The book starts innocently with Chris Sheen out for his morning run. Chris describes himself as a former fat bastard, so he hasn't always been a fitness freak but he does take his exercise seriously. He's constantly pushing himself to beat his personal best time and is really proud of himself when he smashes it as he arrives at his front door. As he looks up at his house, he notices that the curtains are still drawn in the bedroom, which is a bit odd as his wife would usually be up and about getting the girls ready for school. He pushes open the front door and is met with silence - now he really does know that something is wrong. He runs through the house looking for his family and when he enters the kitchen there's a strange man stood drinking his coffee. He's told to be ready when they come back for him or he'll never see his family again.

Without giving too much of the story away, Chris finds himself in the Welsh mountains being hunted by rich hunters who pay to hunt people. These rich clients think they're in a real life video game and have no idea that Chris's family has been kidnapped and he has been forced to be their prey. There is another hunt going on at the same time as Rose, who escaped from such a hunt, has come back to make the organisers, known as The Trail, pay for killing her family. Rose is torn between helping Chris and making him bait so she can get revenge on The Trail.

This is a really fast paced thriller that had me whipping through each page at a lightning pace. I made the mistake of starting it at work on my lunchbreak and really didn't want to put it down! Prepare to be up all night as the hunters close in on their prey and Chris really does run for his life as he races to save his family.

I received this e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

A really gripping fast paced thriller ( )

Nope...just did not do it for me...chase books always seem to follow the same structure not surprisingly...The good guys Chris and Rose must escape the bad guys "The Trail" who have paved the way for some rich clients to carry out a human hunt/kill. If Chris escapes his family the lovely Terri and his two beautiful kids will be murdered...however if Chris meets his demise at the hand of the rich clients then his family is set free....decisions....decisions.....Helping Chris is the disturbed Rose, whoose family was wiped out on a previous hunt and she is after retribution. So we spend 400 pages following our two heroes as they appear to run all over rural Wales dodging bullets and keeping the bad guys at bay....will Chris save the day? will Rose have revenge?....frankly who cares I only kept reading because I enjoy running and appreciated the momentum of the story if not it's actual content! Fun for a fast read but not a book I really enjoyed... ( )

The Hunt – A fast paced thriller

Tim Lebbon is a fantastic fantasy writer who has had over 30 books published, what he had never written was a crime thriller and with The Hunt he will blow you away. To call it a fast paced thriller would be to undersell this brilliant haunting page turning thriller. It would be possible to throw every cliché in this review to describe The Hunt and still not find the right words as it is so breath taking. Lebbon’s skill as a writer shines through on every page and like an angler he gets you hooked and then reels you in.

Chris Sheen is a middle aged architect that works from home but every morning loves to go for a run to blast the cobwebs away, something he has done since he turned 40 and discovered an overweight person staring back at him in the mirror. One morning he gets home and the house is silent the kids and his wife Terri are making no sound but he can smell coffee. He searches the house and becomes worried especially when he finds blood in the bathroom, when he reaches the kitchen his blood turns cold.

A strange man is drinking his coffee and telling him if he does everything he is told then his wife and children will live, he cannot call the police or they die. He is told to wait and in an hour he will be told what to do and where to go, but an interloper has other ideas, and we are introduced to Rose, the one that got away. As she explains what is about to happen and what will happen if he does not come with her the chances of seeing his family will be remote.

As she explains about that he is subject to a hunt and that she is trying to even up the odds in his favour and how she is the one that got away from The Trail and they murdered her family because of that.

It would be easy to give away the entire plot and ruin it for people so I will keep things brief with no spoilers, but to keep his family alive some very rich and connected people will hunt him Chris as if he were a wild animal and Rose will be his support. The only thing is Chris has to run and hope for the best and put his trust in Rose.

This is a brilliant book with chapters that flick between Rose, Chris and his captive family until they eventually merge. The way it is written will keep you on the edge of your seat as you hope just hope that Chris and Rose can actually survive when being hunted by a greater force. The pace is not just in Chris’ running but in the writing too, the imagery is vivid and there is always the feeling of hope and despair not far away from each other.

The Hunt is twisted and dark; fast paced and energetic it will leave you amazed and slightly addicted the characters, and like all thrillers it is twisted in such a way it will leave you wanting more. Simply a brilliant thriller that delivers on every level. ( )

Chris comes back from his morning run to discover a stranger drinking coffee in his kitchen and his family are missing. He has been chosen by a group to use as "prey" for rich people to hunt. This book was non stop action all the way through and impossible to put down. I felt as if I was running alongside Chris the whole time with the tension and adrenalin. A fantastic book which I highly recommend to anyone who loves thrillers! ( )