The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: Jackson, Holly. Five Survive. Delacorte Press, November 29, 2022. Kindle.

In the mystery thriller Five Survive by Holly Jackson, Redford “Red” Kenny blamed herself for five years for her mother’s murder. It was not until a terrible span of eight hours when Red and her friends were held hostage by the mafia that Red learned the truth about what happened to her mother and why.

Red and five friends were on their way to Gulf Shores for spring break when their cell phones suddenly lost signal. Without GPS to guide them, they drove the borrowed RV down a narrow country road. When they tried to turn around and leave, all of their tires were shot out and a hole was shot in the gas tank.

The sniper who was holding them hostage said that one of them had a secret that he wanted. Oliver, who appointed himself as the de facto leader of the group, ignored the sniper’s demands and worked on finding a way for them to escape. Oliver even disguised his sister, Maddy, and sent her out in an attempt to escape. The sniper shot her in the leg, leaving her in desperate need of medical attention.

Red, who had believed there was no way the sniper could know her secret, admitted to the others that it was probably her secret that the sniper wanted. She was the eyewitness for a murder case involving members of the Philadelphia mafia. To make matters worse, Red was being paid to lie on the stand about the case. The sniper wanted the name of the person who was paying Red to lie.

Red unwillingly shared the person’s name. It was Catherine Lavoy, the mother of Oliver and Maddy. She was the assistant district attorney prosecuting the case. Oliver was angry and insisted that Red was lying. Maddy, however, admitted she had suspected all along that it was their mother who killed Red’s mother. Catherine had been leaking information from the DA’s office to the mafia for years. Red’s mother had come too close to learning Catherine was the source of the leak and killed her. Catherine convinced Red to lie on the stand by lying to her and telling her that it was probably the defendant in the case, Frank Gotti, who had killed her mother.

When police arrived on the scene, Red saw a young female officer. Red suspected that the officer had children at home. She feared the sniper would shoot the officer. Not wanting this officer’s children to grow up without their mother, Red used herself as a human shield to protect the officer. The officer did not understand what Red was doing and shot her. In the moments before she received medical attention, Red imagined her mother speaking to her, forgiving her.