Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens

☆☆☆☆
.ePUB, 332 pages
Expected Publication: August 3rd 2021 by St. Martin's Press

About the Book:
The Cold Creek Highway stretches close to five hundred miles through British Columbia’s rugged wilderness to the west coast. Isolated and vast, it has become a prime hunting ground for predators. For decades, young women traveling the road have gone missing. Motorists and hitchhikers, those passing through or living in one of the small towns scattered along the region, have fallen prey time and again. And no killer or abductor who has stalked the highway has ever been brought to justice. Hailey McBride calls Cold Creek home. Her father taught her to respect nature, how to live and survive off the land, and to never travel the highway alone. Now he’s gone, leaving her a teenage orphan in the care of her aunt whose police officer husband uses his badge as a means to bully and control Hailey. Overwhelmed by grief and forbidden to work, socialize, or date, Hailey vanishes into the mountainous terrain, hoping everyone will believe she’s left town. Rumors spread that she was taken by the highway killer—who’s claimed another victim over the summer. One year later, Beth Chevalier arrives in Cold Creek, where her sister Amber lived—and where she was murdered. Estranged from her parents and seeking closure, Beth takes a waitressing job at the local diner, just as Amber did, desperate to understand what happened to her and why. But Beth’s search for answers puts a target on her back—and threatens to reveal the truth behind Hailey’s disappearance.

My Review:

I LOVED Still Missing by Chevy Stephens so when I saw this on NetGalley it was a no brainer to request it. Being from Toronto, Canada I love supporting Canadian authors and Ms. Stevens makes it so easy because I love her writing. 

This book was so atmospheric it was like Northern British Columbia was a character itself. I really loved the descriptions of the flora and fauna, not to mention the weather and nature in general. Who'd a thought a mystery novel set in the British Columbian North could read so poetically? I couldn't help but fall in love with the character of Hailey McBride, she was just so damn feisty and strong even after everything she'd been through...or maybe because of it...as was Beth.

The book is very intense and suspenseful, the narrative is brisk and natural. The storyline keeps you wanting to turn the page and the characters believable. After about half way, you wonder where it's going from there but there are some neat twists still to come. I can't wait for whatever Chevy Stevens produces next, if it half as good as this then it will be well worth a read.

Disclosure:
Thank you NetGalley, Chevy Stevens and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

#NetGalley