Review: Four Found Dead by Natalie D. Richards

Title: Four Found Dead

Author: Natalie D. Richards

Genre: YA, mystery thriller

Publication date: May 2nd 2023

Published by: Sourcebooks Fire

Source: eARC for review from publisher via Netgalley

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Synopsis: 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 rating: ★★★★★

I really enjoyed this book! The premise of teenagers being stuck in an abandoned mall and being chased by a killer... it sounded like my type of book. And I think it was really well done!

I enjoyed the setup right from the start: Them working their last shift at a movie theater that's closing down. A theater that is in a mall where all the other businesses have already closed down. That place was locked up and ready to be torn down. The movie theater was the last one standing. And on the final night of the theater being open, things escalate quickly when the lights go out and they find one of their coworkers dead.

They can't get out the front door because their asshole of a manger has the keys, and they can't call for help because their phones are locked away while they were on shift (also the manager’s doing). So their only option is to escape out into the abandoned and boarded up mall.

I really enjoyed the setting! An empty mall in the dark with construction stuff everywhere was so creepy! I loved it! I enjoyed following the characters as they tried to find hiding places and things to protect themselves with in the mall.

Another thing I really liked about the book is that it took place in one night! I always love that in a book! It just made things feel more fast-paced, which I really liked, especially in a mystery thriller. The book was pretty tense overall, especially the end. And I really enjoyed the end running-away-from-the-bad-guy/fight scene and where it was set.

This was so good! I loved that it took place in one day, I loved the setting in an abandoned mall ready to be demolished, and I liked all the little letters and news reports at the end of the chapters that gave you insight into the future. And because you know the book is called Four Found Dead, you kept wondering throughout the whole thing which four characters were going to be the ones to wind up dead! And I liked the characters too: sweet Quincy, Hudson, and especially Jo and the character arc she went through. It was just a good book all around! I need to read more books from this author!

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a link to your review or comment below! 😊