The Hunger by Alma Katsu

I've posted a video review of The Hunger on my Facebook page @bookaliciousbabe.  

I'll just say this was an unexpected find during a visit to Barnes & Noble; I went to work the next day and it came across my desk; that meant I had to read it! 

A real thriller/chiller retelling of the Donner Party Tragedy of 1846-47 with a supernatural twist. I consider this a horror novel.  I even go so far as to say it would make a good book club discussion book.  

American pioneers were an extraordinarily brave group of people, traveling across unknown territory hundreds of miles with only a hope that the end resulted in a place they could settle, raise a family, and create a new life. That's tough enough, but imagine if on the way (which you started months too late to safely get through before the snow starts flying), something is stalking you. Something that is not natural; something that looks human but isn't quite--was it ever human? Imagine that there's more than one of these creatures, and as you become more desperate as food runs low, tempers flare, hope begins to fade, you realize something horrible is out there, waiting to strike. 

The tension ramps up in this novel, and Alma Katsu masterfully blends the past with the present situation for each of the main characters. Everyone has secrets they are running from, and this wagon train to California forces those secrets out. Just how far will people go to survive?

Take a look at my video review; hope you enjoy it. I tend to just start recording and whatever falls out of my mouth, well, that's it. That's how I review books. 

Rating:  5/6 for a thriller that kept me on the edge. Even knowing what the actual outcome of the Donner Party was, I still kept hoping something would change. Throw in a horrible supernatural slant, and the story takes on an even darker edge. It's been optioned for a film, and I hope it happens--I'll go see it!

Available in hardcover and ebook.