“The Hike” by Lucy Clarke was a suspenseful read about a group of girlfriends that go hiking in Norway on their annual girl’s trip. The characters were well developed and I enjoyed the story, but feel like some of the plot twists were a bit too much. Overall, it was an entertaining book.

Four friends, Liz, Joni, Helena, and Maggie have been friends since childhood. The friends all have very different personalities and all are experiencing different stages in life, with their own internal struggles. Liz is married (though not always happily) with children and a great career. Joni is a rockstar with a substance abuse problem, who is always touring and struggles to effectively pull her weight in her friendships. Helena seems to be a bit lost, not sure what she wants in life, working through a difficult past, and always ending up in strangers’ beds. Maggie is a sweet, single mother navigating coparenting with her ex-husband. The group of friends all make it a point to get together for an annual trip together, usually somewhere tropical and poolside; however, this time, Liz plans for them to hike the Norwegian mountains. Throughout the book, readers learn that these lifelong friends are hiding secrets from one another. All the while, finding out that the mountains they are hiking, may contain secrets of its own..

I think this book is the first “survivalist thriller” genre book that I’ve read. The detailed imagery throughout the book was top notch! Amazing descriptions of the mountain and beach landscapes, as well as detailed accounts of action scenes within the plot. This novel was definitely a slow burn. It took quite awhile to introduce all four characters, their backstories and histories, and delve into their relationships with one another. The action picked up about halfway through the book, and once it did, I moved quickly through the end. As I said before, I was super impressed with the imagery throughout- and I kept thinking this book would make a great movie! The writing was so detailed, I had no difficulty watching it play out in my head as I was reading. This is my first Lucy Clarke book, and I would definitely read another!

Read if you enjoy:
👯‍♀️ lifelong female friendships
🪵 hiking / the outdoors
🌲 wilderness setting
🤫 friendships with secrets
🏕️ survivalist thriller
🔀 multiple POVs
⛰️ action scenes sprinkled in

I read this book courtesy of @NetGalley!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read before pub day on August 29th!

This was a great thriller! It was my first read by Lucy Clarke, and I will definitely be picking up more! I really liked the setting descriptions, and I could really picture the Norwegian wilderness and the mountains. There were a few twists I didn’t see coming, and a few I did, and I liked how the change in timelines kept me on my toes. I liked the switching of POVs to get the full story, but I did get confused a few times as to who was speaking. All in all, I really enjoyed the book and recommend it!

Every year longtime friends Liz, Maggie, Helena, and Joni go on a vacation together. This time it's Liz's turn to pick the destination and she has chosen a hiking trip in Norway. The others are not thrilled with the choice but they all go along, with Joni arriving late. When they arrive they hear some terrifying things about the mountain they are going to climb and one of those things is the disappearance of a woman a year before.

The chapters alternate between each of the womens' perspective and later from someone involved in a search. The first several chapters are spent introducing the women. They are all going through some personal problems and there are some secrets.

The perspectives aren't distinct enough once they get to Norway
They are in third person, which I enjoy, but it could be anyone's chapter. I also feel too much time is spent on their inner thoughts and problems in the beginning.

Once they get on the mountain things pick up. It becomes a survival thriller. I wish there was more of that because it is done well.

There are some twists and secrets are revealed but I wasn't surprised. The villain's motives and actions don't really fit believably with the rest of the story. It makes for a tense climax but it almost feels like two different stories.

I get the overall message and can see what the author is going for. I just would have liked the action to take up a larger part of the story.

3.5 stars

3.5 stars rounded up. Four friends on a hike in the mountains of Norway encounter obstacle after obstacle, in the form of weather and natural disasters, bad men and at times each other. It was a fast read, a bit too black and white and melodramatic, like why so many things go wrong when just the simple things of them with their complicated relationships and unresolved lives and being unprepared for the hike itself would have been story enough. There was some personal growth and resolution

i think my students would enjoy this adventure story with some personal growth and mystery added into it. Four long time friends on a treacherous hike. Will they all survive?

This one didn’t hit as well for me but I may not have been the target demographic. I found the pacing to be too all over the place and didn’t connect with any of the characters. That said, I think this would be a great read for some.

I really enjoyed this book and the story that was told within it. I was drawn to this book because I love hiking and I love thrillers (obviously this was the perfect combination!). The book starts off a little slow, up until they start their hike. I found the characters to be really well thought out and developed especially for a thriller novel which can sometimes give us all plot and no character development. These are characters that as a reader you feel for, laugh with, want to scream at, etc. we follow them on this journey where honestly they have not a lot of experience in and is quite a task in and of itself (personally I would not be doing a 4 day backpacking trip where I summit a mountain having never hiked or trained for it); However, as they say adrenaline and survival will push you to do things you never thought you would do. Overall story was great, but I did find the ending a little lackluster. I feel like there was some fun directions this could have taken, but instead it wasn’t anything that really shocked me. Nonetheless, I HIGHLY recommend this book if you want a thriller you can get immersed within. Plus you get a great setting and a beautiful story of friendship.

A fast-paced wilderness thriller! This was my first book by Lucy Clarke and now I’ll be hunting down the rest. An entertaining read with a diverse set of characters, yet the alternating chapters were easy to follow. A great story with a surprise ending!

Lucy Clarke, does it again

I mean, did we expect anything else?

I completely fan-girled out last year after reading "One of the Girls", last year and fell in love with Lucy Clarke's writing style. Right then, after concluding, I knew that Lucy Clarke, would join my list of "auto buy authors" .

I love the way Clarke throws us right into the chaos. The suspense is present early on. The character development is on point and each one of the characters come to life between the pages. The twist will get everyones pulse racing and left me in pure shock.

This is a MUST READ for everyone who loves thrillers, suspense, and even drama.

The Hike is out August 23, 2023, you know what to do! Head on over to your favorite bookstore and pre-order this book!


Teaser :

No help.
No cell coverage.
No one to hear them scream.

Burned-out by both her marriage and work, Liz is desperate for an escape. More than that, she craves an adventure, a total reset. So, when she plans a vacation with her three best friends, she persuades them to spend four nights camping in the stunning mountains of Norway. Following a trail that climbs through lush valleys, towering peaks, and past jewel-blue lakes, Liz is sure that the hike is just what they need.

But as they stride farther from civilization, it becomes clear that the women are not the only ones looking to lose themselves in the mountains. The wilderness hides secrets darker than they could ever have imagined, and if they’re not careful . . . not all of them will return.

I simply devoured this super fast paced thriller!

This is the vivid account, from different points of view, of four British women who have been friends since childhood. They vacation together ever year mostly in tropical and relaxing places. This year It’s Liz turn to chose, so they are are spending four days wild hiking and camping in the remote mountains of Norway.

Each woman has their own background story/issues.

Liz is a wife, a mother and a doctor. Things are a bit rocky at home and as a result, she and husband Patrick are on a trial separation.

Helena is the last person you’d ever think you’d see on a rugged camping trip. And, she might be pregnant, no she is pregnant. The father? Uh there’s lots of choices.

Maggie is devoted to daughter Phoebe and most reluctant to leave her. This will be the first time they will be apart and her daughter is staying with her “Arsehole” ex, Aiden.

Joni is an idolised rock star and all that comes with being famous. Cocaine being one of them. She’s the wild one of the four.

So off to Norway they go with no inkling of the adventure and danger that will unfold in the next four days.

The author truly captured in words the beautiful imagery of the mountain and beach. I felt I was right there on the mountain and sensing the terror, pain, and cold they experienced..

I definitely recommend this thriller and predict it to be a hit for sure.

First, thank you to @netgalley & Penguin Group: Putnam for an ARC copy in exchange for a review!

I adored the other Lucy Clarke book I read, One of the Girls, so when I saw this on Netgalley, I RAN. 🏃‍♀️ And I'm so glad I did! I loved the atmosphere, the twisty twists, the whole shebang.

I love how creepy everything felt and how everyone was sketchy. This is a solid thriller. 👌

A group of best friends go on a hike in Norway for their annual girls trip. Most of the girls didn’t prepare for the four day long hike and Liz keeps from the others about a bad storm coming in. Lack of preparation and run ins with locals causes this trip to go from bad to worse. Can they all make it out alive? The Hike was a slow burn in the beginning but picked up towards the end. I did enjoy the book but felt I would have enjoyed it more if the characters had been more likable and it would have been a little faster moving.

This was my first Lucy Clarke book, and I'm HOOKED! I needed a palate cleanser from all of my romancing lately and this was a perfect choice!

This book follows a girl-friend circle around a 4 days hiking trip in Norway. I admire how well the characters were built up as well as your surroundings. I felt like I was the 5th introvert friend watching from the corner. This was very much a 'if it could go wrong, it will' type of books. Between personal problems, relationship problems, weather problems, and a missing girl, I was left contemplating all of the possible outcomes!

Thank you NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for the ARC in return for an honest review.

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There were so many aspects of this book that just blended so well together. Friendship, mystery, womanhood, suspense. It’s not a very common combination, but Lucy Clarke made it work so well.

I have confessed this before, I am a fan of “survival while hiking,” “lost in the woods,” and “ no cell, no contact” fiction. So obviously, I was excited to receive Lucy Clarke’s, “ The Hike.”

Story centers around four friends who decide to go on a challenging and somewhat treacherous hike. Now, not everyone is eager to take the hike, especially since they hear about a missing girl who resembles our main character Maggie, but as friends do, the come together and do it. Of course, each Carrie’s secrets and burdens that will eventually come to light.

Maggie, a rather plain, and staid, and wholesome woman, in my opinion is the lead. Helena, a typical obtuse and difficult character, does have a big character transformation and arc in the story. Liz, a selfish, self centered and holier than thou character, is the one who wanted and needed this trip, so it came to be. Last but not least, Joni…

For me, this story started out very slow, even while introducing and building the characters. However, Ms. Clarke, did do a good job of dishing out a fair amount of conflict early on. There was plenty of action, atmosphere and great descriptions of hiking. The characters were strong, albeit not really likable.

Different women, different lives, survival of the fittest and a murder mystery.

Told from each of the women’s’ perspective, this twisty and lively thriller is worth a read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Lucy Clarke delivers an emotional rollercoaster with The Hike. The story starts off innocent enough - a group of friends going on their annual vacation, each carrying their own problems with them. Liz, who chose the vacation this time, brings them to a mountain in Norway, where they’ll spend several days hiking a mountain. And that’s where things get complicated.

I was on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading this book. Lucy Clarke did a phenomenal job of making it difficult to know who to trust. Everyone involved in the story has just enough motive to be distrusted, but is likable enough to root for. The wilderness setting provides a great atmosphere for the mystery of this book, and the way the chapters are set up really help to keep you guessing. Although this book is absolutely a mystery, at its core it’s also a story of friendship, love, and life. I’d highly recommend this book to just about anyone!

Grade: B

Four British women head North to backpack in Norway as a girls’ getaway. We have Liz, the leader and most put-together of the group. Maggie is a struggling single mother with a heart of gold. Helena has a carefree lifestyle of career and fun. And the fourth, Jodi, is a world-famous rock star. However, these women bring more than just their gear to this trip, where they battle the elements and each other.

It was the Norway aspect that drew me to this book. Norway is a dramatic, breathtaking country, and Clarke brought the landscape to life. Clarke states in a note at the end of the book that the location of this novel is fictional, but it seemed completely realistic to me. I also really enjoyed the fact that the climate and environment are a force in the story. While they aren’t the main antagonist, they are fascinating in the role. The weather and the environment take no sides and have no bias or ulterior motive; it just "is," and there is nothing anyone can do to control it. I feel as if the bulk of the tension in this book came from the natural world.

The pacing of this novel works well. I never felt that the forward motion of the narrative stopped, although there were a few places where I noticed that it had slowed for a chapter or two. As with any thriller, there are some twisty moments, and the ones here did not disappoint. The twists were not overly creative, but they were unexpected and made sense in the grand scheme of the plot.

I found the characters of this novel to be the weakest link. It isn’t that they were badly written or unrealistic, but more in what they brought to the story. All four women are at a point of some crisis in their lives. While these moments come to everyone, it was just too coincidental that all four women were going through some trial at the exact time of this girls’ getaway. I would have liked to see one of the characters be, well, okay in life to provide some balance. There were also moments where the women just made incredibly stupid decisions, and I did feel that the plot relied on these moments a bit too much.

This book is written from multiple viewpoints. This is a popular technique in modern novels, but I don’t feel it works especially well here. For one thing, there is no tonal difference between the narrators. There were times when I would forget who I was supposed to be focusing on. All the viewpoints were written in the 3rd person. I feel it would have been more effective to write in 1st person with voices different enough to differentiate one from another or skip the entire format of multiple viewpoints and tell the story in the 3rd person omniscient viewpoint.

While this book had some flaws, I can’t deny it was fun. While it falls firmly in the “popcorn thriller” category, it is the kind of delicious popcorn that will keep you taking handful after handful.

This was my first Lucy Clarke book but won’t be my last. I was guessing until the very end and that’s what I loved. I couldn’t even trust my own assumptions! The pace was great and this is a must read !

Lucy Clarke has quickly moved into my must-read authors list, so I was super-excited to receive this ARC. My excitement was worth it. This is advertised as a thriller but is much more. Liz, Maggie, Helena and Joni have all been best friends since grade school. They take a girl's trip each year and this year Liz chooses hiking in the mountains of Norway. Yes, this sounds like the setup for a lot of books of this genre and you wouldn't be wrong. The difference to me was each character is given a distinct voice and interesting backstory. I liked each woman and hearing her story. Now of course emotional baggage and drama still ensue but wait! The author throws in a nice little side plot to help take care of the thriller aspect. Did not see all that coming. Kudos for atmosphere too. I really felt like I was hiking in the woods and mountains and feeling the characters' exhaustion. Norway has been on my bucket list for years, so the setting was perfect! This is just a nice, fast-paced escapism sort of book. I recommend this author to fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware for sure! Look forward to more!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Lucy Clarke and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC. All opinions are my own and I will post my review to Amazon, Instagram and various other retailers and social media sites upon publication.