Pink Polka Dot Books: Welcome to the FFBC: Final Girls by Riley Sager

Final Girls

by Riley Sager
Publisher: Dutton Press
Release Date: July 18, 2017
Genre: Adult, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

Synopsis:

Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout’s knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media’s attempts, they never meet.

Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past. 

That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy’s doorstep. Blowing through Quincy’s life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa’s death come to light, Quincy’s life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam’s truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished.

Hi Riley!! We’re so excited about FINAL GIRLS, and we’re so happy that we’ve been given the opportunity to tour the book. Thanks so much for answering our questions about FINAL GIRLS!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Favorite Book?

This is like asking a mother of ten to choose her favorite child! I can’t pick just one. So I’m going to cheat and give you several. The first is CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY by Roald Dahl. I read it when I was ten, which is the PERFECT age to read it. It was the first time a book had completely swept me up into another place and time, and I loved it. To me, that’s the mark of a great book—if I tumble so deep into its world that I block out everything else. Others that have done the same thing are THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt, THE ALIENIST by Caleb Carr, THE GREEN MILE by Stephen King and BEAUTIFUL RUINS by Jess Walter.

Favorite TV show?

Again, I refuse to pick just one. So let’s just say it’s a tie between Veronica Mars and Parks and Recreation.

Favorite movie?

Rear Window. Or Jaws. But most likely Mary Poppins.

Favorite Song?

By now you can see that I’m terrible at picking absolute favorites. Yet Blank Space by Taylor Swift comes pretty close.

Favorite Food?

Coffee counts as a food, right? If not, I’ll say any variety of pizza. Bread + cheese + tomato sauce = YUM!

Name 3 fictional places you would move to in a heartbeat.

The Shire, Porto Vergogna from BEAUTIFUL RUINS and 17 Cherry Tree Lane.

What were your favorite books growing up? (I was a Fear Street girl!)

I graduated fairly quickly from middle-grade books to Agatha Christie mysteries. But my mother had the complete set of Trixie Belden mysteries, and during one long, lazy summer I read them all.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Could you tell our Book Addicts a little bit about FINAL GIRLS?

FINAL GIRLS is about three women who survived horror-movie style massacres—Lisa, Samantha and Quincy. The book is narrated by Quincy, the most recent member of this club no one wants to join. Unlike the others, she can’t remember much about the night ten years ago when all her friends were murdered at a remote cabin. Now she runs a successful baking blog, lives in a fabulous apartment and has a handsome, devoted fiancé. She’s put the past behind her—or so she thinks. But when Lisa is found dead and reclusive Sam suddenly appears on her doorstep, Quincy’s carefully constructed world starts to crumble. And that past she thought she was done with? Well, it’s not done with her.

What are your fave horror/slasher movies from the 80’s and 90’s?

Scream. I was obsessed with those movies. I saw Scream and Scream 2 three times — in theaters. I also love the original Halloween and, for some weird reason, its horribly titled 20-years-later sequel, Halloween: H20.

If you could reimagine any movie or TV show with a horror twist, which ones would you love to see?

Without a doubt, it would be The Parent Trap. While on the surface it’s a light-hearted Disney romp, it’s pretty disturbing when you think about it. Twin sisters whose divorced parents kept from each other until they accidentally meet at summer camp? Who thinks of that? Honestly, it’s a hair’s breadth away from a YA thriller. Which is exactly where I’d love to see it go.

Who is your favorite “final girl”?

Sidney Prescott from the Scream movies. She has a combination of toughness, vulnerability, humor and intelligence. To me, that makes her the quintessential final girl.

What’s your number one horror movie rule?

Don’t answer the phone. Because we all know that call is coming from inside the house.

If you had to pick one song to be the Theme Song for FINAL GIRLS– Which one would you pick?

(Don’t Fear) The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult. Not only is it a classic rock masterpiece, but it’s been on the soundtrack of almost every great horror movie of the past forty years.

Are there any recommendations you could give your readers to be in the “perfect mood” to read FINAL GIRLS (specific music, snacks…)?

Since the character of Quincy runs a baking blog, any form of baked good would pair perfectly with the book. As for music, I did create a FINAL GIRLS playlist on Spotify. (It can be found here: http://spoti.fi/2r4pyzj.) Readers can definitely have it playing in the background as they dive into the book.

What’s next for you?

I’m in the process of finishing up my next book. Once again, I’m going back to a cabin in the woods, but with very different results. This time, I was greatly inspired by Picnic at Hanging Rock, so if you’ve seen the movie or read the book, you’ll have a little hint of what to expect.

Thanks so much Riley!!

All I can think of when I hear Don't Fear the Reaper is MORE COWBELL!! I love your FINAL GIRLS Playlist-- any list with Doll Parts on it is a giant YES in my book. And Sidney Prescott is totally my fave final girl too-- she's **GASP** not a virgin, she gets help from friends and adults, AND she punched Gail in the face.

Riley Sager is a pseudonym for an author who has been previously published under another name. A native of Pennsylvania, Riley is a writer, editor and graphic designer who now lives in Princeton, New Jersey. Riley's first novel, FINAL GIRLS (called "The first great thriller of 2017" by Stephen King), will be published in 2017 in the United States, the United Kingdom and more than a dozen countries around the world.