It was a slow burn. I got bored for a bit, because it was a slower of slow burns. There’s a lot of history and also survivalist jargon that didn’t help me with the development of the characters or the story. However, once everything was established, it flowed decently. The pacing was a bit off until the last 10%.

I got frustrated with Hailey and Beth several times in the story. They are younger women, so some of their actions or vices just frustrated me to no end. Hailey girl, you gonna get caught you keep hip hopping back into town. Beth. Beth. You need a clear mind if you’re going to find answers for Amber. Regardless, their flaws made them that much stronger and determined. Their grit was everything, just like Wolf. I just want an entire story on Wolf.

The cop, Hailey’s uncle, is named Vaughn. I couldn’t help but think of Vince Vaughn in Domestic Disturbance. He was all I could think about. Just like the movie, he just radiates trash persona.

The narrators were wonderful. I honestly didn’t realize there were 3 different narrators, they worked so interchangeably well! I think the authors note in regard to The Highway of Tears . I was thankful there was a touch of homage paid to the many of indigenous women whom have vanished from The Highway of Tears in the epilogue as well.

Overall, I enjoyed Dark Roads and felt the ending was very satisfying. I don’t know if I would have stuck it out, however, if I just had it from the library of purchasing it. Just know this is a very slow burn. Thank you so much Macmillan Audio and St Martin’s for the gifted copy!

Being addicted to ID Discovery shows about murder and mayhem, I was instantly intrigued by Chevy Stevens's newest novel, Dark Roads. I vaguely remember watching a special about a Canadian highway that was the last known location of a lot of missing women and is believed to be the hunting route of a serial killer. So when I read the synopsis of Dark Roads, about a similar stretch of highway through the dark Canadian wilderness where women from all walks of life, especially indigenous women, disappear never to be seen or heard from again, I knew I needed to add it to my TBR pile.

The story is narrated by two young women who experience first-hand the evil that can lurk in the dark. Hailey was recently orphaned when her father died in a tragic accident and now has to live with her aunt and uncle. Her Uncle Vaughn is referred to as "The Iceman" by the kids in town because of his strict demeanor. He is always nagging Hailey about not walking or biking at night along the Cold Creek Highway. An apparent control freak, Vaughn and Hailey do not get along well under the best of circumstances, so it's no surprise that things come to a head when Hailey discovers that Vaughn is keeping a dark and dangerous secret. Fearing for her safety, Hailey runs away to live off the grid in an attempt to free herself from Vaughn's control. It doesn't take long for the town to assume that Hailey too has become a victim of the Cold Creek Highway.

One year passes and the story picks up with Beth, a young woman who drops out of law school after her sister is found murdered in a ditch along the infamous highway. Beth is struggling to come to terms with her sister's death and the fact that the police don't seem to have answers about the monster who destroyed her family's lives. She decides to visit Cold Creek herself and steps into the life her sister lived, waitressing at the same restaurant and living out of a motel before deciding to set herself up at the local campground. When Beth accidentally crosses paths with Hailey, the two girls must work together to stay out of the clutches of a ruthless killer who is watching their every move.

This turned out to be a completely different story from what I had been expecting, but I still enjoyed it. Dark Roads started off really strong. I flew through the first part of the book where Hailey was the only narrator. Stevens did a wonderful job of developing characters and building the 'creep' factor. Her ability to create a realistic setting is quite impressive. Unfortunately, the novel really slowed when the narrator switched to Beth and took quite awhile to pick back up again. Having read the whole book now, I would say this is just a minor flaw considering the intensity takes back over for the last 20% of the book. There were times I considered not finishing it because I was bored of Beth's day to day life in Cold Creek, but I'm so glad I stuck with it because what followed was action-packed and exciting! There will be a few spots you'll have to trudge through in order to get to the thrilling ending, but it really is worth it! If that sounds like something you can handle, go check it out!

*Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Wow! 4.5 stars. My first Chevy Stevens novel & definitely not my last. This novel was inspired by the Highway of Tears, an actual highway in Vancouver, B.C., where young women have gone missing for many years.

Young women have been disappearing from the Cold Creek Highway for decades. No one has ever been brought to justice.
Hailey McBride calls Cold Creek home. Her father taught her to respect nature, how to live and survive off the land, and to never travel the highway alone. Now he’s gone, leaving her a teenage orphan in the care of her aunt whose police officer husband uses his badge as a means to bully and control Hailey & the rest of the town. Overwhelmed by grief and forbidden to work, socialize, or date, Hailey vanishes into the mountainous terrain, hoping everyone will believe she’s left town. With help from her best friend, Jonny, (and her pup, Wolf), Hailey lives off the land until she can turn 18. Rumors spread that she was taken by the highway killer—who’s claimed another victim over the summer, one very close and dear to Hailey.
One year later, Beth Chevalier arrives in Cold Creek, where her sister Amber lived—and where she was murdered. Estranged from her parents and seeking closure, Beth takes a waitressing job at the local diner, just as Amber did, looking for clues as to what could have happened to her. But Beth’s search for answers puts a target on her back—and threatens to reveal the truth behind Hailey’s disappearance.

*Special thanks to McMillan and NetGalley for an early e-audio version and an e-arc*

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens was an excellent read. Like the rest of her books, it was hard to predict where the plot was headed. Definitely some sick and twisted parts--esp with secret cameras taking pictures in public places. Definitely a reality of today so it made you think. The plot was original and well thought out. Most authors get to a page quota and give up, but Stevens sees it through and ties up all loose ends. Very pleased that I was able to get a chance to read this.

I really enjoy Chevy Stevens's books and I think this is my new favorite one from her. Hailey and her dad are a great pair doing all the outdoor things and enjoying life, until he dies when he takes a curve in the road too fast. Then Hailey lives with her aunt and her husband who happens to be a cop. And he makes her uneasy always showing up in places and watching over her maybe a little too closely. He says he just wants to keep her safe and away from the stretch of highway where girls have been disappearing for years. Then Beth comes to town trying to find out more about her sister's death and she gets twisted into all the mystery of Cold Creek too.

When I pick up Chevy Stevens's books I know I can expect mystery, a little scary, and strong women. This book was no different. I was immediately into the storyline and read fast because I just had to know what happened, who was the bad guy??? I loved it

I just love this author. Stevens does such an excellent job telling stories, she's an auto buy for me.

The story line was entertaining, I was hooked from the start. If you enjoy a murder mystery with a twist, then buy this book!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
As always Chevy Stevens brings a great twisted mystery to light. This story was about a small town who has been known for being the "home" of a serial killer. The dark road is lined with evidence of girls deaths, memorials and billboards lining the road. Our MC Hailey has grown up on Cold Creek and has seen the toll every girl's death has left on the town. One day when she can't deal with her own misfortunes, she decides to go missing. Is she too a vicitm? Meanwhile, the murders and disappearances continue. Who is behind the murders? And why have they decided to begin again....
Stevens does a great job and weaving a story with twists and turns with characters who have to guessing til the very end. This was a edge of your seat thriller that had my attention from page 1.
A must for fans of Mystery Thrillers!

This was my first book by this author. I will definitely read more. The suspense builds to an exiting climax and ultimate resolution to the mystery. The plot twists were interesting and kept the reader engaged. Overall, I found this to be a very good book.

I love the cover on this one and that blurb definitely pulls you in. This is one book that catches you and does not let go until the last word! A stunning read!

Narration: MacMillan audio …. YOU. ARE. AMAZING.
I was heavily entranced listening to this audiobook. Glued to listening while I went about my day. Narration by Angela Dawe; Brittany Pressley; Isabella Star LaBlanc and done so well you’d think I was listening to a movie!

What did I like? The book follows a highway where women have been abducted along for years. No killer has been caught and the police are a bit strange about it. The intrigue and suspense is so heightened throughout the book that it seems impossible to sit still reading it. It was a fantastic listen! Five stars!

Would I recommend or buy? I’m really starting to love audiobooks but this book was so good either method is fine. You can read and devour at your own pace. Or listen and let the narration entrance you! I would definitely recommend and read more by this author. This was definitely one of my best June 2021 reads!

I received a complimentary audiobook and ebook to read and voluntarily left a review! Five star fantastic!

This was definitely one of the best books I've read this year. It kept me up all night speeding thru this to find out what was going to happen. If you are looking for a phenomenal, nail biting, suspenseful book then this is a must read!

OMG, I completely fell in love with Wolf!💗 The characters are very well developed and I truly enjoyed reading this. Why do so many young girls disappear on Cold Creek Highway at night? Read this book and find out. I was completely blindsided and was not anticipating the twist on this story! You might reconsider going down any dark desolate highways at night after reading this.

When Amber is killed, her sister Beth is determined to find out what happened to her. A sisters love will make her stop at nothing to find out answers. Even if she becomes a target.

I loved the writing, the characters were intriguing and the twists were fantastic and breathtaking!

THANKS to the Publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I've read a few of Stevens' books before so I highly anticipated this new release, and I think her readers will love it. It is certainly somewhat dark and there are definitely content warnings needed for some sexual harassment/pornography, and physical abuse, murder. But the story itself is a triumph against evil.

Unsolved murders and missing women along a stretch of highway for years and we start with an unidentified woman dying. This book has two points of view, Hailey and Beth. We start with Hailey, whose father just died. She is 17 years old and has moved in with her aunt Lana and her husband Vaughn who is a seargent with the local police precinct of the small town of Cold Creek. It is summer, and Hailey is very uneasy about living with the Iceman, the nickname for the cop everyone dislikes. Vaughn is controlling and intimidating. He doesn't want Hailey to be around her best friend Jonny, who he considers a bad influence. Lana acts like a nervous cop's wife to keep the peace because Vaughn provides well for her and her young son Cash. Once Hailey finds disturbing pictures of women without their faces, she knows she has to run away until she turns 18 and can claim her dad's estate. She also meets Amber Chevalier, a waitress at the town diner. They have a flirtation and a perfect day before Vaughn catches her and tries to force her to stay away from her friends. Not because he is homophobic, but controlling.

So Hailey runs away and goes off grid letting people think she was abducted or dead. Then we meet Beth, Amber's sister. Beth's story is difficult to explain as to give away some things but she is looking for answers. The two young women's lives intersect. By the last 20% I could not put the book down. The assumptions we made were shown to be not quite accurate but it was still a wild, suspenseful ride and I loved every part including the ending. Fans will absolutely love Dark Roads when it releases on 8/3/2021. I was awed by the heroines in this book.

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens

I really enjoyed this book, thought it had a great storyline, loosely based on the Highway of Tears in Canada. Dark Roads kept my attention and I needed to finish it to find out the ending, was not disappointed in any way. Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher St.Martins Press and of course the author for writing this story.

Dark Roads
A Novel
by Chevy Stevens
St. Martin's Press
You Like Them
General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers | Women's Fiction
Pub Date 03 Aug 2021 | Archive Date 17 Aug 2021

I haven't read very many Chevy Stevens books but this one was great! I appreciated the author's note at the end of the book that talked about the many cases that are still unsolved. Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

4 star

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens

The suspense builds with every page, and then ending is a complete shock.

This was a scary story. What young teenagers have to go through after they lose their parents or loved ones. What direction should they take? Corrupt cops don’t help. Well-written, even though the story proves dangerous at times. Story includes three very brave teenagers. I recommend this book.

Thanks to Net Galley for sending me an advanced reader’s copy for my review.

Thanks NetGalley & Chevy Stevens for this ARC!

This was my first Stevens read and it did not disappoint. It kept me guessing the entire time. It also rattled my heart and made me constantly wonder “what would I do in this situation?”

The town of a Cold Creek has a black cloud hanging over it. There’s been many missing girls on their highway, all left unsolved. This book opens up giving the reader an eerie feeling- where is this headed and why? Who is taking these girls? Will we know the villain when we see them?

We meet Hailey who is stuck living with her aunt and creepy Uncle Vaughan. He happens to be the town cop so when she discovers just how creepy he is- there’s no way out. She decides she has to escape. What must that be like to have no one left in the world and the police can’t even protect you? How many women and girls live this way?

Midway through the book we switch to another author- which at first was challenging for me. I liked Hailey and her survivor journey she was on. I wanted to know everything about how she moves on. But Beth, the sister of Haileys newly deceased friend and love, is just as interesting.

It was amazing to watch the stories intertwine and the towns secrets unfold. Missing girls were what was haunting this town and young, strong girls were going to bring Cold Creek to its knees. This would make an incredible movie. It was perfectly paced and kept the reader so intrigued. I gasped out loud multiple times or found myself cheering on a character.

I was also blown away by the epilogue and the authors dedication to this topic!

I have always enjoyed Chevy Stevens books and I was so excited that she was coming out with a new book and that I got a chance to read it early.

I loved Dark Roads! I enjoyed the dual POV from Hailey and Beth, two strangers who would be connected by the town of Cold Creek. One grew up there and felt suffocated by the “everyone knows everyone” type of small town feel, while the other was embracing the natural beauty that drew her sister there.

I don’t think a lot of us really grasp the way that serial killers impact that way women live their lives.. it’s less of a thing nowadays, but in the era of serial killers running rampant all over the US, women would change their habits, their hair color, where they traveled alone, etc in order to avoid meeting the same violent end as the victims. Cold Creek was a town with that blanket over it where women weren’t supposed to be alone, hitchhike, or really even travel the road alone in case the highway killer struck again.

I loved not knowing who the killer was.. would it be a character we already knew? Someone we already suspected? Someone else? A stranger?

I definitely recommend this one if you enjoy thrillers!

Formatting issues in ARC .mobi format makes transitions between sections in chapters indiscernible.   This needs to be corrected in published version because it severely distracts from the story.

Editing issues were rampant in the second half of the book.  I enjoyed the strong female characters and there was good characterization but there was also a lot of repetition that needs to be reviewed in the published version of this book.  The epilogue and afterword should be woven more into the story to better articulate the real issue the author is referencing.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens is a thriller that was all too real.

Hailey McBride lives in the small town of Cold Creek- an isolated town in the wilderness of British Columbia. It has become the prime hunting ground for predators looking for their next victims. Many women have gone missing on these highways- so much so that women are warned to never travel at night alone. No killer or abductor has ever been arrested. Due to tragic circumstances, Hailey is orphaned and forced to live with her aunt and her aunt's boyfriend Vaughn- who just so happens to be the town’s police officer. Vaughn controls Hailey and pushes Hailey to her breaking point. She decides to disappear into the mountains in the hopes that people will think she has fled the town. Hailey must use her survival skills and remain hidden from her friends and most of all Vaughn.

A year later, Beth arrives in the town to search for answers as to why her sister Amber went missing and was murdered. She seeks to discover who the highway murderer is and why they chose her sister. As she searches for answers, she begins to unravel the secrets of Hailey’s disappearance. Will the town discover where Hailey is? Will Beth or Hailey become another victim of the Highway Killer or will the killer finally receive the justice they deserve?

Overall I enjoyed this book and it was action packed. I felt that this book almost had too much action and survival skills and not enough development in the characters. I was occasionally confused by timelines throughout the story. I also felt that there was some content that was upsetting and unsettling and a sad reality in some Canadian communities. Sadly there are hundreds of unsolved missing women cases from Indigenous communities in Canada. To learn more about this awful tragedy check out https://www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/home-page/ for more information.

Overall Rating * * * * . If stories about mysteries, survival and action are your thing , you’ll definitely like this one. It is unique and a page turner. This one releases August 3rd!

Cold Creek Highway is infamous for its many missing and dead girls. 17 year-old Hailey McBride has grown up hearing the stories and the warnings not to hitchhike, bike, or drive alone on this route. After the recent death of her father, Hailey has moved in with her aunt and her aunt's husband, Officer Vaughn - and Vaughn is going to make sure Hailey follows those rules. Hailey soon feels smothered by Vaughn's need to control her every move - and is determined to figure out what he's hiding in his office. What she discovers sets in motion a whirlwind of events causing Hailey to leave home. What is Vaughn up to... and is he somehow involved in some of the deaths on Cold Creek Highway?

I love love LOVE Chevy Stevens and was thrilled to have the opportunity to read an advanced copy her latest novel. I was NOT disappointed. This story just flows and I could not put it down - thank goodness I was reading it while on vacation! I had to find out if Vaughn was the big baddie, or if there was something even more nefarious going on. I also love the character of Wolf - if you know, you know :) In preparing to post my review on goodreads, I realized there are still a few books by Stevens that I haven't read - I know what I'll be putting on hold at the library next!

The basis of the story is an actual road in Canada referred to as the Highway of Tears, where many women - especially indigenous women - have gone missing. I am looking forward to doing more research on this (and Stevens has links in the author's note if you, too, find yourself so inclined).

I'd never read a book by this author before, but I liked her writing style and the story was good. From the start, the book was interesting and as the story progressed, the book became harder to put down.

It was easy to picture the sad, small Canadian town where women were being murdered, and the residents were trying to get out. The uncle/cop who was at the center of the story was one of the most unlikable characters I've ever met in a book. And the wishy-washy Stepford Wife aunt wasn't much better. The other characters were relatable, and I wanted a happy ending, which in a way, I got.

This almost read like a young adult novel, apart from the dark subject and violence depicted in the story.