School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--A group of high school students are doomed on a trip for a theater competition. They drive straight into a blizzard and must find refuge in a hotel in the middle of nowhere. When they check-in, they meet a robotics team that is also stranded while traveling for their own competition. The hotel is creepy, cold, and full of winding hallways, making it difficult to navigate. It also holds dark secrets, including the murder of a businessman and his mistress years before. The murder weapon was never found, and the murder never solved. The teens play games, including Two Truths and a Lie, to pass the time. When one person writes their two truths and a lie as "I like to watch people die," and then two classmates turn up dead, the evening becomes sinister. Told with nods to Agatha Christie and in eerie detail, this thriller is sure to delight fans of mystery, suspense, and a little horror. Who is the killer and why are they targeting the teens? VERDICT A grisly, fast-paced, suspenseful tale of a murder and mystery that is great for fans of noir thrillers who do not mind a little gore. Recommended for teen readers.--Tracey S. Hodges
Publisher's Weekly Review
In Henry's (Playing with Fire) intermittently scary mystery, a vanload of Midwestern high school theater kids is headed for a regional competition with their drama teacher when it begins to snow. Six hours later, caught without cell service in a polar vortex, they're forced to check into the sprawling, difficult-to-navigate Travel Inn and Out. Soon, another group of teens arrives, this one en route to a robotics competition. When they all meet in the common room in high spirits and begin a variation on Two Truths and a Lie--one in which each contribution is anonymously offered and read aloud--the story's narrator, Nell, chooses a paper-slip submission that no one claims, reading "I like to watch people die," "My least favorite food is mushrooms," and "I've lost count of how many people I've killed." Then things get bad for the largely white cast: the power fails, large paw prints suggest a cougar prowling around outside, and a body is found hanging from a noose with another message--"THIS IS THE FIRST." If abundant red herrings result in a less than satisfying ending, Henry's telling successfully incorporates elements of romance into a snowed-inn mystery with Agatha Christie roots. Ages 12--up. Agent: Wendy Schmalz, Wendy Schmalz Agency. (May)
Kirkus Review
A group of teens stranded in a snowstorm discovers a murderer in their midst. While traveling on the highway to a state theater competition, Nell and her friends Min, Raven, Adam, and Jermaine are caught in a dangerous blizzard. Their teacher, Mrs. McElroy, who is driving the minivan, decides to stop for the night at the run-down and shady-looking Travel Inn and Out. The motel is labyrinthine and spooky, with dingy corridors and walls adorned with moldering kitsch. Nell and the gang meet another group of kids who are also stranded by the storm, making fast friends. A game of Two Truths and a Lie starts out flirty and fun but devolves into something more sinister when one slip of paper reads "I like to watch people die," and "I've lost count of how many people I've killed." The snow falls and the winds howl, and soon power and cell service are lost, cutting off the motel patrons from the outside world. As the first victim is discovered and the body count begins to grow, the terror becomes palpable. Everyone at the motel seems to have an insidious secret: Will Nell be able to uncover the killer before they strike again? An homage to Agatha Christie, Henry's locked-room mystery is tautly plotted, with quick-moving nail-biting chapters, relatable characters, and a deftly wrought setting that paradoxically manages to feel both claustrophobic and sprawling. Nell is White; there is diversity among the secondary characters. An atmospheric and entertaining thriller perfect for snowy night chills. (Mystery. 12-16) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
On their way to a competition, an unexpected blizzard forces Nell and her theater group to take shelter in a creepy, run-down hotel. There they meet other groups sheltering as well, including a rival team heading for the same competition. The first night in the hotel, Nell and the two groups play a game, Two Truths and a Lie, to pass the time, but things get dark when one slip of paper admits to multiple killings. Things get even darker once it's found that the hotel was the scene of an unsolved double murder. Everyone is a suspect in the ominous confession, and the next morning, one of Nell's theater friends is found dead. Trapped without power or access to help, Nell and her friends must protect themselves and survive. Henry returns with another thriller that will keep readers on the edges of their seats with mystery and romance, plus various theater references that give the novel a unique feel. Multiple twists and turns will keep readers guessing until the very end. An engrossing read.
