Do you like wild rides? Twists and turns thinking this is it only to be brought back to catch your breath? That was "Cold Dark Places" to me. So though I gave it a 5, to me it was a 4.5 because I was lost in the beginning, the first character you meet is Eryn. Eryn then and Eryn now. It took me a bit to get invested. Once I did, I was in all the way, and Eryn became someone I really want to see more of, little glimpses here and there in future books hopefully. Cady the US Marshall is kick ass with her own vulnerabilities from her youth and as this is book 1 I am soooo looking forward to really getting to know her and watching her grow. This is a thriller, mystery touching on realities of people day to day, dealing with mental health issues, aging parents with issues, our own insecurities and looking for a little love along the way. Peoples lives are interwoven and just when you think you got it (which rarely happens in this book) another thread is pulled. Thank you Thomas Mercer and Net Galley for letting me receive this arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own and were unsolicited.

Kylie Brant has such an amazing talent! She weaves a dark twisted story that will end up leaving readers feeling breathless and spent. I have been reading her stories for quite awhile, and yet every time I finish a book of hers I’m newly amazed.

I can’t wait to read more about Cady, and hope more books feature her in the future. She's a strong and damaged character who despite her nightmare of an upbringing, goes into law enforcement.

For me this book was all about Eryn. So very damaged and traumatized, and yet her bravery and attitude were amazing. I hope to hear about this character again in future books, as she really resonated with me.

I also hope that Ryder makes more appearances...I can totally see them team up!

If you like dark suspense...look no further. This is a solid winner by a fantastic author.

Cold Dark Places is my first book to read by Kylie Brant. It is the first book in a new series and filled with suspense and plenty of twist. I like the mix of mystery and romance. I will definitely be reading more books by Kylie Brant.

What an absolute page turner this was!!!!

This is the first book by Kylie Brant that I have ever read and it definitely will not be my last!

This book is an example of what a good mystery/ thriller novel should read like....it is fast paced, well researched, with a believable and to the point story line and true to life characters.

Cady Maddix is a Deputy US Marshall who becomes part of the law enforcement team assigned the case of tracking down a psychopath Samuel Aldeen, who has escaped a top notch mental facility and who has a penchant for raping children and cannibalism (he eats the kids after he rapes and kills them). What adds to the intrigue is that during their investigation, the team discovers that Aldeen has his sights set on young woman named Eryn Pullman, who herself has just recently being discharged from a psychiatric facility where she was institutionalized for 12 years after being charged with her mother's murder, even though there seems no apparent connection between the two....or is there? Also, the similarity between Eryn's and Cady's past has Cady reliving some painful memories of her own.

This is the first book in the Cady Maddix Mystery series and I look forward to reading more installments. I am also definitely checking out Kylie Brant's previous titles as well.

And Ryder Talbot, the local sheriff who joins Cady in the investigation....the guy is a keeper for sure! 😉😘

Thank you #NetGalley, #Thomas and Mercer and #Kylie Brant for giving me an ARC of this book to read.

DNF’d at 17%.

My main problem was that there were starting to be too many POVs to keep track of. When I stopped reading, I had 4 different POVs and I wasn’t seeing the need for all of them, though i’m sure it all comes together at the end.

This book moves really slow IMO. I need a thriller that is relatively fast paced to keep my attention. I’m also not a fan of using a character with mental illness to make a story more scary, as that is how I felt Eryn’s character was being used.

Fast paced easy read. I loved the characters and how they worked together to make this a good book. I really hope this author writes another book.

Kylie Brant did not disappoint with this book. I love mystery, intrigue, twists,, and surprises and this book had it all. I am excited about this new series and I want the next one already. Netgalley thank you for allowing me the chance to read ad enjoy it.

A very good start to a new series. I personally like the alternating POV--I like hearing from different characters and labeling them always helps! This was a scary good psychological thriller, with a good main character that I want to read more about. Definitely read if you like a good, thrilling, mystery.

I enjoyed reading this book. It had a good story to it. I liked the variety of characters in it. It is my first book read by this author. I hope to read more books by this author.

I love reading Kylie brant books, she never disappoints. And she succeeded in this book as well. Equal amounts of suspense and mystery that will keep you reading til the end. I enjoyed this book immensely.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of Cold Dark Places by Kylie Brant! This was my first book by this author and the first in a series, I thoroughly enjoyed this story and the way the chapters went back and forth between characters. I look forward to reading more books by Kylie Brant! If you like fast paces thrillers with crazy twists, check this one out!

This is the first book in a new series by Kylie Brant. I have enjoyed her other series, so I wanted to check this one out. The series is about US Marshall Cady Maddix, who returned home to help take care of her mother.

In this book, Cady is assigned to track down escaped child killer Samuel Aldeen. She teams up with Sheriff Ryder Talbot to hunt him down before he can get back to his old ways. Sheriff Talbot is also trying to find out who is harassing Eryn Pulman, who was just released from a psychiatric facility she was sent to after killing her mother when she was a child.

Can Cady move past her troubled childhood to help Eryn with hers? Will Cady and Ryder find Aldeen before he starts killing again?

Though I was not fond of the way the book went back and forth between the characters' point of view, I did enjoy the story. It hooked me in and I couldn't put it down until I finished it.

Kylie Brant’s latest novel, Cold Dark Places, is a roller-coaster ride that keeps you guessing the entire way. Cady is a strong heroine who is battling demons of her own, even as she tries to fight those around us. Brant’s manner of suspense creeps into your subconscious and won’t let go the minute you start reading. The change in POV provides a well-rounded story, even as it keeps you on your toes.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this novel.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy of Cold Dark Places by Kylie Brant that I read and reviewed.
This book was just okay for me. The biggest problem I had with it was that it had way to much going on and it jumped around a lot.. I think the author tried to put too much in the book.
I loved the idea of the story and I loved the twist and the end of the book was a huge surprise but for me it was really painful to get there and it got to the point where I just skipped to the end to see what happened.
I am only giving Cold Dark Places three out of five stars.

Cold Dark Places in an interesting and original thriller with Eryn coming back home after a difficult childhood and 11 years spent in a psychiatric hospital. There are too many side stories to me and it somehow cuts the rythm of the main story.

Deputy US Marshall Cady Maddix and Eryn Pullman, a recently released patient from a psych facility, had two important commonalities: both had parents who were murdered and both were afraid of cold dark places. This was just the tip of the binds that tied these characters together. A reckoning of sorts among these and other characters, most notably escaped child killer Samuel Aldeen, set the stage for a dramatic showdown in this intense mystery thriller.
Cold Dark Places held this reader captive from the first to last page. I look forward to other books in this series.

"...traumas were never forgotten. They had a way of hanging around, ready to ambush when you least expected it."

The synopsis provided on this page is a bit misleading. This detective novel focuses on 3 characters whose lives will intersect in a plot that's quite complicated and only barely comes together to make sense toward the end.

Deputy US Marshal Cady Maddix holds her own secrets about something she did as a child so she is messed up emotionally and has trouble with relationships. She has returned to North Carolina to supervise her aunt's care of Hannah, Cady's mother, who has early onset Alzheimer's. She's assigned to track down an escapee from Fristol Forensic Center --Samuel Martin Aldeen -- who has been confined there for the last five years after the kidnap, rape, and cannibalization of children. Fristol is a facility for the criminally insane. The third character is Eryn Pullman, now 21, who has spent 12 years in Rolling Acres Resort, a secure mental health facility, for the murder of her mother. Eryn is transitioning out of their care to her family home and will be living with her uncle, aunt and nephew there. There are other characters including those from various areas of law enforcement as well as acquaintances of Aldeen who helped in his escape and during his time as a fugitive. So a lot of people to keep track of and very convoluted relationships that tie Aldeen to Eryn. NO SPOILERS.

The narrative is quite jumpy going from past to present in Eryn's voice as well as the voices of Cady and Aldeen. I found the story hard to get into and it lagged as details labored to be revealed. I guessed certain truths at the outset and was irritated that it took so long for the convoluted history to come out. The payoff, for me, wasn't worth the slog through. I know this is meant to be the first in a new series but I don't think I'll be reading another as I really didn't care for Cady -- but perhaps I'm just tired of books that feature females that are so emotionally messed up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the e-book ARC to read and review.

Eryn Pullman has spent over eleven years locked away in a mental institution called Rolling Acres, but now that she is over twenty-one, she is finally hoping to transition home. Unfortunately, many people do not want to see Eryn free and go to extreme lengths to try to lock her up again. After all, she did murder her own mother asst the young age of nine.
Meanwhile, Samuel Aldeen, a pedophile and child killer, escapes his imprisonment and must be caught before anyone is hurt again. So US Deputy Marshal Cady Maddix, someone with her own past baggage (eerily similar to Eryn), is soon put on the case, along with other members of the "alphabet agencies" involved. Curiously, though, there seems to be a connection between Eryn and Aldeen. What is it? Is Eryn Aldeen's next target? Can Maddix figure the story out and catch Aldeen in time?
Probably my favorite part in reading this book was when the author wrote about Eryn's story, because, in my opinion, the book was more about Eryn than anyone else. Her psychological states and the voices in her head kept me intrigued, wondering why and how she is the way she is. I actually didn't make the connection that this is a start of a series revolving around Cady Maddix until about halfway through when I looked up the book again on Goodreads. Another reason, I think, why it's not clear about this being a Cady Maddix story is that there are a number of characters who appear to be significant and whom the author narrates their stories and experiences. I think it was probably one too many characters highlighted in this book because all the extra information made four times while I was reading that I became bored. I also had a hard time picking the book up again and getting back into the story. But one huge aspect I loved wad the final climax of the book. It was very action-packed and thrilling to read. And it left me wanting more. (However, this book is definitely more of a police procedural than a thriller.) I do plan on reading the next in the series because I have a feeling it's only going to get better from here, especially because there is quite a bit of potential regarding Cady Maddix's personal life and where that will go. Overall, though, this was a pretty decent book and I mostly enjoyed it.

This is a Cady Maddix Mystery Book 1 . This was a heart pounding serial killer thriller with fascinating characters . A deliciously intense and dark storyLine with a shocking ending ! WOW !! I absolutely loved this book ! Kylie Brant is one of my favorite authors . Another winner ! Thanks to Netgalley , Thomas & Mercer , Thomas&#38 , Mercer #Netgalley #Thomas&Mercer #Thomas&#38 #Mercer #ColdDarkPlaces

I love a good easy mystery/thriller Cold Dark Places by Kylie Brant was just that. The author does and incredible job of creating a world full of interesting characters with dark unknown pasts that makes you want to dive deeper. This book kept me guessing all the way to the end and I was still surprised by the ending!
I look forward to more in the Cady Maddix series!

(Trigger warning of implied sexual abuse)

When child serial killer Samuel Aldeen breaks out of a nearby facility for the criminally insane, US Deputy Marshal Cady Maddix is enlisted to track him down. When an unexpected lead comes in the form of a young woman who was recently released from a neighboring psychiatric facility, Cady soon realizes she has just met the killers next victim.

Thank you to Netgalley, Thomas and Mercer, and Kylie Brant for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review! This review will be posted on my social media book review account.