The Unknown BY Riley Sager
The Unknown by Riley Sager brings his signature mix of high-concept mystery, gothic horror, and relentless twists.
EBOOK ACCESS :
- Author: Riley Sager
- Published: August 4, 2026 (Dutton / Penguin Publishing Group)
- Format: Available as e-Book (Kindle, EPUB via major retailers), Hardcover, Audiobook, and Paperback
- Genre: Psychological
- Length: ~353–368 pages
The Premise
In 1926, five women belonging to a commune of spiritual mediums vanished without a trace from New Avalon, a remote island on Lake Faraday in Vermont. The only physical evidence left behind was five dresses hanging from an old oak tree in the center of the island. According to a diary left behind by one of the missing women, Daisy Rue, a séance gone wrong summoned a entity that took them one by one.
One hundred years later, struggling New York actress Marin Keane lands a lead role in a major film adaptation of the mystery. Directed by the demanding Ronan Peters and co-starring screen icon Violet Wright, the cast travels to New Avalon for an "immersive" week of research and method preparation on the real island, cut off from modern technology.
The lines between the past and present quickly shatter. When a sudden emergency leaves the cast stranded, history begins to repeat itself: mysterious symbols appear, members of the group disappear, and dresses are found hanging back on the oak tree. Marin must use Daisy Rue's century-old journal to untangle whether an evil force has returned to New Avalon, or if someone on the island has a far more grounded—and deadly—motive.
Core Themes & Key Elements
- Dual Timelines: The story alternates between Marin’s frantic present-day fight for survival and excerpts from Daisy Rue’s 1926 journal.
- Cursed Movie" & Isolation Tropes: Channeling classics like And Then There Were None, the trapped setting creates claustrophobic tension as paranoia mounts among the actors.
- Performative Identity & Exploitation: Beyond the jump scares and twists, the narrative critiques Hollywood power dynamics, celebrity, trauma, and the price of ambition.