48 of the states in the U.S. experienced a phenomena in the sky- the lights. While many slept through it, some went out to see it. Over the next few days, all hell breaks loose as those who saw the lights start a series of mass murders, killing because they saw God.

In this book, we follow a family of 4 as they rinse repeat find food, find water, survive, run into bad guys. This book was full of horrifically memorable scenes, and at the same time it was so repetitive and I felt like I had read similar apocalyptic premises. I did not like the characters, they were not well-written, especially Dee and Cole. Unfortunately, this book really dragged out for me.

I was so excited to read this book because I am a fan of Blake Crouch’s recent books, but unfortunately this was not my favorite of his works.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, and the author for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

This novel is apocalyptic and disturbing. Exactly the type of book I love and I found it highly entertaining. The overall plot was somewhat similar to other books (Year One by Nora Roberts) something turning people into mass killers. However, the cause was somewhat different and not fully explained, the first few chapters tried but it wasn't enough, it left up to the reader to flesh out. The only things that I might have changed, if it were left up to me is I would have explained the cause a little more and not rushed the ending. A slightly different, but good, Blake Crouch read.

Blake Crouch can do no wrong! I love his writing, I would not describe myself as a sci-fi reader but his books are enthralling! I am always hooked once I start reading.

So, this looks like it was Blake Crouch’s first book and it shows. I didn’t hate it but it’s clear he has definitely evolved as a writer.

I love apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic books, so this book has my name all over it. And being a thriller, it hooked me right away. Overall, this was a fast-paced read, full of action, with just a few spots carved out to slow down and catch your breath.

I really struggle with whether or not to give this 3 or 4 stars. It’s a good book, it’s action-packed, and as a reader, I was entertained. It’s not entirely unique and it’s not entirely memorable and most importantly, it’s subpar compared to his later works. But, it’s not bad. Blake Crouch has just created some incredible writing lately, so this earlier work doesn’t shine as brightly.

But, with that being said, this is a great book to read while traveling. It’ll keep you distracted and engrossed!

3.5 stars up to 4 stars.

I read this book really fast because I was intrigued from the start. It was fast paced and I was never bored. Although I enjoyed reading it, I feel like I’ve seen many similar story lines and it wasn’t super unique.

I recently watched on Apple TV+ the new series Dark Matter based on the book of the same name by Blake Crouch. I enjoyed it so much that I went looking to see if he had anything new coming out. I was excited to find on NetGalley, that he has a book coming out in the fall called simply Run. Turns out that this was originally self-published by the author in 2011. It is being published for the first time by Ballantine Books. It's tentative release date is October 22. I read an advanced reader copy of the ebook provided by NetGalley.

Run is an apocalyptic thriller that takes place in essentially present times. An unexpected and (at first) unexplained pandemic has led many in Jack's community of Albuquerque, NM to become randomly murderous. TV and radio are down except for the announcement of who those affected will be coming to kill next. When Jack hears his own name on the radio, he swiftly packs his family and camping gear into their SUV and run. The plot follows them as they head north toward Canada, doing their best to avoid those affected in order to stay together and alive.

This is a very dark novel. It is not as well-written as his more recent work, but there are glimpses of what is to come. The challenges and emotions of the family are the strength of this novel. The pace is unrelenting. There are no named chapters and no table of contents. This feels like a purposeful choice to keep you turning the pages. It works. Even the clipped writing, with regular incomplete sentences, feeds the urgency. As I read this book, I was reminded of other apocalyptic novels like The Stand by Stephen King and The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Unfortunately, this one does not rise to that level. It is much darker and more grim while not being as well-written. It was an interesting glimpse into Crouch's early work, but if you are looking for an apocalyptic thriller, I recommend the others I mentioned. If you want to read Blake Crouch, you are better off starting with Dark Matter or Recursion.

My rating: 3/5

What do you do when complete, baffling chaos breaks out around you and most of your neighbors want you dead? People are randomly killing each other in gruesome ways, you don't know why and you just know you have to run as fast and as far as you can. This is what happens to the Colclough family of New Mexico, and we follow them on their nightmarish road trip of desperate survival. Not only are they trying to survive the killers all around them, they also have a broken marriage which may or may not be survivable, adding a deeper emotional element to this thriller.

This is the premise of Blake Crouch's first novel, which is being reissued. His novel Recursion is one of my all-time favorites so I was thrilled to have the chance to read his early work.

This is an extremely fast-paced, cinematic novel and his talent is shining through from the first page. It does feel like a first novel, though. I wish there had been more depth to the characters. The plot was repetitive, which slowed down my interest after a while.

I am sort of neutral on this one. I wouldn't actively recommend it, knowing how much better Recursion is, but at the same time, it is very thrilling and scary at times and good "popcorn" entertainment.

I was so excited to read this ARC because up until this book I’ve read nothing but 5 star reads from this author. Unfortunately this one didn’t hit that 5 star rating from me.
This book was truly so hard to put down because I HAD to know what happens next but then slowly took a no one is that lucky turn and felt a little repetitive. This disturbing apocalyptic read has so many 5 star ratings that maybe this one just wasn’t for me! I truly can’t wait to read more work from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and Random house publishing for an advance readers copy in exchange for my honest review.

Super fast paced read and hard to put down. Definitely leans more towards the genre of a survival thriller than sci-fi. I've read other Blake Crouch books and I remembered them being more sci-fi heavy. I would have given it four stars if not for some sexist parts about being a "real-man", etc.

This wasn’t very unique and felt like something I’ve read before but can’t put my finger on it. It was a quick and fun read and I did enjoy it. It just felt overdone in a way.

I know this book is one of the authors earlier works and is not on the level of what he writes now. The writing was not the best, but it held my attention with nonstop action. It does get pretty violent and disturbing, which surprised me, as I don’t see that now in his current books. Although far fetched, this is fast paced, filled with gore, hard to put down survival story. Exactly what I needed. Got me out of the reading slump. I will literally read whatever this man puts out!

I love dystopian thrillers so this was right up my alley. Not for the faint of heart, some of the violence is very difficult to witness, however, the characterizations of the main people is so well written and I just got very caught up in the story of a family fleeing from unknown circumstances in a strange world. I think this book is being re-released for an anniversary promotion. It was originally written in 2011 and he credits its success to the beginning of the writing career he always wanted.

I liked this book. It was entertaining and kept me on the edge of my seat. I just wish that the actual Aurora lights event that caused the mass violence was talked about a little more or explained more thoroughly.

So upon a reread…. I still didn’t love it. Don’t get me wrong, I love Blake Crouch! Give me Dark Matter, give me Recursion, but Run just doesn’t do it for me. It’s very repetitive: Run, come close, get away. Run, come close, get away. Found a reprieve? Oop, no you didn’t. The phenomenon is never explained and then just dissipates? Great! I found myself skimming a lot and knowing I really didn’t miss anything.

Great book. I’ve read a few Blake Crouch books before and he always brings it! You won’t be disappointed with this thriller!

I was trapped from the get go with Run. This is the type of book that I enjoy reading, the type that keeps you on the edge of your seat wanting more, the can't put down because I need to see what happens next, type of book. Run was a fast-paced read where I was chearing on the family the whole time.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC.

REVIEW COPY

Blake Crouch is one of the first authors I began stuffing my kindle with back in those days way back when. I loved reading him then and still do to this day.

RUN is his first speculative fiction novel about a family who faces what just might be the end of the world as they know it. They really have a boatload of problems; but they go on the run out of their home town of Albuquerque to find a better place to live.

I now have two copies of RUN and couldn't tell you if the author made changes to the book. I leave my wifi on, so updates come through automatically. I'm not that it really matters matters anyway. I still cried at the end. Um, no, that was me sniffling cuz I have a cold. Yep yep.

Buy yourself a copy of RUN and enjoy!

This was very much a different kind of Blake Crouch, but in a good way. This book was fast -paced and definitely kept you on the edge of your seat. It doesn't bother me, but it may bother others the level of gore involved. My only wish is that there was more explanation around the why of what caused the people to react the way they did in the book, it gives a what caused it but not a great why to me.

Blake Crouch can do no wrong! Again he writes such a page-turning, heart-racing plot. There are so many apocalyptic books out there, but I felt like this concept was super unique and exceptionally written. Crouch writes consistently in a way that makes you stay up in the wee hours of the night just to read ‘one more page’. I loved seeing Jack grow in the way he supported his family and actually thrived in such a challenging environment. This book really made me reflect and think about how I would handle a situation like this, and it sparked such interesting conversation between myself and my husband! I felt like Jack and Dee were both so resourceful, wise, and brave. This book had an interesting plot at its core but pairing with its character development made it 5 stars for me. Blake Crouch never lets me down, so I’m not at all shocked to have another 5 star of his! Got goosebumps many times throughout, but especially at the end. So well done!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I received this as an ARC through NetGalley.

I was really excited to read this book based on the author alone, and then I realized this is a re-release of one of his earlier books. This book is an apocalyptic survival thriller that I will say had some disturbing moments but yet very suspenseful. While it was thrilling and a good read it did feel like it was missing something. I feel like this didn’t give me the same feelings as I’ve had reading others from him. While it wasn’t my favorite it still was a good read.

Thank you @netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.