This book is about 3 old school friends going on their annual girls’ holiday. There’s sensible GP Liz, who is starting a trial separation with her husband, unattached Helena, who needs to do a pregnancy test before leaving and Maggie, who is devastated at leaving her young daughter with her ex. Missing is the fourth friend, Joni, who is finishing her tour as a successful musician. At Liz’s request, they are heading to Norway for a hiking and camping trip, but they become unnerved as they hear tales of a missing woman and find some of the locals at the lodge to be slightly odd.
I loved this book. It scared me at times but I felt invested in all of the characters. Lots of twists and turns. Fantastic!

Lucy Clarke is definitely the queen of destination thrillers. I loved the description of the Norwegian landscape and reading felt like a short-trip to Norway! As in "One of the girls", the story is about a friendship between 4 women. They travel each year together since they were 18 years old, for the first time not a beach vacation, but a hiking vacation. The trip goes terribly wrong when they ignore the weather forecasts and some of them did not do any hiking preparation before the trip, so they are not fit at all. Then they discover something which they better had not discovered...

I enjoyed the short chapters, the multi-POV and the fast pace of the story. Overall, it's a story about friendship. I felt well entertained, but would have loved if there had been a creepy atmosphere.

This book will certainly have you on the edge of your seat. I had a real love-hate relationship with this book. Throughout the book, it kept changing from 3 stars to 4 and back again. It's a great story don't get me wrong. But some of the things the characters do and say had me shouting at the book, lol. There was also so predictability to the story. Some decisions made were obvious. Other decisions were gobsmacking. Was this the authors clever way to make a book you feel completely involved in emotionally. Well, that is the question. There were also a few great curve balls thrown in. It was certainly an emotional roller coaster ride. This is going to be a marmite type book. Love it or hate it. You're still going to want to read it to make up your own mind.

Thanks yo the author for creating a story I loved to hate. Then I kind of liked it again.
The above review has already been placed on goodreads, waterstones, Google books, Barnes&noble, kobo, amazon UK where found and my blog https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/the-hike-by-lucy-clarke-harpercollins-4-stars and my new blog https://ladyreading365.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-hike-by-lucy-clarke-harpercollins-4.html under my name ladyreading365

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review. I have enjoyed all of Lucy Clarke’s books so I was looking forward to reading her new one. I definitely was not disappointed. An engaging story with great characters. It was fast paced and I struggled to put it down. I really felt as though I was on the trip with them in parts, proof of good writing. A few unexpected twists which I always enjoy. Another great book from Lucy Clarke. 4 stars from me.

I have a few 'automatic-read' authors, and one of those is Lucy Clarke. Every book she brings out is full of strong and complex characters with plot lines and pacing that is so delicately laid out that I'm on the edge of my seat, reading late into the night with every page and THE HIKE is no exception.

A group of four friends get together every year for a holiday, and this year, it's Liz's turn to choose. But rather than opt for a beach holiday with cocktails and sunshine, she sets herself – and her friends – the challenge of conquering a Norwegian mountain, as well as their inner demons. As you can imagine, in a remote and unforgiving location, the women have to have their wits about them if they want their friendship to survive, or make it down the mountain alive.

One of Lucy Clarke's gift is creating a sense of suspense and unease from the start, and although it did feel slightly similar to ONE OF THE GIRLS, in that we start off with a body, I didn't mind as I knew the story we were in for was worth it, and boy does it pay off!

If you're looking for your next psychological suspense thriller look no further than THE HIKE by Lucy Clarke.

I absolutely love Lucy clarkes books and this one did not disappoint. I loved the girls friendship and was not expecting who the real people behind everything was

You will find certain trends emerging in book plots at any given time, especially thrillers. Numerous books with the same theme will appear at similar times while authors ride its wave of popularity. This has certainly been the case with ‘friends stranded in a wilderness whilst on an off grid holiday that goes wrong’ over the past couple of years. Bearing this in mind, you may feel you’ve likely explored this plot before and another book has nothing new to add. However, I would urge you to pick up The Hike by Lucy Clarke nonetheless, because I can guarantee you will get something from it, even if you have read books on this theme before.

For starters, Lucy Clarke is queen of the destination thriller that centres female relationships, and this book focuses on a group solely of women. Female-only groups have a very different dynamic than mixed sex groups, particularly friends of long-standing who have years of complex relationships to untangle and who know each other intimately, including all their darkest secrets. Lucy Clarke leverages these bonds and resultant tensions to their limits to produce a book that is tense and emotional in its examination of what happens when secrets come out and relationships start to unravel in circumstances that push people to their limits and strain the facade of civility that society normally demands from us. She uses the plot to show us who we all really are when the trappings of modern comfort are stripped away and our lives are on the line. Who then can we trust and who is only out for themselves when push comes to shove.

Whilst the strength of the book is in the relationships, the setting really enhances the strain and tensions in the group and mirrors the isolation and rawness that is revealed in the women by the events on the trip. The author captures the wilderness of Norway beautifully, the harshness and danger in the awe-inspiring landscape, the distance from civilisation to which the women take themselves in every way. Despite the fact this trip leads to a dead body, I still wanted to strap on my walking boots and head off into the Scandinavian forests, despite the fact that I am no camper and prefer heat and hotel rooms to tents and storms. This is the draw of Lucy’s brilliant writing.

There is a death and a thriller plot imbedded in this book on which the peril hangs, but it is merely a means to the real end of the story, which is looking at the dynamics of the women’s friendship, and is of secondary interest to this. It works reasonably well as a thriller plot in its own right but the book amounts to so much more than this. Once again, Lucy Clarke has proven why is is one of my favourite writers of psychological thrillers working in the genre today.

Lucy Clarke writes page turning, gripping thrillers - and The Hike is no different - a pulse racing, beautifully written page turner. Lucy Clarke can do no wrong

This booksta darling has been making its way around lately so not sure I have much to add, other than to say that Lucy Clarke has done it again - another brilliant destination thriller, that had me and a wonderful crew of buddy readers, totally immersed. Can’t recommend this book and author enough.

The Hike by Lucy Clarke for me was an okay read.

The first half of the novel was good but that’s where it ended.

For me there was this slow long build up to the twist of the story but by the time the reveal comes the climax is over. Plus I had a vague idea where the story was heading too.

The characters weren’t very likeable and in turn I didn’t care much about them or their personal lives either.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for the copy of The Hike for reviewing purposes.

The Hike was my second Lucy Clarke thriller and it did not disappoint. This author knows how to create setting and atmosphere. This book takes its reader to Norway for a mountain hike that is bound to go wrong.

Told in the alternating POVs of four best friends on their annual holiday, we get the dual-tension of the mystery surrounding a woman’s disappearance just a year before, and the various secrets and personal dramas that the friends are trying to conceal from one another.

Lucy Clarke gets the friendship dynamic as well as the location-atmosphere spot on and despite the book’s plot, I’m quite tempted to go for a hike in the Norwegian wilderness myself now.

This is a solid and gripping thriller that will keep you turning its pages. What more can you want?

With thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollinsUK for this eARC.

An atmospheric read set in the mountains in Norway. A girls retreat with a difference. Liz decides to give the beach and cocktails a break and go for a hiking holiday. Two friends are very reluctant and a surprise guest appears. You could feel the isolation as strange events start happening. Great characters and a gripping, twisty story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this ARC! Unfortunately this was a major letdown.

This is a thriller focusing on four friends who go hiking in Norway and it all goes wrong. That’s the plot really.

I really enjoyed the survival aspect but I couldn’t stand a single one of these characters. Maggie maybe had some redeeming qualities but at the same time she was a bit of a wet blanket. Were we supposed to like Joni? These characters were selfish, unlikeable and I didn’t believe in their friendship whatsoever considering they all seemed to be such bad friends to each other. I struggled to get into the book in the first place but was hoping it would pick up. It didn’t. It just felt so random and messy and considering You Let Me In by Lucy Clarke is one of my favourite thrillers I was really disappointed in this one.

I will read more from Lucy Clarke in the future though and if you want to read this one it came out on 27th April 2023. Yes it took me this long to get through it because it was a SLOG.

Lucy Clarke always writes enjoyable thrillers and the particular strength of these is the strong emphasis on location and atmosphere.

This time, we are transported to Norway, where four friends are trying to escape their various problems on a hiking holiday. However, that turns out to be wishful thinking on their part, as things go from bad to worse on their trip and they may not actually make it home again.

As well as the setting, I also enjoyed the dynamics of the group - the characters were all well-written and easy to keep clear in my mind..

Lucy Clarke is an author I would always recommend.

Thanks to the author, HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

I loved this book as I have loved all of Lucy's others.

This had a different feel than the previous ones and it took me a while to settle in to but once I did it was brilliant!

Incredibly atmospheric!

What a great read! I love the way Lucy manages to transport you to the location of her books through her amazingly clever, descriptive storytelling!

Liz, Maggie, Helena and Joni all set off on a hike, aiming for the peak of Blafjell mountain in the Norwegian wilderness. Friends since school, this trip is a little different compared to their usual sunny holidays, but this mountain is somewhere they’d always wanted to go ever since studying about it when they were younger.

Each woman has some kind of drama going on in their life, so I think they are hoping that this hike is exactly what they need. If only Liz had listened to the local lady about turning back, things could’ve ended so differently! If she had though, that wouldn’t make this a very fun book to read now, would it?

Lucy is a hugely talented writer, I enjoy following her on social media and love that she takes her research so seriously. After following her own hiking trip with her husband, I just knew this would be a great book to read!

The Hike is hugely atmospheric, incredibly suspenseful and at times pretty chilling! It played out in my mind like a movie and I could imagine everything perfectly. I warmed quickly to each of the women for different reasons and was rooting for them all the way. Whilst I wouldn’t say this book has any massive jaw-dropping twists, I honestly don’t think it needs any. I enjoyed the story and the journey it took me on, and the ending was gripping yet emotional.

A thoroughly enjoyable read!

Thank you to Lucy Clarke, Harper Collins and NetGalley for my copy of this book.

I'm not a fan of mountains and heights at the best of times but this book definitely reinforced all fears! The Hike follows four life long friends, Liz, Maggie, Helena and Joni on their annual getaway. This year, they plan to tackle one of Norways peaks. As soon as they arrive though, tensions are high and soon, the trip takes a dark turn.

This book had me hooked from the first chapter. Clarke's writing is so gripping and the way she crafted this was so clever. It's atmospheric and full of suspense making it such a page turner!  I loved reading about these four characters and the multiple POVs allow the reader to get an insight into each woman's personality and life.

Honestly, if you're looking for a quick thriller that keeps you guessing, this is one to pick up!

* Please look up trigger warnings before reading *

I’ll start by saying, I bloody love a Lucy Clarke thriller, so I was mega excited for this one! Safe to say it was another amazing read.

The pace of the story starts off steady and builds up as we go along. With it being told over different POV’s it made you need to keep reading to see what was happening constantly.

The setting and atmosphere is so well written, it feels like you’re actually there and you get totally consumed by it all. Certain parts were so eerie and claustrophobic too, making it really suspenseful and at times a bit stressful to read.

I wouldn’t say any of the characters were particularly likeable, but I don’t think they’re meant to be. Their complex personalities and situations added to the plot and constant developing drama. There was very messy dynamics in the group and it brought even more instability to everything.

Towards the end, the twists are thick and fast, the pacing is furious and it really hits a fever pitch - totally loved it! For a well developed and brilliantly atmospheric thriller, I massively recommend this!

The Hike ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Every year four old school friends leave their lives behind to reconnect in a girls trip, this year it’s Liz’s turn to pick the location and she’s gone off piste (sorry🤦‍♀️) and decided on an ambitious hike up a Norwegian mountain. Needless to say things begin to quickly go wrong and it soon becomes clear that’s it’s pretty unlikely that they’ll all make it home.

Really enjoyed the distinctive voices of the women and all the different dynamics in the group, some of whom were more likeable than others.

Just like the previous books I’ve read by this author it was another brilliant page turner of a thriller, which kept me on my toes thanks to a few clever red herrings.

The Hike follows 4 lifelong friends on their annual holiday, this time switching up a sunny beachy holiday for a hike through a picturesque Norwegian mountain. The writing is both transporting and suspenseful, leaving me imagining what it would be like to wild camp in the middle of nowhere then hear a noise beyond the tent…

I loved the multiple POV but did find myself a little confused when the point of the dual timeline was revealed as it wasn’t the timeline I was expecting. Lucy’s books are always plot-twisty which I love and this was definitely a wrong place wrong time situation! I wasn’t completely hooked by The Hike like I was with The Castaways which remains my favourite book by Lucy.

I am so extremely grateful for the opportunity to receive an ARC for this and I can’t wait to see what Lucy releases in the future.