The Hike, by Lucy Clarke, opens with the dramatically terrible news that one of the four women on this hiking adventure is going to die. This thriller was an odd case where the big A-plot hook was underwhelming, but the subplots, characters, setting and vibes were amazing. So the big hook is that one woman is going to die on this hike. Someone isn’t coming back! Who could it be? SO DRAMATIC! But actually, when the Big Moment happened, I was more like, oh, right, so that’s how we’re gonna tie all that off. Well done.
The rest of the book was great, an absolute page-turner as well as a friendship story. Four school friends have kept in touch, and meet up once a year for a group vacation. This year, Liz has chosen a strenuous hiking holiday, and she’s sent her friends packing suggestions and fitness videos to prepare for this trip. Tandem sent me this fun BuzzFeed quiz, and apparently I’m a Liz, but let’s be real, I’m not nearly Type A enough. Liz is a busy and successful doctor and mom, married to her high-school sweetheart.
Each of the friends – Liz, Maggie, Helena, and Joni – is in a different stage of life, and coping with different problems. This is where the story really shines. I absolutely believed these women were real, lifelong friends, every scene had layers of affection, annoyance, and expectation. I could see how they’ve all changed since high school, and all they’d had to do, in various ways, to get the annual trip out of the group chat.
The Hike uses an omniscient third-person narrator, and it really works. Every time it focused on one woman’s emotions, I felt myself agreeing with her perspective, even when it was in opposition to one or more of the others. I eyerolled along with one friend at her friend’s overpacking, for example, but then I understood why she wanted to cover every possibility. When there was a certain big misunderstanding, I nodded along with Helena’s viewpoint and then Joni’s.
I also really enjoyed the setting, there’s a wonderful focus both on the natural beauty and the isolation. My Instagram is usually equal parts cool books and cool mushrooms, so I was predisposed to like a hiking trip. (Oh, wait, maybe I am the Liz.) The friends get to see some gorgeous views, while also suffering from blisters and disappointing trail food. The trail logbook with their expected return date was such a great piece of scene-setting on multiple levels.
And you know I always like thrillers where the characters get cut off from everyone else! An isolated hike is just perfect for that kind of drama, and it leads to intriguing, page-turning scenes when the characters have to survive on their wits.
Finally, I liked the balance of clues and misdirections throughout this thriller. The friends meet some other hikers and outdoorsy types, and the overall question is about who choose to be outdoors for the solitude and natural beauty, and who choose the isolation for sinister reasons. It felt realistic and unforced.
The Hike was such a fun, page-turning blend of a warm friendship story and an twisty, isolated mystery, with a gorgeous setting too.
Recommended for fans of Lucy Foley’s The Hunting Party, although The Hike is about actual friends, not frenemies.