The Hitchhikers
Tom and Alice are a married American couple who kick off a long road trip eastward across Canada to the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics in their new RV after Alice suffers a devastating miscarriage, from which they both need time to heal. The couple picks up two fun and seemingly innocent young hitchhikers, Blue and Ocean, who they soon learn are dangerous killers on the lam when Alice sees their pictures in the newspaper. Blue and Ocean, real names Simon and Jenny, kidnap the couple and hijack their RV to keep a step ahead of the law. What follows is a harrowing and suspenseful ride through the Canadian Rockies, which the characters navigate in unpredictable fashion with many twists and turns along the way.
The vast isolated wilderness of Western Canada and its beautiful natural scenery, juxtaposed with the nail-biting tension inside the RV, is a terrific setting for this thriller. The author’s abundant use of captivating physical imagery and sensory detail brings this story to life and keeps the reader thoroughly engaged.
But the greatest attribute of this story is its strong character development. While, from a plot perspective, we know this road trip may end tragically for one or both couples, Stevens skillfully weaves their stories together—particularly the two women, Alice and Jenny—while the story shifts between their personal viewpoints in a way that adds depth and makes the deadly sprint to the end much more intriguing. I was entranced by these characters and could not put the book down for the last hundred or so pages; there are many sharp unexpected plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat. The Hitchhikers is one wild ride that I strongly recommend.
