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GORGE
A litany of confessions.
A maze of tribulations.
A test of endurance.
Dangerously obese Marty Clawson persuades her cheating husband to dump her in the woods where she hopes to be scared skinny.
But her fantasies about heroic outdoor survival flop as hard as her marriage. Dejected beyond measure, she takes a bus to Montana to visit an old high school suitor–someone she once suspected too sinister to pursue.
Turns out her initial suspicions about him were spot-on. She soon finds herself in the exact predicament she'd so long imagined. Only now she must outwit a vast wilderness ... and sheer evil.
Marty Clawson's got a big problem: 264 pounds’ worth. Doc warns of dire consequences if something doesn't change, but Marty's already tried every diet on the market plus an endless list of her own concoctions. Still, she devises a NEW PLAN–and unlike the others–this one is terrifying: a rendezvous with the state park, a place she considers the very heart of darkness (and snack-free) where she won't emerge again until she is thin. Hubby Raymond believes the method too dangerous–abandoning his super-sized wife like a broken dresser–and refuses to help with her scheme; his crap attitude, along with everything else, changes when she catches him in bed with an aging porn star.
Surviving the backwoods alone is challenging for a seasoned outdoorsman but unthinkable for a woman nearing red-alert obesity; yet, she believes it's her last chance to avoid eating herself to death. Despite Ray's newfound assistance, Marty fails at her plan. Desperate and depressed, she contacts Logan Myers, a peculiar boy from her past. Her hopelessness prompts her to accept his offer of bus fare north into the unforgiving Montana bush where he hunts and traps wild animals.
Logan soon reveals himself to be far worse than she remembered. So bad that he tosses her to the elements as punishment for rejecting him. In a wicked and ironic twist, her once farfetched idea morphs into an epic web of repetitious terrain and pure malevolence.
Now she needs to make it back to the Greyhound station before nightfall, without getting mauled by a random grizzly or discovered by a roaming psychopath determined to hunt her down.
THE CHASE IS ON.
A maze of tribulations.
A test of endurance.
Dangerously obese Marty Clawson persuades her cheating husband to dump her in the woods where she hopes to be scared skinny.
But her fantasies about heroic outdoor survival flop as hard as her marriage. Dejected beyond measure, she takes a bus to Montana to visit an old high school suitor–someone she once suspected too sinister to pursue.
Turns out her initial suspicions about him were spot-on. She soon finds herself in the exact predicament she'd so long imagined. Only now she must outwit a vast wilderness ... and sheer evil.
Marty Clawson's got a big problem: 264 pounds’ worth. Doc warns of dire consequences if something doesn't change, but Marty's already tried every diet on the market plus an endless list of her own concoctions. Still, she devises a NEW PLAN–and unlike the others–this one is terrifying: a rendezvous with the state park, a place she considers the very heart of darkness (and snack-free) where she won't emerge again until she is thin. Hubby Raymond believes the method too dangerous–abandoning his super-sized wife like a broken dresser–and refuses to help with her scheme; his crap attitude, along with everything else, changes when she catches him in bed with an aging porn star.
Surviving the backwoods alone is challenging for a seasoned outdoorsman but unthinkable for a woman nearing red-alert obesity; yet, she believes it's her last chance to avoid eating herself to death. Despite Ray's newfound assistance, Marty fails at her plan. Desperate and depressed, she contacts Logan Myers, a peculiar boy from her past. Her hopelessness prompts her to accept his offer of bus fare north into the unforgiving Montana bush where he hunts and traps wild animals.
Logan soon reveals himself to be far worse than she remembered. So bad that he tosses her to the elements as punishment for rejecting him. In a wicked and ironic twist, her once farfetched idea morphs into an epic web of repetitious terrain and pure malevolence.
Now she needs to make it back to the Greyhound station before nightfall, without getting mauled by a random grizzly or discovered by a roaming psychopath determined to hunt her down.
THE CHASE IS ON.
211 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 17, 2020
402 people are currently reading
409 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
January 2, 2025
This is a survival horror novel with an unlikely protagonist and a very tense atmospheric narrative.
Marty is a morbidly obese woman, using food as an addict and trying to fill something inside of her. Her doctor, family, and friends all tell her she's going to die if she doesn't do something.
Her husband, Ray, is a lout for the most part. He's addicted to porn and strippers. When Marty decides to do something drastic in order to lose weight, it doesn't go quite as planned.
Her plan is for Ray to drive hours from their house and drop her off in the woods. She'll only come out once she's lost her weight. That doesn't go well.
She decides to go to Montana to visit an old school friend, Logan. Logan was a creepy kid but had a crush on Marty and maybe they can reconnect.
But Logan is a psychopath. And soon, Marty must survive in an endless forest not only from being hunted by Logan and his dog but surviving the elements and mother nature as well as grizzly bears and other wild beasts.
It's an intense fear fueled story that grips your attention from the start and keeps it. It's just about Marty's self worth and redemption from thoughts which harm her as it is about the terrors of being alone in the forest for days with no food or water. She must learn to adapt and learn or suffer horribly.
I really loved the character despite her flaws. She's self aware but her low self esteem doesn't allow her to get the help she needs. She's easily sympathetic as she struggles to last in a world she knows nothing about while being hunted by a man who makes the forest his home and bloody playground.
Filled with tension and dread, I highly recommend this book.
Marty is a morbidly obese woman, using food as an addict and trying to fill something inside of her. Her doctor, family, and friends all tell her she's going to die if she doesn't do something.
Her husband, Ray, is a lout for the most part. He's addicted to porn and strippers. When Marty decides to do something drastic in order to lose weight, it doesn't go quite as planned.
Her plan is for Ray to drive hours from their house and drop her off in the woods. She'll only come out once she's lost her weight. That doesn't go well.
She decides to go to Montana to visit an old school friend, Logan. Logan was a creepy kid but had a crush on Marty and maybe they can reconnect.
But Logan is a psychopath. And soon, Marty must survive in an endless forest not only from being hunted by Logan and his dog but surviving the elements and mother nature as well as grizzly bears and other wild beasts.
It's an intense fear fueled story that grips your attention from the start and keeps it. It's just about Marty's self worth and redemption from thoughts which harm her as it is about the terrors of being alone in the forest for days with no food or water. She must learn to adapt and learn or suffer horribly.
I really loved the character despite her flaws. She's self aware but her low self esteem doesn't allow her to get the help she needs. She's easily sympathetic as she struggles to last in a world she knows nothing about while being hunted by a man who makes the forest his home and bloody playground.
Filled with tension and dread, I highly recommend this book.
December 12, 2020
A Worthy Heroine
I finished this book about 15 hours ago and I can't stop thinking about it. It is so much more than great story telling. It is almost like a map for becoming your own superhero. I am off to find another Katherine Carlson novel.
I finished this book about 15 hours ago and I can't stop thinking about it. It is so much more than great story telling. It is almost like a map for becoming your own superhero. I am off to find another Katherine Carlson novel.
January 3, 2021
One of the BEST books I've ever read!!!!!!
OMG!!!!! UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! I finished this entire book in 1 night. Hands down, the best survival book. The author writes with prose and style that suck you in and force you to keep turning pages. WOW THIS WAS AMAZING. I wish there was a second book. This would make a great movie. I feel as if I was there, witnessing the whole story, very vivid imagery. I loved this. It was such a joy to read, so interesting and at times, comical. This is the real deal, this is a book I will never forget!
OMG!!!!! UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! I finished this entire book in 1 night. Hands down, the best survival book. The author writes with prose and style that suck you in and force you to keep turning pages. WOW THIS WAS AMAZING. I wish there was a second book. This would make a great movie. I feel as if I was there, witnessing the whole story, very vivid imagery. I loved this. It was such a joy to read, so interesting and at times, comical. This is the real deal, this is a book I will never forget!
December 11, 2020
Fantastic!
The protagonist is unlikely, but authentic, funny and relatable. The pace is fantastic and nearly impossible to put down—A rollercoaster of thrills! Great book!
The protagonist is unlikely, but authentic, funny and relatable. The pace is fantastic and nearly impossible to put down—A rollercoaster of thrills! Great book!
June 7, 2024
I definitely thought I would enjoy this book based on the premise, but after finishing it, I was surprised at how much of the storyline resonated so deeply with me. I only give out 5☆ ratings to books that I know will stick with me for a long while after reading them. I read a lot and enjoy most of what I read, but then those stories and characters are quickly forgotten soon after I've finished and moved on to the next.
I loved every minute of Gorge, and it will most certainly stick with me! It was quirky and made me laugh out loud several times, whilst also pulling off being a thrilling survivalist type story with a reluctantly plucky protagonist.
It probably shouldn't be surprising to me that during our current culture of #ichoosethebear, a story published 14 years ago could so heartily drive that sentiment home, but I was surprised nonetheless... and, yes, I choose the bear!
I loved every minute of Gorge, and it will most certainly stick with me! It was quirky and made me laugh out loud several times, whilst also pulling off being a thrilling survivalist type story with a reluctantly plucky protagonist.
It probably shouldn't be surprising to me that during our current culture of #ichoosethebear, a story published 14 years ago could so heartily drive that sentiment home, but I was surprised nonetheless... and, yes, I choose the bear!
June 14, 2024
2.5 stars...
I have to start by saying this is clearly not written for me but I'm not sure how it's rated so highly. I find people like the main character very annoying in real life as well as in written form... The first 80-100 pages were actually painful to read, the main character whining the whole way through, woe is me style. Forced humor and childish fat jokes are apparently popular now days? When the action did finally start to pick up (the only saving grace of this book) it was spoiled by how outright fake it was. How does one go from not lasting 45 minutes at dusk in a state park parking lot to somewhat of a survival expert in oh 2 nights? And there's no way a trapped raccoon would let you touch it like that... The same thing repeated itself enough times to feel draining, we get it move on. I'm struggling to find much good to say other than I finished it and I guess there were a couple suspenseful chapters and the chapters are very short so that helped. Not the book for me, but if you're like a middle aged mom with no outdoors experience it might be a feel good story?...
I have to start by saying this is clearly not written for me but I'm not sure how it's rated so highly. I find people like the main character very annoying in real life as well as in written form... The first 80-100 pages were actually painful to read, the main character whining the whole way through, woe is me style. Forced humor and childish fat jokes are apparently popular now days? When the action did finally start to pick up (the only saving grace of this book) it was spoiled by how outright fake it was. How does one go from not lasting 45 minutes at dusk in a state park parking lot to somewhat of a survival expert in oh 2 nights? And there's no way a trapped raccoon would let you touch it like that... The same thing repeated itself enough times to feel draining, we get it move on. I'm struggling to find much good to say other than I finished it and I guess there were a couple suspenseful chapters and the chapters are very short so that helped. Not the book for me, but if you're like a middle aged mom with no outdoors experience it might be a feel good story?...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 29, 2021
A pretty weird, but interesting book.
January 13, 2021
I found this book on Kindle Unlimited and downloaded it last June. I then forgot about it, (my major problem with KU). I saw it and started reading last night, not remembering what it was about. It captured me from the start and I stayed up reading it overnight.
Marty is an overweight wife who has decided she needs to lose weight for her health. She has tried in the past so is very familiar with her failures. She comes up with a plan of losing weight by forcing herself to survive in the woods. She starts out reading a couple books about survival in the woods. I don’t think she was actually planning on this route. I think it was more of, “this is how desperate I have gotten.” I know the feeling and the pain. However she manages to convince her husband, Ray, of the plan. Once convinced, Ray then kind of pushed her into it but was there to rescue her. Things happen and Marty decides to visit an acquaintance from high school. And there things go very badly.
I sympathized with Marty. I know the low self esteem and the desire to change things. I know the weight struggle. I know the rut you can get into with a bad marriage. I found myself cheering for Marty and willing her to win. Her husband was a loser who learned, too late, what he had. There are, of course, others we meet in the book. Each plays a part in Marty’s life and her choices. I really liked Lou. The first part of the story revolves around food. I found this interesting as I don’t think about food or eat it the way Marty did. Yet, I still found some common ground from it. I also appreciate being inside Marty’s head. I think it was necessary to understand her personal change. The story picks up speed and becomes a page turner as we witness Marty’s transformation. I absolutely couldn’t put it down. This was definitely one of those books where you know you should be sleeping but you keep saying, “one more chapter, one more page,” and then find yourself at the end...in the wee hours of the morning.
Marty is an overweight wife who has decided she needs to lose weight for her health. She has tried in the past so is very familiar with her failures. She comes up with a plan of losing weight by forcing herself to survive in the woods. She starts out reading a couple books about survival in the woods. I don’t think she was actually planning on this route. I think it was more of, “this is how desperate I have gotten.” I know the feeling and the pain. However she manages to convince her husband, Ray, of the plan. Once convinced, Ray then kind of pushed her into it but was there to rescue her. Things happen and Marty decides to visit an acquaintance from high school. And there things go very badly.
I sympathized with Marty. I know the low self esteem and the desire to change things. I know the weight struggle. I know the rut you can get into with a bad marriage. I found myself cheering for Marty and willing her to win. Her husband was a loser who learned, too late, what he had. There are, of course, others we meet in the book. Each plays a part in Marty’s life and her choices. I really liked Lou. The first part of the story revolves around food. I found this interesting as I don’t think about food or eat it the way Marty did. Yet, I still found some common ground from it. I also appreciate being inside Marty’s head. I think it was necessary to understand her personal change. The story picks up speed and becomes a page turner as we witness Marty’s transformation. I absolutely couldn’t put it down. This was definitely one of those books where you know you should be sleeping but you keep saying, “one more chapter, one more page,” and then find yourself at the end...in the wee hours of the morning.
December 19, 2022
This has some great reviews, I guess I should have read the synopsis more closely--I have read plenty of stories that have fat, overweight protagonists that were handled well. This story put me off in the very first chapter, and I asked around, it seemed to only get worse as the story went on.
First off, the description is heavily skewed and self-depricating, I have seen that, and sometimes this is a tool to show growth in the story later on, so I continued. Then she described trouble breathing, and a number of health problems and concerns, and saving up for a mobility scooter, along with being catty and coy at the doctor's office, and she weighs a whopping 264 lbs. You can look up myprogress to see examples of what people look like at that weight, and they certainly look a bit chubby, but not deathly ill. Not in need of mobility devices unless they're *also* injured. It also shows a pretty bad portrayal of how the medical community can be handling overweight patients. I'd like my money back, bleh.
First off, the description is heavily skewed and self-depricating, I have seen that, and sometimes this is a tool to show growth in the story later on, so I continued. Then she described trouble breathing, and a number of health problems and concerns, and saving up for a mobility scooter, along with being catty and coy at the doctor's office, and she weighs a whopping 264 lbs. You can look up myprogress to see examples of what people look like at that weight, and they certainly look a bit chubby, but not deathly ill. Not in need of mobility devices unless they're *also* injured. It also shows a pretty bad portrayal of how the medical community can be handling overweight patients. I'd like my money back, bleh.
February 3, 2021
Best I've read in a long time
This is one of the funniest stories of real woman strength and survival that you could hope to read. Marty is so authentic and totally awesome! You simply have to read this. Amazing writing and so centered. I can't recommend it enough!👍👍
This is one of the funniest stories of real woman strength and survival that you could hope to read. Marty is so authentic and totally awesome! You simply have to read this. Amazing writing and so centered. I can't recommend it enough!👍👍
August 9, 2022
this is horrible!!
Run as fast as you can away from this book! It’s absolutely horrible! Not one redeeming quality! The writing is bad, the characters of one dimensional and whiny and just awful and just stay away from this book!
Run as fast as you can away from this book! It’s absolutely horrible! Not one redeeming quality! The writing is bad, the characters of one dimensional and whiny and just awful and just stay away from this book!
June 28, 2020
Took my breath
This book keep me on the edge of my seat. I felt each step she was taking. Just a outstanding read.
This book keep me on the edge of my seat. I felt each step she was taking. Just a outstanding read.
July 25, 2022
Riveting Book
This book was so good I stayed up til 3AM to finish it. What a journey this woman went through! You won't be able to put the book down. Don't miss it!
This book was so good I stayed up til 3AM to finish it. What a journey this woman went through! You won't be able to put the book down. Don't miss it!
April 26, 2024
Wow, wow wow
This may have been one of the best books I've ever read. And I read an average of one book every two days. I couldn't stop reading Gorge. It just dragged me into the story like I was right there with the main character. Gripping and so addictive. I was rooting for our gal so hard.
Thank you so much, Katherine Carlson. What a gem of a read.
This may have been one of the best books I've ever read. And I read an average of one book every two days. I couldn't stop reading Gorge. It just dragged me into the story like I was right there with the main character. Gripping and so addictive. I was rooting for our gal so hard.
Thank you so much, Katherine Carlson. What a gem of a read.
Read
June 25, 2020A really good book!
I really loved this book. It is very intense, kept me engaged from beginning to end. The characters were very well developed and believable. Especially with Marty the main character. I felt her anger, hurt, and fear. I could really relate to her because I have battled with weight issues off and on my whole life. She really bared her soul.
This was a different storyline but still very much a psychological thriller. The editing was very clean with little to no spelling or grammatical errors. I would definitely highly recommend this book but to adults only as there are adult issues in this book. Can't wait to see what else this writer has for me to read. Very much enjoyed this book!
I really loved this book. It is very intense, kept me engaged from beginning to end. The characters were very well developed and believable. Especially with Marty the main character. I felt her anger, hurt, and fear. I could really relate to her because I have battled with weight issues off and on my whole life. She really bared her soul.
This was a different storyline but still very much a psychological thriller. The editing was very clean with little to no spelling or grammatical errors. I would definitely highly recommend this book but to adults only as there are adult issues in this book. Can't wait to see what else this writer has for me to read. Very much enjoyed this book!
April 26, 2021
Wow!
I’m going to use this story as a motivation. It has made me look into myself and my food addiction.
At first I wasn’t loving the story, I didn’t care about Marty, I nearly didn’t want to finish the book. Her idea was ridiculous, Ray spending all that money to outfit her on her scheme. I got the idea they were living on the edge. And then not to use any of it, then onto the next idea! I can’t figure out why she didn’t use the gun.
Marty was quite courageous and had no idea she had it in her to do what she did to survive. I highly recommend the book, It has some very funny parts, the branch that would catch plastic bags, her thoughts and actions to do with Ray. I found myself laughing out loud at times. Thank you author.
I picked the book for its cover, the trees and that one word, GORGE.
I’m going to use this story as a motivation. It has made me look into myself and my food addiction.
At first I wasn’t loving the story, I didn’t care about Marty, I nearly didn’t want to finish the book. Her idea was ridiculous, Ray spending all that money to outfit her on her scheme. I got the idea they were living on the edge. And then not to use any of it, then onto the next idea! I can’t figure out why she didn’t use the gun.
Marty was quite courageous and had no idea she had it in her to do what she did to survive. I highly recommend the book, It has some very funny parts, the branch that would catch plastic bags, her thoughts and actions to do with Ray. I found myself laughing out loud at times. Thank you author.
I picked the book for its cover, the trees and that one word, GORGE.
August 31, 2021
Marty Clawson is my new spirit animal/super hero/wish-she-was-my-friend woman! This woman is smart, witty, kind and even though she's got more than her share of low self esteem and insecurity she won't settle for a man who doesn't treat he as special as she knows...deep down...that she is. Marty is also very obese and she decides the only way to lose weight is to survive in the woods alone and have it scared off of her.
Little does she know her desire to be noticed will lead her to enact her weight loss plan in the ultimate, scariest and deadliest way.
This book is wonderful!!!!! Marty's narrative is so intelligent and humorous. I love her wicked wit and self talk. You will find yourself cheering for her from page one.
Little does she know her desire to be noticed will lead her to enact her weight loss plan in the ultimate, scariest and deadliest way.
This book is wonderful!!!!! Marty's narrative is so intelligent and humorous. I love her wicked wit and self talk. You will find yourself cheering for her from page one.
April 3, 2025
I wasn’t expecting much based on the description of this book, but I thought I would give it a try. I only got a few chapters in and I had to stop reading because it was making me angry. This book is about a 264 lb woman but she is written and described as if she weighs 600 lbs. She’s written as a very stereotypical fat person by a skinny author; if the author was ever fat, then I will change my opinion, but I did not see any author’s note in the book. I really bet there is a better way to write fat people and this isn’t it.
July 11, 2020
Amazing plot and character development.
Gorge tells the story of a witty/feisty woman who takes an unconventional (sometimes hilarious) approach to her painful food addiction. (I know the feeling).
Her outrageous fantasies (spurred on by a bad marriage) set the stage for some killer wilderness suspense–and remarkable irony.
Ultimately, Marty is a classic survivor.
July 19, 2020
Remarkable tale.
What started as a story of a sad, self loathing, undisciplined, unfulfilled life does a complete 180 and becomes a story of ingenuity, strength, determination, bravery and the enormous will to survive. A great read full of grit and inner strength.
What started as a story of a sad, self loathing, undisciplined, unfulfilled life does a complete 180 and becomes a story of ingenuity, strength, determination, bravery and the enormous will to survive. A great read full of grit and inner strength.
March 9, 2024
Good Book
A great way to lose some weight. I could never do this but the heroine in this book turned out a lot tougher than she thought she was.
A great way to lose some weight. I could never do this but the heroine in this book turned out a lot tougher than she thought she was.
December 9, 2022
No. Just no.
March 27, 2025
DNF. This reads like it was written by a skinny person imagining what it’s like to be fat. 264 lbs for a 5’5” woman isn’t the My 600 lb Life situation the author was trying to portray.
September 26, 2020
4.5 *
I discovered this book during an Amazon browse, and downloaded it on Kindle Unlimited. Couldn't decide if the cover/title combo was inspired or ghastly, but it intrigued me enough to see what it was about, so it did its job!
I enjoyed this a lot, an unusual story indeed. Southern girl Marty Clawson is morbidly obese and unhappily married to a man who has lost interest in her. She is desperate to beat her cravings for food, and comes up with the idea of being stranded alone in the state park, with no access to fast food joints and cake shops. When her marriage falls apart and she gets in touch with an old friend in Montana, she has no idea that her survival fantasies will become real—and a matter of life and death.
Most of the first half of the book is taken up with Marty's depressing life, in which she is trapped inside her mounds of excess flesh and inability to stop comfort-eating; we later find out why and when it began. This part of the story is tragic but funny, and Marty is most likeable. When she sets off for Montana, neither she nor the reader has any idea about the danger that awaits her.
Without giving the plot away (because you really should read it yourself!), the nine days of Marty's ordeal are frightening, realistic (in that she doesn't suddenly become a survival expert), tragic, though still darkly humourous in places; it's a real page turner.
The only negative element about the book was that the author has used 'en' dashes instead of 'em' dashes throughout: instead of—this to set off a clause or add emphasis—, she has used this–without a space at either side, which I kept–mistaking–for–a hyphen. Many times I had to go back and read the sentence twice, because I thought I'd read a hyphenated word. But aside from this irritant, it's great. I'm glad I clicked on that strange bright green cover that stood out in the list of of 'also boughts' on Amazon. I shall seek out another book by her, some time.
I discovered this book during an Amazon browse, and downloaded it on Kindle Unlimited. Couldn't decide if the cover/title combo was inspired or ghastly, but it intrigued me enough to see what it was about, so it did its job!
I enjoyed this a lot, an unusual story indeed. Southern girl Marty Clawson is morbidly obese and unhappily married to a man who has lost interest in her. She is desperate to beat her cravings for food, and comes up with the idea of being stranded alone in the state park, with no access to fast food joints and cake shops. When her marriage falls apart and she gets in touch with an old friend in Montana, she has no idea that her survival fantasies will become real—and a matter of life and death.
Most of the first half of the book is taken up with Marty's depressing life, in which she is trapped inside her mounds of excess flesh and inability to stop comfort-eating; we later find out why and when it began. This part of the story is tragic but funny, and Marty is most likeable. When she sets off for Montana, neither she nor the reader has any idea about the danger that awaits her.
Without giving the plot away (because you really should read it yourself!), the nine days of Marty's ordeal are frightening, realistic (in that she doesn't suddenly become a survival expert), tragic, though still darkly humourous in places; it's a real page turner.
The only negative element about the book was that the author has used 'en' dashes instead of 'em' dashes throughout: instead of—this to set off a clause or add emphasis—, she has used this–without a space at either side, which I kept–mistaking–for–a hyphen. Many times I had to go back and read the sentence twice, because I thought I'd read a hyphenated word. But aside from this irritant, it's great. I'm glad I clicked on that strange bright green cover that stood out in the list of of 'also boughts' on Amazon. I shall seek out another book by her, some time.
June 14, 2021
The premise of this book was so hilarious to me that I couldn’t pass up reading it. It didn’t really disappoint me either! I’ve been reading anything and everything that catches my eye on Kindle Unlimited lately, and while this was free to read, I would have been willing to pay for it as well. It was a quick, one afternoon read, but truly did keep me entertained throughout. I would say my only real complaint is that the main character is described as being morbidly obese but wasn’t given a weight that really matches that description. As a fat girl myself, that irked me (LOL). I mean, at 265 lbs this heroine would not have had any of the extreme mobility issues that were described in the story, and that was the biggest aspect of the story that was unbelievable. Other than that, I loved Marty! Fun character. Great personality with SELF RESPECT; something real people and fictional people lack these days. I would definitely check another book by this author.
February 13, 2022
The second half of this book probably deserves more than three stars, it's a tense and emotional survival story. But I had to slog through the first half to get there. I already knew what happened in the first half, the description gives too much of the story away, so I was just (impatiently) waiting for the survival stuff to begin. Marty's self-loathing got too repetitive and I just wanted the story to progress.
In a moment of utter stupidity, Marty reconnects with an old classmate, ignoring all the red flags, and takes a bus to Montana. Once in Montana, things move at a pretty rapid pace and Marty is forced to enact her crazy weight loss scheme. She's terrified, but determined and I cheered her on the whole way! She's a novice in the wilderness, figuring out things as she goes. Lots of tense moments interspersed with some humor.
In a moment of utter stupidity, Marty reconnects with an old classmate, ignoring all the red flags, and takes a bus to Montana. Once in Montana, things move at a pretty rapid pace and Marty is forced to enact her crazy weight loss scheme. She's terrified, but determined and I cheered her on the whole way! She's a novice in the wilderness, figuring out things as she goes. Lots of tense moments interspersed with some humor.
August 15, 2021
4.5* Wow...that was a stressful story, and not ideal for bedtime reading either, especially if you happen to be on holiday in the woods. I think it's important to acknowledge a few trigger warning, as I would never reccomend this book, if for example you have PTSD/ trauma in general. The writing is great, I enjoyed the internal monologues so much! I don't want to even hint at the story's twists, which I didn't see coming. Suprisingly, in retrospect, there was plenty of noteworthy forshadowing that I, in no way picked-up on. I think my main takeaway after reading this is: 1. It makes me both pleased and concerned that I might have some kind of social disorder in that my inate distrust of people has kept me pretty safe so far in my life, knock-on-wood, or maybe it's all the crap I always carry with me in my bag, much like the main character 2. I need to immediately read whatever survivialist book the main character continuely quotes cover-to-cover and take notes- just-in-case. I withheld the top rating, not because of a flaw in the book, but more because of the user expereince. I did not enjoy being that stressed, even though objectively, it's a great suspense novel, well paced, with entertaining writing.
July 6, 2025
I get the title of the book is intricate throughout the storyline it's epic and inclusive. I was all in on this book from jump. The adventure was contagious, the continuing self-loathing in every sentence was aggravating to read. That's the only thing that I wish wasn't so redundant about Marty's character. There was only ten percent of the writing of any positive aspects about herself, or it came from another character. I got angry at her, and wanted to stop rooting for her because the writing kept her in a cycle of self deprication throughout the adventure and tribulation. The pep talks in her head were even half ass*d, and it was The Creator that came through not will. But there were lessons learned the hard way, and that was the point of reflection.
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