I love it whenever Blair Braverman cohosts You're Wrong About, so I was excited to read her debut novel, a thriller about a survival reality show (think Naked and Afraid, plus clothes) that goes wrong. This was a much more character-driven book than I expected, focusing primarily on Mara, whose experience with wilderness survival goes back to her increasingly paranoid off-the-grid parents. I really enjoyed her backstory and the ways it colors her approach to the challenges she faces and to her fellow survivors.

My one complaint is that this book takes a long time to get going, with the big inciting incident not happening until halfway through. I would have liked the first 50% to spend more time establishing the characters' relationships to each other, because by the time they really have to depend on each other, I still felt like I barely knew some of them.

But overall? I had a great time being stressed out by this book.