It's another one of those I like it, but not sure just how much I like it books for me personally. The characters that feature more often in the book are very well developed, but sometimes when characters were mentioned, I did think to myself 'who's that?' I know the amount of characters was not the choice of the author though, but more down to the book being based on a true story, but it still confused me at times as a reader. I actually can't pick an ultimate favourite character, as I did like most of the mains. That being said, I love how the author wasn't afraid to kill off a couple of the main characters. I've noticed that a lot of authors shy away from this, but this book proves that it can be done well and effectively including the last death (I won't give too much away due to spoilers,) but where one of the characters sacrifices themselves for the rest of the wagon party and most noticeably a select few from it. Another clever touch from the author was how they made me feel sympathy for a character I felt nothing for but hate. I genuinely thought there's no chance I could ever like this particular male character, but the author proved me wrong by adding in just a small amount of humanity at the end - a book from that character's point of view would be amazing, by the way! The beginning of this book dragged on for me. I kept forcing myself to pick it back up and read it, not because I didn't enjoy it, but because I felt like it went on and on. The last 30% of it though, was where I reached the point that I had to keep reading on!

Okay where to start this book is well written and chock full of history.you really feel the despair as the parties if settlers move across the plains.
It is based on fact the Donner party were real people that migrated west in the 19th century but found themselves on the wrong side of a mountain pass as the snows come.
The hunger is basically a cautionary tale about the folly of human nature with a bit of cannibalism thrown in but don't let this put you off it is well written and totally absorbing.
I did enjoy it but don't read it while eating your tea!!

The Hunger was an interesting read for me, for the most part very excellent -taking the well known story of the Donner party tragedy and adding in speculative supernatural and horror, this is a slow burn towards terror, which is much more of a character drama than it is any kind of thriller until right at the end. At that point though you might want to engage the axe proof duvet.

A group of travellers run into issue after issue, a child disappears and is later found mutilated, food is growing short and the road they are on is untested. Add into that various interpersonal quarrels and interactions and it is surprising that they didn’t all kill each other before the actual thing that happens. The author builds her characters with huge depth and at a considered pace -this both works, because by the time they are all in trouble you are genuinely engaged with them – and doesn’t because it is a little convoluted in places and there are a lot of characters to separate, some of whom sound entirely familiar to each other. The end is an adrenalin rush coming upon you almost too suddenly…

Overall though it works very well. Descriptively speaking this is beautifully done, you get the sense of time and place brilliantly and the end of The Hunger is scary scary stuff – it is a reading journey but definitely one worth taking.

After a few weeks of reading this book, I've finally finished it. It was, I thought, overly long, and there were so many characters in the story I kept forgetting who was who - when you're reading on an e-book it's tricky to flick backwards to remind yourself who you're reading about. The story also jumped around time-wise, something I'm not averse to, but again on an e-reader it's tricky to look back at past chapters to find out previous dates. I liked the idea of the story - I'd not heard of the Donner Party, so was interested in reading more about it. I knew before I started it that it was loosely based on fact, and that the author had put her own 'supernatural' twist to it. I felt it lacked atmosphere - for what should have been a very frightening time for the travellers, I didn't feel any fear or suspense, and I can't say I felt any attachment to any particular character either. Sorry - not one I'd particularly recommend.

This is the story of a journey across the country for a better life but will they even make it. Something is stalking the travellers and killing them. A disease spreading amongst them but can anyone survive.

This is based on a true story but reimagined. This is a more chilling and scary version of what happened to the people. I wasn't sure how I was going to get on with this but I'm do glad I tried it as it's very good. The mystery of what is stalking them is creepy and chilling. It jumps about as it explains who the characters are and how they ended up on this trail. The ending is bittersweet but very good. There is many deaths in this but one in particular really got to me.

The characters are very complex and all have their own battles to fight but forced together to survive. Stanford was my favourite closely followed by Mary.

A very chilling retelling of true story.

This is an atmospheric page turner with characters who are developed enough for the reader to really care about - no mean feat with a cast so large.

Based on the true story of the ill fated Donner Party, Alma Katsu created a disturbing, slow burning story that seamlessly blends historical fiction with horror, and supernatural elements.

The tragic story of the group of pioneers that was the Donner Party is heart breaking and horrible as it is. They set out out for California in a wagon train in May 1846, hoping for a better life and great opportunities. After a series of mistakes, the worst being the decision to take the Hastings Cutoff - a new route promoted, in spite of its proven difficulty by Lansford Hastings -, they became trapped in the Sierra Nevada after an early snowfall, causing the death of many, while some survivors resorted to eating their dead.

I would venture to say, that having to travel for six months cross country in an ox cart is bad enough, but if you are following a leader who lacks the basic skills required to navigate such a journey, and repeatedly ignores warning signs, such as having directly told not to follow a certain path he later leads you down, you are very likely doomed, even if you don't encounter any vengeful demons intent on picking your group off one by one.

The story alternates the focus between some of the main characters, and through their eyes we see the tension and desperation grow. Everyone's on edge, and despite the mounting evidence suggesting external interference, they still find it easier to blame each other for the unexplained deaths and strange attacks on their camps. Some of these suspicions might not even be completely unfounded. Playing on their fear of the unknown, certain members of the group prove to be more heinous than the ever hungry evil that follows them closely.

A glimpse into the lives of 19th century American pioneers, The Hunger is an atmospheric story of supernatural evil, and the darkness that lies within all of us.

Based on a true event this is a shocking and gruesome story. What would we do if there was no other choice?

'The Hunger' was not the novel that I was anticipating, with a supernatural twist tagged on to the already tragic account of the Donner Party's trek to California in 1846.

I was expecting an atmospheric account of the party's survival and desperation, but instead the book focused in detail on the backgrounds of the many characters, and so the pace didn't pick up until halfway through. Some of the protagonists were interesting, and once the story hit the halfway point it did focus in on a few of them, rather than attempting to cover them all. The writing lacked emotion when tragedies did occur, but during the final pages the suspense built and raced from one event to the next, including some really uncomfortable scenes.

Although I found the paranormal addition to the story unnecessary and unclear, I found myself reading most of the novel in one sitting. If I could give 2.5 stars then I would.

You go from searing heat to freezing temperatures with danger amidst. Where are the children disappearing too. Brilliant novel that keeps you on the edge of the seat

I had never heard of The Donner party and had no knowledge of it. I found this to be slow going and I considered giving up a few times. It wasn’t until I was halfway through it that I started to be more intrigued and then I felt like the author gave up with the novel and ended it as quickly as possible.

What a book! I feel quite wrung out after finishing it.
The Hunger is a cautionary tale, an epic pilgrimage of a number of families to the promise of California. The long wagon train hosts a whole range of characters, intriguing, unsavoury, and many with their own hidden pasts. As the pioneers make their way through inhospitable weather, gradually the journey starts to take its toll. Children disappear, and strange creatures are seen nearby. Families are forced to abandon their possessions on the path, and leave the past behind them on their journey forward. Divisions in the group, and unexpected unions between its members grip the reader, as the hunger continues to destroy. Based on the true story of the Donner Party, this story is immense and gripping. Read it.

As I flicked through the preamble to this novel, I saw five words that made me instantly regret requesting it for review – “based on a true story”. I’d read the little description, and somehow decided that it was going to be a horror; instead, I’d ended up with a fictionalised history of a group of American pioneers, which was about as far from what I’d normally choose as it could possibly be. However, I had requested it, so I needed to read and review it.
I’d never heard of the Donner Party before; I don’t remember covering any American history in school and even if we did, that was decades ago. Maybe that helped, in that I had no preconceived ideas of the characters described, but it also meant that there were suddenly masses of people that I needed to remember. This was a struggle, so I’d very much recommend jotting down the family groups and their members as you go. Seven people stood out fairly quickly, but the rest remained pretty ephemeral throughout, which didn’t help with the narrative.
This is all sounding terribly negative, but I quite enjoyed the book, which turned out to have a touch of the supernatural about it after all. The characters that did stick with me stuck well, and the story moved along quickly. There could have been more detail of the journey, but maybe that was only lacking because I didn’t know the history behind the story. It’s made me interested enough to research the actual historical accounts of what was an epic journey, even without the extra difficulties the group ended up facing.

Alma Katsu has achieved a remarkable story in The Hunger, based upon real events that occurred in 1846-1847; the tragic account of a group of American pioneers led by George Donner and James Reed that became known as The Donner Party. Their journey west to California would probably have been unremarkable had they not taken the disastrous decision to take a ‘short-cut’ to save some 300 miles on their long journey. The wagon train became trapped in the Sierra Nevada by seriously harsh conditions with relentless snow fall. Snowbound, minor bickering escalated into violent arguments amongst the travellers as food supplies were depleted.

Katsu has woven fiction into the true story. The real characters are here alongside others made up, to add depth to this very harrowing tale of tragedy. There is a ghoulish element that makes for uncomfortable reading - this is not a book for the feint-hearted. As the horror unfolds the pace becomes staccato and relentless with its inevitable conclusions.

A fictional account of a tragic piece of American social history written with great dexterity. Harsh, gruesome and realistic; fiction and fact have never been better combined.

This book based on actual events is a tale of hardship, grit and determination. Some of the first travellers teying to reacheck California. There is sadness, ;fight and desperation to overcome, hunger, pain and the cold. This story is one modern society will never experience, and it is worth reading to understand their fight for a better life.

Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. I really enjoyed this book, I’m not a fan of historical stories but this one was very good. A good horror story though. It had me wanting more, I didn’t want to put it down. Great story and characters worked well.

Tragic historical fiction based on the true story of pioneers attempting a new route to California in the 1840s; and the privations they suffered. All the characters are rounded, and not perfect. It could be horrific and sensational, as cannabilism and a family curse relating to blood, are involved; but instead there is a tragic inevitability about the ending.
Would recommend to anyone.

If you’re a fan of historical fiction, with a vague touch of the supernatural then Alma Katsu’s “The Hunger” may well be the book for you. I thoroughly enjoyed it and although it’s a novel which may not be peddled as ‘horror’ it has got more than enough to keep fans of the genre entertained, especially in its second half.

Based on a true story, the disappearance of a large wagon train heading west towards California in the mid-1840s, Alma Katsu has made a superb job of recreating the hard and dangerous life of the wagon train, with the vague suspicion of something nasty tracking the ninety or so travellers, including many children, wives and old folks never far away. Many were desperate men, heading west with a lack of provisions, ill-prepared and hoping to survive the perilous 2000 odd mile journey to enjoy what later became known as the ‘American Dream’.

It’s hard to know what to compare this superb beast of a novel to, however, if Dan Simmons decided to tackle the American frontier period he may well come up with something like “The Hunger” and that’s high praise indeed. The novel is full of colourful period detail, exquisitely researched, and although it moves along at a slow pace it is never dull and I read it very quickly. However, if you do prefer a slash, bang, wallop kind of horror then this is probably not the book for you. It inhabits the literary end of the genre and is a fine example of how to build tension, slow dread and fear as the travellers are picked off one by one after a young boy is disappears early in their journey, his eaten corpse found strangely ahead of the wagon train a few days later. Indians are suspected, but soon the fear spreads.

According to the informative author end-notes the true events of the disappearance of the ‘Donner’ party, or at least the facts that do exist, were common knowledge until the last couple of generations and have since disappeared from common American historical knowledge. As George Donner had the most wagons and cash he declares himself leader, but with winter fast approaching the wagon train falls behind schedule and they are left with a critical choice to make. Either go the familiar safer wagon route, or follow a supposed short-cut which is unexplored properly but rumoured to shave 300 miles from the journey. They foolishly take the short cut.

Although the whole book is a journey, with something nasty lurking in the background, the book is as much about the people as anything else. It is easy to argue the plot would have been strong enough without any supernatural elements at all. Seen from multiple points of view there are some wonderfully drawn characters and the novel uses both flashbacks and letters to explore many key back stories. For many of them, risking a 2000-mile journey, means they are running away from something. Amongst these good Christian men and women, we have every kind of secret from infidelity, homosexual lust, murder, to incest, all of which slowly unravel as the wagon train begins to flounder. Laced into the plot are many clever cultural observations from the period, for example, why were unmarried men treated with suspicion? As one of the leading characters Stanton finds out.

“The Hunger” was a superbly thoughtful novel, which ultimately stretched the limits of human endurance, as there is more than one kind of ‘hunger’. Its strength lies in the pioneer spirit of the brave ninety souls searching for a dream, not knowing a nightmare was waiting. Turning a factual event into a very readable novel is tricky, adding a convincing supernatural angle is even more difficult, but the author pulls it off admirably. It’s possible readers of ‘straight’ historical fiction may not like the direction the novel heads in the final 20% of its gruelling 400 pages. But, hey, that’s their loss.

Tremendously written thriller that was a classic "slow burn' that had me feeling uneasy, a little bit paranoid, and totally creeped out. But I mean that in a good way. Such a great book!!!

A well written historic thriller / horror based upon true events. Dark, Gripping and delves into the darkest parts of the human psyche. A tale of true desperation and the depths to which anyone can sink if dire circumstances are pushed all the way to the edge.