This was a good story generally, and I was engaged and interested the whole time. But be warned- I found it pretty predictable. Which is why I tend to shy away from crime/thriller novels. Maybe I just haven't found the right one, or the right author... but in my opinion, the whole story was pretty typical. There were a few good twists (don't worry, no spoilers!), but it seemed a little like a grab bag of themes and ideas that happened to make a sensical novel. I feel a little harsh saying that, since generally I thought it was a good read with a really strong and interesting protagonist. However, I've read "Room" by Emma Donaghue (a novel regarding similar kidnapping/long-term imprisonment circumstances), and frankly it will be hard to find a book based on the same concept that doesn't pale in comparison. I am looking forward to what Zan will write next!

Incredibly gripping. Highly recommend

I have a weird fascination with stories that are a little disturbing or creepy. A thriller with a vicious killer? A story about missing people and murders galore? Count me in & see you when I'm finished! I'd like to think there's some intellectual reason for this, but I don't think there is. I just like a good messed up story, which is why I liked 'The Never List' by Koethi Zan so much.

For years, Jennifer and Sarah have kept what they call the Never List. A list of things to absolutely avoid in order to stay as safe as possible On their list? Do not get into a car with a stranger. Believing they can trust the car service they order in college, they break their own rules. While the list may be a bit extreme, that is one rule that should not be broken. The girls are kidnapped and held hostage in a cellar for more than three years by a sadistic man with his own agenda. Jennifer does not make it out of the cellar, and after her release, Sarah spends the next ten years once again avoiding the world as best she can. A letter from her captor forces her to break her own rules again, and reunites her with her fellow captives. Like the first time she broke her own rules and found herself in trouble, Sarah once again finds herself in less than desirable situations.

The book is fast-paced with twists and turns, and explores things like BDSM, crazy cults, and a scary torture device called the 'rack' (Google it if you want to have nightmares). I read this book in two sittings, but could have easily done it in one if, you know, I didn't have to work. Though, the break was probably good for my overactive imagination!

With most psychological thrillers, there's a big twist/reveal at the end. I won't say what it is, but I did have my suspicions about it throughout most of the book. The book is so well-written that you're never really sure if that's what's' going to happen, though. I like to be kept guessing the whole time. I hate reading obvious books with cookie cutter plots. This is not one of those books at all.

I rated this 4 out of 5 stars because I did have a slight issue with the ending. I liked the way it ended, but after the twist, it just seemed like things wrapped up too quickly. I wanted more closure, and more details about what happened AFTER. I feel like Zan could write another book if certain things played out in a specific way.

I would definitely recommend this for people who like books that play with your mind. What is most creepy about it is that this does happen. People are kidnapped and held captive every single day. This is the perfect book to read on one of the long winter nights we're having lately. Be prepared to think about this book, and probably dream about it, for days after finishing it.

Pretty good thriller. It kept me entertained. Basically it was the story of three girls who had been abducted and tortured many years before and then escaped. They had to then relive their horror and find new info and insight into their captor to keep him from being paroled. It had a few twists and turns the major one I didn't expect in the end kept it from being 3 stars. It wasn't as dark or morbid as the blurbs and other reviews make it seem. It's pretty pg-13 which is fine but I think it was trying to ride off the Gone Girl success. Over all decent book that kept me interested.

This is a difficult book to rate. On the one hand, it's pretty gripping. But the author has a really hard time writing dialogue and it's PAINFUL to read. The story is intriguing, but things often feel really contrived. The ending felt kind of like a cop-out.

I seriously thought the author was a non-native English speaker, her dialogue was so awful. Yikes.

It's worth reading once, but it's not great.

I read this yesterday in the airport and on the plane. It was a fast-paced thriller, but included a bit too much detail in places. I can see the appeal to link it to [b:Gone Girl|8442457|Gone Girl|Gillian Flynn|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1339602131s/8442457.jpg|13306276], but the story could be tighter and leaner.

i would probably said this book have me questioned many things while i was reading the book. many part that should be explained more and many things should be erased. i wasn’t sure how the title goes with the story inside but the plot quite made me confused. first was years later after they got escaped but the next chapter is the story how they get captured after that the other chapter was stories about their adventures or yeah anything else.

most of all it was plot twisting and i have no idea that the one behind all of this was the one we knew that she already dead. btw, i want to know more about Jack Derber backstory. like why he did those kind of things to these girls in-spite of his scholar obsession. even i would like to tell to the writer about the main character (could you please tell us more bout Sarah/Caroline at least?) this book much thrilling and good after all but for thriller-crime-mystery book? this book quite thin and it needs more revision about everything.

I guessed the ending to this one about six chapters into reading. I continued to read figuring I had to be wrong and there was going to be something more to it, turns out, it was exactly what I thought. I truly hate when that happens. I enjoy the surprise and the twists and turns and who done it part. Oh well, on to the next. :-)