The Unknown
by Riley Sager
Dutton
Marin Keane’s acting career isn’t exactly stellar–a role in an eczema commercial is the embarrassing highlight. When her agent sends Marin to audition for a movie neither expects much, but Marin is shocked when wunderkind director Ronan Peters signs her up. Set on an island in the middle of a Vermont lake, the movie is in an account of the mysterious disappearance of five women from the island a hundred years ago. Ronan wants the cast to spend a week there living in period clothing and conditions as a deep immersion exercise into their respective roles. Marin’s excited at the idea of spending a week with some of her idols—until a text appears on her phone warning her against the project.
Her amazement increases when she’s given the principal role of Daisy Rue, the young woman whose diary account of the disappearances forms the basis for Ronan’s script. The five woman involved—including Daisy—vanished over the course of a week in 1926, the only sign being their clothes hung high in an ancient oak. Murdered? Just walked away? Taken by some supernatural entity? Local lore has it all. The reality of her situation hits Marin hard when a medical emergency results in the five cast members being stranded—and they begin to disappear just like in 1926. Increasingly terrified and unable to call for help, Marin turns to Daisy’s diary for guidance. Could the clue to escaping her situation lie in its pages, or will she be yet another victim of the island’s supernatural past?
In this supernatural thriller with a twist, Sager ramps up the tension from the first page of The Unknown through to the shocking revelation. The gripping plot and plenty of unexpected turns will inspire the reader to keep the light on while reading this book.
