Hide was a great wee read which appealed to the horror fan within me. It centres on Mack, survivor of an extremely traumatic incident has a young child and now firmly of no fixed abode. She survives day to day in a shelter where she has a bed, gets fed and then will be turned out into the streets to fend for herself each day until the shelter opens again and she returns for another night’s sleep. By day Mack hides away in a secret spot where she will be off the streets and out of danger.

At the shelter on the day we join the story Mack is presented with an opportunity to turn her ability to vanish into a money making opportunity. A reality game show – spend a week hiding in a 7 day game of hide and seek against 13 other competitors with a $50k prize to the winner. She really can’t refuse and finds herself pulled along by events and on a long journey heading towards the park where the competition will take place.

The action takes place within an abandoned amusement park. It’s a wild and long-forgotten site where the paths inside twist and turn. The foliage within has taken over and the rides are sprinkled within the mazelike paths which no planner was able to carefully map out for the guests who once attended to enjoy the attractions. The quirk of the amusement park back in the day was that guests would stumble upon the rides, there was no direct lines of sight from one area to the next and only one day per year were the gates flung open for all the local to enjoy the thrills within. Now it will host a competitive game of hide and seek.

Kiersten White introduces the contestants and any viewer of reality TV shows will recognise the quirky characters, the wise heads, the glamour ones and we will pick our favourites. Amusingly the contestants know how these games work too and we see them judging and assessing the competition and even picking out possible romantic partners.

Into the tournament and things start to take a dark turn. Who are the seekers? Are they using animals to assist their hunt? Why is this park so difficult to navigate? Is that blood?

As their numbers start to dwindle (two players eliminated each day) it becomes clear to Mack and her fellow contestants that something is very wrong with the game they are playing but will it be too late for them to raise alarm? You cannot help but be drawn into the thrill and tension of this story and there is much more going on with this game of hide and seek than you will anticpate.

I had a lot of fun with Hide. Some small frustrations, not least the author’s decision to get a bit poetic with language when something unpleasant is happening on the page. I had to re-read one or two passages to try to work out exactly what had happened. But the niggles were far outweighed by the enjoyment at an unexpected series of twists and turns. After a run of so-so reads this shook things up nicely.

What a fantastic, gripping read this book is. From start to finish the pace is relentless, the characters are relatable and the tension is palpable. Early on in the book I flagged up the name of the town and dismissed it, then about halfway through suddenly everything fell into place with a huge lightbulb moment. The story shines a light on modern expectations and entitlements is very cleverly done.

Hide is very much a mixed bag and may work considerably better as a screenplay than it does as a novel. The main premise is that people have to hide for twelve hours a day but, when it comes down to it, a story about people hiding turns out not to be massively interesting, even when it becomes clear that the daily eliminations are a tad more permanent than the contestants were led to believe.

With fourteen contestants to keep track of, it was inevitable that a proportion of the character development would be fairly poor, but it was so sketchy that if I hadn’t been keeping notes as I went along, I would have struggled to remember who was who. It’s easier to remember their tropes, because they follow a pretty generic bent. Even the bad guys are cartoonish.

All in all, it was somewhat ‘meh’ and rather disappointing.

I received a free reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

14 contestants lured into a deadly challenge having been promised a hefty cash prize and being a part of a new reality show. If you enjoy the OTT antics of modern day reality shows and the superficial attention grabbing stunts that these shows capitalise on then this book is for you. If you like a side order of gory, supernatural horror, then what are you waiting for? This is a blood splattered, fast paced, creepy read that I raced through.

The plot is loosely based on the minotaur and maze story, and a critique of class. privilege and generational wealth exploits those seen as disposable in society. I can see that this was part of the book, but not in any depth that spoiled the story, nor in a way that would make the book memorable. Instead I just enjoyed the slightly campy, schlocky plot that provided me with a few evenings of pure escapism.

My thanks go to the publishers and NetGalley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.

I loved the premise for this book: Game of hide and seek, abandoned theme park, characters you're rooting for. But the pace was too slow for me and I couldn't really get into it. Initially there are so many key characters to meet that it spent like way too much time was spent on who they are and I was only really interested in a few of them.

My favourite part of the book was the diary that is discovered towards the end. Chillingly, I think we all know someone with the potential to be a 'Linda'.

Thank you to NetGalley and Randon House UK for providing me an eARC of Hide! All opinions discussed here are my own.

This was an interesting one... an interesting take on the Minotaur myth with a unique reality TV spin that worked really well. However, the writing style (frantically changing points of views) and rushed final act kept this from being better. An enjoyable read, with engaging characters and story, but at the end, was just ok. 3.5 out of 5. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Fourteen people sign up to a game of hide and seek with a twist. All you have to do is hide in an abandoned amusement park for seven days and if you are last to be found, you could walk away with a life changing amount of money. Oh and chances are you are being filmed and the game will launch your career too.

I loved the concept of this novel and it’s nods to Lord of the Flies and Hunger Games. At only 256 pages, I figured that this would be a speedy spooky read. I enjoyed learning about the contestants and their motivations for signing up for the game.

In the majority though, I was disappointed with how the great idea for a plot was executed. At points it was confusing and hard to get back into once I picked it up to read again. I considered DNF or skipping ahead at 40% and it was only my fondness for one character which kept me reading on. Though I appreciated multiple narratives, the narrative voice switched too often without warning which was jarring. I was glad I did read on because the introduction of diary entries engaged my interest again. There are some great points about the distribution of wealth and power in the latter part of the book. Though I found the motivations of the organisers interesting to read, the reason for the game was too far fetched and incredible.

I am glad I read it but it did feel a slog and not the quick, thrilling read I was hoping for.
2.5 stars, rounded up.

Thank you to the author, Del Rey and NetGalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Randon House UK for providing me an eARC of Hide! All opinions discussed here are my own.

I definitely enjoyed this one and felt it was really atmospheric. I enjoyed our range of main characters and the development we got for the main few as the story went on. Mack's background was eerie and creepy and honestly I think that could have been a story in itself. I think the book was well paced but what let it down slightly for me was the ending as it was left quite open and i'm one that likes clean and tied up endings - I would have loved it to give a glimpse into what happened next.

Hide, Kiersten White's adult fiction debut, did not work for me in any way at all. I'd say it's probably the worst book I've read so far this year. The premise is excellent: a group of people compete for prize money by spending a week hiding in an abandoned amusement park without getting caught. My obsession with abandoned amusement parks as horror settings dates back to L.J Smith's classic The Kill, and as I also love Hunger-Games style set-ups and set-piece horror, I couldn't request this book quickly enough. Thrillers with evocative settings where people are trapped in a small area tend to work very well for me; for example, Ruth Ware's One by One, or Lauren James's The Loneliest Girl In The Universe. So where did Hide go so wrong?

First and foremost, there is very little hiding and very little amusement park for a book with this premise. Hide starts well but quickly lurches away from its original set-up to become (view spoiler). Any kind of description of the setting disappears and the characters give up on finding interesting hiding places. Obviously, a book where people just sit in one place the whole time would swiftly become boring, but I've read other novels where a hide-and-seek premise has been made genuinely tense, such as Gin Phillips's Fierce Kingdom. However, Hide might still have worked on its own terms had it not been for the ludicrously bad writing. Rather than taking a few of these characters and sticking to them, White cycles through the heads of the entire cast in an incredibly dull, tick-box way. Line by line, the prose is also jarringly awkward. Finally, White seems to want to make this a commentary on class and generational privilege rather than just a fun thriller, and while I am definitely a fan of critiques of class and generational privilege, this novel couldn't carry it. The ending lines were particularly absurd, making me feel like White just gave up on this novel, wrote something random and mailed it off to her editor.

I love trashy, fun thrillers, and am happy to skim over many issues if I'm invested, but I just didn't enjoy reading this. Apologies to everybody involved.

"The challenge: spend a week hiding in an abandoned amusement park and don't get caught.

The prize: enough money to change everything"
Unfortunately just ok

First and foremost, my utmost thanks to Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey, and NetGalley for the ARC.

The challenge: a high stakes hide-and-seek competition set in an abandoned amusement park.
The objective: Be the last one to be found after seven days.
The outcome: the winner receives enough money to change their circumstances.
The even bigger challenge: staying alive.

Mack is certain she has this competition in the bag. She's an expert at hiding and escaping from a recent traumatic tragedy. She meets thirteen strangers who are competing to change their fortunes or are trying to outrun their past. But as her fellow competitors disappear one-by-one, Mack realizes they may need to work together in order to win.

I enjoyed the concept of this book - Squid Game meets the Minotaur myth. The opening chapter showed a lot of promise and White's writing is incredibly atmospheric. I enjoyed Mack and the slow reveal of her backstory as well as her internal monologue and reasoning to her motivations.

It was hard to get attached to characters because there were so many of them (the fourteen competitors as well as people who organize the competition) and I wound up confused since the author jumped POV suddenly. It had a script-like quality in that regard. I did enjoy Mack and Ava as characters and how they interacted with each other. It felt more cinematic in scope than literary and I could definitely see Netflix or another streaming service snatching this story up for a miniseries.

I enjoyed this, particularly the lead female character and her gradual acceptance that by lowering her emotional defences she has a better chance of surviving the nightmare, and finding some Solace. But, ultimately once the 'monster' was exposed the majority of the fear drained away.

I read the entire book in an afternoon which I automatically think makes a book worthy of 5 stars. Something kept me turning page after page and I havent come across anything like this before.

If you like the film Cabin In The Woods, this is a great book for you.

2.5/5
The premise of this book sounded absolutely perfect for me, but it just didn’t deliver.
The overall pacing was really slow and the character development wasn't there. I found I just didn't care about anyone at all. Agree with others, the POV was also extremely jumpy and didn't really benefit the story.
I'm a but sad, as I really wanted to love this one but it ended up being just OK.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are"

14 Competitors
7 Days
1 abandoned amusement park
The list is set!

I liked the premise of this story, a competition held in an abandoned theme park! A simple game 'Hide & Seek' last one standing gets the cash prize, but turns out the competition is actually a cover for something a lot more sinister.

The book switches between POV by the sentence which I found confusing and hard to keep up with the. The start was a little slow while the introductions of the competitors are brought together, we get snippets from each about their feelings, not sure what this added to the story. I didn't really connect to any of the characters so found it hard to care. I would have liked to see have seen more backstory's around the competitors and what made them want to take part in the competition.

I was expecting more of an atmosphere, but it felt a little weak. So much could have been done to describe the setting and make it have a creepy feeing.

There's a few plot holes along the way, that just gave me the feeling that what I was reading didn't feel like a final version of the book, for me it felt like to much was still to be fleshed out.

I'm a little disappointed because I have enjoyed Kiersten's other work, maybe this one just was not for me. It didn't feel like an adult book to me, sure there were a few swear words thrown around but other than that I can't see why this wasn't a YA.

Thanks to Netgalley & Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey for an advanced e-arc copy of this.

Hide is a fast-paced novel that will have you on tenterhooks turning every page.

Following a motley crew of people, these mysterious strangers gather together to enter a competition to win $50,000 in a competition that is not promoted widely and only offered to the select few. To win all they have to do is hide in an abandoned theme park and not get caught for one week. Sounds simple, right? Except the part where phone signal mysteriously cuts out; the organisers seem to be a tad too suspicious; and the howling screams start to become all too real as the competition plays out and the body count begins to increase. It's a scramble to win, to survive, to find out why they were selected for this competition, and who - or what - is killing them all.

This story was so addictive to read and I couldn't put it down; as an unexpected survival horror, I quickly came to enjoy reading about all of the characters in the group and their differing motivations. Mack is our central character and all of her quirks and flaws make her quite the unreliable narrator. As such, knowing who to trust throughout becomes increasingly unclear so I found myself second guessing all of my theories as I went along. I particularly liked the two Ava's and how, to write two characters with the same name, you instantly know which Ava was speaking and the kinds of actions they might take. White's characterisation is unparalleled in this narrative.

Truly though, nothing could have surprised me more about the source of the murders when the historical notes were revealed. The idea of a summoning gone wrong, all for social and political gain, struck such a poignant note that, upon reading White's author's note, how could you not feel anger about this fictional world but the real one too? The systemic oppression and exploitation of generational trauma is so acute and expertly played out against the background of consumerism and greed; even with a fictional spin, the weight of the message is no less important.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read and cannot wait for it to come out to get everyone I know to read it too!

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but it didn't do anything for me. It's just really slow-paced with not much action happening for the most part, and there are so many characters to keep track of, I just couldn't find myself invested in any of them. 2 stars out of 5

1.5 - The premise of this book sounded really good but it just didn’t deliver. The pacing is slow, the POV is constantly jumping about and there was no real character development. Not for me I’m afraid!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It’s hard to review this book as I went in knowing next to nothing and I had such a good reading experience.

All I will say about their is a competition with a cash prize to hide in an abandoned theme park for 7 days and not get found. The group of competitors is a wide range of people.

From the first page the atmosphere of this book made me feel so tense in the best way.

I was so looking forward to this book but it was a struggle to finish it. This author usually writes YA novels and this is their first foray into adult horror. It did not work and they should stick to what they do best. Saying that I am sure other readers will enjoy it more just not for me.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.