Quick overview of 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖧𝗂𝗄𝖾 🥾🏔️Never any spoilers. Okay, so four best friends go on a hike in Norway basically in the middle of nowhere. Each of these girls has plenty of personal baggage & drama going on(I mean, don’t we all?)….They find out another girl has died on this same trail & all are eager to learn the mystery of her & how she died.
Oh, and they don’t have cell service. Do they all make it back?😳

I loved how you really get to know the characters! Clarke does an excellent job at setting the scene & delving into each of these girls’ life. I was so nervous the whole time for which one might….ya know!! I liked them all & kept putting myself in their shoes even though I wasn’t very similar to any of them. I loved that they were real friends too. Not catty or fake. I love all things girl trips too…why they chose this as their trip this year I will never know?!?🤷‍♀️🧐 The twists are great. The only thing I didn’t love was it took me a little bit to get into it, but once I did it was just the right amount of suspense & then I flew through it. A quick & thrilling read.

4 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book comes out at the end of this month so add this one to your TBR! 📚🥾

Lucy Clarke does not disappoint! Another edge of your seat thriller. It did feel slow towards the end but overall I enjoyed the mystery.

Thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for the ARC.

The Hike by Lucy Clarke
Publishing date - 08/29/23
Rating (4/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you Netgalley & Penguin Group Putnam for this eARC. This was my first read by this author. I will be reading more of her books in the future. It was a great page turner. So tense 😬 and suspenseful, that I could not put it down. Highly recommend this one when it releases on August 29th 2023.

I started off "The Hike" really engrossed and thought it might end up being my favorite thriller of the year. Unfortunately, I felt the book lost steam around 60% and I started to lose some interest. I also wish that the ending would have been more shocking. I feel like it was an expected ending and the author could have made it more twisty. Still a decent read and is a 4/5 rating from me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lucy Clarke and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This suspense/thriller follows 4 friends on their annual vacation. Maggie, Helena, Liz, and Joni rotate who picks vacation destinations and this year, Liz picks hiking up a mountain in Norway - a far cry from their normal sand, sun, and cocktails. But the friends show up, all ready for a break from their regular lives for reasons not even shared with friends. Only once they are there, the weather isn't the only thing that could derail their hike. They aren't the only ones on the mountain and the locals advise that there is something eerie, almost supernatural, about the mountain.

TW/CW: drug use, drug abuse, death of a loved one, infidelity, animal death

This was one of those reads that has a pretty simple premise but absolutely used that premise to the max. Clarke does a fantastic job of taking everything I was expecting from a survival/suspense/thriller and adds in other aspects I didn't even know I wanted. We also get right to the main meat of the story of hiking this mountain pretty quickly. This is one of those books where if the premise doesn't sound interesting to you, I'd recommend you just pass on this one because there isn't a ton of extra plot outside of the events that take place on the mountain. I think the elements that Clarke added with the other threats the characters end up facing elevate this past what I was expecting, but even if this was just a straight up outdoor survival story, I would have enjoyed it.

Since we are following this group of friends, I enjoyed the decision to have this be multi-POV. However, since we are following 4 people, I felt the POV switching did get in the way a little bit of the character development. I didn't have enough time sitting in each character's head to be able to get a good sense of who they are. They are easy enough to tell apart because each friend falls into a stereotypical archetype (the party friend, the over-worried new mom, the midlife crisis one, the bossy one). I did like how we got to see the different friendship dynamics and what each person thought of the others at certain times during the book. However, I didn't feel like we got as much character depth as I would have personally liked. I can see, on paper, how the characters were changed by their experiences but I didn't quite feel those changes come through when reading.

The setting was spot on and had a nice blend of British domestic drama and stoic Nordic noir. When we find out about the rumored supernatural history of the mountain and of events that have taken place there, I was 1000% on board. I absolutely loved the little hints of folklore horror that we get and I would have loved even more of them. We get to see a whole spectrum of natural elements our characters have to overcome - everything from extreme weather to blisters. My favorite part of any sort of survival story is how the characters interact in a stressful environment that they aren't used to. There is no calling for an Uber or deciding halfway that they are done. So when the going gets tough, they have to stick together even when that's the last thing they want.

I was a little surprised at the mystery/thriller element that gets introduced around the halfway point. As I mentioned before, I would have been perfectly happy if this was a straight-up wilderness survival story. I do think this element increased the overall tension and helped the plot momentum. However, I wanted more of a build up. Going into this hike, there wasn't really anything out of the norm going on so neither I, nor the characters, were expecting anything of this magnitude. I wanted more hints that maybe something wasn't quite right in this area of Norway so that when the characters get to that point in the plot, it would start to come together a little earlier. I did like the solution to the mystery, but just wanted more of it spread throughout the book.

Overall, this was a fun read that paid off on the premise. I enjoyed our variety of characters and their battles against the elements as well as their own inner demons.

Thanks to NetGalley and GP Putnam's Sons for the ARC. Expected publication date is August 29, 2023.

Super creepy, but at times boring. I feel like I have read this book before (even though I haven't). I really wish the characters had been more interesting and the twists just a little more shocking.

This suspenseful novel about four friends who go wild camping in the Norwegian wilderness was an enjoyable escape from the 109 degree Texas temperatures I’ve been living through. There is definitely an eerie vibe about this one and you spend the majority of the time on edge because you don’t really know what happened or to whom. To me, however, this was primarily a novel about women’s friendship and how it ebbs, flows, and evolves as we age. The four main characters have been friends since they were in school together as kids and are on their annual girls’ trip. Literally none of them (maybe Liz) has any business hiking a freaking mountain in Norway but none of them asked for my opinion. Each woman has a story, a background and baggage that she is bringing along on the trip. This was a great example of how genre fiction doesn’t have to be all tropes and big reveals but can have a more substantive side to it. While I did like the book overall, the unlikeability of most of the characters was difficult to look past at times (looking at you, Liz, for thinking it was in any way appropriate to plan this trip for a group of women who consistently show zero inclination to athletic pursuits of any kind) and the twist was kind of a letdown - there were some interesting ways it could have gone and I was kind of disappointed the author didn’t go in one of those directions. Just picked up Lucy Clarke’s 2022 releases (One of the Girls) and will definitely be giving it a try!

eARC received from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good book! It started out slow and I almost stopped reading it but the character development was done so well that I kept on. The norwegian setting is wonderfully atmospheric and adds a lot. The pacing of this book after the first half is amazing - so much tension and so many twists.

The Hike was such a quick, easy and fun read! It was a twisty, riveting page-turner full of secrets and drama. I loved the setting and the descriptions which made me feel like I was there and part of the book. I liked the interactions between the characters and their development throughout the book. The perfectly timed twists made it fast paced and hard to put down. Somehow this was my first Lucy Clarke but it certainly won’t be my last!

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for my early digital copy for my honest thoughts and review!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

The Hike is my first time reading a Lucy Clarke novel. The story follows four lifelong friends from childhood who embark on a multi-day hike in Norway. The story begins by setting up each of the four characters, It started a bit slow for me as the characters were being setup.

Once the mystery part kicked in the story picked up for me and it was more difficult to put down. The story contains multiple POVs, which I enjoy and made it fun to get inside the head of the different characters. Overall, a good read, nice introduction to the author and one I would recommend to friends.

Mysterious and creepy atmosphere? Always a win for a thriller!

Friends Liz, Helena, Maggie, and Joni take a yearly vacation together. This year, Liz picks hiking in the secluded mountains of Norway. While on the trip, we learn more history about the 4 friends and how their friendship may be built on more lies and secrets than what any of them believed. Simultaneously, the mysterious mountains have hidden a disappearance of a local and the secrets surrounding her disappearance will have everyone guessing.

I always love a good atmospheric thriller.
This could have probably been 100 pages shorter and there were definitely unnecessary chapters, which caused pacing issues and lulls in the story.

I definitely didn't see many of the twists coming and the story kept me guessing! Overall, definitely a solid thriller!
Thank you to #Netgalley, Penguin Group Putnam and G.P. Putnam Sons for an eArc of this story! All opinions are my own!

This is definitely more of a slow burn type of book as opposed to being nonstop action. Much of it focuses on developing characters and the complexities of the friendships and relationships of the four main characters rather than bombarding the reader with nonstop action. It reminded me a bit of the movie The Descent in that way. (Minus the creepy, blind cave creatures and add cocaine and shady Norwegian men). While I absolutely enjoyed the book and have no REAL complaints, I will say that if you're not into books that build slowly for 80% to climax for the last 20%, you may want to sit this one out. That said, I was personally really into it (as well as the other book I've read by this author previously), and I look forward to reading what Lucy Clarke writes next!

🥾The Hike ~ Lucy Clarke

When four friends set out on a hiking/girl’s trip in the mountains of Norway, they know that there will be challenges - rough terrain, inclement weather, elevation. Little do they know, they’re about to find themselves roped into a massive coverup that none of them saw coming. *** Loved Clarke’s One of the Girls from last summer so was excited for this and I thought it had a really strong start. Good character development from the jump - I had a clear vision of who each of these women were and what hidden baggage they were coming on this hike with, making me more interested in the story. The end got a little wacky. I found myself kinda just wanting it to be done. Enjoyed it; not a total loss - but not as salacious and naughty as One of the Girls, which I really enjoyed. (Out August 29, 2023)

It’s a book you can read quickly and won’t need an entirely focused environment. If this were a movie you’d be able play it in the background and not worry about missing much. This is my type of thriller.

(Review for NetGalley)

I loved the 4 storylines that intermingled throughout the whole plot! I didn’t expect Joni to join the trip, let alone ruin and save it all in one moment!

I also didn’t expect the drug storyline but it obviously helped to keep the story moving and give the suspense of Blafjell and it’s spookiness!

I just didn’t love how long it took to get into the storyline and sometimes how the storylines had so many moving parts, it was at first hard to keep up with who was who! Especially the men of the lodge that played a huge portion of it all in the end!

If you’re looking for a quick thriller in nature; this is your read! But not too much depth!

I really wanted to love this book but I just didn’t. It was full of fluff to me. These 4 women have SO much conflict within their lives and each other. It just wasn’t for me. I would give it a 3.

“You can be anyone in the wilderness.”

The Hike is the newest thriller by Lucy Clarke and it sure delivers suspense! Set in the Norwegian wilderness, four lifelong girlfriends take a vacation together each year – alternating who picks the location. Of course, this is usually a great holiday spent relaxing on the beach with drinks, but Liz this year – a doctor going through personal issues – decides that this year’s trip will be hiking up the Svelle Trail and climbing Blafjell mountain. Unfortunately, their trip begins with news that there was a girl that looked like Maggie that went missing on this same trail last year. Then, they realize they are not the only ones on the trail, and become suspicious when they find clues that something nefarious is going on entirely. We know not everyone comes down alive – but who? And how?

Clarke knows how to write a mystery – narrated by all four lead women characters – the chapters are short and leave you quickly wanting to start the next one. Liz, Maggie, Joni and Helena were all so distinct, but well developed and fit together perfectly.

“Wild camping” is not my definition of fun – and I do not think I would join in on this girls’ weekend, but the scenery was ideal to create the requisite ominous feeling, even described here as “the other.” I would definitely be the girl getting lost in the woods, complaining about getting back to the lodge, scared about everything!

I did enjoy the central themes focusing on friendship, being true to yourself, joy following struggles, and abilities to overcome. However, I don’t particularly see four inexperienced hikers setting out on a four-day hike by themselves, or them just happening to stumble into something as potentially dangerous as they did. . . sure, makes for a good story, but may not be believable or realistic (as a fiction novel, do I care though?).

Overall, this was a thriller worth the read. You know where it’s headed but the twisty journey is suspenseful and fun. The characters make it interesting despite the fact that some of the plot is a little out there. I haven’t read a bad book by Clarke yet though that I didn’t like! I give this 3.8 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“That feeling of unease, of not being alone, that isn’t immediately explicable…”

Four women with a various secrets go on a hike in the middle of nowhere where they are placed in isolation from the rest of the world thorugh lack of phone service. What could possibly go wrong? Well someone dies. it was a quick read, told through various POV'S of each of the four women and the owner of the lodge. I enjoyed it. A solid 4 star.

Loved it!! I was so excited to read this because I fell in love with the author's books after reading Swimming at Night. The story definitely didn't disappoint. I was hooked from the start and kept wonder who dies and which girl did it!?!? Norway sounded beautiful, but climbing a mountain, hiking and camping for four days would not have been my ideal vacation. It really seemed like a bad idea. None of them had any experience and only Liz seemed fit enough for hiking. The girls made one bad judgement after another. Liz ignores all warnings and continues the camping trip, even though there's a storm approaching. Maggie gets lost in the forest after her other three friends keep walking and completely forget about her. The blisters and backpacks that are way too heavy. Almost getting killed in a mudslide. Stealing drugs!!!!! The list is endless. So many secrets. Joni was probably my least favorite of the friends. I hated what she did to Liz. Liz was probably her closest friend. There were so many twists and turns. I never expected what was really going on in the forest or who was involved. This was definitely the worst vacation ever and Liz should never be able to pick the destination again.

Definitely recommend the book. It was a great mystery/thriller that will keep you guessing until the end. Loved the characters, writing style and story. Look forward to reading more books by the author. Loved the cover of the book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from PENGUIN GROUP Putnam through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Lucy is one of my most favourite authors and each of her books is wonderful.
This book which I read in one day (I just could not stop) contains lots of tension, twists, emotional and philosophical thoughts. I also like the way she describes nature.