Published by Renee Powers, Jan. 9, 2025
If you’re a fan of thriller books, there’s no doubt that Riley Sager books have been on your radar or TBR at one point or another. This prolific author has been writing since 2010 under a few different names. Don’t fret–we’ve compiled everything you need to know about Sager, his books, and where to start with his body of work.
Riley Sager is a pseudonym of Todd Ritter, who also publishes under the name Alan Finn. He is an American thriller author from New Jersey. His books, The Only One Left and The House Across the Lake, were New York Times best-sellers. Several of his novels have also won awards, including Final Girls, which took home an International Thriller Writers Award, and Home Before Dark, which earned him a Suspense Magazine Award.
It’s November 1991. Nirvana's in the tape deck, George H. W. Bush is in the White House, and movie-obsessed college student Charlie Jordan is in a car with a man who might be a serial killer. Trapped in a terrifying game of cat and mouse played out on pitch-black roads and in neon-lit parking lots, Charlie knows the only way to win is to survive the night.
Average rating on Pango: 3.3 stars ★★★☆☆
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Fifteen years ago, summer camper Emma Davis watched sleepily as her three cabin mates snuck out of their cabin in the dead of night. The last she--and anyone--saw of them was Vivian closing the cabin door behind her, hushing Emma with a finger pressed to her lips. When Emma returns as a counselor, it is clear that all is not right at Camp Nightingale.
Average rating on Pango: 4.32 ★★★★☆
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Now reduced to a schoolyard chant, the Hope family murders shocked the Maine coast one bloody night in 1929. While most people assume seventeen-year-old Lenora was responsible, the police were never able to prove it. Now, 60 years later, Lenora wants to tell her home-health aide everything.
Average rating on Pango: 4.37 ★★★★☆
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Jules Larsen has a new job as an apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattan's most high-profile and mysterious buildings. Jules finds herself drawn to fellow apartment sitter Ingrid, who comfortingly, disturbingly reminds her of the sister she lost eight years ago. Then Ingrid disappears and Jules digs deep into the Bartholomew for its secrets.
Average rating on Pango: 4.32 ★★★★☆
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Maggie returns to the house made famous by her father’s bestselling horror memoir. Is the place really haunted by evil forces, as her father claims? Or are there more earthbound–and dangerous–secrets hidden within its walls?
Average rating on Pango: 4.24 ★★★★☆
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The majority of Riley Sager’s books are psychological thrillers and suspenseful mysteries, with a touch of horror. His books are characterized by their dark and twisty plots, complex characters, with unexpected endings. His writing has been praised by critics for creating "edge-of-your-seat thrillers" that "will keep you guessing until the very end."
Some of Riley Sager’s books do have horror elements, including Final Girls and Survive the Night. That said, Sager does not consider himself a horror author, but a thriller author who occasionally incorporates some horror ingredients.
While The Only One Left is a work of fiction, Riley Sager drew inspiration from Lizzie Borden’s story. In 1892, Borden was acquitted of murdering her father and stepmother with an axe. No one else was ever implicated or accused in the crime. This story has been reimagined for plays, film, television, and, of course, books. Get the whole story behind The Only One Left with The Trial of Lizzie Borden by Cara Robertson!
Riley Sager is unabashed in his admiration of Stephen King, so if you haven’t ventured into this legend’s work, now is the time! Check out our reader’s guide to Stephen King if you’re not sure where to start.
Because Riley Sager’s books are all standalones, you can read them in any order. The characters in his books do not reappear in other books. However, in our opinion, it’s always fun to see how an author grows and changes as their work progresses. In this case, we recommend starting with the earliest books written under the Riley Sager pen name and working your way to the most recent. From there, you can explore the books he wrote under his true name, Todd Ritter, and as Alan Finn.
