I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you!
Wow, and wow. Joe Hill did it again. Like his father (and OK, I know kids don't like to be compared to their parents, but Hell, yes) he is great writing short stories or half brick novels :)
Martin's story is really interesting, the ushers are a creative idea and that ending...
I love when it comes to short but rich stories! And this is it! Read it and enjoy it!

Packs a punch in the most unexpected way!

This was a very quick but entertaining read. I enjoyed its commentary on life and mortality. Was starting to wonder where the story was going and the point of it when the sense of dread and foreboding began and then... bam! 💥

Martin Lorenson has escaped death twice -first after a school shooting and then a train crash.
But was it good luck, a portentous feeling of doom or something much more darker that made him avoid those two incidences of mass death?
Two detectives are sent to interview him (nicknamed Hall & Oates) as his near-misses seem far too precise to be put down to coincidence.
They don’t believe what he finally tells them, until it’s too late…
I love Joe Hill’s writing and NEED to read more. This was quite a tease-y little short story. I could quite happily have kept on reading a longer piece. But maybe it worked so well because it was short and very, very effective.

5 Stars!

I am not a fan of reviewing short stories, but that is usually because it is as a part of collection and anthology and it is difficult to review an entire book that is usually very diverse. Since "Ushers" by Joe Hill is a single short story, as part of the Amazon Original Stories series, it is a much different experience and one that I am happy to share.

Some may think Martin Lorensen is the luckiest man alive. After all, he was sick the day there was a mass shooting at his school, then he was at the train station and decided against getting on board a train that later derailed. When a pair of federal agents learn that he told a child not to board the train, they begin to suspect that there is something more sinister at work than just good luck. They will soon learn that there is something more sinister at work and that when it comes to death, luck has no say at all.

I have to admit that I have never been a big Joe Hill fan and found most of his work to be a mixed bag. Some stories I liked and some not so much. "Ushers," however, is by far the best story that I have read by Hill to date. This is a moving story that is both horrific and heart-breaking at the same time. There really is not a whole lot that is new to this story, as fans of the Final Destination movies can attest, but Hill gives the story an emotional charge that kept me frantically reading until the end. Once the big reveal comes, it was easy to see how the story was going to end, but that did not lessen the impact at all. Short fiction often finds its power in finding the one poignant moment in the story and driving it home. That is exactly what Hill accomplishes in this short story and he may have just earned himself a new fan as well.

I would like to thank Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley for this review copy. "Ushers" is available now.

Fun little story. As usual with Hill, reads like Steve Lite.
Had already forgotten I read it when I came across it on my Netgalley "Give Feedback" shelf again, so its impact is questionable.

This novella is very Hill-esque. The writing is right up my alley and the plot is creepy and entertaining. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this free eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I went into this without reading the synopsis so I didn't know what to expect. I was a bit confused because it jumped right into the story and I had to piece together what was going on. Once I realized what it was about, it left me wanting more. It would be nice to have a second story or extension or even a longer background story. I loved the idea of this and reminded me of Manifest the tv show. I have many questions after finishing this. How did the main character get this gift? Does anyone else believe in it? What will happen to the main character? This short story has me overthinking everything I know. Great job Joe Hill!

I love Joe Hill. I think he’s a fantastic writer and so often feels like reading his father’s writing. “Ushers” is a well written and paced if not a little predictable. But the overall craft here is excellent and compelling. I really enjoyed it. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC

Thank you, NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for this free audiobook for review. I love every Joe Hill book I’ve fever read and this book is no exception. All the creep you can ask for. Perfection! I will always pick up a Joe Hill book for the guaranteed eerie and slow horror.

Novellas that pack a huge punch are few and far between for me. I think as an author, it would have to be an incredibly difficult task to develop such a story that lingers with people in quite a small amount of pages, but Joe Hill did it and he did it well. Since it’s so short, I don’t want to give any details away, but go in blind and enjoy it for the short 29 pages it amounted to - it certainly felt like it was more, in a good way. Hill is already an auto-buy author for me, and while novellas aren’t always my favorite, I’ll take 100 more please. Thanks to Amazon Original Stories for my ebook in exchange for review. 🖤

Joe Hill certainly accomplished a lot in a brief 29 pages! Albeit short, Ushers still manages to be memorable and captivating. The characters were well-rounded and their banter was both witty and engaging. The twist at the end wrapped this bite-sized story up perfectly, and I was ultimately very pleased with the whole thing.

All of my thanks to Amazon Original Stories & Netgalley for the ARC!

A quick read, this is an intruiging book. The characters are well built, and though short, it flows well and the tension is perfectly built

I will say this is a great paranormal meets psychological thriller. And at only 29 pages without spoiling the whole story, go in blind and enjoy the story!

Very, very short story! But a great one! I wished there was way more! The story telling was awesome!! Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for an honest review!!

4/5!

A gripping and memorable short story. My first read by this author, and I'm definitely looking forward to checking out more

Thanks Netgalley for the early ARC!

This was a fantastic short story with a great hook. In short stories there is so little time to create strong characters that readers can connect with. But, this is Joel Hill, so of course this is no problem. I found this story incredibly creepy, sad, and would have loved an expansion into a full novel. Would definitely recommend.

Short stories have had such a grip on me lately, and this one was fantastic. It was a pretty quick read, less than thirty minutes, and it managed to hold my attention the entire time. I loved Martin's personality and the way he interacted with the officers. It helped to lay the groundwork for what I thought might be a bit of a twist, and well it was. Once I finally realized what was happening at the end, I felt my heart sink. Such a good unsettling read that really makes you dig deeper than you think it will.

A very quick read. Joe Hill's ushers follows Martin Lorensen as he is interviewed by two police officers following a series of incidents of which Martin is lucky to be alive.

At under 30 pages, this story kept me gripped from the very beginning all the way up to the end. With a true Joe Hill style of writing, he creates a thought-provoking tale of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

With witty banter and some 80s-style jokes, I thoroughly enjoyed this short book.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me an advance copy through Netgalley.

Any book by Joe Hill is going to be good and eerie. This was just a short story, but I didn't want it to end. I wanted more encounters with the Ushers! I hope he expands this story one day.

Quanto mi piace Joe Hill. Idee che sembrano minimali, e intanto la tensione sale, sale, sale - fino a esplodere. Una piccola gemma.