One Click Away

by Joanne Ryan

Some things are best left alone….
When Charlie gets a text inviting her to play a game, her first instinct is to delete it. It’s obviously a scam because nothing in life comes for free. But her world is painfully dull, her future uninspiring.
Surely, just looking can’t hurt… right?
The rational side of her warns against it. Don’t fall for it. No one hands out opportunities like this.
And yet, she goes ahead and clicks ‘yes’ and in that instant, her life veers off course in ways she never could have imagined.
And once she’s in, there’s no way out...

59 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 16, 2025

About the author

Joanne Ryan lives in the south of England and has always loved writing. Her novels concentrate on the darker, secret side of life of seemingly ordinary people.
She also writes under the pen name of Marina Johnson https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...

Reviews

[Angela Pearse · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick fun suspenseful read! I enjoyed this sneak peek into Charlie's hum-drum life; her observations on cleaning made me laugh. Recommend if you like domestic thrillers, Joanne Ryan does them so well.

[C.J. Morrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant short story but this expert psycho thriller writer.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really a thriller

This book to me was not a thriller as advertised. It was actually boring and found myself skimming. In the long run it's almost as if Alan tricked her.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Quick Read

I loved the short but suspenseful story. I found myself rooting for Charlie the entire time since I am a sucker for "underdogs". I loved the ending too even if it did catch me off guard. Really glad I discovered this author!

[SKP · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very quick and fun little suspenseful short story. I read it in an hour, and I enjoyed it. Nowadays, who doesn’t get spam emails or text messages? I think we can all relate…I do not click on links in spam, but there are always a few that make me wish I could. Maybe in the future I’ll remember this story and more easily resist temptation. lol

[Deborah J Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this short story which I read in one sitting. With each decision Charlie made, I could feel the suspense building and wondered if she had been at all wise to join the game.

The tasks she is asked to perform are a little odd and the reward for completing them seems completely out of proportion. I wondered what benefit the individual(s) behind the text messages might gain, and decided it was all too sinister. My alarm bells were ringing, but Charlie overrides any concerns and carries on.

I thought that perhaps her co-worker Alan was more than a little involved in the game, and if that was the case, then things appear to be working out nicely for him. Otherwise, Charlie will live the rest of her days looking over her shoulder, hiding from something or someone unidentified in this story.

I will definitely be reading more of Joanne Ryan's stories and highly recommend One Click Away as an introduction to her writing.

[Ali Cabral · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Click Away is a super quick read that takes a simple “what if I just clicked?” moment and turns it into something unsettling. It’s one of those short thrillers you can finish in a sitting — fast, eerie, and very “could totally happen to me.” I liked the premise and the tension, but it wrapped up a bit too fast for my taste. Still, a fun bite-sized thriller for anyone who loves stories about tech gone wrong or modern-day curiosity getting the best of us.

[Sage · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice speedy read i read this in the span of 30 minutes. The pacing was weird but it was enjoyable and the conclusion didn’t feel rushed.

[Helen Colwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good short story wished it was longer

[Karm Barter · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. That was fun. I wish there were more missions and less of her cleaning. The ending isn’t how I’d write it. It felt like something was missing but it was still fun

[wendy cooney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story

[Bookskee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed this book and it's progression.

I decided to overlook the fact about the passport though because honestly, that would never have flown IRL.