I could write a long detailed review on this book, but here's what you need to know.
1. You must read this book.
2. Dark Roads is Chevy Steven's at her absolute finest!
3. The story Ms. Steve's weaves so wonderful - complicated - and developed that you will not be able to put this book down. And you won't mind.
4. You must read this book.

2 stars
Hmm, This is dark and creepy yet not in a good way. Dark Roads reads very differently from other Chevy Stevens books. I am ambivalent about this one. People will either love or hate it.

Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens that’s set in the fictional town of Cold Creek, with the Cold Creek lake and campground set in Canada. Where young girls disappeared and are never heard heard from again.
This is terrifying and no young girl is safe that walks the roads the roads at night coming from the lake.
But there is much more danger than these girls are aware of around them.
The safest looking men are sometimes the most dangerous on a Dark Road.

I have been waiting for the new Chevy Steven's novel for what feels like forever and let me tell you it was worth the wait. Stay away from Cold Creek Highway, a stretch of road that is lined with white crosses commemorating the people who have disappeared there never to be seen again. When Hailey McBride decides to runs away from an untenable living situation she decides to hide in a cabin in the wilderness surrounding the highway.

Beth has come to Cold Creek looking for answers to the murder of her sister, Amber. Her grief over her sister m has consumed her and she has turned to drugs and alcohol as a way to cope. Eventually Hailey and Beth's lives intersect and between the two of them they may be able to piece together the mystery of Amber's murder and all the disappearances.

I loved this book. Chevy Stevens is one of the best thriller writers out there. Her characters always feel real and Hailey and Beth are no different. Yes they are damaged but the reader roots for them and that is always what makes a thriller exceptionional. This book is atmospheric and it's sense of place is palpable. This is also a really dark thriller which are my favorite kind. The mystery is violent and haunting and compelling and I could not put it down. Chevy Stevens is one of those author's that I don't think get enough attention, but this should be the thriller that will change that. Her best yet. A five star read for me. A big thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this Advanced Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest and fair revies.

Compelling if a little convoluted mystery/thriller regarding First Nations women. It was well thought out and had decent pacing once it found it's footing (the first part was a little hard to get into). Was not a huge fan of jumping around so much, felt that it took a little away from the momentum. Also thought that some parts were a little unnecessary and the book could have been, on a whole, a little shorter as well as a little more "plausible".

I received an ARC of this new novel through NetGalley.

Though Chevy Stevens is a veteran thriller writer, this is the first time I have read any of her work.

This is about a series of young women who are victimized by men when the women are found alone and vulnerable. The area where this book is set has a history of young women being tortured and/or murdered. One such young woman (Hailey) goes missing, somewhat presumed to be dead, but she is alive after successfully escaping an attempt on her life. Her stepfather, a bad cop, is an obvious suspect. Shortly after Hailey's disappearance, another woman (Amber) is found dead. Amber's sister (Beth) then arrives on the scene to try to discover the perpetrator of that crime.

This book is wordy, with many, many pages devoted to both Amber and Hailey's efforts to remain hidden and avoiding attempts by possible perpetrators to find them and do more harm. The plot is fairly simple and not much time is devoted to the character's backgrounds, just what they are currently experiencing and feeling.

This is a very highly-rated book, but I found it to be less exceptional than most other reviewers.

I have to admit that I wasn't sure about this one at first. It's not that it wasn't effective; it was. The story starts from the point of view of a girl who has been orphaned and sent to live with her aunt and uncle--but her uncle is creepy and increasingly threatening. I felt myself getting incredibly anxious for her as the man, who is also a cop in their small town, showed more and more of his true colors. It made me think about what girls (and boys) go through and their limited (or non-existent) choices when they're trapped in dangerous homes. But . . . I still felt disconnected from her too-capable experiences and that continued when the narrative POV changes to another young woman who comes to town to explore her sister's murder. I get it and appreciate it: these young women don't need men in their lives to save them; they will do it themselves. It just rang a bit contrived in places.

I kept going, however, and despite the issues I had with the super-girl plot twists, I still found myself turning the pages t0 see how this story would resolve. I also really liked the very beginning and ending that contains yet another POV--this from a dead girl who haunts the stretch of highway where so many girls and women have been killed. It's creepy and thought-provoking and intriguing.

Like others have noted, the author's note at the end also tells us that the events of this novel are very loosely based on a real place British Columbia where a unorthodox number of women--many of them indigenous women, like in the book--go missing or are found murdered. This lends something more to the novel, something that reminds us of the true stories of the missing and lost and how fictional stories almost always draw on some real experiences somewhere.

So the bottom line for me is that this is a readable novel, despite the sometimes too far-reaching abilities of our female characters. I think that parts of it will stay with me for a long time.

I read "Dark Roads" by Chevy Stevens as a preview on NetGalley. I was intrigued the entire time. This suspenseful thriller takes place in an area plagued by murders of mostly young women. The story begins with Hailey, a teenager whose father has just passed away so she is living with an aunt. She begins to suspect her aunt's husband, a police offer, of the murders. After he threatens her she decides she needs to hide so she fakes her death with the help of a friend, while still trying to figure out the murders. While in hiding one of her friends is killed and then the friend's sister comes to the area to investigate also. The story escalates from there. The ending was not predictable and kept me in the dark!

Dark Roads was a bit disappointing for me. It has a good premise. For decades, people have been warned about the Cold Creek Highway. Hitchhikers have vanished along it over the years, and women have been known to have their cars break down... and never be seen again. Enter Hailey who lives in this town. Her dad has just died and she ends up living with her aunt and her husband, the Sherriff of the town. Pretty quickly he turns out to be a creep. Then enter Beth. Her sister was also living in this town and Hailey's friend ends up murdered. I feel like the book should have been written in alternating views instead of Haley's view and then Beth's view.

The issue for me was with how the story was told. It moved a bit slow at the beginning. I felt at times that there were no transitions between things, like Hailey would be thinking something and all of the sudden she is there doing what she was thinking about. Once Beth's and Hailey's stories merged it picked up. The relationships are pretty intense through the whole book and it really does focus on family and friendship. There is one scene that was a bit intense and I had to kind of skim it. I struggled with the reveal of who it was cause I sort of saw it coming and needed more of a why. Overall I wanted a bit more from the book. More detective work, more who done it, more closure, more explanation. (TW: Violence)

This book comes out August 2021. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I wondered if Chevy Stevens would ever come back to us (I mean...2017 is legit a loooooong time ago and that's how long I've been waiting for another book.) But never fear, she's back and better than ever!

Dark Roads is a dark and twisty thriller, pushing you in one direction and then surprising you at the end. Hailey, Amber, Beth, and Jonny....I fell a little in love with all of them. Dark, depressing, shocking - all of these words fit this book. I'm eagerly awaiting the next Chevy Stevens book (but, ya know, no pressure or anything...)

Note: There are issues with formatting in this ARC. There are multiple (almost every scene) instances where there should be additional spacing to show a new scene is occurring, not just a new paragraph. This was hard to understand at first, when the scene would change to completely different characters.

A highly anticipated new book from one on my favorite thriller writers Chevy Stevens! I have been eagerly waiting for this book and was not let down at all. It was very well written. The storyline was inspired by the Highway of Tears in British Columbia. The story was a thrill from the beginning and if one is a fan of Chevy or other fast-paced thriller writers, this book will be very satisfying.

Inspired by the true story of the Highway of Tears murders, DARK ROADS centers around the murder of Amber Chevalier, a troubled young woman who runs away from her parents and begins a new life in Cold Creek. Sadly, Amber becomes another woman murdered along the infamous Cold Creek Highway. Her sister Beth and girlfriend Hailey, also a runaway living in the woods, relentlessly seek justice for Amber’s unsolved murder in their own distinct ways.

From a thriller, I was not expecting young insta-love and an abundance of angst in this novel. YA is not my preferred genre and I felt Dark Roads was treading into that territory. Inconceivably, this band of lovestruck teenagers were brilliant amateur sleuths, evaded the authorities with ease, and responded to physical threats with matrix-like skill. The main characters constantly made impulsive decisions without consequence, and my tolerance for the implausible scenarios was already waning halfway through the book.

As a reader who can NEVER guess the perpetrator, I appreciate the secrets in a small town trope. I mistakenly believe I can pinpoint the murderer because of the limited suspects. In this case I still guessed wrong; Chevy Stevens, you got me good.

Despite my qualms with the book, the ending was action-packed albeit farfetched. If you’re willing to suspend disbelief and you enjoy the themes and writing style of a YA novel, this book may be for you.

RATING: 3.5/5 (rounded up to 4 stars)
PUBLICATION: August 3rd, 2021

A big thank you to NetGalley and St, Martin's Press for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What’s most haunting about this one is it is inspired by the Highway of Tears in Canada.

I had a hard time connecting to the characters at first but was thoroughly invested during the second half of the book. Dark Roads has very strong female characters who are much braver than I could ever be.

Wow. This book. I loved everything about it - the Canadian content, how timely the content is, the pacing, the characters, the suspense.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time and was expertly crafted for maximum reader engagement. Highly recommended.

Should be categorized as Young Adult. Story line and ongoing dialogue too juvenile for my liking. Maybe I didn't give it enough time, but one short evening had me nodding off and no desire to try again. Sorry!

I so wanted this to be a 4 star read but I can be soo stingy with stars … definitely is more than ⭐⭐⭐.5 Stars so 3++
I have read only a few author,: Chevy Stevens and I do like her dark, creepy and emotional reads.
Everyone has been warned about the dangers of Cold Creek Highway. Hitchhikers, women who had their car break down as well as other are never seen again.
Story starts with Hailey McBride telling us her story. Her mother died some time ago and her father who she deadly loved recently was killed in an auto accident. Hailey is now living with her Aunt Lara who is young with an adorable son. Her Aunt is now married to Vaughn who seem is overprotective in fact seems to want to keep almost like a prisoner in their house. She, of course, is upset with this over protectiveness but becomes ultra-upset when she spies in his computer and see something that makes he decided to run away. She is sure her outdoor skills will help her survive and figures the superstitions surrounding Cold Creek Highway will be blamed for her disappearance.
Now another narrator tells her story. Beth Chevalier is studying law but returns home to find out what happened to her sister Amber.

I was sure something happened on the dark, creepy ‘Cold Creek Highway’ but it did get a bit slow reading the details!
Always always love the ‘Author’s Note’ in this case our author points out her inspiration for this story was the ‘Highway of tears in Northern British Columbia where women have been murdered. In most cases unsolved cases. Additionally I really like when authors included resources for help!

Want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this eGalley. This file has been made available to me before publication in an early form for an honest professional review.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for August 3, 2021

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Dark Roads.

I've read a few of the author's earlier books but not recently. The premise of Dark Road was intriguing so I was pleased when my request was approved.

When Hailey, a plucky 17-year-old teenager, discovers a shocking secret about her aunt's boyfriend, she is forced to leave their home and fend for herself.

At the same time, a predator has been preying on young woman in the small town of Cold Creek. When the sister of one of the victims turns up in town looking for answers, she gets more than she bargained for when the predator sets his eyes on her.

Beth and Hailey's paths will cross paths in an unforeseen yet fateful way, and the lives of both young women will never be the same.

What I liked:

Hailey is a smart, resourceful, and street smart teenager. In fact, some of her abilities may defy the reader's ability to suspend disbelief. Usually, my meter is set at normal levels but if I like the character, I'm willing to slide the bar down a little further.

Hailey and Beth's 'sort of' friendship and how Hailey rescues Beth in the end.

Jonny's loyalty and faithfulness to Hailey, keeping her secrets, keeping his mouth shut, and always having her back.

The voice of Amber, her words mark the beginning and end of the soul, and a touching way for the author to honor the souls lost based on the real tragedies the book is based on

In her afterword, the author explains that she based her novels on real events from the Highway of Tears in Northern British Columbia

What I didn't like:

I was unable to push the meter on my belief suspension when Vaughn was unable to find Hailey. His paranoia and ability to guess what the women he preyed on was thinking made it difficult for me to believe he wouldn't have done everything and anything to locate her.

Hailey was able to live in obscurity for an year and Beth, with no street smarts or survival skills in the wild, was able to locate her easily. No, I'm not buying it.

There isn't much tension and suspense for most of the narrative, but plenty of descriptions of Hailey roughing it, going about her day, same with Beth and her self medicating with booze and pills, working at the diner. It was pretty wordy, and though the writing is good, I felt all the descriptions were unnecessary.

With the exception of Jonny, nearly all the men are despicable or minor characters. Even Thompson, who is meant to be the good cop, barely factors in the story, despite Hailey's desperate pleas asking him to investigate Vaughn.

The romance between Beth and Jonny - is that really necessary? Heck, is a romance necessary in every book?

Overall, this was a good read and I really liked Hailey. Eventually, Beth sort of grew on me, too.

An extra star for Wolf!

Once again im left speechless. I cant put into words exactly how i feel right now but I have to say Chevy Stevens definitely knows how to put me on an emotional rollercoaster. So many twists and turns. This is how a good thriller should be. Stevens definiely knows how to write a page turner.

Thank you netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

My thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received a free e-ARC through Netgalley.
This book about a teen who disappears to escape an overbearing step-uncle after her father dies also hits hard on a true series of serial killings that happen in a real place in Canada. This is a fictionalized account, but it is easy to imagine the horror of the communities near where it happens. This page turner was impossible to put down.

Chevy Stevens is a force to be reckoned with. I absolutely loved this story and all the dark twists it held. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.