These Deadly Games is a solid 4.5/5! I loved the fast moving plot and it kept me reading (I ended up reading this in a day). Another thing that Urban does so well compared to her debut novel is foreshadowing and flashbacks. The switch between the past and present kept the reader on their toes searching for clues. Overall, I strongly recommend that every thriller and mystery fan to check this out! These Deadly Games will be published on February 1st, 2022. This twisty thriller should be on every YA fans' list for 2022 releases.
Happy reading!

This book in 3 words: Obsessive. Distrustful. Twisty. 

Well. Done. This book immediately sticks its hooks in and it's tough to set it down to do literally anything else. You've been warned. These Deadly Games is about Crystal, and her group of friends, as they're training for an eSports tournament. Someone kidnaps Crystal's younger sister, and she's racing against the clock (and and a psycho) to keep her loved ones safe. 

The author does such a stellar job of portraying isolation... what do we do when we can rely on no one or there's not a soul to help us? I also think the switches from past to present are perfectly executed in regards to timing, pace, and details. The flashbacks help piece together this twisty tale and I thought they were very valuable.

This is my first book by Diana Urban and I'm definitely putting her on my author watch list. I can't wait to devour more of her characters and work! This is one of my favorite YA thrillers of 2021. Highly recommend. 
I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A dark thrillers I couldn’t put down! It kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to see what was going to happen to the characters.

i read diana urban’s debut recently and it was just fine but the premise of this one seemed to remedy some of the issues i had with her first thriller
unfortunately it brought a whole crop of new problems as well
the twists in this book are so stupidly obvious - i guessed who anonymous was when the app appeared on her phone and the whole thing about caelyn
our main character is just so,,, dumb like she’s annoyingly dumb especially near the end when she finds out who anonymous is
we don’t get much in terms of empathetic characters - even while the book was in first pov i still couldn’t really empathize with crystal and she felt a bit robotic to me
the pacing of the first 2 acts is really tight and i raced through this book however the ending seemed to drag as i was getting annoyed at the overtly elusive nature of the tragic backstory (which also turned out to be very obvious)
the action is fine and the murders are fine but with a story that revolves so heavily around gruesome trauma i couldn’t feel an emotional connection to any of the characters
you know what this twist ending reminds me of - we were liars because i also predicted the ending of that book 5 chapters in and just hated reading the rest
listen i finished it in 2 hours but at what cost

I loved reading These Deadly Games! It's thrilling and heart pounding and I was immediately engrossed by the premise and story. These Deadly Games is a great thriller!

I LOVE LOVE LOVED this book.
These deadly games is like nothing I have ever read before it is so original! I love a YA thriller but Diana Urban just hits different. Absolutely brilliant. These deadly games is full of suspense from start to finish. You cannot trust anybody but the main character. The twists are jaw dropping (and there are so many twists and turns) There are no dull moments, no boring chapters. I could not put it down! 100% believe everybody should read this!

Could not stop reading!! Diana Urban has a knack for pulling the reader into the mystery/thriller and not letting go!
Absolutely recommend this for any young adults looking for a page-turner!!

Wow! This is a stay up all night to finish because I had to know what happened and tbh I was not disappointed in the way this one went nor by the way that the book had me hooked from the get-go!
Crystal and her friends were practicing and working on their team dynamics to play in an all-state contest when things start to go sideways and everything starts changing forever!
Crystal's mom is working a double shift, so Crystal had to drop her sister off at school to go on this field trip but once Crystal gets to school she starts to get these creepy text messages and things. The worst part of it was that her sister was gagged and they were holding her hostage until she played the kidnapper's little game. The first tasks weren't so bad to drop off a stolen test key for next week and then to make some brownies but for every task that the kidnappers have her do, someone ends up in trouble or worse in her friend group!
Leaving Crystal with the impossible choice between her little sister and her friends and everything just gets worse from there!
If you love on the edge of your seat thrillers then this would be the book for you! I literally stayed up all night reading it and I was not disappointed! I definitely recommend it!
Thank you Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book I loved it and will definitely check out more by this author as it was a first for me!

What would you sacrifice to save your family? Crystal Donavan is forced to face this question when she receives an ominous video from an anonymous number. Her sister has been kidnapped. The only way to save her: play a dark, twisted game created by anonymous. Fail a mission or tell anyone, her sister dies. Simple tasks quickly become deadly, hurting the people Crystal loves. These Deadly Games follows Crystal as she becomes a player in this game of life-or-death.

After reading the description of this novel, I was convinced I was going to love it. Thrillers involving games tend to be some of my favorites. But sadly this will not be making any of my favorite thrillers lists. While at times I found it suspenseful, for the most part I was able to predict the majority of twists. I do not always mind this, but in a story where the biggest secret is who is controlling this deadly game, knowing who the mastermind behind it is took away from my enjoyment.

The parts that I did enjoy involved the friendship group elements. I truly felt the love between the friends in this story. While all thee twisted things were happening, they were all there for one another. Crystal and Zoey's friendship, and its problems, was probably my favorite part.

Ultimately, I can only rate this novel three stars. That is not to say that this book is bad in anyway (3 stars is an average rating from me), it just was not for me. I would highly recommend this to people who are newer to thrillers, and also YA audiences. If your a fan of the books by Karen M. McManus, I think you will love this. Pick up a copy of your own on February 1st, 2022.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed this book, although the genre was not my typical read. I'd read more by this author in the future.

Overall this was an enjoyable read. It's definitely more YA, but even though I'm an adult I didn't mind the writing style. My one complaint was the story was a bit hard to believe. The plot was pretty complicated and overdrammatic at times. That said, it moved quickly and if you like YA thrillers, this is a good pick.

These Deadly Games was a gripping YA thriller that kept me guessing. I love a book where a protag is forced to choose between two terrible choices--in this case, to follow the deadly games of the villain or watch her sister suffer. Urban makes the stress on the protag palpable. The story is also fast-paced and you'll feel interested in all of the characters. The mystery of what happened several years ago to them will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Also, I could not be less interested in gaming--a key part of this story--but Urban made me interested in the video game and its story!

If you loved AYTS, you'll love this too.

These Deadly Games follows Crystal after she receives a text with a video of her sister bound and gagged. The person sending the messages says Crystal must follow every order they give or her sister will die. Crystal follows the rules, until she realizes each request is hurting her friends. She has to figure out who the kidnapper is before either her sister or her friends end up dead.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I was fully invested and so nervous for Crystal, her sister, and all her friends. There were so many good twists and turns. I had my suspicions about what was happening, and I was partially right, but the reveal was so well done.

Overall, this was a quick enjoyable read. The mystery, while fairly easy to solve from the beginning, had two nice little twists at the end that I didn’t expect. One thing that was confusing was the author’s use of flashbacks mid-narrative to explain significant events in the protagonist’s life. These weren’t set apart from regular prose, so there were times the MC started to reminisce mid-scene, and have a scene within a scene could be a little jarring. I also read fast though, so some of the intended style could have been lost on me.

I have to say, I was sucked into this pretty quickly and didn't want to put it down. I had to know who was behind the game and who would survive. The author did a great job pulling me in and keeping me interested in the plot. What I didn't love was that the twist didn't make sense to me and the story was too predictable.

I'm a fan of deadly competitions or games and if you are too, you should definitely check this out. It's creepy and keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what new task Crystal will be assigned. Having to hurt your friends would be horrible but how do you choose between them and your younger sister? It's an impossible spot to be in and I understood Crystal's struggle. I also thought the tasks seemed realistic and were even scarier because they seemed innocuous at first.

The pacing is great in this and keeps the adrenaline going. I wanted the ending to go a bit differently, but this is a solid thriller.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions are my own. Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the copy.

3.5 stars

I have to say, I was sucked into this pretty quickly and didn't want to put it down. I had to know who was behind the game and who would survive. The author did a great job pulling me in and keeping me interested in the plot. What I didn't love was that the twist didn't make sense to me and the story was too predictable.

I'm a fan of deadly competitions or games and if you are too, you should definitely check this out. It's creepy and keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what new task Crystal will be assigned. Having to hurt your friends would be horrible but how do you choose between them and your younger sister? It's an impossible spot to be in and I understood Crystal's struggle. I also thought the tasks seemed realistic and were even scarier because they seemed innocuous at first.

The pacing is great in this and keeps the adrenaline going. I wanted the ending to go a bit differently, but this is a solid thriller.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions are my own. Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the copy.

I was literally a bundle of nerves reading this book! My suspicions ran from one character to another throughout the story. Definitely a must read!

THESE DEADLY GAMES by Diana Urban tells the story of video game-obsessed Crystal, as she finds herself thrown into a twisted game of her own where she must either kill her friends, or watch her sister die.

I was a bit let down by Urban’s debut novel ALL YOUR TWISTED SECRETS, and, unfortunately, this one didn’t get much higher marks.

There was a lot about this book that I did really enjoy - the messed up aspects of the ‘game,’ trying to piece together who the culprit was and why, and, of course, the lovely twists along the way. However, the characters in this book (especially the lead) were so two-dimensional that I had a hard time caring for any of them. Also, Crystal seemed to lack a lot of emotion. As a high-schooler watching their best friends die, you’d think there’d be something more there than “oh well, better them than my sister.” BUT that’s just my two cents.

I’m sure I’ll continue to read Urban’s future work, I’m just hoping she can craft a character I can actually empathize with.

Publication Date: February 01, 2022

*** special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review ***

Grabbed me early and didn't let up. Interesting idea and well executed. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

What a great story. Had me from page one even though I was not planning on reading another book for like a month, once I picked this up I could not stop reading it. Had it been possible I woulsd have read in one sitting.