Terrifying and gripping apocalyptic thriller; reminded me of Bird Box (but with more gore); an underlying theme of a family becoming a family again; pacing was weird and choppy at times, but I was constantly on the edge of my seat- sometimes I seriously couldn't put it down; every time I thought things couldn't possibly get worse for the family, boy was I wrong; such a nail-biter and I loved the creativity in the fight for survival.

Special thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and Netgalley for a DRC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

THIS BOOK WAS TERRIFYING IN THE BEST WAY. I don't like feeling stressed when I read, bit this book stressed me TF out. It was creepy and eerie, but so good. I had stress nightmares.

There also was no "fluff" in this book. Readers were given just enough information to move the story forward, and it was so refreshing.

While this book wasn't gory, per se, I would proceed with caution if you're averse to more graphic murders or a high volume of killings. (To be clear, this was NOT the reason for the nightmares.)

First and foremost, I would like to thank Netgalley and the publishing company for allowing me to read the ARC of this novel. Thank y’all so much.

Even though the book is not published yet, I found my timing of reading and reviewing novel to be insane.(I would just like to say with the recent seeing of the Northern Lights in early May… I was extremely worried that something like the events in this book could happen) I digress.

When a shocking, “light show” sweeps across the lower 48 states… Jack and his family are forced to flea their home as chaos and civil unrest as people are affected with some sort of manic episode.

The story follows Jack, Dee and their children as they run all the way to Canada to escape the chaos.

This story shows the violence against each other brought upon an unknown force and how a family is forced to stay together and do the unimaginable.

4/5 stars. I have read a few of Crouch's novels and enjoyed them all. It was cool to get to read one of his original works and it was a good read.

I could not put this book down! I’ve heard many good things about this author so I’m glad I was able to experience his work for myself. Definitely will be recommending to others because I loved it!

Didn’t realize this was a rerelease but I still enjoyed it! Kept me on my toes and I flew through it fast. Great thriller. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

I could not put this book down. Great example of suspenseful drama and interesting characters. Speeds toward a fantastic and satisfying ending.

Didn't enjoy a single second. Not because it was egregiously violent or pointless, which is was. But rather so many things that didn't make sense mixed with the extremely repetitive nature of the story led to a dull reading experience.

Drive, car troubles, find a house, find butchered bodies. Drive, car troubles, find a house, find butchered bodies. Find butchered bodies, run from bad guys, find a house, run from bad guys. Find butchered bodies, run from bad guys, find a settlement, run, find butchered bodies, find a settlement.

There you go, that was the book. Except for the fact that also every member of the family was terrible and annoying. Was really hoping for a better experience from a Blake Crouch book, but boy was this disappointing. If you liked Dark Matter or Recursion, this is nothing like those.

I first read Run back in 2015 so I was happily surprised to see that it’s getting released. I gave it 5 stars back in 2015, but I didn’t read as much then, and over the years my reading tastes have changed. This book has images and plot points that I have thought about many times over the years. It’s a story that sticks with you.


Run is about Jack Colclough and his family who are trying to survive during a widespread phenomenon in which something is causing people to turn on one another and inflict violence for no apparent reason. This book drops you in the middle of the excitement and goes full speed right out of the gate. This book defines the term “Thriller”. It also delves into the difficulties of the family and how Jack navigates getting his wife and kids to safety.


I took off some stars this time because the book got repetitive even in all the excitement. Some of the word choices were trying too hard such as “Stabbing forward down the road” as a way to describe how they traveled. Also, the ending was underwhelming and a little too convenient. Beware that this book has constant violence and is graphic with gore (No stars taken off for this because I knew this going in).


Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for allowing me to read an early eARC of Run by Blake Crouch in exchange for an honest review.

It pains me to rate this so low. Crouch is a solid 4-5 star read for me every time. An always recommend if someone is looking for sci-fi. I would be so bold to say a favorite author, because he USUALLY can’t miss. This book is not that man. We all have work that isn’t our best, the publisher just chose to rerelease his and bring attention to it 😭🫠

The last 20ish% there was a GLIMPSE of the master storyteller we have come to love but by that point we were too far gone and there was no saving this train wreck.

When Crouch titled this book Run I didn’t think it quite literally meant the entire novel was just them moving, nothing else happens for the first 50%.

Drive
Get attacked
Cole is a complete dumbass (I know he is 7)
Sleep
Repeat
You just read the first 50% of the book

There was so much potential for this story line, and Crouch has proven that he can write it phenomenally so to rerelease the story in this state is utterly confusing.

This is just a gripe to gripe. Tell me why the spelling of Naomi’s nickname went from Na to Nay halfway through the book??? Did the editor read this before slapping the rerelease up or?

****SPOILERS****

Honestly I could have probably let the monotony of the story go but on top of that the amount of lucky breaks and perfect moments this family had was astounding! They were complete idiots and they somehow managed to kill everyone they came in contact with and minimal life threatening injuries. Dee is quite literally shot in the femoral artery at the end and lives.

And then Cole is affected by the Aurora but waits until 60% to divulge some hella important information about him being able to tell who is also affected? Like I said, he is a dumbass. He is 7. That kid would have been talking about seeing lights nonstop the moment he saw them floating around heads. Kids don’t have a filter.

I will say Naomi being the one in the prologue, chefs kiss. The very beginning and very end is what saved this from being a 1 star.

****END SPOILERS****


In conclusion; Run away from this book.

Let's start by saying Thank you to Random House Publishing- Ballantine Books and Net Galley for allowing me to read this Arc.

I am a big fan of this author, I usually hand out copies of Dark Matter to people at my job because I enjoyed that book so much.
I was so excited to get this ARC for that reason.

This book, however, missed the mark for me. I found myself bored throughout, often resorting to skim reading in hopes of finding something engaging. While there were a few moments that had me on the edge of my seat with anticipation, about 80% of the book felt monotonous.

I understand the premise: trying to survive, making it one day at a time, overcoming odds, staying together as a family, working as a team, and keeping morale up. However, it just wasn't compelling. The mother and father were uninteresting, the daughter had little to no significance in the story, and I thought the son might develop into an interesting character, but he too ended up being dull. Even when the mother reached the camp with the kids, that part of the book was so brief it felt inconsequential.

Additionally, some of their narrow escapes seemed too far-fetched. Running past bombs and gunfire without getting hit was, on one hand, amazing, but on the other, not believable.

The ending was cute.

I feel bad writing this review because I love Blake Crouch. I just didnt love this.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This book took off like a rocket and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. It was twisty as hell and I am going to need some time to recover; overall, a great book.

Thank you Netgalley, Blake Crouch, and Ballantine Books for this ARC.

I read often to help reduce my anxiety....but this book gave me so much anxiety.

I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

That is all I will say...Read the book. You will not regret it.

I am obsessed with all of Blake Crouch writing's.

This was not a standout book for me among Crouch’s work. Although it was a good example of a survivalist story that really makes you think about the lengths you may go to if your life is on the line, there were a few negatives for me.

Firstly, instead of the classic structure with rising and falling action with a climax in between, this is very fast-paced and action-packed and the climax never really calms down. It’s going to come down to personal preference as to whether or not the reader minds this, but I felt the resolution was rushed and unsatisfying. No one can explain satisfactorily why the aurora caused people to act this why, why some were unaffected, why the effect was ultimately reversed, or what precautions society should take in case it ever happens again.

Secondly, although the author does use language to paint pictures of some gorgeous natural scenery (serving as a backdrop for severe horrors), I felt like a lot of a sentences had odd grammar - either because they were missing a subject or a verb. Again, this is going to come down to personal preference, and I certainly don’t need everything to all be perfectly grammatically correct all the time to enjoy a good story, but this happens continually and it grated on me after awhile. Some examples:

“Little knoll a couple hundred feet above the water.” - no verb

“Leaned back over. Vomited into the floorboard.” - no subjects

Finally, I did not really see why I should like the main characters. We find out that both parties have had affairs, and they say some things like “I want you to be a fucking man” and “our marriage was on life support,” but we literally never get an inkling why they felt that way in the first place. Instead of having never ending turmoil, I would have really liked a scene with a more substantial conversation where we found out more background. Instead, they have sex and get over it, and besides mentioning it had been several months since they had been intimate, that was it. The children also do not have a lot of distinguishing characteristics.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this republication.

Thanks to Random House/Ballantine Books and NetGalley for this digital ARC of Blake Crouch's 'Run.'

I've read a few of Blake Crouch's other books which can be quite complex and convoluted but this is a straightforward post-apocalyptic thriller and very well done at that.

It's not overly original - lights in the sky causing the collapse of civilization have been a theme for a long time (H.G. Wells' 'War of the Worlds' and John Wyndham's 'The Day of the Triffids' spring to mind from time past) and the immediate spilt between the good guys trying to escape/survive and the bad guys bent on murder and destruction are tropes we've read time and again but this is done with such energy that the lack of originality doesn't matter.

Jack, Dee, and their two children Naomi and Cole have fled Albuquerque ahead of rampaging mobs and encounter more rampaging mobs as the head north towards rumored safety, meeting a few good guys on the way. It's fast-paced and pretty violent and brings us on a very believable tour through America's heartland, over land on by road.

I really enjoyed it.

Last week, I was very sad that I missed out on the rare chance of seeing the auroras in person. Now I have what may be a life-long fear of them!

⭐️ 4.5/5
Though Blake Crouch is renowned for his masterful works of speculative science fiction, Run veers significantly closer to survival horror than sci-fi. It’s an unrelenting, bloody, and gory ride—one that I was utterly compelled to stay on.

I sat down with the intent to merely begin reading it, only to find myself glued to my couch until I reached its final pages. I was thoroughly engrossed in the nightmarish dystopia crafted from Crouch's clearly twisted imagination, with its relentless ups-and-downs keeping me permanently on edge.

The only qualm I have is that I wish the cause of the epidemic itself was better explained. A prologue depicting the day of the event perhaps could have provided some clarity. However, I do understand and can appreciate the choice to keep it shrouded in a bit of mystery, considering that even the characters themselves were struggling to understand why this hell had been unleashed upon them.

I highly recommend this book to all fans of survival horror media, especially those who enjoyed The Last of Us.

Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, & Ballantine Books for the digital review copy!

I'll always give a Blake Crouch novel a try, even if the premise isn't something I would have picked up from someone else. This was a quick, page-turning read. I was shocked and terrified nearly the whole time I was reading this. If you like Blake Crouch's other books, you should probably give it a try.

Blake Crouch' RUN is exactly what it sounds like - a story about running away from danger and towards safe shelter. This is certainly a propulsive plot that's riddled with action, but because I wasn't connected to any of the characters, this sadly did feel a bit like a generic "run away from killer" thriller.

Run by Blake Crouch The violence, cruelty, gore, and profanities were all over the top in this depressing and exhausting read. Read more than ever wanted to know about field dressing a kill. Then the story ran straight into an abrupt ending with no conclusion or closure. For me, definitely not a favorite story by Mr Crouch.
Thank you to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

When I requested this from NetGalley, I didn't realize that it was one of Blake Crouch's earlier works, but i was still excited because i hadn't had a chance to read this one yet. Dark Matter is one of my favorite thrillers, and I was obsessed with his Wayward series. This one wasn't for me, though.

It was fast-paced and adrenaline producing, but I personally found the amount of detailed graphic violence too much for me to handle. I had to try to skim past the dead children descriptions because that's a road I never want to go down in the books I choose to read.
I'm feeling conflicted about how I'd rate it because despite being drawn into the story's world, I can't say I truly enjoyed the experience. I'd only recommend this to people after providing a few trigger warnings.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballentine Books for this ARC so that I may share my honest feedback and review.