3.5 stars. After reading and enjoying Lucy Clarke's One of the Girls earlier this year, I was excited for The Hike. I love a good destination/survival thriller, and this one definitely didn't disappoint.

The Hike centers on four friends who go on a trip together every year, with each friend taking a turn choosing where they go. This year it's Liz's turn, and she's chosen something different than the group's typical luxurious beach destinations: a four-day hike up and down a mountain deep in the Norwegian wilderness. As a doctor, Liz knows that walking does wonders for the body and mind, and she feels the need to clear her head in the midst of a crumbling marriage. But as soon as Liz, Helena, Maggie, and Joni arrive at the lodge, ready to start their journey, something feels indefinably off with the locals. And the friends are harboring secrets from each other, too, which will be exposed as they set off, isolated and vulnerable, into the Norwegian wilderness.

It's amazing how much Clarke was able to take on in The Hike. In short chapters from alternating viewpoints, she explores themes like marriage, motherhood, the complexities of female friendship, and drug addiction, while also telling a propulsive, suspenseful, atmospheric survival story. Each of the four friends at the center of this novel is thoughtfully crafted, with unique traits and viewpoints that made it easy to differentiate among them. Their internal conflicts and their conflicts with each other, even as they were dealing with the external challenge of being inexperienced hikers and potentially being stalked through the wilderness, made for a tense, engaging reading experience.

The ending was a bit over the top, and I found myself wishing Clarke would lean a bit more into some Norwegian myth/folk horror elements to add to the creep factor, but overall this is a solid thriller that makes me eager to read what she writes next. Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the early reading opportunity.

Every year, friends Liz, Helena, Maggie, and Joni take an annual trip together and, this year, with her marriage on the rocks, Liz chooses a difficult 4-day mountain hike for their excursion. On their strenuous journey, the women must face nature, each other, and someone else keeping close tabs on them?!

Having recently read THE CASTAWAYS, I should have been more prepared for the emotional turmoil this book would put me through, but, alas, I was not.

THE HIKE by Lucy Clarke is told through several POVS (including all of the friends) and an alternate Search chapter that had me flipping pages and guessing all the guesses!

As an avid hiker myself, I LOVED the descriptors used throughout this book - could smell the characters, feel the blisters, and taste those delectable camp noodles 😋

I loved the emotion and tension that Clarke managed to create within this story and am only docking this book a star for the direction the plot ended up taking!

Another great read from Lucy Clarke that has me itching to read more from her!

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Penguin, and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publication Date: August 29

I normally do not migrate towards thrillers (too much anxiety for me when I want to just relax reading a book!), but this story sounded intriguing. Given my own interest in the outdoors and going on hiking trips, I thought I would give it a try. And I have to say, I did enjoy it! The setting and the premise were great. And the thriller aspect worked on me...my hands were sweating as I got closer to the end of the story and things got exciting! There was enough of a backstory on the four main characters to 'buy in' on their friendship and history together. While I can't imagine that these ladies would go on a big hike like this, given their inexperience, it still worked for me as a reader. The plot did take a few turns at times that were unrealistic, but I could accept that as an invested reader. But I can say that I definitely would have made other decisions than these four ladies! :-)

There were many plot twists and surprises, which kept me very interested up til the very end! I read through the book pretty quickly! Great book! Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this e-ARC!

This book appealed to me when I first saw it. I usually read exclusively romance, and I was in the mood for something different. Thinking I needed to read a thriller and step away from my regular genre was not, perhaps, the best course of action for me. I thought The Hike had suspense and twists and turns, but ultimately, my anxiety couldn't handle it. This is a well-written book, however, and I would recommend it to fans of thrillers.

This book reminded me why I don’t like to hike - rough trails, unpredictable weather, and no cell service for emergencies! This story, about a group of friends, reunited each year for a trip of someone’s choosing, had me agreeing about the resentful decision to go hiking and camping. What’s wrong with another beach vacation?! I suppose this story would have been very different because the spooky and atmospheric setting was a character in itself. I loved the way it tied into the suspense of the plot, how it affected the characters and their journeys, and how it even played a villain of sorts. Hiking enthusiasts don’t be deterred! This story is a reminder of the dos and don’ts of hiking, sleeping and exploring the great unknown, hopefully read in the comfort of your home and not outside in a tent somewhere…

I'm not sure what to think of this story. The cliffhanger was good and there were times that I enjoyed reading the story. There were also times where it felt unbelievable, which shouldn't be an issue because it is a fictional story.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. This was a first for me by this author, and I was able to read along with a few friends who were also given an advanced copy.

This book showed a POV of 4 friends who got together on a yearly retreat, this year completing an extreme hike in Norway. They are all at very different points in their lives, but they still make it a point to make time for a trip once a year. There is drama, lies, deception, suspense, and mystery as you watch them embark on the struggles and dangers of the trip, trying to make it back safely.

The short chapters made it such an easy read, wanting to keep going to see what happened next. We had theories and guesses the entire time, and in the end, everything wrapped up nicely and not in quite such a typical HEA fashion. I am really excited to check out more by Lucy Clarke.

My advice: Go into this one blindly (similar to how these women went into their hike), don't think too much into the logistics, and enjoy the journey! ​​​​​​​​
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I still have my doubts on whether or not these ordinary people (with no training) would be able to complete this fictional hike, even in the best conditions. That aside, I absolutely loved how they showed up for each other and set time aside from their busy lives for this vacation. ​​​​​​​​
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Lucy Clarke again showed how she is a master at cliffhangers that draws the reader in and propels them to turn the page. Combined with short chapters, 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗲 is a quick and entertaining read that I enjoyed. ​​​​​​​​
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DETAILS: Lucy Clarke // Out August 29, 2023 // Gifted by @putnambooks // liked it

I loved this story about four women who grew up together and vacation together every year. It’s Liz’s turn to pick their destination and she chooses to “wild camp” while hiking a treacherous mountain in Norway. If that wasn’t enough of a recipe for disaster, throw in several mysterious men, a mysterious disappearance, and issues between the friends themselves. I couldn’t put it down!

Lucy Clarke had me gripped right from the prologue with her latest thriller! We know from the start that someone is dead, but we don’t know who and there are so many questions leading down this trail. There are no witnesses in the wilderness, which makes for a very chilling premise…

Here’s what I enjoyed most ⬇️

👥 Multiple POVs really helped me get to know each of the four women in this friend group, and I felt like they were well-developed and pretty distinct
⏳ Two timelines: the hike and the search helped to build the pace and intrigue
⛰️ The beautiful, stunning descriptions of a mountainside town in Norway contrasted wonderfully with the stormy, atmospheric and eerie setting on the mountain
🖤 Friendships are complex. They ebb and flow. There are ups and downs. But true friends will show up and sacrifice for the ones they love

I was really enjoying this one up until about 70% of the way through, but there were some things that were missteps for me ⬇️

🚩 Liz let her own selfish motivations get in the way of the safety of her friends. We all make mistakes, but she knew her friends were ill-equipped for such a challenging hike on top of dangerous weather on the forecast. Her priorities were all messed up, which irked me
😈 The antagonists of our story felt under-developed to me, and they almost felt like caricatures, which made them not as intimidating as I think they could have been
🧗🏻‍♀️ I don’t want to give away spoilers, but the secondary plot line that begins when the women seek shelter in the cave is one of my least favorites to see in a story. The eerie vibes of this mountain hike were the perfect set-up for something spookier and more sinister that just never developed for me. I just wanted more!

If you love the outdoors and are an avid hiker, I think you’ll appreciate the backdrop of this book so much! It was intriguing for sure, and it certainly captivated my attention. I ended up finishing it in 2 days! 👀

Thank you for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! I will be sharing this review to my Instagram and Goodreads later this week prior to pub day.

I loved the setting and vibes I got from this book - very cozy yet also cold and creepy, if that makes sense. It was a fun read, but ultimately I felt the ending was a little bit farfetched and unsatisfying, but overall I'd recommend it for a quick vacation/travel/plane read.

Thank you to @putnambooks for letting me be an early reader of THE HIKE by @lucyclarke_author this one is out 8/29.

I really enjoyed this book, I read it at lightning speed! (IYKYK) I loved the characters and all of their quirks. I loved the premise and the setting really came to life for me. The twists, the relationships, the atmosphere, the freaking friendship was all perfect. Go snag a copy of this one as soon as you can!

Every year Liz, Maggie, Helena, and Joni meet up for a long weekend getaway. Usually, it involves the beach or somewhere sunny. However, this year Liz has chosen a mountain hike in Norway. Not everyone in the group is excited about this. Have the women trained enough for this four-day hike? Will everyone make it out alive?

This was my second book by Lucy Clarke, and I find that I enjoy her writing style. I enjoyed the relationship between the four women. Clarke does an excellent job of developing each character, switching the point of view between each character throughout the story. The setting of the story was wonderful, I enjoyed the descriptions of the mountain. As well as reading about each woman’s struggles to climb. The twists were believable and kept me wanting to read more. I highly recommend it to anyone that enjoys thrillers! I give it 4/5 stars.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2
The Hike follows 4 childhood friends who lead separate lives yet come together once a year for a vacation they switch off choosing. Liz chooses one of the hardest hikes in Norway as a way to cope with her unsatisfactory life and to apparently torture her friends who enjoy relaxing on vacations.
I always love a multiple point of view book. I wasn’t quite a fan of the sporadic excerpt of “the search” from Leif’s viewpoint. I think the purpose was to make the reader feel it was happening in a parallel timeline but it was clear to me it was a past experience.
Although I was able to read this book fairly quickly, I found myself bored at times for the first 65% of the storyline. I appreciated the multiple attempts to add some kind of action or event during the bridge from initial story creation to ending. The ending was captivating and action packed with some twists but ultimately it was somewhat predictable as there wasn’t many characters to chose from.
I would recommend this book as a great beach/summer read.
Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam via Netgalley for the second opportunity to read and review another good book from Lucy Clarke!

The Hike
By Lucy Clarke
Publishes: 8/29/23
Genre: thriller
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was very good! I really enjoyed the setting, premise, & themes. The main characters were likeable and well written. It did have a lot of plot layers and many characters to keep track of, which at times felt a little busy, but overall a great story full of adventure, betrayal, suspense, love, loss, and friendship. I would definitely recommend this novel.

All this and more…
🏔️ mountains/adventure
🇳🇴 Norway
🥾 hiking trip
🏕️ camping/great outdoors
👯‍♀️ childhood besties/friendship
🤚 multiple pov
🤫 secrets/betrayal
😳 suspense
😢 grief
⚠️ danger
🩳 short chapters

Thank you @netgalley and @putnambooks for the digital arc!

#netgalley #putnambooks #lucyclarke #thehike #adventurestory #thriller #newbook #arcreview #newreview #bookrecommendation #bookstagram

Similar to Clarke's previous book, One of the Girls, I felt like this was just okay. It is a pretty typical survival story, told from various points of view. This book has 5 points of view, but it wasn't too difficult to keep them apart. It did cause some repetitive moments when each character learned a piece of information and the reader had to learn it 2-3 times through each POV.

I thought the beginning was slow because it took 25% of the book to even get started on the hike. Once the hike got started, there were some suspenseful parts that kept me interested in the story. The friendship between the women on the hike was the most interesting part of the story for me. It was touching to see them forgive each other throughout the book as one made a mistake or revealed a secret. Made me have some hope that there are non-toxic female friendships out there. Overall, it was an okay read. Can't say I would widely recommend it, but there will be some that get enjoyment out of it.

For my first Lucy Clarke book I didn't know what to expect - a story of 4 friends taking their annual trip together, each dealing with their own anxieties. The suspense lingers until the end because much of this book is heavy on the group of friends and their troubles with minimal insight into the danger that lies ahead. The twist was a little surprising but didn't land a huge gasp. I was drawn to this book because the setting of hiking in the middle of nowhere has so much potential. The pacing was kind of slow but felt like an easy read. Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Group for an advance digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

It has a slow start but picks up nicely with many twists. It was a very decent read. I would recommend it.

I enjoyed this and flew through it in two sittings.

There wasn’t anything groundbreaking, just an engaging story with some unexpected twists. I had my ups and downs with the characters, sometimes I liked them, but there were also moments I couldn’t stand them. Much like I would expect they were feeling about each other on the hike.

I’d recommend this to others.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

The Hike was the first book I’ve read by Lucy Clarke! I want to say I was intrigued by the premise but I absolutely requested this arc from NetGalley on the cover alone. Whoops!

This thriller follows a group of four girlfriends who get together every year for a trip and this year’s pick is wild hiking in Norway! I loved this setting - it sounded so gorgeous and terrifying at once which lended to a very atmospheric read. There are moments when the mountains seemed like a fifth character which definitely increased the feeling of unease and unpredictability throughout.

Short chapters kept me engaged and unlikable characters had me intrigued in the drama! However, once I saw where the plot was going I was a bit bored. The last 30% or so seemed to drag and I was just ready for the book to wrap up unfortunately.

All in all, this is a decent book but I don’t think it would be in my top thrillers I’d recommend. I would definitely be open to giving Lucy Clarke another go in the further though!

⭐️⭐️⭐️