'So I have read Steve's other books and they were amazing!
Deadly Games was a good book! I enjoyed the characters. But it felt like this story dragged on a bit.
And the ending didn't have that WoW factor. That kind of disappointed me.
What I loved was....
the story How this was lime a cat and mouse game. The target crashing a killer.
The writing Frech really knows how to keep his readers wanting more.
What I didn't like was....
The ending plan and simple. I guess I wanted more thrill.
Overall this was a good quick read. It was fun. It just didn't compare to his other two.
Thanks NetGalley publisher and author for this copy!

So far, Steve Frech is proving that he can do no wrong. Deadly Games is no exception to his other books. You pick it up and are somehow sucked it and cannot put it down until you're done. Every single guess I had about the twist was wrong and I was on the edge of my seat trying to figure out what was going to happen. I will recommend Frech's books for the rest of my life.

I really enjoyed this book. Character development was good. The plot was very interesting. Not a lot of typos.

A well written, fast paced thrill ride, but not quite a 5 star read for me. Overall, I did find the writing and character development to be quite amazing, but something was missing. It wasn’t a mind blowing read to me, but still had some quite thrills, chills, and shocks! I would definitely recommend to my fellow thrill lovers, especially those who are fans of the authors previous books. I think most will find it to be a pretty good thriller.

A very quick thriller read, but was a little meh for me. We have a bartender being framed for murder who stops at nothing to clear his name, even while running from the police the whole time. There were plot twists for sure, and it did keep me guessing, I just didn't feel super invested in any of the characters or the plot itself. Thankful for the ARC!

Deadly Games by Steve Frech is a high stakes, fast paced thriller that will have you questioning the narrator till the very end.

Steve Frech writing is incredibly dynamic and beautiful. I loved how easily he transitions from Clay talking to the reader to Clay’s memories. The ending of this book was fantastic! Even though I knew the big twist while it was happening the suspense was still there and kept me completely engaged.

Unfortunately the middle of the book fell a bit short for me. The beginning started off so strong but during the middle I found myself a bit board of all the running around. I also want to know what happened to Katie and Nick! Why was there no conclusion there?

Overall I really enjoyed Deadly Games. I’m not a huge fan of blackmail thrillers but Steve Frech writing is phenomenal. I will definitely be checking out his other books. I would highly recommend this one to anyone who loves fast paced, black mail thrillers.
4/5 Stars

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

You're the prime suspect of a gruesome murder that you know you didn't commit. What lengths would you go to in order to prove your innocence? Clay and Katie are the dream team at the bar they work at, The Gryphon. Of course they know their regulars and may cross the professional boundaries with some of them. Clay thinks nothing of his affair with Emily Parker until he is being questioned about their relationship and her murder in their local police department. As he is leaving, shocked and confused, he receives a text from Emily's burner phone. Her killer wants to play a game and Clay has no choice since all the evidence points to him as the killer. Will he be able to prove his innocence and gain justice for the woman he cared so deeply for?
This was a great read! I didn't want to put the book down and counted down the minutes until I could pick it up again! The writing and detail to this story is phenomenal. The whole time I was trying to figure out "whodunit" and was completely shocked to find out the truth. Everything made complete sense and I never saw it coming! There are so many twists and turns, prepare for a wild ride! I am so excited to read other work written by Steve Frech!
I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

2.5 STARS

I know everything about you. I know your name, your birthday, your kids’ names, where you live, where you work. I know when you get that big promotion, or when you argue with your spouse.

But someone knows everything about me too. Someone knows all my secrets and they’re using them against me. They’re setting me up. The police think I murdered Emily Parker. To prove my innocence I need to find the real killer.

I need to beat him at his own game.

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DEADLY GAMES is my second book by Frech, and although many seem to love his books, I'm starting to think they're just not for me. The synopsis seemed to make it out to be a gritty, psychological thriller - and yes, there were elements of both. However, I found that the majority of the book was underwhelming and my interest began to lag by the middle mark.

I kept reading in order to find out who the mystery killer was, but was left confused and disappointed by the final reveal. Recommended for readers who have enjoyed this authors previous novels, I'm sure you'll love this one too!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for my ARC. DEADLY GAMES is out now.

Clay is a good-looking bartender who loves his job and enjoys all the perks that goes with it (great money, women's phone numbers, flexible hours). One night after work Clay is meeting Emily Parker (a phone number) for a midnight rendezvous but he also has feelings for Emily and cares about her. When he arrives at the motel he finds the door locked and Emily always leaves the room unlocked for him to come right inside. He knocks and knocks and calls her phone but no answer so he figures she changed her mind. Later, he finds out that Emily has been brutally murdered and the police want to ask him some questions but in the meantime he has also received a text from Emily's phone that has said "No Police" because he (the killer) knows everything about Clay and all his secrets and will tell the police everything unless Clay is willing to play "The Game".

This was an enjoyable and fast read with some clever moments of suspense. Clay was a laid-back, savvy and fun character who was caught up in dangerous and fighting for his life situations and also running from the police at the same time. I enjoyed the fast pace of the story as well as the writing style. I'm looking forward to more of Steve Frech's books and recommend " Deadly Games" to any crime/mystery readers who enjoys a light touch to some serious subjects.

I want to thank the publisher "HQ, HQ Digital" and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book and any thoughts and opinions given are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given this story a rating of 3 1/2 Sinister 🌟🌟🌟🌠Stars!!

First book by this author and it was entertaining.

The writing style was nice, concise and well paced. The characters were well developed, though not exactly ones I would normally root for.

There were quite a few twists but after a few played out you could pretty much predict the ones to follow and Clay walked into every one. Every one! It was far fetched and I’m still not sure the final connection Clay made in finding the killer would have been that clear. I know it’s fiction and it was quick and fun so it didn’t deter me (but it may you).

It’s funny because after I finished this I thought to myself that this was a horrible bunch of people that brought this shit storm down upon themselves. Regardless it was a fun ride and I would recommend it and check out more by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and HQ Digital for a copy in exchange for a review.

First book of 2021 complete! Also this was my first ever #stevefrech book and it was wonderful!

I absolutely loved the authors writing style and loved how he added in humor with the dark content.

The main character was very chatty towards the readers- which was pretty amazing and I have not read many books that have engaged in this type of writing style. I always love a thriller that can successfully add in humor without taking away the creepiness of the content and the author definitely succeeded with this!

MINI SYNOPSIS: Clay is a popular bartender in the town on Avalon and is well known with the regulars.

Emily Parker is one of Clays frequent regulars- she visits him continuously at the bar and also after his shifts at sketchy hotels. Clay and Emily have been having an ongoing affair and although Clay is not married, Emily is. Her husband is extremely wealthy and Emily is not in love with him but in love with the lifestyle he can offer.

The affair ends tragically when Emily is found brutally murdered in one of the hotels where she and Clay would meet. The police are after Clay and he is the main suspect in the case but he promises he had nothing to do with it. Throughout each chapter you follow Clay on his journey to remain free and his attempt to find the real killer.

✨✨

Absolutely loved this book. Looking forward to reading other books by @stevewritesstuff and hoping he uses this same writing style because it was brilliant!

Screaming THANK YOU to @netgalley for the gifted copy!

Pacy thriller full of twists and surprises. The main character is being framed for the murder of his married lover,the killer is playing games with him.A good read.

This is the third book that I’ve read by Steve Frech & he’s officially on an automatic buy list for me!

This was a quick read for me & I flew through it in less than 2 days. This story caught my interest right away & was able to keep it until the very end. As the story followed Clay, I felt like I was also fueled with adrenaline😂 I definitely didn’t see the ending coming, but I really enjoyed it & thought that the author did a great job with the storyline & making everything come together in the end.

Sam is a bartender framed for murder. Events spiral into chaos while Sam is on the run from the cops and the killer who is simultaneously playing games to hunt him down as well.

Unfortunately, this story was underwhelming. Despite the interesting start, I found the character interactions empty and the dialogue excessive. The plot was over-explained and a little confusing. The main protagonist was a plastic bag in the wind of events and people that did all the work for him. The killer over explained his motives. Things seemed too easy, convenient and lacklustre.

I would have loved to have seen more suspense and better character development. Considering this was advertised as a psychological thriller, I would re-market it as an action thriller, which is a genre I struggle to connect with, but it could be fun for other readers. The ending was also a let down, as the reveal didn't feel dangerous or suspenseful, I was honestly just bored. I bumped it up to 2 stars as the beginning had promise, and the comedy was alright.

Thanks to Netgalley, HQ and Steve Frech for this free advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Deadly Games

Eh... I have to say this was just ok for me. Everyone has been talking about how good his writing is but in my opinion I just feel like it's mediocre.

My interest was definitely there and wanted to find out who the killer was but it just was like a little bit of a let down in my opinion. The twists were just not there for me. There were instances in the middle of the book where it just felt boring at times and just off.

Overall, 3/5 stars.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and HQ Digital for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date: 12/4/20
Published to GR: 1/4/21

Clay knows everything there is to know about you, he’s your bartender, why wouldn’t he. But someone knows everything about him, and they are setting him up for murder.

I really liked the quick pace of this book. Right from the start, the ride begins and it’s not over until the end of the book. We tag along with Clay as he tries to find out who the real murderer is, as the murderer is adding more and more evidence against him. Having it told in the perspective of Clay himself, hearing his inner thoughts about why he’s doing what is he is doing, and how there seems to be no other option, was a nice touch. I liked being in his shoes, even if his shoes were running from the law.

Clay is a bartender who ends up in a bit of a pickle. Long story short, the book was all about him racing against time to find out who the killer was that killed a local well known couple. I enjoyed it because you never really know what's going to happen, how it's going to happen or when it's going to happen.

Overall, I recommend this book if you enjoy crime/mystery.

It was a bit less than ok for me. It started out good and the ending was fast paced but the middle really lost me, there wasn't a lot going on and it was slow going. I didn't really click with any of the characters, and the conversations seemed stilted. The scenes with the killer reminded me of the movie Scream and I felt like this was more 90s slasher film when I thought it was going to be more psychological. I finished because I wanted to know who the killer was but didn't really think the reveal was that exciting.

Sadly it really had potential but I just didn't find it suspenseful and there were parts that didn't make sense.

This was my first book by this author but I had heard good things. I was definitely hooked on this story and finished it within 15 hours.
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Clay is a bartender and becomes romantically involved with one of his customers, Emily. One night after his shift he goes to meet Emily at a motel only to find out she doesn’t want to see him. The next morning he finds out Emily has been murdered. He later receives a text message saying there Emily’s blood is in his car and he better play along or he might whined up in trouble.
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Clay becomes the number one suspect in the murder but he didn’t do it and now must prove his innocence.
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As mentioned I really enjoyed this one and the way the story unfolded. Even though Clay was an adulterer I still found compassion for his character and thought he was a good person. I absolutely had no idea who actually committed the murder and the explanation of how the murderer committed the crime was enjoyable. I certainly recommend this to all thriller lovers.

Clay is a bit of a wanky bartender with a pretty average life when suddenly his "married woman with benefits" winds up dead with her throat cut and all the evidence points to him. The more he tries to clear his name, the more he seems to dig himself into a hole - someone is messing with him. Can he prove he's not a killer before it's too late?

This was my Boxing Day read and it was the perfect pacy thriller for when you just want to spend all day reading. The writing is easy to read and the pace doesn't let up. Perhaps there were times when I questioned the plausibility of some things, but if you can just suspend that part of your brain and enjoy the ride, it's a blast. I was kept guessing the whole way and the climax was pretty satisfying, even if it did make use of the "killer explains his own plan" trope.  It probably sounds weird to describe a thriller about people getting their throats cut as "a light fun read" but it honestly feels appropriate here, as far as thrillers go. I enjoyed it and would read more from the author.

With thanks to Netgalley for the eARC, all opinions are my own.