Member Reviews
many many readers. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.
As with each of her other novels, this one grabbed me by the throat from the very beginning and wouldn't let go! Well-developed characters, a plot with lots of twists and turns, and a pace that had me on the edge of my seat wanting to know what was going to happen next. Of all the characters, I think Wolf was by far my favorite. I loved the way he chose Hailey and how they helped each other survive off the grid.
Chevy Stevens is an author that I will always read. Her previous books were all good but this one just was blah. I felt like I forced myself to continue reading about 30% thinking it will pick up but it didn't.
Have you ever read an author who when she/he had a new release, you got that book without even reading what it was about? Well, Chevy Stevens is one of those authors. So I was thrilled when I got an ARC from NetGalley of her latest book, to be released August 3, 2021.
Her stories grip you from the beginning and dont let go until you finish it. It is now after midnight and I was not going to go to bed until I finished this book. We follow Hailey who lives in a town where young women keep disappearing and found dead along side the highway. Having an overbearing uncle who is also the town cop, after having lost her dad to a highway accident, we find Hailey cant take it much more and she decides to run away.
We also follow Beth, whose sister was a victim also, and her desire to find the person responsible for killing her sister. This book is filled with love, suspense and a few surprises. It keeps you turning pages because you just dont want to put it down. Put this one on your TBR list when it is released. Well worth the wait. #netgalley #fivestars
`I loved this book. I have never read Chevy Stevens books before this one. I was also not familiar with the road that the book is based on where so many young women have gone missing. That being said it didn't’ matter about either of those points. The story is fast paced and keeps you on your toes as you start the journey with Hailey and the beloved Johnny. Hailey goes to live with her Aunt and her creepy Uncle when her
Dad dies. Her story of relationship with her father is amazing and touching. The killer in this book was not one I guessed easily or the surprises that accompanied them. Definitely recommend this book.
Chevy Stevens returns to take us down "Dark Roads" The story revolves around four young people - Hailey, Jonny, Amber and Beth - but the fifth character is Cold Creek, a remote mountain town known for girls having gone missing or been found brutally murdered. One of these girls is Amber, who had started a relationship with Hailey when she goes missing. Hailey finds Amber's body and is sure that Vaughn, her police office uncle, is the culprit. She pretends to run away, but is really hiding on the mountain determined to get away form Vaughn and to get justice for Amber. She is helped by the only person she can trust, her lifelong friend, Jonny. When Amber's sister Beth leaves college and comes to town, things become more complicated. The story is told from the POV of Hailey and Beth. It is an intense, fast paced thriller of a ride as the puzzle pieces line up and then are scattered again. The characters are well developed and engrossing. They became fully realized people in the story. Throw in an amazing dog named Wolf and you have compiling suspense story. I read this in two sittings bescuase I did not want to leave the story behind.
My thanks to NetGalley and tfor the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I LOVED this book. This is the first novel I have read by Chevy Stevens and without a doubt it will not be the last.
This book is about a highway where women tend to mysteriously disappear. The story is told by two women, one escaping a terrible living situation and letting people believe she has been abducted and another coming into town looking for answers. I don’t want to spoil anything for future readers.
I really liked how this book was written, being told separately by the two main characters and then switching.
Normally I have an idea of how the story might end, but this one had me guessing quite a few times. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good thriller. Plus it’s by a Canadian author, so that’s a bonus!
Looking forward to reading more of Chevy’s books in the future.
This is my first Chevy Stevens experience and after finishing Dark Roads it will surely not be my last. The storyline and imagery that is built will have you intrigued and disturbed simultaneously. If you love the feeling of suspense, this book will not disappoint. Also, Wolf is amazing and I love him. If you know, you know.
Special thanks to NetGalley and the author for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: August 3, 2021
Chevy Stevens is back! I am so happy to welcome my favourite Canadian author back into my reading life, with her new novel “Dark Roads”. Based on Canada’s Highway of Tears, where over a dozen young women (particularly Indigenous) have disappeared over forty years, “Dark Roads” is tense, gripping and, yes, dark.
For decades, women and girls have been warned against hitchhiking on the “Cold Creek Highway”. The stories that tell of women who disappear off the face of the earth, their cold, dead bodies uncovered months and years later, if they are discovered at all. Hailey McBride has lived in Cold Creek her entire life and, desperate to leave her living situation, she hatches a plan to run away, making it look like the “Cold Creek Killer” was responsible for her disappearance. Beth Chevalier’s sister, Amber, was declared missing over a year ago, and, now jobless and homeless, Beth decides to visit the place where her sister was killed. When Beth gets a job at the local diner, she starts to hear the stories of the “Cold Creek Killer” and the suspicions and rumours that the locals have about who is hurting their women. Desperate for answers, Beth sets out to determine what caused her sister’s death, and realizes that more than one person has a secret to hide in Cold Creek.
I expected a dark, psychological suspense when I picked up “Dark Roads”, as has been Stevens’ genre of writing with her previous novels (“Still Missing” and “That Night” are two of my favourites) and although “Dark Roads” definitely has the suspense factor, it sways just a little bit from the usual Stevens’ fare. “Roads” features two young women, both of whom have been victims of the “Cold Creek Highway” in one way or another, however this novel has a bit of Jack Kerouac or Cheryl Strayed in that it plays heavily into the forest exploration/survival aspects. Hailey disappears to live in the woods, and a lot of time is spent detailing this solitary explorer life, with only her dirt bike-riding best friend, Jonny, as company.
Right from the beginning, the reader is given a possible villain, but those familiar with this genre will know that the first one is never the “doer”, and that also proved to be the case here. The ending provided quite a bit of satisfaction for me. Stevens’ knows how to tie up loose ends!
The characters are likable (and those that aren’t simply are not meant to be so!) and the plot is well developed. Props to Stevens for bringing attention to missing and murdered Indigenous woman and Canada’s (unfortunately) infamous “Highway of Tears”. Although this story had a happy ending for the most part, many of “Highway of Tears” tales do not. I cannot tout Stevens’ work enough, and she is always the first author I recommend to friends, and “Dark Roads” will definitely be yet another one I eagerly talk about!
Numerous young women have vanished along with Cold Creek Highway over the years. Hailey McBride, still reeling from her father's death, has been warned repeatedly to be careful there, especially by her uncle Vaughn. Beth is in Cold Creek on the one year anniversary of her sister's disappearance. When she starts to look into her sister's case, Beth finds it be much more dangerous than she'd ever imagined.
This is a well-written thriller that kept me guessing til the end. Beth's storyline was definitely more emotional as she is still lost in her grief at losing her sister. There is a good cast of supporting characters, but not too many to be overwhelming. I really liked the pacing and flow of this story. Don't miss this when it comes out!
For decades, women have been going missing along the Cold Creek Highway. Local girls and women are warned to not go out at night alone and to stay away from the highway and the nearby lake. None of the cases seem to get solved, and the bodies are rarely found.
When Hailey McBride loses both her parents tragically, she is forced to live with her aunt and her tough talking, abrupt uncle Vaughn, the local cop. When the living situation becomes untenable, Hailey strikes up a plan with her friend Johnny to run away and hide until she turns 18. She also believes that she knows who the highway killer is, and fears for her safety. Meanwhile, her friend and romantic interest, Amber, is murdered, and the murder remains unsolved.
A year later, Amber's sister, Beth comes to Cold Creek to attend a memorial for the missing women. She instantly finds a connection to the community and decides to stay. She sets herself to finding out the truth about her sister, and as she does so, she becomes pulled into Hailey and Johnny's orbit.
Told through alternating narration of Beth and Hailey, the strands slowly begin to weave together to discover the truth.
I was really looking forward to reading Canadian author Chevy Stevens latest offering, as I am a fan of her work. I was not disappointed to read about a familiar topic for Canadians, one that deserves more attention. Based on true life stories of missing women along the Highway of Tears in Canada, and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement, Dark Roads hits hard and does the movement justice. The characters are complex and relatable, tough and determined. The plot was well woven and filled with suspense. A few moments were a bit predictable and hard to believe, but this didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story. Thanks to Chevy Stevens and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.
Dark Roads was one heck of a ride!! The book comes from the perspective of two young women, Hailey and Beth. Hailey already lives in the town of Cold Creek, which homes the infamous highway that several women have disappeared from. Hailey runs away from a terrible living situation and into the wilderness of Cold Creek, while Beth is the sister of one of the Cold Creek victims that arrives in Cold Creek hoping to find answers about her sister. One thing I loved about this book is how the story lines connected to each other, which leads to the ending making perfect sense. You get a backstory on both of them helping you to relate to each of these characters. The story comes to a climax in a way that I would have only half predicted and I was left feeling shocked. I loved the twists and turns of this book and couldn’t find myself able to put it down once I started it. I highly recommend this book! Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Chevy Stevens does it again and has written another compulsively readable novel that had me up until the early morning hours so I could devour every last word while simultaneously entrenching me in the gripping fear felt by the town discussed in Dark Roads. The story follows four characters and is almost cinematic with its visceral and haunting plot line. I love a story that keeps me engaged and guessing until the very twisty end and this DELIVERED!
Chevy did it again. I was so consumed with this book, I couldn't put it down. Immediately you feel Hailey's fear from Vaughn, I was turning pages, anxiety growing. There was a bit of a plot twist towards the end that completely blindsided me. Definitely wish I could give this 10 stars!
A Northern community is cast under a bleak shadow . . . young women are being targeted and hunted along Cold Creek Highway. Women tracked down like the vulnerable forest creatures that dwell in the lush areas nearby.
For decades small monuments are placed beside the road, reminders of the missing and the murdered. Every cross, flower, or trinket stand as a warning to others who may dare to travel the highways alone.
Who is the killer? Who is the next victim?
An entire community gripped by caution and anxiety, fearful for their daughters, leery of their neighbors. Chevy Stevens grabs you on the first page and you can’t look away or turn the pages fast enough in this thriller.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Dark Roads.
This is the first book by Chevy Stevens that I read. I will definitely look for more of her books. Dark Roads involves four young people: Hailey, Beth, Jonny, and Amber. In typical Chevy fashion, she has created 4 characters that are so real that it is hard to leave them at the end. The plot builds to cinematic crescendos that come at you in terrifying waves. You won’t be able to put it down, and you’ll never guess the villain. I loved it. I started this book in the morning and ended up staying up until I finish it. #netgalley
I'm at a loss for words! This is most definitely my favorite Chevy Stevens book to date! I devoured this book as fast as I could. Literally had me hooked from the prologue and from that moment on its all I could think about!! This is a fast paced thriller that has you internally screaming at the characters and their choices! Definitely some surprises along the way, up until the end! I love how Stevens grabs your attention and then takes off running through the entire book and never lets go!! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chevy did it again another wonderful book. Chevy just keeps getting better and better..Be ready to have a roller coaster of emotions. This is a wonderful thriller, edge of the seat read.
I will be adding this to my book shelf with all my other Chevy books
Cold Creek Highway does not seem to be a safe place for girls..
We follow Hailey McBride in this story . She is living with her Aunt and her Uncle that is the local cop. Vuagh after losing both of her parents. She works at the diner, where her uncle does not want her to be.. She has a few friends she feels safe with.
The locals all remember.. The book teases you just enough that you think you know who the bad guy is.. but do you?
What out for dark empty roads.
Thank you Net Galley and The publishing company for allowing me to read this ARC
Publication date: August 3rd 2021.
Enjoy'
Oh how I love a good thriller. Years ago I read Still Missing by this author and still think about it over ten years later. As you can imagine, I was waiting with great anticipation for Dark Roads. Although I did enjoy this book - and it was definitely a good read – it wasn’t quite what I was expecting.
What I Liked
✨Dark Roads is based loosely on real events. We’ve all heard the stories of the dark stretches of roads where hitchhikers disappear. Some of them are real, and that’s what this book is based on.
✨The characterization. The only character I truly liked was Wolf, the dog. I loved Wolf. The other characters were all unlikeable to me, but I feel they were purposefully written to be flawed – and the author crafts this masterfully.
✨The action at the end was exciting.
What I Struggled With
✨Many of the clues felt obvious, and the resolution was a bit anti-climactic in my view.
✨Some of the plot felt unrealistic. There were extreme decisions made by otherwise intelligent characters that seemed forced to me.
✨I felt that some of the descriptions of violence were unnecessarily graphic.
✨The descriptions and explanations of dirt biking seemed excessive, and I found myself skimming those portions.
I really wanted to love this one, but it wasn’t quite what I was hoping for. I still recommend it as an enjoyable thriller and rate it 3.5 stars. I will definitely continue reading books by this author.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This will be in stores on August 3, and you’re going to want to grab your own copy.
Who goes hitchhiking on a road called Cold Creek Highway?? That just sounds like a horrible idea. But we learn who and follow the stories of two girls who did exactly that. The book was well-paced and went back and forth with the perspectives quite well. A very quick read, perfect for a commute or pool side reading.