Oh this was so much better than I expected. I was hooked from the first page, and it felt like a perfect way of telling a survival story. I loved each character and how they all coped with the situations going on, but specially how we had loveable bad guys and also a good cult vibe. Such a great read!

Hmmmm I am not really sure how I felt about this one. On the one hand I found it really entertaining, it drew me in and I was eager to see where it would take me, on the other it just all felt a little one dimensional and didn’t really give me the explanations I was looking for.

I really liked the concept, fourteen characters, all from various backgrounds pulled into a high stakes game of hide and seek, as a concept for a new reality TV show, but with a more sinister back story. This is the bit that really excited me, how the ‘TV show aspect would play out, why each of the characters were there, how they would play the game, and how/why would the game turn sinister. However, while some aspects of this played out really well and kept my interest others were really disappointing, which left me feeling overall middling about the book as a whole.

Mack the main character had an interesting back story, however right from the start I found the way that she was pushed into the competition very McGuffin-esq. Without giving spoilers it really bothered me that most of the characters really didn’t have a strong enough reasoning about being in a strange hide-and-seek competition. In fact given a few of the characters back stories it should be the last thing they were doing, even for $50k! While each character was given their motivation for wanting to attend this competition none of the characters really felt multidimensional, which was a shame as if those facets of each player had been explored more and given more substance it would have made for such an interesting character study. This lack of depth to the characters just made the whole ‘game’ feel really thin and then in turn made the plot twists and reveals about the nature of the game even thinner and more disappointing than the shocking.

I wanted more from the worldbuilding too. Its set in a creepy abandoned amusement park and while on occasion we got some great descriptions of how it appeared and some hints at it being more complex that it first appears on the surface we really didn’t get much detail as to why or how it came to be that way. We are told a lot more than we are shown. This also is true of the big bad. We are told about it eventually but not shown much of it and while that is great to build tension we eventually need the big reveal and it never really materialises, we get no explanation as to why and what purpose it plays, other than one that is very reminiscent of the pretty little liars spin off – Ravenswood – and that was cancelled half way through its pilot season!

The clues towards the big bag twist to the game were also very very very obvious, like smack you in the side of the head obvious that all shock and horror to the reveal was just eliminated entirely. There were some moments that did grab my attention, but again would have been much more impactful if we had got more information into those characters themselves. I did like the budding relationship formed within this story, I liked that we got to see the slow build of trust and overcoming hurt from their various backgrounds was discussed in a really sensitive way. Again emphasizing how when we got more in-depth with the characters this book became really good. I just wish there were more of these moments throughout the whole book.

For me this book had a great concept it just lacked a little to really make it a great read. It was still entertaining and it still had me finishing the book but it just wont be making my best reads of 2022 list.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for sending me a copy in exchange for a review.

This was a fantastic premise, and I was completely with it up until halfway when it felt a little repetitive and for such a short book, I did find myself bored a little.
I don't get on well with this author, but I was hoping that a slasher/thriller would make amends, but it doesn't look like it for me.

As soon as the blurb released for Hide I was intrigued and I knew I had to read it. Following fourteen different characters and learning a little bit more as the story progressed was great to keep me interested. I loved how all the characters interacted with each other especially Mack and Ava. The ending killed me as I need to know more!

Mac gets drafted to participate in a hide and seek competition. This might be the opportunity she has been waiting for to finally escape her past.😱

I had fun while listening to this book, but it did not move me very much.😕
You might say I thought this book was “Meh, okay”.🤷♀️
There are a couple of tropes that are used in this story, that I don’t particularly enjoy, but that is completely up to personal preference of course.😄

There are also a couple of big exposition dumps.😒
They are written in an okay way, but it was a lot at once.😬
Just pages and pages of background information of this park and what is happening within it.🧐

I also figured out the twist quite early on, which was not a bad thing though, because it made me curious as to how the author would handle this story beat.🤓

All in all it was a recommendation, but not overwhelmingly so.😅

I don't know what to make of this book. There were some really compelling elements but also some strange approaches or little bumps in the road which compromised the story so often that it stopped being enjoyable.

Hide is essentially The Hunger Games in a Hide-and-Seek format with a cash prize. The people in the competition are set to get $50,000 dollars if they can successfully hide for an extended period of time without getting caught. They're hiding in an old, or abandoned, theme park and have to hide for most of the day but after that they can come down from their hiding places and head back to safety for a sleep, shower and food. Nobody really knows each other and their motivations are largely about the cash prize, despite some shady backgrounds suggestive of a little more.

Some of the problems with this lie in how unoriginal that is. As I already pointed out - it feels a lot like The Hunger Games, but with comfort breaks. There is a horror twist, and they're not being hunted by each other so that's a small change, but otherwise the idea is very similar. This might be forgivable if the horror aspect was actually horrifying, but it actually doesn't become apparent what might be scary about the story until around 75% of the way through. The remainder of the journey to that point is a pretty dry account of getting through each day, with irritating fade-to-black scenes when anyone is captured.

When the truth finally is revealed the story doesn't really pick up the pace, and because you have so little time with almost all of the characters it's actually quite difficult to keep on track with which character is which and why it matters to you if they're in the game still or not. That limited character development is a problem for the story, because there are similar characters (some even have the same name!) and their motivations and personality types are different enough to help you remember any of them either. I guess I just didn't care who won by the end of it and could have happily DNF'd at 80% and left it there without minding too much.

The thing I struggled most of all with though was the writing style. It feels rushed - the sentences are short and have a hurried feel to them. Whilst I suspect that's probably a stylistic choice for a story of this nature, it reads more like someone making notes about the dialogue or the way in which they plan for their story to progress, rather than a completed story.

Regardless, it is compelling because of course you want to know what really happens when the contestants are eliminated. But it doesn't have the tense atmosphere or connection you would hope to find in a story which literally relies upon you caring who wins!

ARC provided from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ready to have goosebumps creeping down your spine? This book is a whole rollercoaster ride. The theme is amazing and it keeps you on your toes at all times.
It's honestly so hard to put down!

A deadly game of hide and seek

Hide || Kiersten White
Pub Date: 24/05/22
Genre: Dark supernatural thriller, horror, suspense
Rating: 4 stars

Hide is a standalone horror thriller by author, Kiersten White.

The story follows fourteen individuals who sign up for a competition promising fame and fortune if they win a large-scale game of hide and seek, set in an abandoned amusement park. But as contestants begin to disappear under strange circumstances, it becomes evident that something more sinister and deadly is going on.

The story is interspersed with diary entries and sections told from the perspective of the game’s organizers; however, the main focus is on the contestants. I loved getting to know each of them and their backstories and personalities. I felt connected to almost all the characters in some way, my favorite being Mack. The story felt a little like Big Brother if it was a horror novel.

The author was able to create a tense and suspenseful atmosphere and I loved the amusement park setting. There is just something creepy about a run-down fair ground. The story was well paced and I eagerly kept reading. I did read a bit at night when I couldn’t sleep, and well this book didn’t exactly cure my insomnia let’s just say.

Overall, this was a fun, easy to read, part horror/part thriller which I would highly recommend.

This is my first time reading a Kiersten White book and I had a very positive impression. I think it's the perfect child between Stephen King and Squid Game, but with a fun and chilling twist: the paranormal shows in the middle of the story. And although I would never have imagined an outcome so connected to the supernatural, I ended up liking it a lot, it's a very interesting plot twist.

It has a fast and fluid start, with a very well character development, although eventually somewhat wasted. My favorite character was definitely Ava, who becomes a main character throughout the book. In relation to Ava, it may have been a bit problematic at times that there are two characters named the same. In the middle of the book it can become somewhat monotonous, but as the whole story of the “famous book” unfolds, everything becomes more better.

The premise was interesting and there was a strong start to the novel. However, the pacing was very slow and there were too many characters to sustain my interest. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

I was wholly absorbed by the odd yet thrilling hide-and-go-seek game that is the core of this story. Otherworldly and creepy, you bet, but full of characters that takes the reader to a deeper level of interest. I enjoyed the distraction the creativity behind Hide provided for me and look forward to more from Kiersten White in future.

A hide-and-seek tournament in an abandoned amusement park in which you can win 50.000 dollars. 14 competitors. 7 days. This is Mack's opportunity to change her life. When things start to get dangerous and people start disappearing, the remaining contestants may have to team up just to survive.

With a sinister prologue setting the tone, as we are eased into the competition and learn about the contestants, we get little hints, than actual glimpses, of something else going on. The descriptions make you feel like you can touch what is being described, feel what is being felt. No fanfare, just contemplative and truthful.

Can a narrative be cynical and hopeful at the same time? Yes it can if Mack is the protagonist. The build-up is properly suspenseful accompanying a hard look at human behavior. What is the secret of the creepy amusement par and the town it belongs to?

Mack seems aloof, maybe even mean at times, but the truth is she's overly cautious due to her traumatic past and unwelcoming life in shelters and foster homes. She craves human connection but doesn't know how to deal with it. She seems to be the dark horse of the competition.

You do get lost at the beginning. There are too many names and information coming at you all at once and it made me feel like I had to play catch up. I'm sure I missed things then. But I do like that we see the other characters, dip into their psyche. Everyone has their own agenda and are from so many different walks of life. The author is wonderful at writing the wacky whimsical or stabs of pain from the thought process.

A slow burner, it builds up properly to keep you intrigued until things start to get crazy. Really crazy. This is a brutally honest, dark thriller.

This was a fast paced and delightfully sinister novel with touches of Greek mythology thrown in. I thought that the setting was fabulous and that Kiersten White did a great job describing the abandoned theme-park. It made it easy to imagine how horrifying theme park rides and decorations are out of context. I liked the premise and set up and thought that this was an intriguing way to tell the story, but I did think that the number of participants in the game and the speed with which they were dispatched made it difficult to connect to the characters and lessened the impact when they 'got out'. I thought that the over-arching plot to the game itself was really fun and that the plot progressed in interesting and satisfying ways. Overall, I really enjoyed my time with this book and would definitely recommend it to any slasher fans.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

14 people are placed in an abandoned amusement Park were they must play a game of hide and seek in order to win fifty thousand dollars. Is there more sinster motives?

Firstly I'd like to say the first part of this book started of really strong for me and I did really love the setting and the whole atmosphere, I thought that was fantastic but with that being said I did think there was way to many characters and some parts of this novel I just found ridiculous if I'm being hones

In horror the chase is key. From fast paced chases around your camp site to the slow tread of dread as you hear the monster creep up the stairs its all about he feeling that we humans can always become prey too, The adrenaline rush of flight of fight makes an intoxicating read. Unfortunately when I read Hide by Kiersten White I found a tale where the interesting concept that very much became a surprising disappointment.

Mack has been running through foster families and care homes for most of her teenage years. Not averse to hiding in cupboards to stay out of sight and hide from her demons. But adulthood is nearing and soon Mack faces being alone and unprotected in a world she fears. Salvation may be at hand in the form of a company’s interesting competition. Hide for six days in an abandoned amusement park without being found and she wins fifty thousand dollars. An attractive prize for a fellow thirteen competitors. But the more the team stay they find they’re not entirely alone and a wider game is being played.

Hide sounded a really interesting concept hence I picked it up but it for me is a series of disappointing decisions. For a 250 odd page book having 14 characters is pardon the pun overkill and gives us very room to make anyone stand out. Making the choice to have two with the same name even stranger. they are all basic stereotypes. The promise raises hardly any suspicion and while that is a hallmark of slasher films you would think giving some characters some sense would be a bonus. But most of all its not particularly scary. The concept of hiding and knowing something is coming for you should be scary. This novel often glosses over the hiding part. Ultimately I did not care about anyone or anything in it

Overall I cannot recommend this as a horror story. At one point early on someone notes this could be a netflix or straight to dvd tale and unfortunately this is exactly that type of tale. Devoid of character, fear or suspense. Very boring and should not be sought.

This was an interesting premise and a decent read. I liked that the story was mostly from Mack's point of view, but also from the other characters.
I didn't know much about the story apart from it being about a "reality competition" in an old theme park, but as it unfolded, the back story made it more interesting.

3 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2022/05/26/hide-by-kiersten-white-wyrdandwonder-review/
My Five Word TL:DR Review : I wanted to love it

I really did want to love this one and in fact had high expectations. However, what I will say is that whilst I didn’t love it this was still a steady read and one that I felt compelled to make a rather mad dash through the pages to discover the reveal.

So Hide brings together 14 contestants who have applied to take part in a competition, the winner of which will receive $50,000. Each day the contestants will all find a hiding place within an abandoned and now derelict amusement park. Each day, two contestants will be eliminated. The final contestant who remains undiscovered takes home the prize. It sounds fairly simple, however, none of the contestants are prepared for what is actually seeking them.

What really drew me to this was the setting. I just loved the idea of a game that takes place in an old amusement park. I mean, the scope for an ever accelerating creep factor is just immense. Just the thought of all those ramshackle rides, carousels with faded animals and rusted mechanics creaking menacingly, it’s too enticing. And, I won’t deny that the setting is good, even more so because of its dark history. The amusement park was a hugely successful endeavour until a tragedy involving a missing child saw the place closed under mysterious circumstances. Now the stage for a strange and sinister competition with menacing undertones the place is inspired by the myth of the minotaur. The paths themselves like a labyrinth that lead to the centre of the park and the monster that awaits.

In terms of characters. We predominantly follow one character, Mack, who has her own personal family tragedy to contend with, a history that makes her feel like a shoe-in for this competition. Obviously we meet up with the other 13 characters that are taking part and this is the first issue that I struggled with. Clearly it was always going to be difficult to make some of these characters feel substantial enough to form a real connection, this is also made more difficult because of the fact that as soon as the competition starts two characters per day would be eliminated so there is a throwaway element to also be considered. However, I didn’t really find myself forming attachments to any of them. The early entrants were basically there and then gone, we had a kind of inevitable teaming up of certain characters who then found themselves with the age old dilemma of having formed attachments but still wanting to win – well, until the nature of the competition itself was finally revealed.

I have to say that I enjoyed the writing. This is an author that I’ve read before and I enjoy her style. That being said, this is a book that takes the author from her usual YA genre into the adult genre and for me this still felt a little on the YA side.

In terms of criticisms. I think a good deal of this boils down to my own expectations having gone off in the wrong direction. I think I had notions that this would be an all out horror-fest, a kind of mindless slasher story where just a couple of survivors are left scrabbling around trying to stay alive. As it is, there’s an age old underlying story of greed to this one that takes a look at wealth and privilege. On top of this, in spite of the great setting and the high stakes I just didn’t really feel the tension or fear that I wanted or expected to feel.

Overall, I had no difficulty in reading this one as I was very curious about how everything would come together but it never quite reached the potential that I was hoping for. I think maybe this also connects to the slight feeling of this erring on the side of YA and perhaps the older side of the YA market might enjoy this one more than I did.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

‘A high-stakes hide-and-seek competition turns deadly in this dark supernatural thriller.’

See that word right there. Supernatural. I wish I had read that before I started reading. Supernatural stuff is not usually my thing. Aaaaas such, I have some mixed feelings but think I enjoyed most of this.

I expected (and really wanted) a slasher and did not get one in the least so that was disappointing but obviously not the book’s fault. It had some tropes I really like and it had elements of social commentary, particularly about class which I do love, even if I’m not sure how /deep/ they were. I don’t know I’m v much not an expert, I’m an idiot with a netgalley account 🌝

It also had some tropes I really don’t like. If I had known about the supernatural angle this takes ahead of time, I wouldn’t have read it, which would have been a shame really because overall I had a good time. I also didn’t really vibe with the way some of it was written, in the form of diary entries. It was only short parts of the book and it was an effective way to give backstory without a flashback so I can’t begrudge it all that much.

Is just v v v personal taste and not at all a reflection on the author or the book because I loved the first 60% of this book before the supernatural element is fully revealed. And, with hindsight, Hide was objectively, a fun, grim, creative story with some wonderful highlightable passengers and a dark undercurrent inspired by real social issues.

Thanks so much to Netgalley, Random House UK and Cornerstone for the advanced e-copy of this one. Hide by Kiersten White is out now.

This one is a little but of a struggle to review without spoilers. How do you pick comparison titleas without giving away all of the good stuff! That film with the group of people in the place where that thing happens?

For me, the concept was a little more accomplished than the execution. With HIde having so many different characters, and so many pov's within the story, it became a little hard to keep them all straight in my mind. yet i was quite happy to stay curled up with it for as long as it took to the grand finale.

Several contestants willingly enter into a game of Hide & Seek in order to win a £50,000 prize pool. All they have to do is hide, but no-one told them what the true rules of game were, until it was too late.

This is a slow build story with little action. The book was more creepy than horrific and probably is directed towards a YA audience. It started off well with lots of narrative about Mack which was interesting, however thereafter I struggled to engage with the story. That said I was interested in the premise of the book and liked the clear influences behind the making of the story.