This was gifted to me by Netgalley & the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I was so pumped to get an early copy of this book after reading and loving the author's last novel. Needless to say, I had high expectations jumping into this one.

A murder that has been twenty years in the making.......Does that not sound interesting?! Wesley Falls is just your everyday average suburban town...right? Wrong. There is something eerie just below the surface of this town, it could be the abandoned coal mine beneath the town. Our story kicks off in 1995, summer is meant for parties. However, six high school students witness something that will change their whole lives.

I am not going to say much more than that. You just have to read this, especially if you liked the previous book from the author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Vera Kurian, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC!
This book was quite a ride. I truly enjoyed each character of the capstone six! Their backstories in addition to the current plot line of the story added an exceptional depth to the book you don’t always see in other reads of this genre.
I really resonated with the church trauma theme of this book. It was both painful and cathartic in an impactful way. Cultish themes are one of my favorites and Kurian did not disappoint here!
I highlighted the following: “If you really believed you were saving souls from eternal damnation, why on earth would you care about the color of people’s skin?” 😤
This book felt a bit slow-moving although a somehow so much really did happen. At times, the backstories felt so in-depth I think there was a limit to their level of necessity, only because I grew a bit tired waiting for the main plot line to continue. It is possible that I am just allergic to longer books (hello, ADHD) but I am sure I am not the only one. Feelings of fatigue are probably my least favorite in reference to reading, however, so it did affect how I ultimately felt about my reading experience here.
Overall this was a good read with haunting elements sure to be appreciated.
3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4!

Thank you to netgalley for advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Well, honestly, this one wasn’t great. The premise sounded great, and the first third of the book was fine, but when a supernatural element got involved, the story got weird. It then felt very dragged out, and completely unreasonable.

The police officer in town was completely fine with letting 5 “civilians” he knew from high school, conduct their own investigation into a murder and blow up a priest in a mine. This one is a no for me.

Kindle Copy for Review from Net Galley, Killer Crime Club and Harper Collins Canada.

I received a free, advance copy of this book and this is my unbiased and voluntary review.

It was the summer of 1965 as an epic party turns into a murder. Six guests are gathered once again to relive the harrowing tale where young women lost her life where no one can trust wither.

Will this reunion answer questions or will it cause more and perhaps further deaths? A fascinating glimpse of relationships, as you witness things in their eyes,

Very intriguing synopsis, and I did like the plot, but it was extremely slow paced. I can't say nothing happened, because so much did, but certainly not enough to fill the almost 500 pages of this book. It dragged on and on and I couldn't wait for it to end.

I requested this because I loved Never Saw Me Coming and unfortunately I don't think it met my expectations. I'm going to admit I mainly liked NSMC due to Chloe and Charles, not plot or writing, and ASPD doesn't have characters with the same star power or even any that stood out enough to look past the, well, mediocrity of everything else. While the characters are not complete stereotypes, I found them to be extremely rigid in their roles in a way that seemed highly unrealistic.

I also had issues with the prose and the plot. The writing itself is very clinical; I could connect to very few of the emotional scenes. You would think this would make the book straightforward and easy to read, but that's not true either. The alternative timeline on it's own wouldn't be confusing, but when added to a cast of six different povs, I had to reread several parts multiple times to understand what was happening. Another thing I didn't like was how social and political issues were described or brought up in, well, social media/tiktok terms. For example, one phrase that jumps out to me is "shamed for their sexuality" when talking about women being sexually abused and raped by priests. It just cheapens the subject.

My one problem with the otherwise okay plot is that they find out something in the 1995 timeline which should have cut down at least half of the 2015 timeline (which was just "who is he" and "how is he alive"). You know how he's still alive. This revelation at around 70% (?) rendered at least the first 1/4 of the book entirely unnecessary and I really think one of these things should be cut.

I really am sad I didn't enjoy this like I thought I would.

Thank you to Netgalley for an early copy.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A Step Past Darkness presented an interesting mix between mystery and supernatural. It started slowly but once it picked up I was really into it! It was so interesting to see how the small town was completely controlled by the church and how it infiltrated everyone’s lives.

This one started out really interesting to me, with a bit of a misfit vibe and a creepy edge that I found engaging. Unfortunately it's a bit uneven and it got weird and random and I got pretty confused about a quarter of the way in and just never found my way back into feeling like I had any idea what was going on.... This is the second of Kurians novels that I've tried and I had similar issues with the first one. I think her writing style just doesn't suit me. This one didn't work for me.

I loved this mystery, though it felt more like an epic than a traditional mystery or thriller. Kurian's first thriller was great, and this is a whole different direction, so it's very cool that she has such range.

I absolutely devoured this book, it was so good! I have to agree with another reviewer, this story definitely started out with It vibes. There were multiple perspectives, but it worked really well. I loved seeing the perspectives of each character and their relationships with the other characters. It gave a unique insight that a single or even dual POV doesn’t give you. Despite that it was dual timeline and multi-POV, I found it really easy to follow along with, just like when I read It. There wasn’t a single thing I didn’t like about this book. I almost wish there would be a sequel! I know that doesn’t work for the story, but it was so good! I’m definitely going to be suffering from a book hangover for a long while after this!

Huge thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

Oof. I really wanted to love it, and the premise and comparisons to Stephen King's 'It' (but way less problematic) were like catnip to me. Unfortunately, for me this book *dragged* and the characters never fully engaged my interest, for reasons that it's hard to pinpoint. So I was left disappointed, but the overall plot engines were still compelling.

This book had more supernatural elements than the description led me to believe. I am a skeptical person and had difficulty with believing some of the events that unfolded. That being said, I really enjoyed the characters in this book. The writing and plot was suspenseful and I do think this is worth a read especially if you enjoy supernatural things. Thank you to Vera Kurian and Harlequin Trade Publishing for allowing me this ARC.

Ehh this one wasn’t for me. The first thing that threw me off is that this has more of a super natural element to it and there was nothing in the description leading me to think that. While I’ve ready many books with alternating timelines, I felt this one was harder to follow. This story was written from the POV of the 6 characters - I did find it easy to pick up on who everyone was fairly early on. While I did enjoy a few of the “twists” I felt the writing to be a bit chaotic. There also was a few different scenarios that played out that I thought may have been important or would come back into play later on and never did. All in all, I think the story had great potential but maybe just not executed in a way that grabbed my attention.

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC in return for my honest review.

I just finished reading Vera Kurian's novel, A Step Past Darkness. Although the book had some intriguing plot twists, its delivery was unimpressive. The characters were not fully fleshed out, making it difficult to empathize with them, and the book's pacing was slow and erratic. While it was an acceptable read, it is not one that I would highly recommend.

Thank you to HTP (Harlequin Trade Publishing) and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

What on EARTH did I just read?!?! (I mean this in the best way) I absolutely DEVOURED this book in a day because I was that shocked by what I was reading. This is not a mystery so much as a psychological horror book that will have your jaw dropping multiple times.

I’m actually still trying to process it but it was amazing. Not only has Kurian crafted a confusing, other-worldly, one of a kind horror novel but she has managed to do it in a way that seamlessly blurs the lines between fiction and reality. I went into this book not knowing too much about it and I’m so glad I did because I was hooked from beginning to end.

An almost 500 paged psychological horror novel is no small feat and yet Kurian has mastered it. Her writing flowing so effortlessly that you’ll blink and realize you finished the book. I cannot say enough good things about this book!

ARC by NetGalley and the publisher.

Wesley Falls isn’t your typical small town and six classmates are about to find out why. While attending an end of the year party at the town’s abandoned mine they witness something they shouldn’t. The group of teens decide to carry this secret, making a pact to never speak or see one another again. Twenty years later when one of them turns up dead the remaining five members must come together to confront the pasts secrets in order to survive.

A Step Past Darkness has great atmospheric tension as this slow burn supernatural thriller takes the reader to a town filled with secrets and cults. The setting of the town itself along with the mine was truly creepy, maybe it’s just me but even just the mention of an abandoned mine and I already known nothing good will happen there. The story is told with flashbacks from 1995 to present day 2015 as well as thru multiple POVs. We follow each of the six core characters: Casey, James, Kelly, Padme, Tia, and Maddison. This did feel slightly overwhelming to be focusing on so many main characters but overall I enjoyed watching this misfit group come together and form bonds with one another over time. There were times that I felt throughout reading that the plot suffered from inconsistent pacing which could be due to the fact that this was a tad on the longer side page wise however, the twists and plot overall kept me hooked despite the slower middle. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who liked Stephen Kings “It” as it most definitely gives off those kinda of vibes.

A Step Past Darkness comes out February 20th, 2024.

Thank you NetGalley and Park Row for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A Step Past Darkness pulled me in right from the beginning. The mystery behind what was going on in Wesley Falls, at Golden Praise, at the mine, and with some of the people of Wesley Falls was creepy and at times intense. The story built at a slower pace but was well worth the payoff. At first, the slow pace was because of the set up. There were six main characters. That's a lot of points of view to get to know, but each character had their own voice and experiences to add to the story. Once I was into the story, things picked up a bit. They did seem to slow down a little in the middle again, but I think it was because of the complexity of the plot and the players involved. It was also a longer thriller page wise, so that might have had an impact. Things picked right back up last third of the book and the ending was explosive. 

Overall, I enjoyed A Step Past Darkness. It wasn't quite as big a winner for me as Never Saw Me Coming, but I loved the mystery and the multiple points of view. These two books have cemented Kurian as a must-read thriller author for me.

This book was so different from what I expected, for some reason, but in the best way possible. I have been really gravitating towards mysteries/thrillers with a supernatural element, and this is probably one of the best I have read recently. I truly had an extremely difficult time putting this one down at night in order to sleep, and I found myself thinking about the storyline almost immediately upon waking, which is something that rarely occurs with me. Definitely will continue to recommend this book to all that will listen, and look forward to reading future titles.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to preview this uncorrected proof in exchange for my honest review. This was a unique, if a bit lengthy book to follow. I liked our characters, the setting and storyline. The typeset Add it hard to read on a phone, which resulted in y having to take breaks and try to get back into the story. It took a bit away from it overall. Despite that, it was well written and I would recommend it to,others.

This book gave me all the IT vibes possible and I am 100% here for it.

A group of misfit kids thrown together for a capstone project in 1995 uncover sinister secrets within their small town. And they all lead to the church that runs everything and determines who is worthy and who isn’t.

20 years after they saved the town, they have fled to other parts of the country and have had zero contact with one another. Until one of them turns up dead, in their hometown, and they all come rushing back to finish what they started in 1995.

I feel like the idea behind this book was good but there were way too many characters to follow and the ending was kinda dumb I tried scrolling on my kindle to see if there was more to it