A gripping, dynamic, and compelling dystopian tale that hits unnervingly close to home in our current political & cultural climate. Heller fans will enjoy this latest tale, particularly the sudden shock of a world made terrifyingly new, and the character bonds made along the way.

Imagine you went hunting and camping in the deep woods. When you returned to "civilization" there was nothing civil about it besides war. That's the premise of Peter Heller's latest novel, Burn.

I love the concept, even though I have to laugh. Heller sure loves stories of two guys camping in the woods, surrounded by burning danger. That said, this is totally different from The River.

The concept is so compelling which is why I was frustrated that there was so much backstory. Jess, our main character, is facing life or death amidst two sides (Maine separatists and the U.S. military), neither of which is interested in taking prisoners. It's kill and ask questions later. Yet Jess spends so much time thinking about the ex-wife he cheated on, the dog he lost soon after the divorce, and his friend's mom to whom he lost his virginity and who he considers his first love.

If I were swept into the midst of a civil war, I would not be thinking about any of those things.

I'm sure many will hate the ending because it's vague and unfinished. But the ending actually worked for me. I liked that we don't know what happens next. I think we know enough (and I have honestly built my own epilogue). There was a lot of pathos there (and blessedly no flashbacks). To me it was just right.

I do wish the book would avoid website spacing. That is instead of intending the first line of a paragraph, everything is flush and there is a break between paragraphs. This works on a website, but not in a book - not even on a kindle. It makes it difficult to know where there are actual breaks in the story. It chops up your reading - which was already chopped up thanks to extensive (too long) flashbacks.

I also found the POV wavered toward the end. It's primarily in Jess's POV, but then suddenly switches to Storey's. And there wasn't a ton of need for it - plus it should've been truly set off (again with the spacing).

So a mixed bag for me.

This was like Jared Leto coming back from a silence retreat and finding the whole world under lockdown because of Covid. Two friends found out that the world that they left behind before their annual trip was not the same one once they left the woods. Tiny towns on their way out were destroyed and residents were nowhere to be seen

I sometimes have this thought: what if I get out of a plane and not find anything as it should be. Usually my flights are transatlantic and I spend too much time disconnected during them. Burn gave me an idea of what it would be like if thing went south. Obviously people are more oblivious to "good" changes and shook by dystopian ones. Events that create dystopian atmosphere change us faster and permanently. Two dudes in this book would never be the same

Unfortunately we are seeing these types of event more frequently and some of us have that fear of what if we wake up to a day like this in the backs of our minds. Realistic fiction is important because of this: allowing us to see the destruction in a fictional world so that we won't walk into the same trap

Several things caught my eye and raised my curiosity when I first glanced at this title as this is the first Peter Heller book I have read. I am a big reader of books that revolve around the female friendship arc and the fact that this book centered around a lifelong male friendship and the dynamics that created it made me want to read it. Also, I am a huge fan of books about the dystopian world and I wanted to see how this topic played out in a male-centered book. It did not disappoint!!! Jess and Storey gave me hope in a world that has gone crazy. The strength and power of their friendship, in such a dark and ugly setting, were beautiful. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC which I will be recommending to my friends since the world we live in today could very easily become like the subject matter of this book!

This may be the craziest book I've read in quite a while.

After going on a camping trip two friends return to a world that has turned upside down. Burned towns. People being killed. A type of civil war. How can they begin to not know this happened. I found it to be utterly crazy and unbelievable.

Thank you #netgalley for this ARC.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest book by Peter Heller – 4 stars!

Every year, Jess and Storey have made an annual pilgrimage to the most remote corners of the country, where they camp, hunt, and hike, leaving much from their long friendship unspoken. There’s political turmoil in Maine but the two don’t concern themselves with secession talk. But after weeks of hunting and being off the grid, they come across a small town and find it destroyed. They start trying to find their way home as well as what happened.

A haunting story of two friends, lifelong but still withholding secrets from each other, now completely dependent on each other for survival in a world they couldn’t have imagined. A dystopian look at what political unrest could do, the story is told in flashbacks from their childhood to present day as they try and flee for safety, now with a young girl along. Definitely makes you think, and the political strife contrasted with the beauty of nature is telling.

Two men emerge from the woods after a week of hunting to discover that the Maine that they left is not the same Maine they've returned to. They go into instant survival mode as it becomes apparent that something akin to civil war has broken out, and neutrality doesn't seem to exist.
This was a really interesting premise, and there were really good parts to the story, including the evolution of the men's lifelong friendship, as secrets are revealed and examined. But it took me too long to get into it - it started off ploddingly slow. Also, I kept waiting for some clearer explanation as to what prompted an attempted secession, but I was disappointed with how little was given.
Thanks to #netgalley and #knopfpublishing for this #arc of #burn in exchange for an honest review.

This feels almost uncomfortably close to home right now, but still: wow. Peter Heller excels at the slow-burning wilderness thriller + true and deep male friendship.

Woah.

Dystopian story of two friends on their annual hunting trip in Maine. I loved the pace of the story. Author Peter Heller crawls the plot along which led me to feel that "simmering pot" experience where I'm waiting for the inevitable. I closed the book with more questions than answers which is part of the exceptional reading experience this was for me. Brilliant. Go read this one. 4.5 stars

Peter Heller is one of my favorite authors so I was hyped to receive an ARC copy from Netgalley and the publisher.

Burn is the story of two best friends who are on a hunting trip in Maine when the world around them crumbles to the ground. With rumors of certain states seceding from the Union they only have a slight grasp of why all of the small towns near them are being burned to the ground and the inhabitants dead or missing. How will they get out of Maine? How will Storey get back to his family?

The story is told in an alternating fashion between present time and the past (mostly when Jess and Storey were in high school). The Dog Stars is one of my favorite books and my absolute favorite Heller book so I was excited to visit an apocalyptic-type world that he had created. One thing I can always count on with Peter Heller is that his descriptions of wildlife and the world around him are always just indescribably vivid and beautiful. After closing a Peter Heller book I want to go running through a stream, climb a tree, hike a trail

The only thing I would have changed is that I wanted MORE of the present time. This book could have been twice the length if the present story would have been meatier. This books is definitely clamoring for a sequel. Fingers crossed that is on the ole' Heller agenda. :)

This was by far one of the oddest dystopian books I've read. The story starts like a match set to kindling- fast and bright. You're right alongside Jess and Storey trying to figure out what is going on in the world while still surviving. And then, in the middle of trying to not get shot at, Jess takes us on long, winding trips down Memory Lane. It just seemed incongruous that two people who are struggling to make sense of their world and immediate future would have the wherewithal to ponder about life.

Love Heller's previous work and will read future novels. I'm a bit disappointed as I think Heller could have made this an amazing story of male friendship in trying times if he kept the dystopian plot more realistic.

Good story about two lifelong friends who come out of a hunting trip to find the world changed. It made me wonder what I would do in the same situation. Beautifully descriptive of the natural world.

Burn is a novel about a dystopian future that feels it is not too far from a possible reality. Boyhood friends Jess and Storey disappear off the grid for two months every year to the backwoods of Maine to hunt moose. This year, when they emerge from the woods looking for some food, they come across a town that has been burned to the ground. They soon discover that they are running for their lives in a world where they don't know what is happening and who is friend or foe.

This book leaves a lot of unanswered questions. We don't know a lot about the Maine succession that is taking place. Instead of miring us in politics and that this side is good or bad, we are just on the side of these two men who are trying to get the little girl they found, Collie, back to her father. In their current world, people shoot first and ask questions later, so everyone is a potential enemy.

The book is mostly told from the viewpoint of Jess, and there is a lot of introspection into his past actions, and how they may have affected his current life. I really enjoyed the details of the men's journey to try to find safety for Collie, and the rugged outdoor life they had to endure.

For me this was a 3.75 read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Peter Heller, and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have loved all the Peter Heller books I have read. I went into this one without reading the description, so I was definitely interested to know WHAT was going on. I liked it, but I feel like the ending was so fast. It was like the first 90% was building and then BAM, it was over. I wish we would have gotten some more towards the end of the book. All in all, Heller's writing is fantastic but it definitely left me wanting some more on this book.

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

From author Peter Heller, this is another outdoor experience.
This book is a dystopian novel. Two friends, on a hunting vacation, find the destination town totally burnt down, with no survivors.
The two friends have no idea what has happened, but they know it’s not very good. They around abandoned boats for food and tools, and continue on to the next town. They find the same results: burned down buildings, and dead bodies.
Without phone signals they struggle to understand the devastation. Is the country under attack?

This is an interesting book. It’s a scary, futuristic story of survival.

A DYSTOPIAN taking place in Maine?! Lifelong pals Jess and Storey are on their way home from their annual camping adventure and on their way home, a bridge has been destroyed and demolished. Further on their path, they come across local towns burned to the ground, and corpses around. A civil war seems to have broken out, what will happen next. In the midst of the craziness, this is a story of love and courage. The plot seemed to be stagnant even given the events happening in the book. 3.75*

I am drawn to Peter Heller's books - they always offer an interesting story that revolves around the outdoors, nature, brotherhood and/or friendship, and themes of survival and perseverance. Burn has many of the same characteristics, friends on a yearly hunting trip find themselves re-entering the world that appears to be at war. I enjoyed the story, but the ending felt so vague and left me longing for resolution. I look forward to the next Peter Heller book - enjoyed this one, but it wasn't my favorite.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor and NetGalley for this ARC.

This book had a unique concept. Two friends spend weeks hunting and when they reach a small town, they realize a civil war has started, no cell signals, no communication, only destroyed towns where everyone has been killed.

I felt like I wanted more of some areas of this, and less of others. I was intrigued by the civil war aspect, we get bits and pieces of why it started, but I just felt like I had so many questions.

Then they find a little girl and their goal becomes to get her back to her parents, and her dad ends up being the one that started the war.

The present story is woven in with flashbacks from the MC’s life, and there’s a really strange thread with him being taken advantage of by his best friend’s mom who was practically his mom and how he was infatuated with her and I was just like where is this coming from?! It felt so out of place?

Overall, interesting concept. The ending felt so unfinished? It didn’t really wrap anything up, or it sort of did, but then left a whole other story open, like where do they go from here? What happen? How does the country move forward? What happens to these MCs? I tried to just go with the flow and the vibes but maybe this needs a sequel 😂.

Thank you @netgalley and @knopf for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

The River by Peter Heller was an excellent story, but his latest novel Burn was a bit of a letdown for me. The pacing felt off and the writing felt a bit bloated.

I really love Peter Heller, he is an auto-read for me, and I think he is a fantastic writer.. His ability to write nature settings while telling a fast-paced, plot-based story is unique and such a treat to read. I loved the sort of post-apocalyptic/civil war angle because it feels so close to reality, and I really enjoyed Jess and Storey. Where this novel lost me was the relationship that Jess had with Storey's mom and the constant rumination on their sexual encounters. It felt gratuitous it was completely unnecessary to push the story forward. I just didn't understand why he did it. It really took me out of the story and the fight to get the little girl home. Ultimately, the story felt unfinished and I was left wondering if there will be a second book coming soon.