What a twist of a book! I thoroughly enjoyed following Sarah as she searched for her missing sister, Gemma. Ford does a great job of creating characters that were both relatable and intriguing. Additionally, following the story from their respective towns to the twist of an ending out in the country was quite the wild ride!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an early read!

Wow. Two estranged sisters. One is missing. One goes to find answers. And chaos and mystery ensue. This was not what I was expecting and I loved it. Suspense, betrayal, a touch of supernatural

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy.

Sisters, Sarah and Gemma Kline lead completely different lifestyles. Added to that, they no longer have contact after a very heated argument about money, following the death of their alcoholic mother.

Some years later, Sarah is contacted by the police after Gemma goes missing. Sarah is a successful lawyer and is due to get married in a week’s time, and she’d actually offered Gemma an olive branch in the form of a wedding invitation. However, wedding or not, Sarah decides to travel to the last known place that Gemma was seen - a remote village up in the Pennines in the North of England.

As Sarah familiarises herself with the local characters and the misty, almost eerie moorland and forests surrounding the village, she finds herself becoming suspicious about certain characters, some of whom are openly hostile, and appear to know more than they’re prepared to reveal. There are also chilling tales of a huge cat prowling the forest, adding to the already foreboding atmosphere of the place.

Told from the POV of both sisters, ‘The Hiker’ benefits from a good storyline, aided by some very interesting characters. It also came with a twist that I never saw coming, followed nicely by a heart pounding conclusion. Very enjoyable.

This was a good read that had me gripped from start to finish, even keeping me up wayyyyy passed my bed time to finish it, although in the spirit of being honest the start of the book was a tad too slow for my liking, but I am a speed reader for it probably wasn’t as slow for me as it will be for others. Overall I think this is a good crime thriller that most people will really enjoy reading! Can’t wait to grab a copy for my shelves.

I really enjoyed this book. The back and forth between the past and the present with the different points of view was so spot on for this story. It did not confuse me at all, like some tend books do. The character development was awesome and I really felt like I got to ‘know’ the characters well. The story follows Sarah and her sister Gemma. Gemma goes missing and Sarah, who does not have a great relationship with Gemma, goes to the place that she was last known to be to look for her. Sarah’s story is in the present and Gemma’s is in the past leading up to her going missing. I really had no idea how it was going to end. It took my by surprise in such a good way.
Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

When Sarah hears that her estranged sister Gemma's boyfriend's car is found burned with his body inside near a remote village in the Pennines where the couple was last seen hiking, Sarah, days away from her wedding decides to go look for her. However, when Sarah arrives in the small village, instead of a local population eager to help find Gemma, Sarah finds a hostile group of locals who seem to want her gone. But Sarah is determined to find out what they're hiding because she's now certain it will lead straight to Gemma.

The story is told in the present, from Sarah's point of view, and in the weeks leading up to crash, from Gemma's point of view.

This book has a really great premise, with the remote mountain village with hostile locals and a missing girl, and it lives. up to the hype with an abandoned old manor, a pub named "The Headless Woman," and legends of a weird cat creature that prowls the forest. It's all very suspenseful and makes for good reading. And an intense ending that I did not see coming, to say the least.

Sarah and Gemma were good characters as well, girls who were opposites in pretty much everything, but who you felt for in that they both seemed to want to connect, but didn't each want to make the first step, like in so many real-world relationships. They also each made some poor decisions, which, I mean, who hasn't.

This really was a good, solid thriller, perfect for a spooky weekend read!

The atmosphere created is one of swirling mists and mystery. It's a gripping thriller with unexpected twists and I guarantee you won't want to put it down.

The Hiker | MJ Ford
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Rating: 4 stars

The Hiker is my first read by author, MJ Ford. Told in alternating POV, The Hiker follows estranged sisters, Sarah and Gemma who haven’t spoken in many years. When Gemma is reported missing, Sarah sets out to discover the truth about what happened to her sister. Set in a small Scottish village, this atmospheric setting contributed to a lot of what I enjoyed about the book. I love stories set in small towns or places and the remote Pennines was a cool location. The collision of past and present work well through this layered mystery with Gemma not being the first girl to have gone missing under strange circumstances. The pacing of the book was a teensy bit slow at times but overall I didn’t find it difficult to push through and stay interested. I read most of the book across a few sittings wanting to find out how the author would tie it all together in the end. The story was easy to read and follow. The characters backstory and relationship I felt added heart to the story. The wider cast of characters were interesting and contributed to the plot. The authors voice and style were unique and I would like to read more from them in the future.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC.

A really good thriller where the family bond is what really stands out. The main character's sister disappears and she has to follow her footsteps to figure out what happened. The main reason this isn't five stars is because it didn't quite grab and hold me throughout. However, it is wonderfully written, descriptive, and has a great and imperfect bond between the sisters, which was nice to see.

First things first. The title, description and cover photo for this book are all very misleading. This book is not about a hiker or hiking. If you are looking for a mystery/thriller about hikers mysteriously disappearing on hiking trips, this is not the book for you.

That being said, I really enjoyed this book. The story, characters and setting really drew me in and I couldn’t put it down. The book has a really good pace that picks up quickly near the end. And there are some really surprising plot twists towards the end.

Generally, I don’t like it when stories switch back and forth between different timelines and different perspectives, but it’s done so well in this book - it fits with the flow, keeps the story moving and really does work to tell the story.

There were some missed edits in this one, but that’s likely because it was an advanced reading copy. All in all I highly recommend this one.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.
#TheHiker #NetGalley

Gemma and Sarah are sisters who lead very different lives and haven’t spoken since their mother died. Sarah, a successful divorce lawyer, is due to get married soon. When the police turn up at her office with news that Gemma is missing and Gemma’s partner is probably dead, she is reluctant to get involved. However, she travels to the village in the Pennines where Gemma was last seen. Gemma is not the first woman to go missing from the village and Sarah finds herself embroiled in both cases. Not everyone in the village is keen to help though and Sarah soon finds herself in danger. This is an exciting and twisty plot where you are never sure who to trust. I didn’t take to Sarah at first but she grew on me during the course of the book. A good thriller with a hint of the supernatural very unexpected ending.
Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the ARC

Sarah and Gemma are sisters but have been estranged for several years after an argument that happened several years ago. But she is getting married in a week and hopes that her sister will push their differences aside and come to the wedding.
When she hears that her sister is missing from the Police that has knocked on her door and her boyfriend is dead, she worries and wants to know what is happening to her. She is more intrigued when she delves into her pile of post that there is a postcard from her sister just out of the blue that gives her a clue of where she is.
She decides that she needs to know what happened to her, so she goes looking for her, which leads her to the small town where she was last scene. But the townspeople are not that forthcoming, and Sarah realises something is not right and they may be hiding something.
Thank you, Avon, for a copy of The Hiker by M J Ford. I have read the authors previous novels which I enjoyed so intrigued to read this one. I liked the premise of this mystery regarding two sisters who are completely different as they come. and the events before and after Sarah gets involved. I felt though it lacked a bit of intensity as there was a lot going on in this story and I am a bit confused as regards to the title as Hiking didn’t really come into it. 3.5 stars from me.

Interesting premise for the story, gave me flashbacks to watching American Werewolf many years ago! Not sure author quite knows the area the book was set in, more suited for Yorkshire rather than north east England

Although I still haven’t quite understood how the title of this book correlates to the storyline, I still thoroughly enjoyed it.
It’s pacy, thrilling, and jam packed with characters and suspects from the first chapter to the last.
It would be a fantastic beach holiday book!
A great read, I can’t award it less than 4 stars ⭐️

Early on, I didn’t think that I was going to enjoy this book very much. However, the more I read, the more the constantly-twisting plot drew me in, and the frequent switches between characters kept up the pace of the two narratives. I finished up reading the second half of the book in one sitting as it become more and more absorbing. A good book – recommended.

Free courtesy of Netgalley

Sisters Sarah and Gemma don't get along. Sarah is a successful divorce Lawyer, with a good wage and is Engaged to be married. Gemma is a bit of a drop out. After a fight at their mother's funeral they stop speaking to each other.

5 years later, Sarah has a visit from the police, they have found a body in a burnt out car, which they believe is Gemma's boyfriend, but there is no sign of Gemma.

Sarah drops everything and goes to the place Gemma was last seen and starts investigating where her sister could have disappeared to.

When she gets to the isolated village, she finds out another young woman, went missing 15 years ago, there are lots of twist and turns. The story is told from Sarah and Gemma's perspective, giving you the full story of what happened. I loved this book, it made you think about who was doing what, and who was keeping secrets

Good story, kept me engaged throughout and would recommend to other fans of this genre. Good characters and plot.

THE HIKER by M J Ford
BOOK - 400 pages - Publisher - AVON
Rating - 4 Stars
Publish date: 10 November 2022

This is a first time author for me and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The story is set in the Pennines and the plot can be gleaned from the blurb. The protagonist, Sarah Kline, a lawyer, was exasperating all through the book and I disliked her. The character Doug, Sarah's boyfriend, I disliked immediately. Sarah and her sister, Gemma, have not kept in touch for a number of years but when Gemma goes missing in the Pennines, Sarah searches for Gemma. Strange things are happening in the present and the past. The writing is atmospheric, twisty, creepy with plenty of tension.

In parts, I thought the plot was unrealistic, but this is novel and we read to be entertained. In the end, I was entertained and did enjoy the book. Read it for yourself and make your own mind up.

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THEOPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADANCED COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW








The writing was good and fast paced. The characters believable

Now this was good!! What a story!!

You start as a slow meander but the pace just gets faster and faster until you are on the sprint at the end and it just keeps coming. Just when you thought they were safe.... nah your adrenaline needs to continue some more! Phew!! I just couldn't move until I finished the book!!

It's all about Sisters. One has gone missing up in the beautifully atmospheric Pennines. Why was Gemma up there? She certainly isn't a hiker, so why? What's so appealing to make her and her boyfriend Mark go?

There has been a burnt out car found with a Male body inside. Sarah comes up to the area to find out more about this. Is this incident something to do with Gemma and Mark. Sarah finds the police unhelpful so takes it on herself to speak to the locals at the pub and see if she can find Gemma herself.

Brilliantly gripping anticlimax at the end. See if you can keep up with the pace!

I do enjoy reading M J Ford books, they are good gripping books, but this was another level.
I couldn't put this book down it had me hooked from the first page.
A woman gets a postcard from her missing sister, that she hasn't seen in years and tried to find out what happened to her....
Loved this very much
Thank you netgalley.