The Hitchhikers - by Chevy Stevens

This one was painful to read at times simply because the empath in me SO struggled with the injustice of this couple's perfect trip being taken over. An intense read, we follow Alice and Tom, camping across remote Canadian highways during the summer of 1976, in their RV, which also happens to be the year of my birth, which made it that much more fun and relatable. They have the perfect trip planned until they run into a young couple at a campground. A bit of kindness turns into the start of a nightmare, one that will lead them all on a terrifying road trip they'll never forget. My heart broke for this couple, for those that they meet along the way, and I struggled right alongside them the entire time. This ends on a turn I never expected, and in the end, I couldn't help but feel bad, even for those who truly didn't deserve it. A rollercoaster of a ride and so worth it!!

This is a thriller that surprised me with the layers that were included in the story. A compelling read with plenty of action, this book had me horrified and gasping at times while at others, I just wanted the story to move along since I thought that a lot of the terrible events became repetitive after a while. Alice and Tom are on an epic road adventure in their RV, traveling and discovering more about each other as they try to heal from a recent devastating loss. When two down-on-their-luck hitchhikers appeal to their good-natured generosity, they offer Simon and Jenny a ride. Then the real horror show begins because Jenny and Simon are not who they pretend to be, so Alice and Tom become enmeshed in violence and assaults that they were never prepared for. The pace started slow and then picked up as Simon and Jenny start showing their true colors. I did not think the characters were particularly relatable but they were realistically portrayed in their particular roles. The story was engaging most of the time, but sometimes I just wanted the trip to be over so I could find out who, if anyone survived, the disasters that kept following Simon and Jenny. Alice and Tom’s decision to help out two young people changed their lives and was certainly an eye-opening and scary story about not always trusting people’s outward appearance. I voluntarily received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions expressed are my own.