I love a good missing person book! Watching the main character try to hunt down her sister and look for clues was very interesting and I didn’t see the plot twist coming ! Traveling alone as a woman is super scary and this book shows that even more. 😳

Dark, gritty, and atmospheric with lots of twists and turns, this one pulled me in right away and wouldn't let go. I felt like I was right there traveling alongside the characters in the camper van, and as a female solo traveler myself, it was downright terrifying in parts. The narrator of the audio version did an excellent job and I loved listening to her accent. I had a little difficulty keeping track of the names while listening to the sections where a bit of Beth's history was revealed, but that got sorted soon enough. I think I figured out what was really happening fairly quickly, but that did not take away from my enjoyment of the book. I also liked the bonus content at the end, not just the author's note, but the actual interview with the author.

This book is a fast paced phycological thriller , with good writing along with the pacing of the story.

Set in Australia a woman is searching for her sister and traveling solo in a camper van . She meets many characters along the way and you never know who you can trust. Told from 3 POV - Katy , Beth and Wyatt.

This book will keep you on your toes , suspecting everyone , unsettling and very atmospheric.

I listened to the audiobook and found that the narrator was extremely good at the accents and creating voices for the different gendered characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ALC. this is my honest review .

Another outside the box read for me and man did this one suck me in!

It’s wanderlust meets mindfreak and I devoured this. With that, it felt similar to a book I read a long while ago so I felt like I was able to predict a few things I may not have otherwides. But even with that, this one kept me so captivated.

Two girls lost, one on the run and one on the hunt, team up to help one another while on a trip across the Australian Coast. You get mystery and unknown from Katie while getting thrill and worry for Beth.

Katie is looking for Phoebe, her sister who went missing a while ago and the case has been closed despite Katie truly feeling like Phoebe is still out there. Beth is running from a man who is haunting her and leading her down all the wrong paths. Through a wild stream of events, they end up in Katie’s van together, looking for Phoebe while outrunning Beth’s past. A win-win for the girls who each get what they want while helping the other.

Katie starts finding clues and Beth starts connecting dots and the ending comes crashing into them hard. It was twisty and heartbreaking and powerful. It speaks to the power women hold, the power of your own mind, and the power of friendship.

The audio was fantastic and the narrator did such an incredible job at transporting you into the story and on an adventure through Western Australia. All around, this one was a winner for me!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

WOW! The twists in this book were so unexpected. It is definitely a must-read.

This is a story about a #solofemaletraveler (Katie) and her trip around Australia to find her missing sister (Phoebe). Phoebe started the same trip a year prior but disappeared without a trace. Everyone has given up on finding her except for Katie who decides to retrace Phoebe’s steps which were very publicly documented all over Instagram.

Like I said earlier, the ending was insane.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Anna Downes for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you've ever wondered what it may be like to be a online van life traveler blogger, then this slow burn thriller may be for you .

It addressed topics like domestic abuse and solo female travel and includes Instagram posts. I didn't like the post aspect with the loads of hashtags and unfortunately found this one to be pretty bland. It didn't hook me and the characters were not memorable or interesting to me. Also, the writing style didn't work great for me and this isn't one I would read again.

The narrator was ok. Sometime her infections didn't seem to match the subject matter but I still was fine listening to it for the most part. Not my favorite but not terrible.

Wow what a ride! I really enjoyed this psychological thriller full of twists and turns about a woman’s solo #vanlife trek around Australia that doesn’t go as planned. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator did a great job with the different voices and POV’s. The author’s vivid and lush descriptions of the Aussie landscape gave me serious wanderlust and overall, I enjoyed the characterization, twisty well paced plot, and the tight prose. I love a slow burn taut thriller and this checked all the boxes with my only criticism being the plot does teeter on unbelievable, still it worked for me and I look forward to reading more of this author’s work.

This was a twisty roadtrip thriller that did not disappoint! The characters in the book were well written. The story was fast paced, and the twists blew me away!
I listened to the audiobook version and the narrators knocked it out of the park!
This is a must read did anyone who enjoys a twisty thriller. I can’t wait to recommend!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review!

There is a lot to process in this story. It's about a young adult female traveling alone and everything that goes along with that. There are so many beautiful descriptions of Western Australia that you are going to want to see it for yourself. So, what if your sister was that woman on social media traveling by herself and, what if she disappeared and the police have given up? Would you do just what she did and try and find your sister? Well, that's what Katy Sweeney decided to do, and, when she meets a stranger, will she decide the company of another woman is better than being alone? The audio was well done but with so many characters with aliases, I think this is best read and not listened to. The number of characters using different aliases depending on the company and surroundings was a lot and it was confusing at times. Maybe that was the intent.

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced audiobook. This was a fun mystery/thriller about a girl looking for her missing sister in the Australian outback. Lots of hashtags and quips, with #vanlife, #solotrip, but in all seriousness, this is timely as there are people who live the vanlife, and there is the safety of women traveling solo. This was a fast read and had a twist in the end that I did not see coming. I will read more of Anna Downes in the future.

4 stars

This is a great psychological thriller that requires the reader's full attention, so word to those readers like me: if you are prone to casual audiobook listening, this is one on which to focus.

Katy is looking for her sister, Phoebe, who went out on a van life excursion across Western Australia last year and has not been heard from since. There are no leads, so Katy decides to play citizen/sister detective, and she is...not that good at it. It's obvious early on that she's going to struggle on this trip since she keeps missing periods of time, finding herself confused, etc. This all gets a little more complicated by the early introduction of Beth, who is an intriguing character on her own, but who also lends little clarity to whatever is going on with Katy and Phoebe.

This is a twisty psychological thriller that forces readers to think of the many recent scenarios in which women traveling alone or with romantic partners have found themselves in dangerous situations. There's a fantastic author's note about this that added a lot to my reading experience!

I really enjoyed this read and will be looking for more from this author.

3.75⭐️ this is going to be hit or miss depending on the person.

I am thankful to have gotten the audioARC for free from Netgalley and MacMillian Audio so I can leave my voluntary review.

I’m beginning to realize that “general adult fiction” just may not be for me. Obviously any adult geared writing can fall under that category but I mean when books are in the category and nothing else. Why? I get bored. Same with contemporary fiction.

This book is a little better as it has some twists along the way and the end makes it worth it and why I rounded up to 4 stars. I listened to the audio book and the narrator did a great job with the voices as well as the appropriate amount of inflection without getting too dramatic. I also personally loved listening to her Aussie accent.

If you are a person who has taken part in or interested in “Van life” you will probably love this book. Going along on the journey that the characters go on throughout Australia. While I was a bit bored at times I did get engaged when different places were vividly explained. This made me stop and start the book over several days but I did want to finish it and not just because it was an ARC.

The ending was great. I can’t say much as it’ll be a huge spoiler but I liked the explanation of the different pieces. While I did have a solid feeling of what was going on, it still was great to hear it unfold.

So this is a slow story to unfold but don’t let it get you down. Push through and you’ll be rewarded in the end. The book is released to the public on August 27th 2024.



My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars and I rarely round up.

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

In Red River Road, a young Australian woman decides to travel the Coral Coast of Australia in a solo van trip and goes missing. However, this story is not what it seems at first!

I was hooked from the beginning and really enjoyed this travel thriller. I recommend giving this audiobook a listen if you enjoy travel thrillers and enjoy big twists in a story. I truly did not see the twist in this one coming!

Thank you @macmillan.audio for allowing me to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

(This same review was shared on the Barnes & Noble website)

Having been to Australia and doing a back packing and horse riding safari I could not wait to read this book! The descriptions of scenery did not disappoint. The story was a slow burn and I could not wait to find out how it all came together. I did guess what happened with one character, no spoilers from me! It does come together and it was good, just a little to long. The narrator did a fantastic job with the accents! I will look for other books by this author. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Excellent, eery psychological thriller.

4.5 stars rounded up.


Katie is looking for her sister Phoebe, who was traveling along the Western Australian coast in a van by herself when she vanished. Retracing Phoebe‘s route from her social media posts, Katie soon encounters another solo female traveler, Beth (who gives her name as Lily), who is clearly running from something/someone. Eventually, the two women form a reluctant partnership in their search for answers.

The book‘s biggest achievement is its unsettling, creepy atmosphere, which was extremely well done and contributed to the constant tension of this psychological thriller. Furthermore, it broaches a Zeitgeist subject, female solo travelers and the many dangers they may find themselves in.

As a thriller, it was initially a rather slow burn, but the eeriness of the setting, albeit in the middle of a beautiful landscape, more than made up for that. And while the biggest twist became obvious to me early on, I still very much enjoyed this book. Katie and Beth were great characters, and the back and forth between their different POVs was expertly done. I did think the final explanation of what exactly happened to Phoebe was a bit over the top, though.

The author‘s note at the end of the book was extremely insightful and made me appreciate the subject matter even more. On top of that, the audio book also contains a talk between Anna Downes, author of „Red River Road“, and fellow author Sally Hepworth, which I enjoyed immensely.

I listened to the audio version of this book, and thought the narrator did an absolutely outstanding job throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

„Red River Road“ is slated to be published on August 27, 2024.

I’m a sucker for an Australian audiobook, so was excited to read this new book. Katie roadtrips Western Australia searching for her missing sister Phoebe. She teams up with Beth who’s on the run from her abusive boyfriend Lucas

We get a bunch of different POVs, including Phoebe’s instagram. I was thinking it would have been really cool if Phoebe’s insta actually existed!

Beth was pretty kick ass - I listened to the audiobook and her fake US accent was outstanding! I loved that Beth was so invested in her lies and I routed for her throughout

Fifteen year old Wyatt, Lucas’s brother is the only one not roadtripping. He’s at home, sickly and neglected. I’m not sure we ever found out why he was always sick (someone can share if I’m mistaken). His older brother Lucas featured heavily but we never heard from him which was a shame. I’d have liked to understand his actions, as I’m not sure I did

Sister Katie was my least favorite of the characters - I found it hard to connect…. She wasn’t as energetic as the others and I felt almost claustrophobic - perhaps that highlights the solid writing

Because it’s a slow burn, I felt it was all gonna rely on the resolution. Although I loved the smaller twist, I didn’t appreciate the big reveal. There’s a few things I really don’t like in a book (a cliffhanger, for example) and this was one of them

I do however recommend this book and I’m actually going to suggest it to my bookclub as it highlighted some important topics; women and their right to travel alone, human trafficking, child neglect etc

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for access to this audiobook ARC in exchange for my honest review

This is one that I think readers will either really like, or really not like. This story started out a bit strong and suspenseful, but quickly there were too many characters, they weren't too developed, and at the end I was left feeling like, "What did I just listen to?"
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this audio book.

Red River Road by Anna Downes
Narrated by Maddy Withington

First I want to say that the narration of this story was very good. Almost everyone is speaking in a Aussie accent and the accents were done in such a way that this Texan could understand what everyone was saying. I need that if I'm going to enjoy an audiobook. Be sure to listen to the author's note at the end of the audiobook and then the bonus of getting to hear authors Anna Downes and Sally Hepworth talk about their work and lives.

Red River Road is confusing at first although you will eventually understand what is going on at the end. The confusion fits so well with the characters, especially the character of Katy. Although she often seems very much on top of her game, level headed and able to take care of herself, there are other times that Katy seems disoriented, drugged or drunk, not all there, it's very hard to tell what is going on. Is she hiding something, is she lying, just what is going on with Katy?

Then Beth appears in Katy's bed, bloody, barefoot, and ragged. Beth is running from something or someone and at first the two don't trust each other. But eventually, despite their inability to level with the other, both women know that they are better off together than apart. Katy is so generous to Beth, giving her a place to stay, food, and clothing. Beth, really does want to make sure Katy is okay since she seems to be...off, in some way.

Katy is looking for her sister who dropped off social media while in the middle of a solo vanlife trip. But something isn't right about Katy's trip or about Katy's story. Something isn't right about Beth's story either. Then there is a fifteen year old boy who gives us another POV. He seems like a really good kid and it takes a while to figure out how he fits into everything. I wasn't sure about the story at first but I couldn't help liking all three of the main characters despite their spaciness and shadiness. And by the end of the story I was very satisfied with what I learned and how the story moved forward.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this ARC.

This was such an anticipated release for me. I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. I've read from this author before and really enjoyed her writing. This one though, it didn't live up to my expectations. It was.... boring? The multiple POVs weren't unique enough and I kept getting them confused. It didn't connect with the characters at all, so I wasn't at all invested in the mystery of what happened to her sister. The plot was slow going, not very exciting, and lacking in suspense. I ended up DNFing because it just never made me actually care about anyone or anything. My rating mostly only reflects the story itself. I liked the narrator, I thought they did well, but I think the story really would have benefitted from having multiple narrators for each of the POVs.

Great weaving story. The Outback is such a scary place in my mind so I was ready for some great adventures. Enjoy the read. This author has become a favorite.