Title: Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 384 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
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…
Review:
Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens is a chilling mystery that shines a much needed light on the tragic plight of missing and murdered Indigenous women.
Seventeen-year-old Hailey McBride is still reeling from her father’s heartbreaking death when she moves in with her Aunt Lana, her young cousin and her aunt’s husband RCMP Sergeant Erick Vaughn. Hailey appreciates Lana’s attempts to take care of her, but she cannot stand to be around Vaughn. He is very controlling and she cannot help for feel he is watching her every move. Genuinely afraid, Hailey and her best friend Jonny Miller, devise what she hopes is a foolproof plan to get away from the increasingly dangerous situation.
Eighteen-year-old Amber Chevalier is just passing through Cold Creek when she impetuously decides to stay in town. She is currently working as a waitress at the busy diner owned by Hailey’s family friend Mason. Amber is estranged from her parents but she remains close to her older sister Beth. Despite repeated warnings to avoid the Cold Creek Highway, a place where many young women have become victims of suspected serial killers, Amber continues to enjoy time at the local lake and campground.
After police notify her family of her sister’s heartrending murder, Beth travels to Cold Creek for the annual memorial for the highway victims. Wanting to find out who killed her sister, Beth takes at job at Mason’s Diner and begins her own investigation. She is extremely vulnerable after she leaves the dubious safety of a local motel and instead stays at the campground. Beth is haphazardly asking questions about Amber and looking for answers wherever she can find them. She does not realize how dangerous her quest has become until it is too late.
Dark Roads is a fast-paced mystery that is quite suspenseful. Hailey is resourceful and thanks to her dad, she has the skills needed to safely disappear in the nearby mountains. Beth is out of her depth and relies too heavily on prescription drugs and alcohol to numb her grief. Vaugh is a menacing figure who abuses his authority but is he responsible for recent highway murders? With cunning twists and devious turns, Chevy Stevens brings this action-packed mystery to an adrenaline laced conclusion.
