Diana Urban schrijft duistere, kronkelende thrillers die spelen met de verwachtingen van de lezer. Haar verhalen kenmerken zich door onverwachte wendingen en een alomtegenwoordig gevoel van spanning. Urban bouwt meesterlijk ingewikkelde plots die lezers volkomen in hun greep houden en verrassen. Haar schrijfstijl is direct en meeslepend, waardoor elke pagina de lezer op het puntje van zijn stoel houdt.
Soon after receiving an anonymous message stating that she has twenty-four hours to play a game by the sender's rules or he will kill her sister, sixteen-year-old Crystal Donovan realizes that cooperating will destroy her friends' lives and she must figure out a way to beat the kidnapper at his own game before she loses everything.
When her boyfriend leaves her for her best friend, Jade joins a semester long cruise program unaware that the two are also onboard, and when her ex-boyfriend is murdered and his new girlfriend goes missing, Jade must dig into her shipmates' lives to find the murderer and clear her name.
A thrilling debut, reminiscent of new fan favorites like One of Us Is Lying and the beloved classics by Agatha Christie, that will leave readers guessing until the explosive ending. "Welcome to dinner, and again, congratulations on being selected. Now you must do the selecting." What do the queen bee, star athlete, valedictorian, stoner, loner, and music geek all have in common? They were all invited to a scholarship dinner, only to discover it's a trap. Someone has locked them into a room with a bomb, a syringe filled with poison, and a note saying they have an hour to pick someone to kill...or else everyone dies. Amber Prescott is determined to get her classmates and herself out of the room alive, but that might be easier said than done. No one knows how they're all connected or who would want them dead. As they retrace the events over the past year that might have triggered their captor's ultimatum, it becomes clear that everyone is hiding something. And with the clock ticking down, confusion turns into fear, and fear morphs into panic as they race to answer the biggest question: Who will they choose to die?
Set in the eerie catacombs of Paris, this survival-thriller follows a gripping and twisted narrative that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. With a strong focus on suspense and character development, it explores themes of resilience and the struggle for survival in a perilous environment. Perfect for young adult fans who enjoy intricate plots and intense situations, the story promises a captivating experience from rising star Diana Urban.