The Cold Creek Highway is notorious for young women going missing and being murdered. Hailey has always been taught by her father not to travel is alone, but now her father is dead and she is staying with her aunt and her controlling police officer husband.

There were two aspects I really enjoyed about this story. One was the anticipation of wanting to take down the evil stepfather. Is he controlling and on a power trip or something even worse? I also enjoyed the survivalist portions of the story. There was just a little too much fluff in between the parts I liked and I found myself skimming the pages. I was surprised by certain parts, which I enjoyed.

“I imagine we all knew about the Cold Creek Highway long before our bodies were dumped in a ditch or burned in the woods under a blanket of damp moss.”

Dark Roads comes out 8/3.

This was my first Chevy Stevens novel and it was fantastic! It was fast paced with so much depth. The characters were so well developed and I was rooting for them the entire time. I loved the ending and world recommend this book to anyone!

Chevy Stevens had me at Still Missing and I've read every one of her books since. A Canadian author that always sets her books in Canada, BC actually - one of my favorite places to visit. Dark Roads is no different with its setting in a fictional town and the disappearance of women.

I can't exactly say this was a fast paced story, and really a good suspense/thriller doesn't have to be. Just as long as the story keeps me captivated and on my toes I am good. Dark Roads has a small town setting, Cold Creek where the highway is spotted with memorials to those women that have met with tragic ends.

I liked both Hailey and Beth, in a sense alone searching for answers. While this book does have a YA feel it does tackle some serious subject matter. The mystery was intriguing, except for some time in the middle where it seems to lag a bit, but I found myself reading faster to see the outcome. I love when there is a dog in books like these, Wolf was a welcome addition and I just loved him.

Dark Roads is a dark, sometimes depressing story, it uncovers the evil in society but for those willing to overcome there is light at the end of the tunnel.

The author notes is where Chevy Stevens talks about the Highway of Tears, since the 1970's women have gone missing or where murdered along that 500 km stretch and many still remain unsolved. While this book does not revolve around those cases it does bring this situation to light as a reminder for those women. Thank you for doing that.

My thanks to St. Martin's Press (via Netgalley) for a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

Young women have been going missing along an isolated highway in Cold Creek, British Columbia for many years. The police have been unable to find the killer and the whole town is on edge. Could the killer be a police officer? A trucker? A drifter? Who is next?
This is a another great, page-turning thriller from Chevy Stevens. I was happy to see a new novel from her! The ending was surprising and well thought out. I loved the characters of Hailey, who is fearless and self sufficient, and Beth, who wants answers about her sister’s murder. Releases August 3, 2021. Don’t miss this one!

Wow! This was my first read by this author. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and wishing I was a faster reader. The book even had its own cliffhanger. Waiting to find out what happened was excruciating. I hate spoilers and can’t understand people that peak at the ending of a book, but it was very tempting to do it with this one. I even had to stop myself from looking at how many chapters were left in the book for fear of spoilers. If you’re a fan of suspense, I definitely recommend this one.

Dark Roads - Chevy Stevens
Pub Date: August 3, 2021

If you are looking for a dark thriller to get sucked into right away, then pre-order this book ASAP! This was the first Chevy Stevens book that I’ve ever read, but I immediately put two of her other books on hold at the library upon finishing this one. The book takes place in British Columbia, in a small town located on a stretch of the Highway where murdered women have been turning up for decades - and their killer(s) have never been found.

You will love this book if…
- you like multiple narrators. The first part of this book follows Hailey, a young women who believes her Uncle is a shady cop. She eventually runs away - staging her disappearance to appear as though she is another victim of the Highway Killer. The second narrator is Beth, whose sister actually is a Highway Killer victim. As she starts to unravel the truth behind her sister’s death, she finds herself with a target on her own back.
- you enjoy Young Adult novels. The main characters are young, and I’ve read some reviews where people said that they felt like they were reading a YA novel. I didn’t feel that way, but I do enjoy YA! Either way, I felt that it had a really well developed plot and characters.
- you like books that are based on true stories. This book was inspired by the many unsolved murders of women that have occurred along the Highway of Tears in Canada for the last 50 years. While Chevy Stevens changed many details out of respect for the women & their families, I liked that the author called attention to this issue in a respectful way. I learned that Indigenous women experience crime and homicide at a much higher rate than the average women in Canada, and appreciated the resources that were provided in the back of the book.

Dark Roads will be published on 8/3 so add it to your TBR! Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

What is a young woman to do when her parents are gone and her uncle is a creepy controlling cop? Run away to the wilderness where young women frequently disappear! The history of the stretch of highway where young women disappear provides the foundation for the tale, dark and foreboding. But the story is really of Hailey, Amber, and Beth, three women impacted by the goings on in Cold Creek and on its highway. Hailey knows the forest and has support from her best friend Jonny and the scene stealing Wolf. I enjoyed reading how Hailey continued to survive in the wilderness through a cold Canadian winter. I also appreciated the inclusion of First Nations people, both as characters in the town and in remembrance as victims. As the author reminds us, there is a much higher rate of murder of indigenous women than the rest of the population. While I went in expecting the story of a serial killer and the hunt to find him, instead I was pleasantly surprised to read a story more of perseverance and friendship. Sure there were moments of suspense, but it was only the backdrop for the actual story.

“Dark Roads” by Chevy Stevens was a haunting, gripping thriller set against the fictional (but all too familiar) setting of Cold Creek Highway in British Columbia.

We get two narratives—one from Hailey McBride and the other from Beth Chevalier. Hailey has lived in Cold Creek all of her life raised by her father to survive off the land, honor nature and to avoid the Cold Creek Highway at all costs when alone and at night. After her father’s sudden death, Hailey moves in with her aunt and is soon the victim of her uncle’s bullying. He preys off of his power over Hailey while she lives under his roof. Hailey vanishes into the mountains to escape the abuse— hoping people will assume she ran away—but when another woman is found murdered shortly after Hailey’s escape, people assume the highway killer got Hailey as well. Beth Chevalier moves to Cold Creek to dig up information on her sister Amber—the woman murdered by the highway killer around the time Hailey vanished. Beth is a train wreck—estranged from her family, hooked on anti-depressants and alcohol, recently flunking out of school and without a penny to her name. When she hikes the woods Hailey escaped into, Beth finds she’s stumbled into the center of dark events taking place in the community and now she too has a target on her back.

There were so many things I loved about this book from the secluded small town, to the strong characters, to the outdoor adventure, bonds of friendship, and the array of emotions the book evoked. The story is sandwiched between a haunting prologue and epilogue that gives us insight to the town, the highway history, the victims and the violence. It is a chilling mystery thriller that also acknowledges the violence (and silence) surrounding the disappearance and murders of Indigenous women in Canada. 4.5 stars.

Based on other reviews I've read online, I think I'm in the minority when I say this book wasn't my favourite.

Chevy Stevens is an auto-buy author for me. I've been hooked ever since I read her book Never Let You Go a few years ago (bonus points because she's Canadian and sets her books here too). But this one missed the mark for me. There were definitely moments that were tense and kept me turning the pages but not as many as I've come to expect from her. I found the beginning to be quite slow and it wasn't really until Part Two that I started to find myself becoming more interested in the story. I was definitely hoping for more thrills when I picked this one up.

Despite the plot not quite being what I was hoping for, I really enjoyed the characters. I liked Hailey, Jonny, Beth, Amber, and Wolf (who was definitely my favourite) and found myself wanting everything to turn out okay for them.

I also wanted to make sure to mention that this book was inspired by the real-life Highway of Tears between Prince Rupert and Prince George in British Columbia. This is a dangerous stretch of highway where many women, particularly Indigenous women, have gone missing or been murdered and the vast majority of these cases remain unsolved. If you have been personally affected by one of the tragedies or something similar, this book may be triggering for you.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Things aren't always what they seem. All through the story you are hoping that Vaughn is the killer. He seems so evil and just mean. He says that he is only looking out for everyone in his town. Is that just a disguise for stalking women? Hailey knows he is to blame for all the disappearances and she is working hard to find the truth. When things get real ugly, Hailey knows that she has to disappear and wait until she is 18 to come back or she may be the next victim. When Beth's sister is found dead, she drops everything in her life and comes to town to see if she can find out anything. She finds that everything in town is very strange and isn't sure she will ever find answers. When Vaughn starts paying attention to Beth, Hailey knows she has to do something and do it quick.

Hailey McBride couldn’t stand another moment in the company of her uncle. Vaughn was a cop, part of the few that controlled Cold Creek in the middle of nowhere in British Columbia, and he was cruel, vicious and a predator. Hailey’s dad had recently died, and she missed him like missing a limb. He was her idol and when he died, Hailey had to stay with Aunt Lana, Vaughn and their little boy, Cash. But Hailey had found out a lot about Vaughn and knew she had to get away. As she and her best friend Jonny planned, Hailey was determined to find another life.

It was a year later when Beth Chevalier arrived in Cold Creek, and she wasn’t even sure why she was there. Knowing her beloved sister Amber had been murdered in Cold Creek, and Amber’s friend Hailey was still missing, she thought perhaps she needed closure. It was hard seeing how sad Jonny was as well – and when she met Vaughn, she knew immediately that he was as creepy as Amber and Hailey had said. When Beth moved out to the campground by the river as the motel was too expensive, she had no idea the danger she was putting herself in…

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens is a gripping and intense thriller which I had a hard time putting down. The evil oozed off the pages; the menace was around every corner. I loved Hailey’s character, her strength and tenacity, her dogged following of her father’s instructions. And Wolf was a super intelligent dog. Chevy Stevens always writes a breathtaking and chilling thriller, and this one is no exception. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and Erica Martirano of St Martin's Press for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

Dark Roads opens on a quiet stretch of road where a woman is being murdered. The road itself has a dangerous reputation, and many women have walked down that stretch of road to be later found in ditches along it's side. The road is now inhabited by the souls of the Lost Nations Girls. The road is a place where no one should go, but in the poverty stricken town of Cold Creek, the residents are drawn to the campground and lakes and can't seem to avoid the lure of the area--despite its dark and continuing history.

Hailey recently lost her father in an accident and moved in with the town's creepy cop, nicknamed "Iceman." But something is wrong with him, and something is wrong with the town. And soon Hailey is on the run. But she's not the only one running. Unlike Hailey, Beth has run into the town following the murder of her sister. The two girls seem like opposites, but they are brought together by the murder of a friend and sister, and the mystery of the dark road. But secrets aren't always meant to be kept, and the dark road is closing in on them ready to bring them in and spill its secrets.

I was drawn into this book by the very first chapter. The terrible history of the road, with its mystery, made for a good page turner. The characters were fun to follow and the story had enough mystery and twists and turns to keep my attention (and more so--I read this book in two days!). If that wasn't enough, at the end of the book I read about the author's inspiration, which followed a similar road in Canada with the same type of history of violence against women--but in a town where the baddies have not been caught. Readers of mysteries and thrillers should love this one!

Chevy Stevens's book almost always end up on my TBR. I've only read one other before this, but it was a 5 star read for me and all of her books just sound so interesting to me. I was really happy to receive a copy of this book prior to publication.

I have to admit that this book was difficult for me to read in parts, which is not typical for me. I read a lot in the genre and can tolerate some pretty unsavory things, but this this one just hit a couple of my buttons. I honestly wasn't 100% certain I was going to finish it from the beginning. I struggled with the situation our main character found herself in and it made me really uncomfortable. I can't explain why without giving away some of the plot line, so I will just say that I found a trigger I didn't even know I had.

Once that first 30% or so was over I was able to become more absorbed in the story. It was an interesting story and kept you guessing regarding the motives of a couple of the characters. Stevens has good writing style and the dialogue was believable. The main characters had emotional layers, which was nice. They didn't make all of the best decisions, but you could believe their reasoning.

I liked the way the story played out and will look for more of Stevens's work in the future.

🏞Terrific thrills and suspense in rural British Columbia😲

4-4.5🌟 stars
Let me start by saying this is a good, well-written story with plenty of action, twists and suspense. I truly got caught up in Hailey's story as she tries to distance herself from Vaughn, her aunt's controlling cop husband. For some reason Part Two of the book which focuses on Beth, the sister of Amber, a young murder victim, just did not capture my sympathy as much as Part One and the latter chapters about teenage orphan Hailey did.

It's obvious that author Chevy Stevens loves the Canadian woods and has spent significant time there. The characters find the forest both a benevolent and perilous refuge. It aids a serial killer but provides escape and protection for Hailey. The descriptions of winding treks through the woods were a bit lengthy at times, but they did build a complete picture.

The reason for the murder spree is never really explained and I would have liked more on the killer's prior background and motivation. But, on balance, I enjoyed the read, particularly the high octane climax, and was thoroughly pulled into the mystery of the strings of girls and young woman, many First Nation, who found a violent end along the Cold Creek (fictional) Highway knowing that their tragic story is based on true life.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Woah! Round of applause for this one! The levels of villainy in this one are the most I have read and felt in a while. There are many layers and twists here and this one had me holding my breath from beginning to end. I have never read a Chevy Stevens book before, but I tell you I have now put holds on her other books at the library because this one was so good.

I will say, based upon the prologue, I was expecting more ghostly elements to this book and I was pumped about that but... if you are expecting a Simone St. James-style book, this is not that. That said, this does feature some ghosts so I am always in if there is a ghost, let me tell you. What this book does feature is a heart-racing plot, an absolutely hate-worthy villain, and some kickass leads. The POV does change a bit and it was a little jarring at first because we had stayed with one POV for so long, but once you get to know all the characters, it adds just another layer to a well thought out plot.

If you had any doubts about my feelings regarding this one, I have already verbally recommend this book to friends. I was in the middle of it and I already had to tell others about this book. I am trying to put this on everyone's radar. If you like suspense novels that contain twists, turns, action, a brave dog friend, survivalist elements, fighting heroines, and a sprinkle of the supernatural, this book has got you.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is the seventh thriller from this Canadian best-selling author. Her previous novels include "Still Missing", "Never Let You Go" and "Those Girls". This one is inspired by the 'Highway of Tears' in BC, a long highway corridor where many Indigenous woman have gone missing or been murdered. We meet Hailey who after the death of her dad has moved in with her aunt and her husband. The husband, Vaughn, is a police officer and a bully. Overwhelmed and afraid, with the help of her best friend Jonny, she disappears into the woods hoping people will think she was taken like others. We also meet Beth who comes to town after the brutal murder of her sister. Beth is determined to figure out who is responsible. This is a true thriller with lots of violence, but is a wonderful recommendation for fans of the genre. I really enjoyed it.

This book hooked me from the start and didn't let go. A small town on a stretch of highway known for girls going missing and winding up murdered is filled with suspicious characters. Hailey, after a tragedy killed her father is left under the oppressive thumb of her Sargeant Uncle dubbed by locals as the Ice Man. After discovering his dirty cop side she decides to flee into the woods until she turns 18 and can move on with her life.

Beth, the sister of one of the victims arrives in town to find answers and is warned repeatedly to stay away. Beth and Hailey (still in hiding) are two strong female protagonists out for justice as they search for evidence that will lead to the killer. Lots of close calls, twists and the best character of all a dog named Wolf.

This book is intense, lots of trigger warnings and cringeworthy moments towards the last quarter of the book. Give this one a go if you enjoy intense thrillers, stories of survival, or police procedural mysteries.

Dark Roads quickly grabs your attention from the first page. Making you fall for Hailey McBride, a young woman of 17, whose mother passed when she was small and her father was just ripped from her life when he dies in a car accident. She is living with her loving aunt and her narcissistic husband, Vaughn . Who leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth, an intimidating small town cop, who enjoys bullying anyone who crosses his path. Hailey feels that something is off about him, is he just a bully or is there something more sinister going on? Hailey discovers Vaughn's dirty secret and needs to escape. The old miner's cabin in the woods would be a perfect place to hide until the truth comes to light.

The backbone of the story leads back to the Cold Creek Highway. A desolate road that runs through First Nations land, making your blood run cold. This haunted stretch of highway makes you drive a little faster, find yourself hoping to make it to the next town without breaking down. Woman have been disappearing along this stretch of road for years. Their lives memorialized with white crosses blazing against the forest backdrop. Some of their bodies have been found, their last few moments alive being a nightmare of pain and horror that sends chills down your spine. Their stories passed down to the young woman as a warning. Stay off this road, do not hitchhike, do not leave yourself vulnerable to the killer. Hailey grew up hearing these stories and she decides to disappear under the cloak of the Highway Killer. Make everyone believe she was abducted and most likely dead.

Dark Roads gets under your skin. It is not just your normal thriller, it is filled with emotions, lost souls, and the pain the families of these women go through is horrific. Chevy Stevens delicately brings to light an issue that First Nations and Native American Women have been dealing with for decades. These missing or murdered women are swept under the rug, they appear to not matter. The miss handling of their cases is astounding. There is an undercurrent of these women running throughout the book. Thank you to Chevy Stevens, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this thought provoking, emotional, heart wrenching, intense read. You do not want to miss it!

Twisty, fun summer read that was super enjoyable. I read through so fast because once I started reading I couldn’t stop! Highly recommend!

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens is a psychological thriller.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher St. Martin’s Press, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:   (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Hailey McBride can no longer stand her living conditions.  Her parents are gone, and she has to live with her Aunt and Uncle.  She doesn't like or trust her Uncle Vaughn.  He may be a police sergeant, but his behaviour leaves a lot to be desired.  Hailey decides to run away, and live on the mountain until she is of legal age to collect her inheritance.

For decades the Cold Creek Highway has known tragedy.  Hitchhikers have disappeared and women have been found dead along its ditches.  Most people assume that Hailey has become another victim of the highway.

Beth arrives in town to attend a memorial service for the victims of the highway.  Her sister Amber was murdered last year, and had been Hailey's love.  Beth is not handling her sisters death well.  She quit university, and is popping pills, and using alcohol to dull the pain.  She gets a job at the same diner that Amber had worked, and connects with her sisters friends.  She is determined to find out who killed her sister.  


My Opinions:   
Although the author created a fictional town and plot, she based her idea on the Highway of Tears in Northern BC where so many young women (mostly Indigenous) have gone missing.  Many bodies have been found, many have not.  I'm not sure the Prologue or Epilogue  (told from a ghost's perspective) were really needed, but I guess it added to the overall reminder that these were real dead women we were talking about.  However, it was a little mis-leading as I thought I was about to read a supernatural tale....which this is not.

Considering the above, the author really researched the topic, and the plot was very well-developed.  The characters were deep enough, and the reader felt their pain and anguish.  It was easy to hate Vaughn, and love Hailey and Beth.  I absolutely loved Wolf!

The story was told from both Hailey and Beth's perspectives. The pace was good, and it was a fast, entertaining read.

Bottom line, don't hitchhike in BC.