This was an insane storyline! Mystery mixed with horror or something along that line. Truly an original storyline that some of it I could see happening ahead of time and other things I didn’t. I really enjoy this authors works. Many thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this early copy for read and review

Simone St. James’ latest spooky thriller Murder Road takes us to a small town in Michigan with a really big problem.

July, 1995: When they pick her up, she is reluctant to speak. She looks shell-shocked. Eddie and April Carter only offered her a ride because a (seemingly) drunk girl walking dazedly along the side of the road at two in the morning was definitely in need of help, but would they have stopped if they knew just how much help? She isn’t inebriated; she’s badly injured and bleeding out. “I’m Rhonda Jean,“ she says when their questions finally penetrate her stupor. And then a bit later, “I’m sorry. He’s coming.” “He” turns out to be driving a large truck, which slowly gains on them as they race down a road called Atticus Line. They are only able to get away by taking a particularly sharp turn at a rather reckless speed. It had seemed safer than facing whatever was chasing them in the dark.

By the time they get Rhonda Jean to the small local hospital, April, who had been holding her hand throughout that wild ride, is covered in her blood, and so is Eddie, who carries her into the ER. Their car, the backseat of which is now soaked in gore, looks like a scene from a horror movie. The nurses make a call even as they deal with the patient. A policeman comes almost immediately, questioning them about where they found her, where they were going, and how they wound up on that particular road in the middle of the night. Not too much later, the officer informs the Carters they are suspects in the murder of Rhonda Jean, who has just died. But the state detectives arrive before he can ask any more questions. It seems Cold Lake doesn’t have the kind of force that can handle murder cases but oddly enough, they have more than their share of them - Rhonda Jean is only the latest in a string of hitchhikers stabbed, choked, or bludgeoned along that road. In spite of the prolific number of crimes, however, no one has ever been implicated, much less arrested. April and Eddie are the first witnesses/possible villains Detectives Quentin and Beam have had the pleasure of interviewing. After the interrogation, their car is impounded, they are advised not to leave town, and are dropped off at a simple home doubling as a bed and breakfast.

The owner, Rose, doesn’t much care for the cops who give them a ride to her house and makes that clear from the start. She is equally unexcited to have possible murderers as guests. The abode, while not the kind of ornate Victorian one pictures when the words ‘bed and breakfast’ are mentioned, is comfortable enough, even though the decor is mildly disturbing. Photos of Princess Diana are prominently displayed pretty much everywhere, but the hostess, while taciturn, is at least kind enough to feed them. April and Eddie clean up, get some sleep, and settle in for a long day. They aren’t comfortable for long, though, since they are quickly whisked back to the station for more questioning. They aren’t arrested - there is nowhere near enough evidence for that - but they aren’t given their car or permission to leave Cold Lake either. It is pretty clear they remain the only lead the cops have. It is also clear that if Eddie and April want to be free of this problem, they had better figure out for themselves just who or what is killing young people on Atticus Line.

Ms. St. James has a knack for writing chilling, atmospheric tales that enthrall readers and lure them into compulsively following her down dark, twisting paths. Her smooth prose and scintillating characters make it easy to immerse ourselves in a world that doesn’t quite make sense but is nonetheless deeply fascinating.

In Eddie and April, we have a seemingly ordinary couple caught up in a truly macabre situation. Eddie, freshly back from a tour in Iraq, is still in fighting form. Lean but muscular, with the watchful awareness of someone recently on a battlefield, he is quick to pick up on the bizarre nature of the investigation. Something about the entire situation is off, and he is determined to figure out just what he and April have stumbled into. For her part, April has been living a rather clandestine life behind an ordinary facade for a long time. Grit, wit, and determination have kept her one step ahead of the demons that follow her, and she plans to put those skills to good use to get them out of whatever strange shenanigans have Cold Lake in their grip. A young bride (the two are on their honeymoon when this all goes down), April is keeping secrets from her husband and has no desire for the inquiry to unearth them. Both of them have just enough of an edge to make them good amateur sleuths, and their courage, caring, and basic decency make them easy to root for.

The secondary characters here remain very secondary. April and Eddie receive help with their search from Rose and the Snell sisters, Beatrice and Gracie, who appear later in the novel. We scratch the surface of who these folks are, but we don’t really get the chance to connect well with any of them. Detectives Quentin and Beam also remain enigmas, although it is clear that Quentin, at least, has secrets and information we are not made privy to. Typically, such characters have more depth in a St. James novel, so their superficiality was disappointing.

I have a few other quibbles as well. Because the mystery here is carefully layered, with each piece revealing a bit more of a rather incredible puzzle, I won’t be talking much about the plot. However, fans of the author know her books always contain paranormal elements which are key to the puzzle being solved. In this case, something haunts Atticus Lane. Eddie, who has experience with peculiar apparitions, saw the specter of a young girl in the back of the vehicle following them that night, and it isn’t long before it appears to both Eddie and April fairly regularly. This being has rather unusual and terrifying capabilities that border on the demonic rather than ghostly. It gives a creepier edge to the tale, and the nature of its abilities/behaviors don’t point to the villain except in a roundabout way. It isn’t surprising that no one else has been able to lay the ghost to rest (so to speak) since the creature hasn’t exactly been haunting the right people. That troubled me, given the number of deaths that could be laid at its door.

I also felt vaguely displeased with the final chapters, which aren’t definitive and in which there is a clear setup for more. I was frustrated to drive off with April and Eddie at the end, feeling that while one portion of the issue was solved, some pretty interesting events were forthcoming that I wouldn’t experience without a sequel. (Please give me that sequel!)

Those negative notes aside, this is still a riveting narrative. I would recommend Murder Road to fans of the author and to anyone who enjoys a bit of horror mixed with their thriller.

This book… ahhh it literally felt like I was listening to an episode of Supernatural — and I mean that in the best way! It was captivating and haunting and I couldn’t put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

April and her new husband Eddie get lost on the way to their honeymoon and stumble upon a young woman whose been stabbed. they're immediately thrust under police attention when she dies. As they try to discover what happened to her, and why so many murders seem to happen on that road, their own dark secrets will emerge.

This book was fine. It wasn't really a thriller or suspenseful. There were supernatural elements I enjoyed but overall, everything that happened was easy to predict. I don't think this is a book that will stick with me or that I will remember in a few months.

“𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒚𝒐𝒖’𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅.”

April and Eddie are on the way to their honeymoon when they take a wrong turn. As they try to figure out how to get back on the right road they spot a hitchhiker covered in blood. They rush her to the hospital where she later dies and the couple is suspect number one and two. Thus begins the quest to find the real killer. As April and Eddie research the town it seems that the road has a dark history, where supernatural elements are in play. While the truth may set them free it also might destroy the town and them.

Another solid supernatural story told by Simone St James. This one kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I love a good murder mystery and when you add in some supernatural elements it makes the story even better. You better believe I will be thinking about this book when I’m on a dark, deserted road at night. I love a good ghost story!

Simone St James definitely has a writing style that works for her and she sticks to. I would say this one veers a little off from her typical novel, having more of a thriller feel to it, but still heavy in her paranormal feel. I think this book would make a great horror movie! The scary, small town detective and community, with their rumors and secrets was the perfect setting for Murder Road. I loved how the main characters, newlyweds April and Eddie, had so many hidden secrets from each other and the reader and I loved how James revealed those. They completely changed the book. The ending was so perfect too, I loved how it wrapped up. Will definitely continue to read and look forward to James’ books!

April and Eddie are recently married and heading to a resort for their honeymoon when they take a wrong turn onto a dark road. They pick up a young woman who seems to need help only to discover she’s been stabbed and later dies at the hospital.
April and Eddie get wrapped up in the history of this road all the dead hitchhikers that have surfaced over the years.

Simone St. James always gives me a good scare. Somehow she takes the creepy and supernatural and makes it so completely believable that you will be looking over your shoulder for ghosts as you read.

I picked up a book by Simone. St. James randomly a few years ago and ever since I have absorbed every book of hers that I could get my hands on! Murder Road was the perfect combination of whodunnit, vengeful spirits, and mystery that made me gobble every word up until the very end.
The story centers around newlyweds April and Eddie. On the way to their honeymoon location, they end up taking a wrong turn on a desolate road at night. When they see a girl walking the road alone, they pick her up. Once she’s in their car, April notices the girl has been stabbed. As they hurry to get the girl help, they are unaware that nothing will stop Murder Road from claiming its next victim.

A nice 90s flashback that wasn't overly done (mention of Blcokbuster and going inside to pay for gas, etc). A truly terrifying ghost experience and mystery that was all tied together at the end. I was a little frustrated with the repetitiveness of the police interactions.
Ultimately, I enjoy St. James' storytelling and feel like she gave really good backstory on our characters and a thoughtfully planned out plot.

Read if you like:
👻 Ghost Stories
🧐 Unreliable Narrators
🚗 Spooky Back Roads
😵 Mysterious deaths

Overall, this was an engaging thriller that I was able to read from start to finish in one day.

I knew there were supernatural aspects at play from the quick synopsis, but it was definitely more and less all at the same time than I anticipated for this part of the plot.

I really enjoyed the aspects of the unreliability with our couple who is the main focus clearly both having some personal issues and keeping secrets so you don’t even know what the truth is between them, let alone what they are doing and saying outside of their own relationship which added another layer to the mystery.

All in all though, the ending felt just a bit tooo cleaned up and tidy for me personally with a thriller; but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

This was my first by this author and definitely won’t be my last!

Thanks so much Berkley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks so much to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group and the author for this eARC to read and review!

Ohhh I loved the 90’s setting of this one with all the nostalgia sprinkled in! Just the perfect atmosphere for a hitchhiker / serial killer thriller! The blend of mystery, suspense, deep dark secret pasts and supernatural was on point. Not overdone into the ridiculous realm … just creepy enough to give that "just right" cringe factor. The author perfectly placed every twist and turn so that I couldn’t get to the end fast enough to find out all the things! Another top notch thrill ride from Simone St. James! Auto buy mode activated!

🎧 PRH Audio Review 🎧

It’s 1995 and newlyweds April and Eddie are honeymooning in a small town. While driving to their destination they spot a young hitchhiker. Soon after she enters their vehicle they realize the girl is injured, her wounds ultimately fatal.

Suddenly, the couple realizes they being followed and ultimately questioned by the
police. Lost with no alibi and a dead girl on their hands, the honeymooners find themselves the prime suspects. With their time running low, April and Eddie decide to dig deeper into what happened to the young girl, unearthing a sea of questionable encounters that have occurred along the same road. With more questions than they have answers, can the newly married couple clear their name and find an explanation for the unexplainable?

Murder Road is the latest nail biting mystery from author, Simone St. James. Narrated expertly by Brittany Pressley, this story’s twists and turns eventually started losing me like a 1990s road trip without a map. Initially intrigued by the setup, the story gets moored in convoluted backstory, eventually coming together after traveling a rocky road. Many have loved this one, but the detours taken here prevented me from fully embracing its final destination.

I really adored this 90s ghost story! A honeymooning couple takes a wrong turn and ends up encountering a ghost and being drawn into a perplexing murder investigation. Loved everything from the 90s vibes to the dynamic of this unfortunate couple to the spooky small town setting. Murder Road has a medium level of scariness, some humor, and was just a whole lot of fun to read.


Full review on Jen Ryland Reviews, link below!

**Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Pub for the advanced copies of this book!! A shout to PRH Audio as well for allowing me to listen in on audiobook while I was driving - you rock!**

4.5 stars, rounded up! I absolutely loved this book for a fast-paced, twisty thriller. I didn't think I would love the more "supernatural" elements of this book, but everything worked really well together.

This is also my first book by St. James (I know - crazy!) and I was really impressed with the depth of her characters. I wasn't super obsessed with the main characters but I fell in love with Rose and the Snell sisters, and wanted more of them. I even teared up a little bit at the end of the book - please don't judge me, it caught me at a weird time, lol.

Overall, this could have been a 5 star read for me but as someone who reads a lot of mysteries/thrillers, I felt that a lot of times the twists were alluded to very heavily. Things that I normally would have had to guess about and try to come to my own conclusions were foreshadowed pretty heavily and I felt like I had to do less of my own thinking. Just a personal preference thing and I think that for readers new to the genre, this will be a perfect read!

Finally, listening to this on audio while driving home in rainy/foggy weather hit perfectly!! Highly recommend if you need to creep yourself out on a car ride. The narrator absolutely killed this one and made Rose someone I would want to hang out with.

**Instagram review will be posted in the next couple of weeks, page linked below!**

Murder Road by Simone St. James is a haunting & isolated small town mystery-filled horror sure to spook & thrill any reader. The concept of a newly married couple attempting to go on a honeymoon only to stumble into a hitchhiker murder is such an intriguing & unusual concept for a horror so rhat I was hooked immediately. This gives the perfect dose of 90’s nostalgia in an obviously terrifying way. This feels like a 90’s horror movie in book mode.

Murder Road is great for fans of…
🖤 Mystery-Filled Horror
🖤 Isolated Small Towns
🖤 Supernatural
🖤 Secrets

Murder Road is a beautiful reminder of why Simone St. James is a staple in the horror genre & consistently delivers on spooky & suspenseful mystery-filled horrors. I absolutely loved The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James & this just proves I will read & enjoy everything they write! They have such an excellent writing style & this was a fast-paced quick story easy to get lost into for an afternoon.

If you haven’t tried Simone St. James, I highly recommend remedying that immediately & Murder Road is an excellent choice to start!

Massive thanks to NetGalley & Berkley Publishing for the gifted copy, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

I will post this on my social media & Amazon around publication & add links once I do.

Simone does it again! Seriously, I can't say enough great things about how wonderful these books are. I get shivers every single time.

𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳 • 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭 • 𝘔𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘺
𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘗𝘶𝘣 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦: 5 March 2023

This was an unputdownable thriller. I had heard so many good things about Simone St. James and now I know why. The spooky, creepy vibes were on point. A series of murders on a deserted road in the middle of nowhere. A young newlywed couple with secrets. Flashbacks and visions. A haunted road. A deserted beach. A serial killer. Vivid scenes. The mystery kept me guessing for the whole ride down Murder Road. All will be revealed over time. I fell into the book and was right there with them in the car, driving down a deserted lonely road, to the middle of nowhere. I’m not usually a thriller reader but I will be adding Simone St. James’ prior novels to my TBR. I have heard great things about both The Sundown Motel and The Book of Cold Cases.

𝘈 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 @berkleypub 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 5!

𝘚𝘺𝘯𝘰𝘱𝘴𝘪𝘴 -
April and Eddie have taken a wrong turn when they spot what appears to be a lone hitchhiker. But not long after the hitchhiker gets into their car, they see blood seeping from her jacket. When she dies, April and Eddie find themselves in the crosshairs of the police as the cops finally have two witnesses — who easily become their only suspects.

Many thanks to @berkleypub and @netgalley for my #gifted (free) copy.

I am not a huge paranormal fan, but anything @simonestjames writes is a must-read for me. Her writing just pulls me in. I absolutely loved that this book was set in the 1990s. It was perfect!

Newleweds April and Eddie are on their way to a cabin off Lake Michigan for their honeymoon. Eddie accidentally takes a wrong turn onto Atticus Lane, and they spot a hitchhiker. They decide to offer her a ride but they realize she is full of blood, so they rush her to the hospital, but she doesn't make it, and now April and Eddie are suspects in her murder. This is definitely a page turner that I definitely recommend.

April and Eddie have their honeymoon thoroughly derailed when they pick up a young female hitchhiker who is bleeding profusely from a stab wound. They race to a nearby hospital, but it's too late to save her, and now April and Eddie are suspects in her murder. Something seems off in this town, as the detectives are eager to pin the crime on the young couple, but murders have been happening along this stretch of road for more than twenty years. Can April and Eddie figure out what's really going on in time to save their own necks?

Simone St. James is the queen of paranormal thrillers. I have yet to read one of her books and not love it! This one was, per usual, super gripping and kept me flipping pages to the very end. April and Eddie are well-developed characters for a thriller, and their backstories were interesting additions to the plot. Rose was probably my favorite character, and I loved her story and her ending as well. Overall, I loved this read, and I highly recommend it if you're into ghosts and thrillers!

A true Simone St. James style paranormal mystery that had me at the edge of my seat and at times a little afraid of the dark - just the way I like it 👻

Two dueling mysteries - the mystery of Atticus Line (aka Murder Road) as well as the mystery of April and Eddie and each of their sordid pasts. As witnesses to yet another victim in the long line of women missing along the road, they find themselves to also be the only suspects. Taking us on a hunt along with April and Eddie to find the truth behind the disappearances before they end up being accused themselves. This mystery ends up being deeper than expected, and with connections that seem a little too coincidental 👀

Simone St. James is one of my favorite mystery authors, and this book is right up toward the top of hers for me! I really enjoyed the plot, the characters, and the twists at the end. And the spook level of this one was just right to make me want to read with the lights on, making it all the more fun!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review! This one is out this week AND a BOTM add-on this month, I highly recommend for the mystery and paranormal lovers out there!