For me, I found the ending to be relatively predicable and I had a hard time creating connections to the characters. In terms of YA thriller/mysteries, I think this is very age appropriate. One of my larger complaints however surrounds the usage of out of date terms that try to give the impression of hip teens which just comes off as forced.

These Deadly Games is a chilling and fast-paced thriller! I was hooked from the opening line. Crystal and her friends are focused on preparing for a tournament of MortalDusk, a multiplayer fantasy video game. The competition between them is fierce, since the tournament prize would change all of their lives. When Crystal begins to receive texts instructing her to play a game or risk her younger sister’s life, she assumes she’s being pranked. Then the anonymous texter offers proof. Crystal has no choice but to play with all the skills she’s learned from MortalDusk. The game starts out simple, yet soon has devastating consequences for Crystal’s friends. Crystal is forced to make horrifying choices as she attempts to determine the identity of the kidnapper and beat them at their own game.

Crystal and her friends are a tight-knit group, with relationships and long-held secrets creating conflict. I would have enjoyed a little more character development for certain characters. Crystal was not always the most likable heroine, though she is under extreme pressure. I loved how she was fiercely protective of her younger sister and willing to do anything for her. These Deadly Games was gripping and well-paced. I was able to guess some of the twists, but this made it no less enjoyable. Other twists completely took me by surprise! Urban is unafraid to take readers on a truly dark and deadly journey, making it impossible to put These Deadly Games down.

I enjoyed These Deadly Games and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys thrillers, video games, and dangerous stakes. These Deadly Games releases February 1, 2022. Thank you to Diana Urban, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

For the publisher: My review will be posted on the publication date and I will publish it on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble etc.

In this novel, a high school girl is sent a message, a video of her sister having been kidnapped. To save her she must play games that end up slowly hurting her friends one by one. One of them gets a stolen test in his locker, one eats brownies he's allergic to, etc. I certainly didn't know who the bad guy was or see that ending coming. However, it wasn't a perfect read for me. I found a lot of things that I wished were different and the main character seemed overly suspicious of everyone and everything, even going so far as to actually listen when the kidnapper says not to tell the police or her mom or check with her sister's school to see if she's actually missing... A lot of pain and death could have been avoided if the main character wasn't an idiot.... but then I guess there wouldn't be a book either.

These Deadly Games was such a fast-paced book that kept me on the edge of my seat and had me questioning a few times that it was YA since it was dark at times. The twists were great and I couldn’t put this down because I needed to know what was going on.

These Deadly Games Review!

That you so much Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for this gifted copy, in exchange for an honest review!

One of my absolute favorite “twisted games” horror movies is 13 Sins. These Deadly Games reminded me A LOT of 13 Sins (just a YA version). So if you liked that movie, definitely give this a try! These Deadly Games was a 4.25/5⭐️. I loved this one, it was thrilling and I was on the edge of my seat. The characters were very frustrating at times, like in most horror movies, so I am somewhat used to the feeling. 😄 I did feel like the ending was very rushed and unrealistic, but I am very excited to read the next book, whenever that comes out!!

Synopsis: When Crystal receives a picture of her little sister tied up and gagged from an anonymous messaging app, she is willing to do anything. The anonymous kidnapper tells her she needs to play the game if she wants her sister to live. The game starts out with very odd tasks, like making brownies and phoning a prank calls. She soon realizes that each little task she does leads to bigger consequences, even murder.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Wednesday books for providing my with a copy of These Deadly Games in exchange for an honest review, This review will contain spoilers.

I think I went into this book with too high expectations. As a lover of the horror/thriller movie genre, I was expecting something new and amazing from this book. I had to keep reminding myself that this book was YA and not going to be super dark and twisted. A big basis of the book also revolves around this certain video gamer. As someone who doesn't video game myself, it was hard to keep up the the pages of characters playing the game or the MC only thinking about the game when her sister gets kidnapped. To me, personally, I found it quite boring reading about constant video game talk instead of the actual plot of the book.

That being said, I was still quite impressed with the amount of death/ attempted death in this book. I was not expecting as much and my little dark heart was very happy!

What I'm most conflicted is about the ending, therefore resulting in my rating. At the end of These Deadly Games, we find out Crystal's sister was never actually kidnapped. That was incredibly anticlimactic and kind of ruined the book for me. I was really looking forward to seeing Crystal kick some ass to get her sister back. What I did enjoy about the ending was the fact that Andrew somehow survives. The whole thing makes no sense to me as in how he could've but it very much reminded me of Silence of the Lambs when Hannibal Lecter is free, and the audience is always left wondering if they're safe.

THESE DEADLY GAMES had a great concept, unfortunately, it wasn’t for me though. It definitely felt a little younger than I’m used to in YA and the plot and ending felt too similar to other books I’ve read. If you’re a fan of YA though, I definitely think you should give this a shot!

This book was very entertaining. I don't think there was a single time when I was bored or wanting it to move forward. Action packed and interesting. The only part I wasn't crazy about was the whole "game" concept, I kept hoping we would move on from the video game plot.

Ooooooooo…. This was an interesting and edgy read. The plot gets a big ol’ 5, with the only drawback being some stretched reality about one character that just bugged me. Thus, the 4. But it’s a great story and a wonderful recommendation for my students, especially the gamers. Looking forward to adding it to the collection. 💜💜📚

I found this novel to be an interesting one! The characters are unique and the plot is intriguing, but it wasn't one of my favourites.

I must say that when the ball gets rolling in this novel, the action will keep you on the edge of your seat! I found myself surprised time and time again, practically chewing my nails down to the quick!

As much as it was an exciting ride, I really didn't enjoy the overuse of profanity. I found it overly excessive, especially for a young adult novel. This novel is definitely for an older, young adult audience.

A perfectly serviceable young adult mystery/thriller. Light on the character development and heavy on the action.

This was actually terrifying to read. The content itself wasn't gory or anything but the premise was actually terrifying and well-executed - I kept wondering to myself, what would my 16 year-old self do in this type of situation and the thought, together with the plot, had me at the edge of my seat!

This had me hooked from the first chapter, but after the 40% mark, I refused to put this down and couldn't stop until i finished (which turned out to be 12:30AM, and now I'm very tired this Tuesday morning on my commute to work but it was worth it!)!

This book also tackled a few side issues, which I appreciated. There are mentions of abusive parents, alcoholism, death of a friend, gaslighting, racism, and acknowledging privilege. All of these are brief (except the abusive parent, alcoholism and death of a friend which happen on page but aren't super explicit).

Something i enjoyed most about this book was that I didn't quite see the reveal coming until it happened; I saw the connection but still couldn't quite piece together who was behind it and then it all clicked into place. I love this about a mystery - when the pieces actually make sense and you're left like "oh, yeah! that does make sense!". Diana Urban truly delivered that in this mystery and I look forward to more of her future works!

4.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review

CW: alcoholic parent, abusive parent, mention of anorexia (recovered), murder, kidnapping
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Crystal Donovan loves games. As an avid video game player and streamer, Crystal spends more time in a fictional world than she does the real world. She loves them. That is until she gets a text message telling her that her little sister was kidnapped and that they’ll kill her if she doesn’t play their game. The game didn’t seem terrible: steal a test and plant it in a locker, bake brownies, make a prank call. It didn’t make sense. Until her friends started getting hurt, one by one, because of this game— because of Crystal. The kidnapper knows what Crystal and her friends did five years ago— a secret that they never told another soul— and they’re going to make sure they pay for it.
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WHAT A RIDE! I had *so much* fun with this one. I usually enjoy YA mystery thrillers, but I was seriously hooked on this one— HOOKED! I’ve been in the mood for Adult books lately, so I tentatively started this book with the idea that I could just come back to it when I was in a YA mood, but there was no way I was putting this down. I used every spare moment I had to read.
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I loved these characters, their friend group’s video game streams seemed so fun. I don’t play video games or watch streams, but it was all very interesting to me. I loved their dynamic, and the cryptic hints dropped about what happened 5 years ago had me on the edge of my seat.
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The “game” that Crystal is forced to play was immediately intriguing to me. My mind was racing trying to figure out the clues with her. It was intense and captivating the entire time. It gripped me the way Karen McManus’ novels grip me.
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I do have mixed feelings about the ending. I liked it enough, but I didn’t love it. That’s normally how it goes with mystery thrillers, though; I often struggle with the endings.
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I’m very excited to read Urban’s other novel, ALL YOUR TWISTED SECRETS, and whatever else publishes next.
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4.5/5 stars, THESE DEADLY GAMES is available February 1, 2022.
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Thank you to the author and Netgalley for sending me an eARC to review, and for having me on their street team. ✨

Holy cow... I know this is YA but this was a whirl wind of a read, and a little dark in my opinion.

These Deadly Games is a YA (I would say 16+) Thriller that I received as an ARC through NetGalley. It comes out in February 2022.

Crystal is your typical high schooler. She has a great group of friends and they are really into video games, in fact they are some of the best in the state- but they have a very dark secret.

The group of friends is getting ready to compete in an esports tournament to win money that Crystal needs to ensure that her mom is able to keep the house since their dad left them. She seems to be obsessed with playing games-which may be to her advantage.

When she takes her sister to school the day of a field trip everything changes. She receives a message from an Anonymous sender asking her to play a game but theres a little twist. If she refuses, or tells the police- her sister dies.

This book had a a few plot twist that I was not expecting at all. It was really well written and I was "sitting on the edge of my seat" for about half of the book trying to figure out what was going to happen. It somewhat reminds me of Saw but with a very interesting twist.

This book is different than any other thrillers that I have read so far due to the game aspect and all of the little details that were put into this story.

I have just finished reading These Deadly Games by Diana Urban.

This book reads like a video game! This book is best suited for young adults. Crystal Donovan wants to win the Mortal Dusk Crown with large monetary stakes at hand, A cat and mouse storyline that is fast paced with some twists and turns at the end.

Thank you to Goodreads, Author Diana Urban and St. Martin's Press for my advanced copy to read and review.

#NetGalley

YA with an edge! This book will grab you from Chapter 1.!
Crystal is. high school aged Esports player who is vying for a spot on a championship team with her friends when she suddenly receives a cryptic message on her phone:

You have 24 hours to win. If you break my rules, she dies. If you call the police, she dies. If you tell your parents or anyone else, she dies.

Her middle school sister has been kidnapped and Crystal needs to follow the clues she receives on her cell phone to save her. Crystal is pulled in multiple directions as she tries to determine who is messaging her and why while she tries to stay ahead of the demands to save her sister.

Not for the faint hearted, this fast paced novel is a bit gory and dark. But if you like REAL YA Thrillers, have an interest in Esports or just dark games this is the book for you. Thank you to #NetGalley and #Wednesdaybooks for the ARC in exchange for a fair review.

What starts out as a regular day for Crystal Donovan soon becomes a nightmare. Soon after dropping her sister off, she receives a text from a strange app on her phone showing a picture of her sister bound and gagged. The messenger tells Crystal she must play a game if she ever wants to see her sister again. The games start out fairly easy, but Crystal soon realizes that these games are meant o hurt or kill her friends one at a time.

Crystal is running out of time to figure out who has kidnapped her sister and to save her friends. Does this have something to do with the upcoming game tournament she and her friends have coming up? Maybe an opponent? Or is this related to something she and her friends lied about 5 years ago? She needs to figure it out before its too late!

This story kept me on the edge of my seat! Highly recommend this thriller!

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

These Deadly Games was nothing short of an absolutely gripping thriller. I really enjoyed the “game” aspect of this book, and thought the characters all possessed good depth and all of the secrets and twists were great. There was never a slow moment, and I felt like I could see the creepy stalking aspect in my minds eye which is super disturbing. I saw some of them coming but even still, it didn’t take away from my enjoyment. I binged this in 1 sitting and I couldn’t tear myself away!

Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday books for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

These Deadly Games by Diana Urban is suspenseful, shocking, and pulls on your heart strings with a high stakes twisty story line. This young adult psychological thriller with a game trope is a standalone novel and the first book that I have read by this author. What a first sentence! Then a reader’s emotions settle when they realize what’s going on. But the calm doesn’t last long.

Sixteen-year-old Crystal Donovan gets a message on her phone during class wanting her to play a game. If she breaks the rules or tells anyone, her younger sister will die. Each task is meant to hurt someone important in her life. Will she play? Is it someone trying to take her team out of the upcoming state-wide gaming tournament? Or is something else motivating the kidnapper?

Crystal was not always a sympathetic protagonist, but she was under tremendous pressure that affected her relatability. She’s a character that causes readers to feel a lot of emotions and she can be irritating at times and evoke empathy at other times. Other than her sister Caelyn who was likable, the other characters didn’t have a lot of depth and were somewhat unlikeable.

There are several twists to the story, some predictable, while others are surprising. However, the earliest couple of tasks that Crystal needed to complete felt like they were solved too easily. While the writing brought to life the situation, I couldn’t tell that this was set in Vermont. It seems everyone has secrets. How do they play into the story? Who can be trusted? Who is the kidnapper?
The author drew me into the story immediately. There’s terror, chills, intrigue and cunning. In addition to this, other themes abound. These include anorexia, domestic abuse, friendship, gaming, guilt, grief, blackmail, panic attacks, fear, terrible mistakes and much more.

Overall, this book was creative, intense, impactful, fast-paced, and thought-provoking. The suspense, action, and twists kept me glued to the book. Readers that enjoy psychological thrillers and gaming will likely enjoy this novel.

St. Martin’s Press – Wednesday Books and Diana Urban provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for February 1, 2022.

Thrilling and definitely kept me interested. Not my favorite book but definitely would love to try this author again! Her writing voice gives you enough details to feel like you are right there. Add in that, for me, this plot was fresh and it was an overall win.