A creepy mansion with a disturbing past. A summer camp where three girls vanished. A stranger offering a ride home who might be a serial killer. Riley Sager has a talent for taking familiar thriller and horror setups and making readers question everything they think they know.Since his debut, Final Girls, appeared in 2017, Sager has published a new thriller almost every year. His books borrow elements from classic horror movies, Gothic mysteries and psychological suspense, often combining isolated settings with characters who have good reasons to keep secrets.The good news for readers is that there’s no complicated series chronology to navigate when reading Sager’s books. Each novel tells a self-contained story, so you can start with whichever premise appeals to you. Still, knowing the publication order makes it easier to explore his work, especially now that his newest thriller deliberately revisits elements from earlier books. Here’s everything you need to know.Related: Every Alice Feeney Book in Publication Order
How many books has Riley Sager written?
Riley Sager has published 10 novels under that name as of November 2026. His first was Final Girls in July 2017, and his latest is The Unknown, released August 4, 2026.
All 10 are standalone thrillers, not installments in a continuing series. Sager has maintained an unusually consistent publication schedule, releasing one novel annually from 2017 through 2026.Related: What Is Gothic Romance? Definition, Key Tropes & Best Books
Every Riley Sager Book in Publication Order
The list below follows the original publication dates, rather than subsequent paperback releases or new editions.
1. Final Girls (2017)
Quincy Carpenter survived a horrific massacre at a remote cabin during college, becoming one of three women the media dubbed the Final Girls. Years later, she’s trying to lead an ordinary life while avoiding memories of what happened.
But when one of the other survivors dies and another unexpectedly appears in Quincy’s life, the past becomes impossible to ignore.
Published July 11, 2017, Sager’s debut plays with the horror-movie concept of the last woman standing while exploring trauma, memory and the unsettling possibility that surviving a nightmare doesn’t mean it’s over.
2. The Last Time I Lied (2018)
Fifteen years ago, Emma Davis attended Camp Nightingale, where three girls sharing her cabin disappeared without a trace. The mystery has haunted her ever since.
Now an artist, Emma returns to the reopened camp as an instructor, hoping to finally discover what happened. But strange clues and unsettling events suggest the truth may be more complicated than she imagined.
Released July 3, 2018, this summer-camp thriller alternates between past and present, turning childhood friendships and old secrets into an increasingly dangerous mystery.Related: Every Ali Hazelwood Book in Publication Order
3. Lock Every Door (2019)
Penguin Random House
Jules Larsen is desperate for money and a fresh start when she’s offered a lucrative job apartment-sitting at the Bartholomew, an exclusive Manhattan building.
The arrangement comes with unusual rules: no visitors, no nights away and no disturbing the building’s wealthy residents. At first, Jules accepts the restrictions. But when another apartment sitter disappears, she begins investigating the building’s troubling history.
Published July 2, 2019, Lock Every Door blends psychological suspense with Gothic atmosphere, using a luxurious apartment building as the setting for an increasingly claustrophobic mystery.
4. Home Before Dark (2020)
Penguin Random House
Maggie Holt grew up in the shadow of her father’s bestselling memoir, which described terrifying supernatural events at Baneberry Hall, the Vermont mansion her family fled when she was a child.
Maggie doesn’t believe the stories. But when she inherits the house and returns to renovate it, strange occurrences begin to resemble the events described in her father’s book.
Released June 30, 2020, this haunted-house thriller alternates between Maggie’s investigation and excerpts from the memoir, leaving readers to question whether the danger is supernatural or something more human.
5. Survive the Night (2021)
In 1991, college student Charlie Jordan accepts a ride home from Josh Baxter, a stranger she meets through a campus ride board. Still grieving the murder of her roommate, Charlie is eager to leave school behind.
But as the two travel through the night, inconsistencies in Josh’s story make Charlie suspect he could be the serial killer terrorizing the area.
Published June 29, 2021, the novel unfolds largely during a tense nighttime drive, with Charlie’s love of movies and difficulty distinguishing imagination from reality complicating her understanding of events.
6. The House Across the Lake (2022)
Recently widowed actress Casey Fletcher retreats to her family’s lake house in Vermont, hoping to escape public scrutiny and her own grief.
From across the water, she becomes fascinated by Tom and Katherine Royce, a wealthy couple whose apparently perfect marriage seems increasingly troubled. When Katherine disappears, Casey suspects something terrible has happened.
Published June 21, 2022, The House Across the Lake begins with a familiar voyeuristic mystery before taking the story in an unexpected direction.Related: Every Ana Huang Book in Publication Order, Including the ‘Twisted’ and ‘Kings of Sin’ Series
7. The Only One Left (2023)
Penguin Random House
In 1983, caregiver Kit McDeere arrives at Hope’s End, a decaying mansion on the Maine coast, to look after Lenora Hope.
Decades earlier, Lenora was accused of murdering her parents and sister, although she was never convicted. Now elderly and unable to speak, she communicates through an old typewriter and offers to reveal what happened that night.
Published June 20, 2023, this Gothic mystery combines a notorious family tragedy, an isolated mansion and a narrator whose account may not be entirely trustworthy.
8. Middle of the Night (2024)
When Ethan Marsh was 10, his best friend Billy disappeared from a tent in Ethan’s backyard. Thirty years later, Ethan returns to his childhood home in the quiet New Jersey neighborhood of Hemlock Circle.
Soon, strange occurrences suggest that someone knows what happened to Billy. Ethan begins investigating the disappearance, uncovering secrets that have lingered beneath the neighborhood’s peaceful appearance.
Released June 18, 2024, Middle of the Night combines childhood nostalgia, unresolved trauma and suburban suspense.
9. With a Vengeance (2025)
Penguin Random House
In 1954, Anna Matheson arranges for six people connected to the destruction of her family to board a luxury overnight train bound for Chicago.
Her plan is to confront them and ensure they face justice for what happened years earlier. But when a passenger is murdered before the train reaches its destination, Anna realizes someone else aboard has an agenda.
Published June 10, 2025, this historical thriller draws on the tradition of locked-room mysteries, trapping a group of suspects together while their secrets gradually emerge.
10. The Unknown (2026)
Struggling actress Marin Keane lands a role in a movie about a century-old mystery involving five women who vanished from New Avalon, a remote Vermont island once home to a commune of spiritual mediums.
In 1926, the women disappeared, leaving behind five dresses hanging from an oak tree. Now, as Marin and others involved in the film visit the island to research the story, disturbing events suggest history may be repeating itself.
Published August 4, 2026, The Unknown is Sager’s 10th novel. It blends historical mystery, supernatural uncertainty and the dangers of revisiting a tragedy that has never been explained.Related: Every Stephanie Garber Book in Publication Order—From ‘Caraval’ to ‘Once Upon a Broken Heart’
Do you need to read Riley Sager’s books in order?
No. All 10 Riley Sager novels are standalones, featuring separate mysteries and principal characters. You can begin with Lock Every Door, The Only One Left or any other title without having read the earlier books.
There is one reason to consider publication order, however. Sager has described The Unknown as a book that draws on the themes, atmosphere and references of his previous nine thrillers. Readers familiar with his bibliography may appreciate those connections, although they’re not necessary to understand the story.
For anyone planning to read his complete bibliography, starting with Final Girls and continuing chronologically is a straightforward approach.
What is the best Riley Sager book to read first?
That depends on the kind of thriller you enjoy. Four particularly accessible starting points showcase different sides of his writing:
Lock Every Door (2019): Best for readers who enjoy psychological suspense and ominous settings. The mysterious Manhattan apartment building gives the story an immediately intriguing premise. Home Before Dark (2020): A strong choice for haunted-house fans who like their supernatural scares mixed with a mystery grounded in family history. The Only One Left (2023): Ideal for Gothic-mystery readers, with its crumbling mansion, infamous murders and elderly woman who may finally reveal the truth. With a Vengeance (2025): A good starting point for fans of classic whodunits, with its 1950s train setting, confined group of suspects and revenge-driven plot.Readers who prefer to start at the beginning can choose Final Girls, which introduces Sager’s fondness for horror conventions and surprising reversals.
What is Riley Sager’s newest book?
Riley Sager’s newest novel is The Unknown, published August 4, 2026, by Dutton.
The thriller follows actress Marin Keane as she investigates a century-old disappearance on a remote Vermont island. Its mystery connects events in 1926 with disturbing developments in the present.
Sager has said the book incorporates references to his previous novels, making it something of a retrospective on his first decade of publishing. It nevertheless tells a standalone story.
Is Riley Sager his real name?
No. Riley Sager is a pen name used by author Todd Ritter.
Before publishing Final Girls under the Sager name, Ritter wrote crime fiction under his own name, including the Kat Campbell mystery novels. He also published The Boy at the Door under the name Alan Finn.
Those earlier books aren’t included in this bibliography because the list specifically covers novels published as Riley Sager. Readers interested in his complete writing career can explore those additional titles separately.
Is Riley Sager writing another book?
Sager has indicated that he’s begun work on an 11th novel. However, as of November 2026, a title and confirmed publication date for that book haven’t been announced in his official bibliography.
For announcements, readers can visit Riley Sager’s official website or his Penguin Random House author page.
Related: What Is a Domestic Thriller? The Suspense Genre Hiding Danger in Plain Sight
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