Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC copy of Run.

I think Blake Crouch is an amazing author so when I saw this pop up, I requested it right away. I was absolutely enthralled by this story. I read it in less than 24 hours because I NEEDED to know how it ended.

That being said, now I wish I could erase the entire thing from my memory. I am not a big believer in trigger warnings, nor do I think I am easily disturbed but this was an incredibly difficult book to get through. I expected some peril situations but I was not prepared for detailed description of mass murder or the frequent, graphic description of the dead bodies of children. I think others should know what they are getting into before they pick this book up.

3 stars because I have no idea how to rate this.

I was SO excited to get this ARC because I love this author. I've read his two other books and rated them highly. This one is apocalyptic and disturbing. Exactly the type of book I love. It was highly entertaining. It was fast paced with never a boring moment. From the very first page, it was full force apocalyptic mind blowing action. We were thrust into this world of chaos where everyone was trying desperately to survive.

The story follows a family of four who has to flee their town suddenly - in the middle of the night. There is chaos all around them. All they know if that a large portion of the US and Mexico are affected and going on massive killing sprees. It's like everyone all of a sudden woke up and became murderous psychopaths. Jack, his wife Dee, and their two kids Naomi and Cole, embark on a perilous journey to safety without even knowing where safety is. It's a story of survival and the lengths they will go to save themselves and their loved ones.

While I loved reading this book, I couldn't help but think that it's not very unique. It was highly entertaining but also forgettable. This plot has been done before many times and nothing about this story really stood out to me as amazing. Its a super quick 80,000 word story and I would recommend it to anyone that wants a quick entertaining read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for letting me read this book in exchange for my honest review.

First, I need to apologize to my family for my "migraine" which left me in bed, with my kindle, reading Run by Blake Couch undisturbed for hours without having to cook dinner. The book left me on the edge of my seat and I simply could not stop reading.

Blake Crouch has been an author that had been on my radar but I am not a huge sci-fi reader so I had never read any of his work until now. When I saw the opportunity to read a post-apocalyptic story written by Crouch, I jumped on the opportunity as quickly as I could because I am a big fan of post-apocalyptic stories and this one sounded great. As It turns out, Run was originally published in 2011 and is now set to be re-released in October 2024 by Ballantine Books.

I surely do not want to give away any spoilers but something is happening to the people of the United States and Northern Mexico and it is causing them to be consumed with rage and violence. Some speculate that it was caused by an atmospheric event as it appears to only affect those who witnessed it. Jack Colcough, a professor at the University of New Mexico has no idea what is happening or why but when he hears his name on the National Broadcast System along with his home address - directing the listeners to kill him, the only thing he is sure of is his need to protect his family and they need to RUN...

Ironically, the same type of atmospheric event actually just occurred in a large part of the United States just last week, so the timing of my read could not have been any more perfect!!!!.

We follow Jack and his family, as they run from their home in New Mexico in the middle of the night and travel north to try to get to the Canadian border where it is assumed they will be safe. The book is dark, violent and a deep look into human nature - everything you want and need in a post-apocalyptic story.

Thank you to Ballantine Books, Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy/uncorrected proof in consideration of my honest and fair review.

ADRENALINE RUSH! This is my second time reading this book and I loved it even more the second time around. This time I had the recent real life Aurora Borealis that was sighted by the most people in history and believe me I thought about this story. This book starts out with a bang and does not let up till the final page. It made my heart pound and the pages couldn’t flip fast enough. Don’t start this book unless you have time to finish because you won’t be able to put it down till the end. If you enjoyed the movie, The Purge, then you’ll probably love this. Trigger warnings for violence. Thank you Netgalley, Random House Publishing Ballantine and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be rereleased on October 22, 2024

This was an interesting one. When I requested I didn't realize it was one of Crouch's earlier works, now that makes sense. Still an interesting, solid read, it just seemed to jump into the action super quickly without much characterization. Because of that, I found it a bit harder to get into, but I definitely was drawn in pretty quickly. By the end, I definitely cared about the characters and their fates,

This book is a pretty violent, dystopian situation - and interesting timing to read with the aurora borealis visible to most all of North America and into Northern Mexico earlier this month...*nervous laugher*

Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. If you're into this type of story, it's a good one!

This is so good--I hadn't realized it was a repub but now I know why it reminds me of his old stuff. Love it!

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Nothing like requesting this ARC...only to find out the book is 13 years old lol?!?!?? I guess I just should've done more research before requesting. I thought this book was okay. It became pretty obvious that this was one of Crouch"s earlier works - I feel like he is an incredibly strong writer today and this wasn't as detailed. Overall I enjoyed it, but next time I'll take the time to double check on a book that I request if I haven't heard of it before.

Jack Colclough is listening to his radio on kitchen table in Albuquerque and hears his name. They’re coming to kill him and his family. There’s been seemingly unconnected, senseless murders throughout the country. Their only option is to run, but they’re being hunted. They realize that the aurora a few nights before seems to be the blame. Those who saw the aurora are killing those who didn’t.

This was SO good! Very fast paced. Very interesting.
Triggers; Violence

ehh.. I love Crouch's novels - this one just didn't satisfy my taste.
I felt left with questions. As part as the mystery/suspense it did deliver.

Run.

This is not the same type of novel we are used to from Blake Crouch but still a really great read. I’m also a sucker for survival stories.

You are dropped in the middle of chaos breaking loose from the first page and it doesn’t stop from there till the last page.

Senseless murders are happening all over the United States, the president gives an address, the lights go out, all hell breaks loose. You are following a family of four, Jack the father, Dee the mother and their two children Naomi and Cole. This story leads you on a heartbreaking journey of love and loss and what it would take if you wanted to survive in an apocalypse.

Just because this isn’t Blake Crouch’s normal heavy sci-fi book doesn’t mean it isn’t a good book. I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it to my followers and other readers who enjoy action packed devastating books.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this book. #NetGalley #Run

If you need a book to keep your blood pumping, this is the one! Survival horror is one of my favorite genres! Pair it with one of my favorite authors and I knew it would be a solid 5-star read for me! The sheer brutality was fantastic!!

‘Run’ is most definitely not a book for the faint of heart! Within mere minutes of starting, I could feel myself getting anxious, but I could not stop reading! I had to know what happened next. What was causing the outbursts of violence? Who was being affected? Would Jack survive? Dee? The kids?

The premise of Run is honestly terrifying, but it made for a nearly unputdownable read. Unfortunately, there were a couple of things I didn’t love. First and foremost was the graphic violence against children. It wasn’t frequent enough to make me stop reading, and I can acknowledge why Crouch made mention of it. It truly showed how cruel and depraved and brutal the people had become. That being said, I skipped any sentence or paragraph that mentioned children even possibly being hurt. As a relatively new mom, those scenes just made me feel physically sick. I don’t even like thinking back on those scenes for the sake of this review. Honestly, had I realized that children dying would be alluded to multiple times throughout the book, I probably wouldn’t have even picked this one up. That is massively a me thing though (and obviously one I should’ve considered) and not the fault of the author. He didn’t write it just for me!

My second complaint (and the reason for the 3-star rating) was that I really struggled to connect with the main characters for so long. I will say again that the premise was wildly intriguing, but the characters themselves? Not my favorite for at least the first half of the book.

Things I did love? The premise! (Have I mentioned that yet?) Also the ending. It wasn’t as open-ended as I expected it to be, which I desperately needed after a few hours of my heart nearly beating out of my chest from anxiety. Also, I loved how anxious it made me. Is that weird? Maybe. Crouch just really built tension and fear SO well. I loved how fast-paced this read was, and I loved the writing style. I’ve read Blake Crouch’s books before, and I can confidently say I will continue to do so!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Blake Crouch is one of my favorite authors and I was so excited for the chance to read
some of his earlier work. “Run” didn’t disappoint. You’re immediately thrown into an apocalyptic world with no background info. It’s quite disorienting, which worked perfectly. I had the same feeling of confusion and dread as the family on the run. It really gave me “The Purge” vibes! I would recommend this to anyone who loves Crouch’s work or if you’re looking for a great thrill ride. Thanks for the opportunity to read in advance!

This was a wild ride of a dystopian thriller/horror. It was action packed from beginning to the end and I was beginning to think if there will ever be an end and if the family can catch a break. There was lots of killing, including women and children - I am not squeamish about that, but it is a TW for other readers. It kept me on my toes and entertained so I rate it 4 stars. I read 3 other books by this author, and he is quickly becoming one of my favorites.

I have read and loved all three of Crouch's most recent novels, and I have been wanting to read this one for a while, but when I went back to find it on Amazon again, it had disappeared. You can imagine my excitement when this popped up as a republication on NG, so I requested it right away. And now I am feeling quite disappointed. I didn't enjoy this story at all. You can tell that this was one of his earlier books. The writing was disjointed and overly detailed with unnecessary information. I was extremely bored for most of the book and wanted to smack the wife and kids. The premise was somewhat interesting, and I did feel some intensity building up to the climax which is why I gave this a three-star rating instead of a two; however, it is entirely possible that what I felt was actually my own anxiety on not getting to the end of the book fast enough. I hate to give an unfavorable review, but this one just wasn't for me.

Thank you to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and NetGalley for granting me digital access in exchange for my honest review!

I was a little turned off the first few chapters because it just jumped right in without any backstory on the characters or the “outbreak”. The further I read though the more attached I got to the characters. There were parts that had my heart racing like I was really there and not just reading about it. I’ve read 3 other books by the author and Run lived up to those. A fast pace book but does have some gruesome details.

This isn't like Blake Crouch's other novels, so please know that going in! I was devouring this story. Apocalyptic stories give me such anxiety, and the author did such a great job writing such an unnerving book! I couldn't put it down.

My full review and social media link will be updated closer to pub date.

The premise of Run, an apocalyptic thriller set in America, was appealing; an ordinary family running after hearing the patriarch’s name over the radio after an epidemic of senseless murders began. However, Run felt like an excerpt of a much longer book. It was extremely difficult to begin the book, feel connected to the characters within the Colclough family, and want to continue due to the fact that it felt like Run began in the middle of a story. There was no background knowledge given, nor was there any lead up within the story to the apocalyptic event. By the end of Run, there wasn’t much additional depth or knowledge given to us regarding this family, as there were very minimal “flashbacks” or memories to add to the plot of the story. Moreover, to solidify the feeling that Run was an excerpt from a much longer book, the book abruptly ends.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books for a copy of Run in exchange for my honest review.

Let me set the scene….i was approved for this book, and started reading it the same night we were able to see the aurora borealis in Ohio. I will leave you with that.
Loved it…read it in one sitting. Anxiety ridden through the whole thing, feeling like I was there. What would I do in this circumstance? Would I fight or give up? I still don’t know.
Something has turned people into raging murderers…and it is an Us against them type of circumstance. Can Jack save his family? Is there even a point in trying?

My first time reading this author, and on the edge of my comfort zone genre wise, I was excited to read it.

An apocalyptic thriller, a family on the run for their lives as America descends into violent anarchy, think Cormac McCarthy’s The Road but with much more pace, action and guns.

The style is straightforward, no nonsense, fast and full of threat. I loved the focus on one family’s fight for survival instead of an over explained, philosophical wider world view. It’s gripping, gory in places and there are plenty of shocks.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine