No Exit: A Novel
by Taylor Adams
2018, Hardback — Thriller
Tagline: When you’re snowed in, and stupid
I might have picked up this book because of the snow on the cover. And because the heroine is a college co-ed, who seemed smart, at least at first. It certainly wasn’t because of the title, which tells me nothing, although it hints at Jean Paul Sartre.
I picked it well! Taylor Adams delivers on the snow! You should read this on a too hot summer day in the hammock, and you’ll find yourself cooling off nicely. For me, I was renting a room in November and suffering from a demented landlady. She harassed me by turning down the heat to 60 every night, among other things. So I was cold a lot. This book made me feel like I wasn’t suffering alone.
Darby is the sensible co -ed who is driving home from college, when her car gets stuck in a snowstorm. She’s half way up a mountain. I guess they have these little kiosks or rest stops on Colorado mountain roads, as getting stuck in high snow is dangerous, and too common.
I appreciate a new (to me) environment!
Our heroine is smart and independent, and we’re happy to follow her. However, once in the nice warm shack, with 7 or 8 other stranded passengers, all waiting for the snowplows coming the next morning, she starts making some very bad decisions.
Everyone is trapped. All the cars are in drifts several feet high, and there is a little to eat and drink in the cafe. Darby leaves the shack for a few minutes to find better phone reception outside, and sees someone in one of the snow-covered vehicles. Who might, or might not, have been in danger. And then she panics.
Spoilers, or WTH?
Problem: in the first 20 pages, Darby, our protagonist, decides that she should rescue this young person, and — get this — KILL the kidnapper.She assumes the person was kidnapped 🙂
Who does that? You see a (possible) crime and then you want to kill the bad guy? No trial, no passion, just first degree murder!
You have help coming. Snowplows, the outside world, phone reception, all will come early the next morning. Also, a young woman with no weapons would probably think of defense first, before offense. (Unless she’s part of Antifa.)
If you can get past this major plot hole, the story is fast moving, and Darby is worth rooting for. And the story has a lot of surprises and kinks, nice. But there’s also torture; I don’t know when this became routine in thrillers, but it’s not always necessary, really.
Would this make a good movie?
Possibly. But when people are stuck in a room or a very small area, that is pretty claustrophobic – much better as a play.
Worse is that the protagonist is kind of nutty.
Oops, MY wrong guess! It WAS turned into a movie!! On Hulu. Got mixed reviews. They turned Darby into a Hispanic ex-druggie…Horrible poster.
Actual Reader Reviews of No Exit
Kirkus didn’t review it.
Publishers Weekly said it had a “predictable twist, ” but a good page-turner.
Oh, wow, Amazon has it as Editors Pick. I’m pretty surprised. I would have guessed this to be a first novel that had been ravaged in a writing group or class. Says something about Amazon…
Average rating is 4.4 stars out of 5, and many of the reviews say they couldn’t put it down, and loved all the twists. Others below.
–It was like a horrible Scooby Doo episode. No one talks like this. Especially cops. No cop says they’re going to go search for clues!
–Agatha Christie could not have set it up better. Our heroine is a young college student returning to a home she swore was behind her…The plot contains little new for a seasoned mystery reader, but it is the execution that sets NO EXIT apart from the rest of the pack. A well sketched,sympathetic main protagonist and believable supporting characters drawn with depth make this an intriguing read.
–I read it in one sitting and devoured the pages completely unaware of anything else going on around me. (I didn’t even hear my husband calling me I was so engrossed!)
–From the beginning I could not believe that a supposedly intelligent college student would make such stupid choices. (Donna: I swear, I didn’t write this!)
Where to find No Exit
Your friendly local library. Free!
Best price in print
Audiobook
Kindle (Free Trial)
There’s some kind of Special Amazon deal going on this summer, if you’re under 25. It ends Sept. 30.
Endpaper
Here in Los Angeles, a mountain mystery novel was a fun place to go for a few hours. I might even look up more of his books. (Taylor is a he.) It will distract you from your problems, and isn’t that what fiction is all about?
But as much as I liked the background, Darby didn’t click with me as the story went on. Over 2 stars.
What did you think? Did you catch the movie?
ISBN 9780062875655
Set painter in studio Art Depts. Member Scriptwriters Network, script analyst.
Author, 2 hardcopy books, Barnes & Noble Calendar.
- The Other Emily ~ Dean Koontz ~ Serial Killer - June 23, 2025
- Emma in the Night ~ Wendy Walker ~ Abduction Thriller - May 11, 2023
- Still Alice (2014) ~ Psychology Movie Review ~ Julianne Moore - January 25, 2023
