This is the third book in a series. This is my first read in the series. It can be read as a stand alone and the author introduces the characters and story to the readers very well. Thank you to Net Galley and to the publisher. My review is my own opinion. This is such a great thriller read and really kept this reader on the edge of my seat. Well done to the author.

Gus is a Mother of a young daughter who is suffering grief over the loss of her partner who disappeared three years prior. He was a journalist working on a big lead for a case. Gus and her daughter have not accepted his death and believe he can be found. They begin a investigation and soon find clues that lead the reader to a explosive thrilling conclusion.

This is a new author to me and I look forward to her next work. I enjoyed this immensely and recommend this book for all readers who enjoy a thrilling mystery with complex clues to keep you reading into the night.

No one can ever truly escape their past.

Three years ago they were a family….mercurial Gus (Augusta) Monet, her nine year old daughter Bly, and Howard, the love of Gus’s life and the man who has been a father to Bly in all ways save biologically since she was born. They were on a camping trip in one of their favorite spots when Howard, a journalist working on a story, left Gus and Bly on the beach while he drove off to meet with a source who (he hoped) would help him break open his current investigation. Only Howard never came back, and no sign of him nor of the camper he drove was found. Gus and Bly moved in with Howard’s parents, who had always treated them as family (even though Gus and Howard had never married) in Picton and for a year conducted their own search and investigation even as the police conducted theirs. Gus was and is an intense person, and ruffled more than a few feathers as she pushed and ranted until she had earned the (not affectionate) nickname the Cuckoo Bird. After a year with no sign of Howard and no new information to pursue, and having worn out their welcome with Howard’s parents, Gus and Bly moved back to the home they had shared with Howard and went on with their lives. Neither has gotten over the loss. When they spy Howard’s obituary in the newspaper two years later announcing a memorial service, there is no doubt in Gus’s mind what needs to be done….she and Bly are headed back to Prince Edward County to attend the service. Once there they immediately if inadvertently cause waves in the small town (which has not forgotten the Cuckoo Bird), and are stunned to discover that just a few weeks earlier the missing camper van had been found. Although they are warned to stay out of the way, they are able to get Bly into the camper to look in secret hiding places only they would know and she discovers Howard’s phone, his notebook about the investigation on which he was working, and a recorded video message. With these new bits of evidence Gus and Bly have new avenues to pursue and proceed to do so regardless of the cost or danger to themselves. After three years, could Howard still be alive? If he is why hasn’t he contacted them, and if he isn’t what happened and who was responsible for his disappearance?
The novel is narrated by now 13 year old Bly, who craves order and structure as much as Gus eschews it. Gus isn’t going to win any mother-of-the-year awards, but she does love Bly in her fashion. Both feel the loss of Howard, the stabilizing force in their lives, profoundly and are desperate to find him or at the very least settle the matter of why he was taken from them once and for all. The characters are well-developed and endearing (although Gus can be a bit much at times), and though the story starts out a bit slow it hits its stride about a third of the way in and it is impossible to not be as invested in solving the mystery of Howard’s disappearance as Gus and Bly are. I did not realize until after I’d read the book that it is actually the third to feature Gus, but it read perfectly well as a standalone so readers should not feel like they will be at a disadvantage if they have not read Dark August or Poison Lilies. There is a strong sense of place, and Bly is a compelling narrator. Perfect for readers of authors like Jaime Lynn Hendricks, Kate Alice Marshall and Adrian McKinty, Buried Road is an intriguing missing person thriller and a tale of family and the power of love. My thanks to NetGalley and Harper Paperbacks for allowing me early access to a copy of this engrossing read.

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing until the very end. I enjoyed the suspense. It was well-written.

I read this book at a time in my life where concentration was hard to come by. Unfortunately, that also means this cast of many, MANY characters was extremely hard to keep track of. Add to it that the author vacillates between using first names and last names, there were points in the book that I walked away confused & looking for context clues. That to say, the premise of the book is good. Just maybe takes notes as you go.

MIND BLOWN!!! What did I just read?! This book has a slow start but man, when it gets there… it GETS there! I could not put it down! Seriously has been one of the top thrillers I’ve read this year.

This book follows Gus and her daughter on the 3 year long search for their Howard. Howard was a writer, and working on an article when he suddenly disappeared. Even though Howards’s parents are ready to accept they will never know what happened to their son, Gus could not let that be the end. Follow them on their journey with many twists and turns before they get to the end. Will it be happy? Read and find out!

An excellent, fast paced, thriller with twists that will have you questioning everything you thought you knew. Katie Tallo will be an auto read on my TBR after reading this book!

Buried Road is told from Bly’s POV. Bly is a preteen who likes order, quiet, and following the rules. She’s quite the opposite of her mother, Gus, who is stubborn, unafraid, and will do whatever it takes when she’s on a mission. Together they are determined to find out what happened to Howard (Gus’s partner and Bly’s father figure) years ago when he disappeared. They are reunited with the camper van Howard was last seen driving before his disappearance and now they are following breadcrumbs in hopes that they will lead to answers.

I liked that this was told solely from Bly’s POV. It gave the story a sense of innocence coming from a child, even when the plot took turns into drugs, guns, and corruption. This felt a bit slow moving, but in an enjoyable way. I throughly enjoyed the ending. It’s been awhile since I had tears at the end of a book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This review will be shared on NetGalley and Goodreads.

Each book in this series can be read as a standalone. However, since I had read the previous book, where Gus met Howard, I was definitely more invested in finding out what happened to him.

Gus is a strong woman. She has had to deal with what has happened in her life. She learned how to take care of herself and not rely on anyone—at least until she met Howard, who snuck under all her walls and made himself an integral part of her and her daughter's lives. But three years ago he went missing and the case went cold. When the camper van he was driving is found Gus and Bly find some clues that send them in a new direction in finding out the truth.

The previous books were told from Gus' POV, in this one we are in the POV of her daughter Bly, who I thought was the perfect narrator for this book. It gave a whole new view of Gus and the effect she has on other's lives. We see her strength, stubbornness, and how she does whatever she needs to get what she wants from a whole new perspective. From the moment Gus and Bly got the new lead on Howard the pacing took off, it was non-stop until the end with so many twists and turns almost all of which I had no idea were coming. And that ending I did not see coming at all!
I'm not sure if this is the last book or not, but if there are more books featuring Gus and Bly I will definitely be picking them up!!

This one kept my interest all the way through! It started as a slow burn and tells the tale of a mother and daughter (Gus and Bly) trying to find Howard, the man whom they both love, the one who was going to propose marriage to Gus and make the three of them a forever family. This is the third book in a series. I read this as a stand-alone.

Howard, a journalist, disappeared three years ago while tracking a story. They were never sure of the details, but they have clues and ideas about where he went. Bly is the narrator, and she’s spunky and brave! The last half of the story picked up the pace and started the race to the finish. The idea that Howard was missing for such a long time, yet they still had hope, was moving, but could he still be alive?

And what a finish! I didn’t have the ending figured out, but the author had me fooled.

I definitely recommend this one! Four stars!

I have read the first two books in this series and so I was very excited to read the third book. I was not expecting this to be told from Gus’ daughter’s POV, as the first two are from Gus’ POV, but it worked really well once I got into it. I liked the story and the case, and really enjoyed this third installment. I think this can be read as a standalone for sure, but your reading will be enhanced if you have read the first two books in this series, and they are quite good so it is worth it.

I’m a big fan of Katie Tallo. And Buried Road did not disappoint.
Tallo wrote an addictive, suspenseful and thrilling novel that peeled the layers of the story so perfectly with the right pacing that had me on the edge of my seat.

Book #3 featuring Gus Monet and her daughter. Katie Tallo started Gus's journey in DARK AUGUST, continued in POISON LILLIES and has now rewarded her dedicated readers with BURIED ROAD. These books are excellent thrillers, starting the tension quickly and keeping the story moving, throwing us a clue or two and then taking them back with a twist. Tallo's books are addictive. Be prepared to binge one after the other as Gus runs until she's cornered, then she fights.

Howard was truly a great guy - the love of Gus’ life and amazing stand in Dad to Bly. He drives off in their camper while the girls are hiking which he would never do and simply vanishes in his hometown. Three years later his parents decide to declare him dead and have a funeral and of course Gus and Bly return for it. While they are there the camper suddenly surfaces and the mother daughter duo discover clues in the camper that begins their quest for answers. They uncover the secrets that Howard was pursuing and that are now putting them in danger too leaving them unable to trust anyone but each other. I loved the relationship between the two and their commitment to find out what happened to Howard. This is a fast paced missing person thriller with many surprises that I did not see coming.

Thank you to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for the eARC.

First, this is a book in a series. While you did not have to read the first ones I always feel like I am missing something when I don't start with the first. Second, this is a slow burn mystery. Not a bad thing, but I would've liked a little more to be going on throughout.

Thanks to Net Galley & the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This was a slow-burn for me but was still enjoyable as a typical mystery/thriller.

I didn't like the dynamic between mother-daughter. I found that the daughter was more mature and mothered her mother - It just didn't click with me.

The story itself was laid out well and you could feel the energy going into finding the boyfriend/father. I really enjoyed this aspect of the book as I could understand the characters and their motivations.

Now, I didn't realize this was book 3 in a series - I don't think you need to read the other 2 to read this and understand what is going on.

Overall, very standard story but with detail and intensity that was enticing.

This tense cold-case mystery is beautifully written, compelling, almost mystical at times. Although it's Katie Tallo's 3rd and I gather one of the main characters, Augusta (Gus) Monet, appeared in at least one of the previous books, I have not read the other two (yet!) and thought Buried Road read very well as a standalone.

Synopsis: Three years ago, Gus, her boyfriend Howard, and Gus's 9-year-old daughter Bly were camping in Picton, Ontario, a touristy beach town on the shores of Lake Ontario. Howard was a journalist and had gone to meet a source, but he neither he nor their camper van were ever seen again... until now, when the van has reappeared. Howard's parents decide he must be long-dead and plan a celebration of life, bringing Gus and Bly down from Ottawa, but they aren't there to mourn; they are there to continue their crusade to find Howard because they both refuse to believe he is dead. As they dig up new clues and follow slim leads, Gus and Bly feel they may finally be on Howard's trail, but they soon realize that small towns have big secrets, and there is nobody they can trust, not even Howard's parents or the local police.

The book started a bit slowly, setting the scene and introducing the main characters, but I was soon hooked and didn't want to put it down (I read it in 2 days, and one of those was a workday). There were multiple twists, few I saw coming even though Tallo dropped hints, deftly hiding them in plain sight.

I devoured this book in 2 sittings within 24 hours. The mother-daughter duo instantly pulled me in. The fast paced, action packed story kept me on the edge of my seat. While things do move quickly, the story is beautifully written and easily digestible so you can and want to keep up. The twists had me guessing until the end. This is my first book by Katie Tallo and it won't be my last!

I really, really enjoyed this book. I wasn’t sure where it was going at first but it all tied together nicely in the end. I couldn’t put it down during the last few chapters.

Thank you NetGalley & HarperCollins Publishing for this ARC acceptance 💙

I had no idea this was book 3 in a series, but thankfully, there wasn’t too much background knowledge needed. A mom and daughter coming together to discover the death of a loved one wasn’t as suspenseful as I would’ve liked, but maybe reading the first two, I can get a better feel of the premise. Its twisty, small-town mystery makes you eager to discover the truth. The beginning-middle dragged a bit, but it was an entertaining read overall. Be sure to grab a copy on December 3rd! ❄️

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Final rating: 3/5

I thought the plot was extremely intriguing. It was twisty and I didn't actually see the ending coming, which bumped up the rating for me. When a book can surprise me with who the antagonist is, it counts as a win in my book. However, there were some major things that I did not enjoy while reading this book. One big thing is that it was NOT advertised as a the third installment, however, it definitely could be read as a standalone.

First, the narration. The book is from the POV of a twelve year old girl, and maybe it's because I'm so far removed from my pre-teens, but this girl acted a lot younger than twelve. Maybe she's stuck in the past and is acting nine still because that's when everything started to go downhill for her, but I did not enjoy the POV of this for most of the book. She's simultaneously acting much older and then much younger inconsistently. I also hated how we have yet another mother constantly placing her daughter in harm's way. This seems to happening in just about every thriller I read from where one of the characters is a mom.

Another thing I disliked was the unnecessary plot points that just acted as red herrings. The author could have cut out most of the middle and the book still would have remained the same. In fact, much of the secondary plot made the ending seem like a coincidence. The pacing was also a turtle's pace.