Audiobook Review – The Hike by Drew Magary, Narrated by Christopher Lane (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 8 hours and 4 minutes (409 pages)
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Release Date: August 2, 2016
ASIN: B01HIJ011I
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Audiobook from Audible.com
Rating: 4/5 stars

“When Ben, a suburban family man, takes a business trip to rural Pennsylvania, he decides to spend the afternoon before his dinner meeting on a short hike. Once he sets out into the woods behind his hotel, he quickly comes to realize that the path he has chosen cannot be given up easily. With no choice but to move forward, Ben finds himself falling deeper and deeper into a world of man-eating giants, bizarre demons, and colossal insects.

On a quest of epic, life-or-death proportions, Ben finds help comes in some of the most unexpected forms, including a profane crustacean and a variety of magical objects, tools, and potions. Desperate to return to his family, Ben is determined to track down the “Producer,” the creator of the world in which he is being held hostage and the only one who can free him from the path.”

This is a stand alone book that was a bit strange but still enjoyable. It’s a fantasy horror that for some reason reminded me of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series in tone.

I listened to this on audiobook and the narrator has this slightly sardonic tone to his voice the whole time that fits the story really well. Character voices were done very nicely too.

Ben decides to go on a hike behind his hotel and finds himself in a horrific world where he must stay on the path to survive. He faces horrors followed by short breaks of comfort as he journeys down the path to find the Producer, hoping that this Producer can finally send him back home.

While this is definitely a fantasy it’s very heavy on the horror aspect. While I didn’t find it too scary or creepy, there is definitely a lot of gore and swearing. Some of the horrific descriptions are incredibly graphic and will make you go “ewwww”.

The story is strangely compelling and I had trouble “putting it down”. The story is adventure, horror, fantasy, and irony all mixed up in one. I loved the ending and the irony of it all.

Overall this was a strange little book that I found strangely engaging. I loved the blend of horror and fantasy and the somewhat creepy fairy tale tone to it as well. I really enjoyed the irony of the end and was happy that I picked this up to listen to.