Riley Sager

Last updated
Todd Ritter
Pen nameRiley Sager
Alan Finn
OccupationWriter
LanguageEnglish
NationalityAmerican
Notable worksFinal Girls
Lock Every Door
Home Before Dark
Website
www.rileysagerbooks.com

Todd Ritter, also known under the noms de plume of Riley Sager and Alan Finn, is an American author of thriller novels. [1] [2]

Contents

Biography

Ritter grew up in a ranch-style house in Pennsylvania. [3] Before becoming a full-time novelist Ritter worked as a journalist, editor and graphic designer. [4] [5]

Writing career

As of 2022 Ritter has released six novels as Sager and three novels under his real name, the latter of which make up the Kat Campbell series. [6] Ritter has also released one novel under the pen name Alan Finn, Things Half in Shadow. [7] He referenced the choice to write under the name Sager, stating that "since we were looking for a new publisher, one could argue that editors would be willing to go with someone who had a clean slate, rather than a critically acclaimed author with a spotty sales record." [8] The author's website for "Riley Sager" initially lacked an author photo or any gender identifying language, including pronouns. [9] This has since changed, as the current website features a photo of Ritter and uses he/him pronouns. [10]

Bibliography

As Riley Sager

As Todd Ritter

Kat Campbell series

  1. Death Notice (2010) [27] [28]
  2. Bad Moon (2011, also released as Death Falls) [29]
  3. Devil's Night (2013, also released as Death Night) [30] [31]

As Alan Finn

Awards

WorkYear & AwardCategoryResultRef.
Final Girls2017 Goodreads Choice Awards HorrorNominated [33]
2018 International Thriller Writers Awards Hard Cover NovelWon
The Last Time I Lied2018 Goodreads Choice AwardsMystery & ThrillerNominated [34]
Lock Every Door2019 Goodreads Choice AwardsMystery & ThrillerNominated [35]
Home Before Dark2020 Goodreads Choice AwardsMystery & ThrillerNominated [36]
The Only One Left2023 Dragon Awards HorrorNominated
2023 Goodreads Choice AwardsMystery & ThrillerNominated [37]
Middle of the Night2024 Goodreads Choice AwardsMystery & ThrillerNominated [38]

References

  1. Cocozza, Paula (2017-07-18). "Forget George Eliot: now it's male authors disguising their sex to sell more books". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  2. Gamerman, Ellen (2017-07-17). "These Male Authors Don't Mind if You Think They're Women". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  3. "Author Interview - Riley Sager, author of Home Before Dark". BookPage.com. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  4. "Author". RileySagerBooks.com. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  5. Kentner, D. A. "An interview with author Todd Ritter". Utica Observer-Dispatch. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  6. "Todd Ritter". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  7. "Alan Finn". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  8. Gilbert, Sophie (2017-08-03). "Why Men Pretend to Be Women to Sell Thrillers". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  9. "Forget George Eliot: now it's male authors disguising their sex to sell more books". the Guardian. 2017-07-18. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  10. "Riley Sager | Author". rileysagerbooks. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  11. Cha, Steph. "'Final Girls' offers cheap thrills in bloody tale of murder". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  12. Hipes, Patrick (2017-11-16). "Universal Books Rights To Riley Sager Thriller Novel 'Final Girls' For Anonymous Content & Sugar23". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  13. Yawn, Mike (2017-07-07). "Mystery 'Final Girls' inspired by horror movies". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  14. Burke, Alafair (2018-07-20). "A Thriller Set at a Summer Camp Where Bad Things Happened". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  15. "The Last Time I Lied (review)". Booklist Online.
  16. Petski, Denise; Andreeva, Nellie (2019-07-02). "'Lock Every Door' Series Based On Novel In Works At Paramount TV & Anonymous Content With 'True Blood' Duo". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  17. Nolan, Tom (2019-06-28). "Mysteries: The Sudden Vacancies Down the Hall". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  18. Radel, Felecia Wellington. "Review: Riley Sager chills with haunted-house thriller 'Home Before Dark'". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  19. "Hardcover Fiction Books - Best Sellers - July 19, 2020 - The New York Times". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  20. Radel, Felecia Wellington. "New Riley Sager thriller 'Survive the Night' is a tense road trip to the 1990s". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  21. Ehrlich, Brenna (2021-06-22). "Noir and Nineties Slasher Films Abridge Together in Riley Sager's Thriller 'Survive the Night'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  22. Rankin, Seija (November 18, 2021). "First look: 'Final Girls' author Riley Sager's new book is a juicy thriller about voyeurism". EW.com. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  23. Pennington, Gail. "6 mystery novels offer new angles — and a few new favorites". STLtoday.com. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  24. Iglesias, Gabino (2024-06-28). "Ghosts, Haunted Dreams and the Devil Himself in 4 New Horror Books". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  25. Mullen, Amanda (2024-06-18). "Riley Sager's New Thriller Book Breaks A 7-Year Author Trend (& It Pays Off)". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  26. "'Middle of the Night' by Riley Sager is this week's 'GMA' Buzz Pick". Good Morning America. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  27. ITW. "Death Notice by Todd Ritter". THE BIG THRILL . Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  28. Haohui, Zhou. "Death Notice". Library Journal. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  29. Todd, Ritter. "Bad Moon". Library Journal. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  30. Politowicz, Tracy Ann (2013-09-17). "Todd Ritter releases third mystery: 'Devil's Night'". Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  31. Todd, Ritter. "Devil's Night". Library Journal. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  32. Latham, Bethany. "Things Half in Shadow: Alan Finn on Spiritualism in Post-bellum Philadelphia". Historical Novel Society.
  33. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-horror-books-2017
  34. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-mystery-thriller-books-2018
  35. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-mystery-thriller-books-2019
  36. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-mystery-thriller-books-2020
  37. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-mystery-thriller-books-2023
  38. https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/readers-favorite-mystery-thriller-books-2024