Run for the Hills is the second novel I have read by Kevin Wilson. His writing continues to be innovative, captivating, and truly unique. The premise is unlike anything I ever could have predicted, yet it seems incredibly realistic. The cross-country road trip that the newly discovered Hill siblings embark on is truly one for the ages!

I love Kevin Wilson and thought this had a fantastic start and a good balance between moving + funny bits for a while… but then it got very slow and meandering and the ending was very meh for me. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from reading this because Wilson is super talented - just not my favorite by him (which would be Nothing to See Here).

Perfect way to start 2025 ,I loved Run For the Hills the dysfunctional family the wonderful characters.I enjoyed Kevin Wilson’s previous books and this one.stole my heart.#netgalley #eccobooks

Is this my new favorite Kevin Wilson? I loved this story of a found family composed of biological family, brought together on a heartfelt, zany quest for a cross-country road trip. Five stars.

This was such an incredible book filled with quirky, compelling characters. I love the way the author layered all of the different experiences and the way they reacted to finally meeting their dad! I always love this author and this was no exception. Will recommend.

7/10

I loved the movie “Little Miss Sunshine”. It was groundbreaking - one of the first breakout indie movies. The premise was that a group of family members - each with their own uniquely quirky personalities - head out on a road trip together to a family-related event.

Run For The Hills has the same basic premise and it works. The characters are really engaging, the story uniquely intriguing and the journey was a page turner.

So why in the world did I only give it 7 out of 10 stars?
The ending.
I won’t spoil it except to say this book went from a solid 4/5 stars to 3/5 because of the ending. It wasn’t bad but I think it could’ve been at least as compelling as the rest of the book.

I tell you what, why don’t you read it and let me know your thoughts in the comments.

#netgalley #runforthehills

I'm such a Kevin Wilson fan, and Run for the Hills didn't disappoint. It's a fun take on some of my favorite tropes: road trips, odd couples, and coming of age stories. The cast of characters is Kevin Wilson-y in the best way. Really looking forward to this being out in the world in May!

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC!

I've been a fan of Kevin Wilson's previous books so I couldn't wait to get my hands on his latest. Run for the Hills does not disappoint! It's a funny and sweet story that begins with Reuben, who was abandoned by his father at a young age, learning that his father is alive and well and living in California, AND that his father had other children over the years who were also abandoned by him. Reuben, or "Rube" for short, goes on a road trip with the intention of meeting each of his half siblings and ultimately to confront their father. Like so many things in life, it's not so much about the destination as it is about the journey, and as we travel with these wonderful characters, we get to know them and love them. Together they find so much more than they thought they were looking for. It was a pleasure to read! I recommend highly.

I was thrilled to receive an early copy of this book, having read the author’s last two books and thoroughly enjoying them. The premise is unique, and all of the characters are interesting in their own way. I love how they come together as a dysfunctional family on a quest to find their father, but there is still a lot of heartfelt emotion in the story as well.

Kevin Wilson, author of “Now Is Not the Time to Panic” and “Nothing to See Here,” returns with another delightful and humorous family drama about siblings who have just met and unite to find their common absentee father.

Mad/Madeline Hill of Coalfield, Tennessee (site of Wilson’s “Great Coalfield Panic” in his previous book) is 32 years old and a successful organic farmer with her mom, when Rube/Reuben Hill of Boston, a successful mystery author in his early 40s, shows up at Mad’s farmstand with news that he’s her half brother. Her dad, who just disappeared 20 years ago is also his dad, who disappeared 30 years ago. And there are more half siblings: Pep/Pepper Hill, 21 years old (missing her dad for 10 years), a college basketball star in Oklahoma, and an 11 year old fifth grader, Theron/Tom (fatherless for 2 years), in Salt Lake City. It’s 2007, just before the explosion of commercial DNA tests, so Rube has traced his unlikely family tree via a private detective’s findings. His mission is to gather up his siblings as he drives west in his rented PT Cruiser and confront deadbeat dad, now apparently in California. Convincing his two half-sisters and possibly getting his youngest brother’s mom’s permission to confront dear old dad is quite a quest, and it’s portrayed with humor and poignancy.

This is a heart-warming road trip type of story with a group of quirky characters who start out as total strangers, but become a truly special family. Mad is the main protagonist and we get to know her better than the others, but each one of the siblings shares a common heartbreak. Once they finally zero in on the location of their enigmatic sire, you’ll wonder if who they find will give them answers and closure. The plot is a bit of a romp, but it also has its serious side. I was enthralled until the very end. 5 stars!


Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO No eye colors mentioned at all.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO Not much beyond Mad’s observation that there are a lot of alfalfa fields in the western United States.

Thank you to Ecco/Harper Collins and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

I love road trip stories! So I was happy to see this one. I wasn't disappointed at all.
I got to go places I've never been before.
Places described so well that I thought I was there.
Wonderful characters and a beautiful storyline filled with hope for the future.
I enjoyed in getting to know each one especially Mad and Rub.
I can't imagine having siblings coming out of the woodworks. Wouldn't that be a total surprise? It would be for me for sure!
So I knew it was for Mad.
A journey of discovery and family that one never knew she had.
Lots of interesting stuff going on in this story that will keep your attention. I loved this novel from the get go.
5 stars for keeping me turning the pages of this book. I hope this new to me author will write more. I highly recommend.
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

A lovely book. You really grow attached to the characters and want the best for them-- especially Mad. I disagree with some of the other reviews--I thought the ending was the strongest part of the book!

Run For the Hills is my new favorite Kevin Wilson book. It’s funny, heartfelt, and totally unpredictable—I never knew how the road trip would end, but I loved every turn. The way the characters grow from strangers to siblings feels so real, and I was constantly underlining touching lines or laughing out loud. If you loved Nothing to See Here, this one might just top it. Highly recommend!

I loved Run for the Hills! The plot is so unusual. The characters are endearing and loveable. This is my first 5 star read of 2025 and it's very deserving. You'll love it if you enjoy a good family saga.

With "Run for the Hills," Kevin Wilson has cemented his status as the bard of adult children of severely dysfunctional parents.

"Run for the Hills" is the story of Madeleine, Reuben, Pepper and Theron (a/k/a Mad, Rube, Pep and Tom), the children, ranging in age from 10-40s, of Charles Hill, who unexpectedly abandoned each of them and then disappeared from their lives. The four siblings, who didn’t know of the existence of each other, take a road trip with the hopes of finding their father and why he did what he did to them.

Each has become a success in the field that their father did while he lived with them, but each also feels the emptiness of a father who just disappeared. They eventually find their father and some small measure of closure but it’s more about the siblings finding family. It reminds me of Wilson’s earlier “The Family Fang,” in the way each set of children are essentially projects of narcissistic parents.

I highly recommend this and all of Wilson’s books.

This honest review was given in exchange for an advanced reader copy from NetGalley and HarperCollins.

An absolute joy of a road trip romp, with newfound siblings, memorable characters, and plenty of quirks.

Thank you NetGalley and Kevin Wilson for helping me start 2025 on such a positive note. Run for the Hills is everything Kevin Wilson fans have come to expect and so much more...

Mad is a locally well-known farmer who hasn't seen her father in years and is perfectly content running their Tennessee farm with her mother. Then Rube arrives in his PT Cruiser and shocks her with the news that he's her half-brother. He convinces Mad to join him on a cross-country journey to gather their other half-siblings and confront their father together. They pick up Pep, their incredible basketball-player half-sister who has just played in the most stressful game of her college career. They pick up Tom, their half-brother who at eleven is already an amateur independent filmmaker, and together they continue their search to find the man who abandoned them all but inadvertently gave them each other.

Kevin Wilson always delivers laugh-out-loud, touching, insightful stories and Run for the Hills is absolute perfection. Rube, Mad, Pep and Tom felt like family to me from the minute they set out on their dysfunctional adventure, and I had a hard time saying goodbye to them when the story ended. I'm hoping for a sequel....

4.5⭐️ Another must for your 2025 TBR (May). Kevin Wilson writes such creative stories and characters. This one most definitely charmed me and it’s on many 2025 anticipated book lists. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to this newly formed family. In the mean time read his Nothing to See Here.

I really enjoyed this book a whole bunch. Mad is a farmer in Tennessee living a simple life, when one day a man who claims to be her half brother pulls up in a PT Cruiser and convinces her to go on a mission to find their other half siblings across the country and ultimately go find and confront their dad, who has left all of his kids.
This was such a fun road trip with a bunch of grieving siblings, who were all so unique and quirky in their own ways. I really grew to love them all and I thought their story was great and so heartwarming. Great first read of 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy.

Madeline ( Mad) and her single mom live on a farm. Her father left them years ago and has no contact. One day, a young man named Rueben (Rube) pulls up to the farm and announces that they share the same father. In fact, he hired and detective and found there are a few other half siblings out there. Rueben wants Mad to go with him on a trip to find their siblings and try to understand why their father kept creating and leaving families. Funny, sad, thoughtful, a wonderful story of what it is to be a family and what it takes to make one.