Another funny and engaging book by Kevin Wilson! Good for readers who like quirky characters, and also good for book discussion groups.

This was another great novel about a dysfunctional family from Kevin Wilson. I loved Mad, Rube, Pep and Tom - their quirky personalities and the relationship they developed with each other. It was a funny and touching story and I highly recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book to review. I have been a huge fan of Kevin Wilson’s fiction since reading Nothing to See Here and subsequently all of his other published novels. I was counting down until the release of Run for the Hills. This unique family drama is full of characters who were quirky and endearing, the story was sad but funny, and it didn’t disappoint!

I’m glad my husband was away on a guys trip while I read this book..,,I’m sure he’’d have found all my sudden outbursts of laughter annoying..

Like the best up-lit, Run for the Hills blends humor with heart. Found family isn’t just a theme here—it literally drives the plot: a cross-country PT Cruiser road trip to track down previously unknown half-siblings and confront the shared dad with a serial habit of skipping out on his family. The characters are quirky with a capital Q, and endearing with a capital E.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ecco for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

This book was fun! fun! fun! Once I got into it.. I found myself not being able to get past page 5 for the longest time. I would start, stop, and then start up again. However, once we were on the road and the Mad's journey with her siblings really begins, I was all in. The thing that makes this book is the characters. All of Mad's siblings are unique and weird. I LOVE Rube (and his silly PT Cruiser). Mad was, actually, my least favorite character, but I also understand why this is her story.

The ending was okay. I'm not sure how I feel about it and I don't want to give away any spoilers. I like that it ended with a bit of uncertainty and a tinge of sadness, but I also wasn't sure that the father would act the way he does. He seemed to roll over pretty quickly.

Overall, fun book! Will I be teaching this in my college contemporary literature courses? Probably not. Would I tell my friends to read it? Absolutely.

This book about half siblings, a road trip, and family could have gone off the rails at least 50 different ways, but in the hands of the skillful Kevin Wilson just put on your seat belt and savor the humanity portrayed. This isn’t a light book but it’s not overwhelming heavy either. If you’ve read other Kevin Wilson books you know you can trust him to make you feel, and this book is no different. Highly recommend and thanks to NetGalley for an early copy.

I love Wilson’s masterful writing of zany, dysfunctional, humorous and heartwarming stories. This is no exception. A totally unlikely yet still engrossing story about family road trip featuring a delightful cast of new-to-each-other siblings. I laughed. I cried. I loved it.

This was a quirky one but I really liked it. Four half-siblings find one another and trek across the country to find their father, who left each of them during their childhood to “start over” with a new life/family. The writing is clever and funny (and sometimes sad) and the characters are interesting. I loved Nothing to See Here but This is Not the Time to Panic was not for me, so I am happy that this one worked! Likely to be amongst my favorites of the year! Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC and opportunity to share my thoughts.

As someone who has loved Kevin Wilson's other books, this felt a bit like a rehashing of old work. That said, I really enjoyed it. He has such silly, reflective moments. I thought the ending didn't exactly stick the landing but it was such a lovely story that I'll forgive him it.

I think it’s time for me to realize that Nothing to See Here was a one off for me with Kevin Wilson. I don’t think I’ll read something by him again unless I know enough going into it that I can be sure of it being a hit. This book was boring. I don’t know I nicer way to say that. There was a lot of dialogue that was telling, not showing. The characters were flat. The plot device was unforgettable, but as for the rest, I think it’ll be gone from my memory within a day. I kept reading because I was hoping it would get better and because it was short.

I just scrolled through the reviews and am definitely an outlier. So check it out for yourself!

Madeline “Mad” Hill’s day is normal, tending her semi-famous farm with her mother, when a man pulls up on a car claiming to be her brother. He claims, too, that he tracked their father down, discovering two other siblings on the way, and now he wants to go find him. And he wants Mad to come with. A road trip novel with Wilson’s signature…something at its heart. An acute understanding of the way events can be so big and life altering and feel so normal. Of the way normal day to day events can feel so big, when looking at them anew.

As much as I love Kevin Wilson, this was just not my favorite from him and I hate writing that! The story just lacked his usual depth and charm, there was no real allure or resolve for these characters with their father, and it just fell very flat for me. I’ll always read Kevin’s books because the ones I’ve loved I’ve REALLY loved, but this was just not my cup of tea sadly.

Run for the Hills was such a fun, heartfelt, and surprisingly tender read. Kevin Wilson’s writing always strikes that perfect balance between quirky and meaningful, and this book was no exception. The characters felt real and offbeat in the best way, and I loved watching their relationships evolve through all the chaos and humor. The pacing was solid, and while it wasn’t quite a five-star read for me, I really enjoyed it. 4 stars for a charming, slightly oddball story with lots of heart.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Run for the Hills.

I've read previous books by the author who specializes in tales of dysfunctional families and Run for the Hills is no exception.

Madeline "Mad" Hill has a quiet life in Coalfield, TN working with her mom on their farm. When an unexpected half sibling Rueben "Rube" Hill shows up with an audacious plan to locate their father aka sperm donor in California, Mad reluctantly decides to join him.

Along the way, they'll meet and pick up the rest of their half sibling brood, have adventures, and discover the bonds of loyalty sibling love along the way.

The narrative is more from Mad's perspective and how she's dealt with her father's absence after so many years and how it's affected her personal life.

I loved getting to know the siblings, their interactions, their different personalities and how they each contributed to the family dynamic.

Siblings are an important part of your life if you've been blessed to have one or two or more.

Siblings change you, usually for the better, in my opinion, and the Hill sibs soon realize even though their father left them, he left them with one another and now they will always have each other.

The only person I didn't like was the father.; Chuck, Charles, whatever alias he called himself.

It felt like the author gave him a pass for being a deadbeat dad by saying he had a 'mental illness' for absconding each time he was 'bored' or searching for himself.

Puh-leaze.

Excuse only allow people, especially men, a reason not to take accountability for their actions and to justify their bad behavior.

The cliche at the end did make my eyes roll even though I expected it.

I felt like Mad, sort of dissatisfied but glad to be home on her farm. I liked how everyone came together in their goal of finding their father. but in some way the answers her father provided weren't inadequate.

And that's life.

Sometimes you don't get the answers you're looking for or you never find out why a parent left you.

Run for the Hills is a terrific road trip story of siblings who discover each other and go searching for their father, who left all of his children suddenly and without warning. The book opens at a roadside market when 34 year old farmer Madeline Hills ( nick named Mad) spots a PT Cruiser that slows and stops at her stand. Rube, a writer in his mid 40’s introduces himself as her half - brother and invites Mad to accompany him on his quest to locate their other half siblings and their wayward father, who apparently adopted a completely new identity with each new family he acquired. A story filled with heart and humor will hold readers captive.

Highly recommend.

I love Kevin Wilson. He is one of my favorite authors. I loved Nothing to See Here and his 2 short story collections. I thought his last novel was just okay, and unfortunately I feel the same way about his upcoming release, Run for the Hills. I love his quirky characters, you can’t help but root for them. The main problem I had with this book was the writing style. Wilson’s prose started to decline with his last book, and it’s continuing with this one as well. His prose has become extremely choppy, it was never like that with his earlier works. I find it extremely confusing because he is a strong and emotional author. His writing has become so lazy and uninspired lately. The plot of this book is very sweet and offbeat, but I just don’t click with the clunky writing, it made my reading experience difficult to enjoy. Such a disappointment. I recommend his early books instead.

Kevin Wilson is an auto-read author for me—he's a master of tone and character, and I find myself thinking about his books for weeks and months after finishing. RUN FOR THE HILLS, happily, continues that trend. Wilson is so great at finding situations that reveal character, and here it's the road that serves that purpose. I'm a sucker for a road trip and a family story, so I was delighted by the twists and turns, literal and figurative, that happened here. It's funny, emotional, surprising—everything I've come to expect from a Kevin Wilson novel!

I had previously read one book by this author and really like it, which is why I wanted to read this book. I’m so glad I did. This book was equal parts emotional and silly-goofy. As cliche as it is to say “I laughed and I cried,” I can honestly say I did both! I was fully invested in the storyline and never once bored. I loved all of the main characters. I would read a spinoff book about any of the main characters because I love them all and their stories so much! I really loved that this book was able to be emotional while remaining lighthearted. After this book, I want to go back and read everything this author has written!

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest rating and review.

In this touching novel, a road trip transforms from a quest to find a long-lost father into a heartfelt journey of self-discovery and familial connection among four half-siblings. As they navigate the complexities of their relationships, readers witness the blossoming bond that emerges from shared experiences and laughter, infused with Wilson's signature humor. The narrative thoughtfully explores themes of belonging and the bittersweet nature of memories, reminding us that what we seek may not always align with our dreams. With each mile traveled, the siblings uncover not just their father's identity, but also the deeper meaning of family and the ties that bind them. This beautifully crafted story resonates with anyone who has ever yearned for connection, making it a delightful read for those who appreciate the nuances of human relationships.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC which I was provided in exchange for my early review.

3.5 rounded up
Rueben, a 42 year old author, hires a private investigator to find his long lost father. The investigator finds an address, but also finds 3 half siblings he did not know about. Renting a PT cruiser, Rueben starts a cross country trek to meet his siblings and see if they want to join his road trip to California to confront their father, who has a bad habit of starting families and then leaving them.

This is a literal found family story which does have Wilsons trademark sense of humor throughout. I enjoyed seeing the family connect with each other, but for some reason I was unable to connect to most of these characters myself or relate at all to the fathers story. I was never bored by their cross country trek, but never totally immersed in the story or the characters either. For this reader his earlier works were more enjoyable, but that may not be true for you.

Thank you to net galley and Ecco books for an e galley in return for an honest review.