I love how Simone St. James writes books that are a blend of genres. Murder Road is a supernatural thriller that feels part horror, part mystery suspense and part family drama. The first half of the book quickly hooked me, but things slowed down considerably for a chunk of the middle before picking up again for the last 15%. I enjoyed getting to know the characters, but would have liked a touch less backstory on their romance and backgrounds. I loved the dark atmospheric vibe and everything Lost Girl. It wasn’t as scary as I’d hoped it would be, more just a creepy in tone, but I think it will work well for horror lite fans or readers who scare easily.

It’s a fun and entertaining read that I think many will enjoy and I can’t wait to see what the author comes up with next! Thanks to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for the DRC!

Newly married Eddie and April are headed out on their honeymoon when a wrong turn leads them to the town of Coldlake Falls and they quickly become suspects to murder. Every time they try to leave, the mysterious Atticus Line traps them. With the help of the incredibly resourceful and witty Snell sisters, will they solve a 40-year old case? How much will their own past come to haunt them and try to break them apart?

This Simone St. James novel is an excellent read from beginning to end. The added secondary characters were an unexpected and brought were such a welcomed, cheeky light in the darkness hovering over Coldlake Falls. Everything in the story is so perfectly intertwined from beginning to end that I can’t imagine any other storyline. 10/10 cannot recommend this book enough. Absolutely loved it!

St. James does it AGAIN! MURDER ROAD is another paranormal book that is done phenomenally. I loved that this is set in Michigan( Michigander here!) and involves a newlywed couple on their way to their honeymoon.

This book provided the eerie creepy atmosphere that chills you to the bones. The story was fast paced and had me flipping the pages as fast as I could. I can’t even explain in words how well St James writes these paranormal books- they feel like it’s happening in real time! I definitely recommend this one! 4.5 stars rounded to 5.
Thank you Berkley and Simone St. James for my eARC 💙

When newlyweds April and Eddie stop to help a woman on a deserted road in the middle, they have no idea what trouble is coming their way. Instead of a romantic honeymoon, they face police interviews, danger, and unsolved murders in mysterious Coldlake Falls. For fans of paranormal thrillers.

I finished this one in 3 HOURS. Giving it a 3 or 3.5 overall; really enjoyed the premise and the bingey-ness; it was a very quick read. I loved the Joy Ride vibes. I didn't loveeee where the twist went, with the "ghost" being the MMC's dead mother, and I had hoped it would be a bit scarier overall, but I did like it! I liked the suspenseful vibes and it kept my attention the entire time.

Thanks to Berkley Pub, NetGalley, and Simone St. James for a copy of Murder Road in exchange for an honest review. In my opinion, Simone St. James is the queen of supernatural thrillers without making them to unbelievable and this one was no different. We meet our main characters, Eddie & April, as they are on their way to their honeymoon. They end up making a wrong turn and end up in Coldlake Falls, Michigan. They end up falling into a series of murder cases that have a sordid history. It was so interesting to watch them as they tried to solve this case with a few fun “friends” that helped them along the way! As usual, St. James throws us an unexpected twist that was so fun to be apart of. This one is available on March 5th, 2024!

Thank you NetGalley, Berkley, and Simone. St. James for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Simone St. James: Queen of the supernatural thriller.

Murder Road is EXCELLENT and the entire time I was reading I was thinking how good of a movie adaptation it would make. (Already looking forward to Gare’s casting!!!)

St. James is a master at writing super creepy scenes and keeping the plot mysterious enough to not be able to stop flipping pages.

I quite literally cannot wait to see what St. James comes up with next!

I think this is Simone St. James best book so far!! It takes us back to 1995 which I remember well and could relate to a lot of the “memories” that were brought up back then. I was glued from the very first page and could not put it down. There was some paranormal ghosts in here which I am not normally a fan of, but this one I loved the story about all the missing girls over the years. I give this all the stars and want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review. To be published March 5, 2024. I say it will be a “hit” for 2024.

In true Simone St. James fashion, I loved this one! What I love about her writing is she is such a great storyteller. She keeps you engaged from beginning to end. I am a sucker for anything paranormal. Ghost hunting shows are some of my favorite to watch and this book had just that! If you’re looking for a book with murder, paranormal, a couple with lots of secrets and an ending you won’t see coming, then you HAVE to read this one! I really enjoyed it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review.

Simone St. James is one of my go-to authors. I love her writing and she knows how to creep out her readers. Murder Road is set in the 90s, with a young couple's honeymoon sidelined, as they pick up an injured hitchhiker on a deserted road, and instantly become murder suspects.

There are a lot of interesting characters in this small town, which kept the story moving. There are supernatural elements that are crucial to the plot. I felt like I never really got to know the main characters, for some reason. Their deeply hurt backstories are very much highlighted but I still felt a bit removed from them, as well as from the final resolution of the mystery of the deaths of numerous hitchhikers.

There are few authors who I will consistently answer “yes” to all the Netgalley review questions. Simone St. James is one of them. She is one of the very best suspense/ghost story writers out there today and Murder Road is one more phenomenally creepy entry in that genre.

St. James combines ghosts, serial killers, a determined cop, a couple of smart teenage girls, and a pair of newlyweds who are a little more than they seem into one wild ride of a story. I was reminded of Jeepers Creepers and Frighteners more than a couple times during my one-sitting read of this whiteknuckler.

Highly recommended for fans of the genre.

Another home run by Simone St. James!

In this new novel, we join newlyweds April and Eddie on a honeymoon from hell. Turning down a long road that's devoid of much traffic and the locals avoid, the atmospheric world created surrounding the stories about the Lost Girl are complete twists and turns that submerge you into an amazing plot. A unique ghost story that has such an amazing thriller feel.

The shorter chapters were easy to be able to rip right through this book and devour it in one sitting. The story on their journey being lost, finding a hitchhiker and then spending the entire honeymoon putting puzzle pieces together created a great thriller/mystery. The end was a good twist in my opinion. The characters were all very easy to like and merged into the story flawlessly. The only complaint I have is having to wait for another great story by this author!

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Y’all. Why did I go into this book thinking it was going to be about vampires? 💀😂

Regardless of lack of vampires, I LOVED THIS BOOK. @simonestjames knows how to write a hauntingly creepy paranormal thriller. I loved trying to solve these murder cases with Eddie and April. And honestly, flabbergasted with how it all came together in the end. This is going to be a must read this Spring!

👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻/5

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the arc in exchange for my honest review. Pub date: March 5, 2024

Murder Road is Simone St James' newest thriller and I was so excited to have the opportunity to receive a galley of it!

Newlyweds April and Eddie take a wrong turn while en route to their honeymoon destination and end up on a creepy isolated road where they end up picking up a young woman who seems to be in danger. After that woman dies, the cops flag the couple as the main suspects in the young woman's death.

Stuck in the small town they were passing through, the couple discovers eerie rumors about the specific road where they found the hitchhiker and decide to play detective and solve a cold case.

This book had me hooked from the beginning! Such a unique plot but unfortunately, it was lacking the "keep me on the edge of my seat" feel that SImone's books usually give me. I felt that I needed it to be creepier! Plus, some of the chapters dragged on a bit and felt repetitive.

Thanks to netgalley and Berkley Book for the galley!

This is definitely my favorite book that Simone St. James has written. This story involves a young couple celebrating their honeymoon, and after taking what they suppose was a wrong turn, they end up in a small town with some seriously gruesome unsolved cold cases. After suddenly finding themselves suspects, they seek to uncover the truth behind the series of deaths that have occurred along 'Murder Road', but someone or something is hunting... or haunting... them, too. Told as a linear story, with some fun characters, just enough spookiness, and a satisfying conclusion, I found myself powering through this book in only a day - I had to know what happened!

The last few of Simone St. James' books I deduced the ending ahead of time, but I still enjoyed the story. However, this one had me guessing what was truth and what wasn't the whole way. I recommend waiting for a dark evening with blankets and a hot tea to devour this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for the Advance Reader Copy of this excellent novel.

I really enjoy novels from Simone St James. This novel starts innocently enough, a newly wedded couple takes a wrong turn while driving to their honeymoon destination. While lost they help a woman who has been injured. And then suddenly they are immersed in a police investigation. If you like a good ghost story this one is for you - some twists and turns and a thing or two I did not see coming.
Thank you Netgalley and Berkeley for the digital ARC!

Check out my published review of this title at Library Journal: https://www.libraryjournal.com/review/murder-road-1804371

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘼 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙖 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙜𝙧𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡.

I have read a few books by Simone St. James and I absolutely love the creepiness her stories give, they are so unique and entertaining. This is probably my second favorite, right after The Broken Girls.

This one is a creepy thriller following a couple on their way to a small lakeside resort for their honeymoon. However, on their way, they end up making a turn to Atticus Line, where they see a figure in the middle of the road. Trying to be good samaritans, they try helping out… but next thing you know, they’re suspects in murder.

This story starts off so strong and intense. April and Eddie were an interesting couple. I loved the small town setting of Cold Lake Falls in Michigan. It was super eerie and spooky. I could see this being the perfect book to read near the spooky season.

The story is set in 1995 and I felt the nostalgia, I got complete chills reading about “The Lost Girl” - which is what the mystery revolves around. There were so many secrets in this and I didn’t know who to trust. There are also side characters, including Rose and the Snell Sisters.

I was completely immersed in this story and the writing. The supernatural elements came in strong and never left, I haven’t been this terrified to read a book at night in so long - which I loved. The only thing I wasn’t the biggest fan of was the ending - the motive left me underwhelmed.

Overall, Murder Road was such a creepy, unputdownable supernatural thriller. Fans of Simone St. James will absolutely love her next book!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Berkley for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

I received a copy of this book through Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

The story starts with Eddie and April on the road at night when they encounter a woman walking alone along the road. She agrees to get in their car, and once she’s inside, April sees that she’s been injured. Suddenly there are headlights behind them, and the woman says that a man knows that she’s in their car, that he’s after her. Eddie speeds up, but the car behind them keeps gaining on them. Finally they come to the next town, but soon after they make it to the hospital, the woman is dead. And the police think that Eddie and April are guilty of murder.

This book pulled me in right away. Eddie and April are both interesting characters with secrets of their own. I also liked some of the supporting characters. The book kept my attention all of the way through. As with the author’s other books, this one also has a supernatural presence. It’s a little spooky at times. I think it just might be my new favorite book by Simone St. James.

Hell yes! This one was so fun and super well-paced! I absolutely loved this one! I pretty much liked all of Simone St James!! This one was creepy and thrilling and I couldn’t put this one down!!! I thought the characters were great! They were such flawed characters but you couldn’t help rooting for them!! I also love when things are set in the Midwest, because that’s where I’m from! Highly recommend this one!!!