This was a fast-moving YA thriller about a group of friends whose past is coming back to haunt them.
I really had high hopes for this story but I wished I had DNF’d this book. It wasted about 8 hours of my life I can never get back. I wanted to like this book so bad but NOPE. I liked the idea of a friend group of competitive gamers, as this is surprisingly uncommon in YA books. I honestly could not get on board with the silliness of this story because it honestly was so unrealistic.
Crystal is a difficult character to like. She's self-centered, selfish and only really cares about what the game tournament can do for her. She mentions helping a friend through an eating disorder (that was quickly resolved) but it came across as Crystal making herself look like a good person. I could fully understand why her friends thought she was paranoid and didn't seem to like her that much. Honestly if she would have trusted her friends she would not have had so many problems. Also, she could have ended the whole story with a phone call. Even has things started to happen she still chose to keep quiet. Just bad choices lead to more bad choices.
The more the back story was revealed I guessed the killer way before the big reveal at the end. The plot twist was not a twist at ALL. If you followed the story closely enough you could guess what happened. I rolled my eyes so many times during while reading this book, my head hurt. If I hadn’t been reading on my Kindle, I probably would have chucked this book at the wall. I’m giving this book 2.6 stars because I was tricked into reading this whole book hoping it would get better. I’m so sorry I did not like this book. Thanks for the advance copy from Netgalley and the publisher.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of These Deadly Games by Diana Urban.

Crystal is a serious gamer with a lot to lose, especially after seeing a video of her sister bound and gagged. She has to follow the rules of the captor otherwise her sister will die. But she can't tell anyone, not even those closest to her. Who would do this to her sister, and why?

This smacked just a bit of Ready Player One, where reality and the gamer world collide. It's also full of complex friendships, secrets, lies, romances, and betrayals. It's got twists and turns, and even though it was a BIT cliche and easy to figure out, still a lot of fun.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to review this ARC with honesty.

I don't read many thrillers based YA. That said, this was an interesting read as the mystery begins to unravel. I will say some of it was little tame compared to what I'm used to reading but knowing the targeted audience, it makes sense. It wasn't all that hard of a mystery to understand (and yes, some of it was again, a bit basic) and not all that surprising. Knowing who did what or why wasn't all that different. I do like the change up with the mixture of texting, gaming and the world of using a game as the center. That wasn't something I've read before.

Overall, it was a decent read. Wish it had a little more mystery to it but that doesn't make it bad. I had a good time with it enough to continue reading if the author put another out.

My Rating:🌟🌟🌟🌟💫 3.5 (rounded up to 4)

I kinda kept this one on the back burner because if I remember correctly, I DNFed her debut because of the drug usage in it. But someone close to me read this one first and said give it a try. I did, and I’m so thankful now. This is so good and I almost missed out.

Crystal Donovan is a gamer through and through. But when she gets a video of her sister bound and gagged with the instructions to make sure she plays a new game. Their game. She knows she doesn’t have a choice but to do what they say, but her idea of a game is very different than the deadly series of events that begin to happen because she follows out their tasks. Will she get her sister back? Will this end the way she wants it to?

I REALLY liked this! Her debut was boring and just not my cup of tea. If I remember correctly, I DNF’ed it. But as a true thriller lover, I knew I had to give this author another try. And lo and behold, this is one of my faves of the year so far. The action in this was NON-STOP. I mean from like chapter 1 it’s immediately giving clues and context, so pay attention! And listen, my adrenaline while I was reading this was always sky high! Like I’m so serious even at the end when all the secrets are out, there’s more left for Crystal to do and I was STILL on the edge of my seat. I was not expecting a full 180 like this, but I’m glad that’s what it was!

The mystery itself was cool but also terrifying. Having a gamer husband, I can only hope that he never encounters a game like this, and if he does, that he is as good at it as Crystal is. Because she beasted it. And as someone else who has made other things her entire personality, I fully stand with how she inserted herself into the situation and solved things that way. If there ever comes a time when I have to think like a main character, I only hope I can do it as good as Crystal did when she was channeling a game master.

There were some things about this that stopped this from being perfect for me. Like the predictability. I didn’t understand how she didn’t know it was faked? Like if they had faked all that other stuff, it should’ve tipped her off that that could be faked too. And listen, I know it’s not going to bother everyone, but as someone with a peanut allergy, I hate when they’re mentioned in books because it always means that person is going to die. I don’t always want to see someone with a nut allergy die. Yes we have to be extra careful, and yes we carry Epipens, and yes our allergy is deadly, but there are others out there also. I hate that as soon as I heard (read? lol) he had a peanut allergy I immediately thought, “he’s going to be one who dies.” Like can we stop always killing off my people?

This book totally came out of left field, but I hella enjoyed it! Definitely gave proof to the fact that not every book may be for every reader, but cancelling them because you didn’t like the first one? No. (Unless its racist or bigoted in some way, which her last one was not.)

I didn’t enjoy this one as much as All Your Twisted Secrets. Some parts were really fast paced while others really seemed to drag. I struggled to get through it in places, though I did want to know what was going on. This is mostly set in the present, there were also flashbacks to 5 years prior that establish some backstory about a secret the friends are keeping. This somewhat worked, but it seemed to drag this secret out a bit longer than needed (and I did guess where that was going long before it was revealed). In general, I guessed some things correctly early on, but I did feel like the book got darker at times than I expected. I did liked the idea of having to do these twisted games to save her sister!

It does feel like there are a lot of references to the present day like Among Us, and the fact that the game seems to be like a fantasy Fortnite (which I honestly didn’t particularly like). While I do enjoy video games, I’m not a fan of battle royale type games, so this just missed for me. I also have to wonder just how well this book will age with these types of references.

I couldn’t entirely connect to the characters overall. I obviously felt bad for Crystal because she’s desperate to save her sister, but she made some dumb choices. I feel like a lot of guilt and certain situations could have been avoided by just telling the truth earlier (especially because some things were just genuinely accidents). She has gone through some tough times with parental issues and toxic friendships, but she can be controlling even if she means well. I did like her trying to solve these puzzles at least.

This was not the best friend group, and I feel like there’s some dysfunctional friendships in there. Akira was probably the most likable. She and Crystal are close and have a pretty good friendship where they can get into heavy things like panic attacks and eating disorders. However, I still don’t entirely feel like I know her well. Zoey does not seem great in general, though her motivations are mildly better when you get to know her more. The guys are kinda bland, though I do feel bad for them about things that happen.

I do feel like the characters held me back from fully connected with the story, and I also felt too old for the references sometimes. However, I would definitely check out whatever Diana Urban writes next and would still recommend this if the premise sounds interesting and you don’t mind not necessarily connecting with the characters.

My video review can be seen on my booktube channel (around minutes 3:13-6:16 of this video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMXeOmpPEpc

Crystal Donovan and her friends are the nerds. They have a school club for Mortal Dusk, their PC game of choice, and now they're taking top spots on the leaderboard for their state. With a tournament upcoming Crystal and her friends have to get enough points to land one of the team's 5 competition slots. Someone else has another plan in mind though, an in person game with a real human threat. Crystal is told to keep quiet, following a series of videos and messages from the anonymous person, and she'll do anything to save her sister that they're holding hostage. One by one she is tasked with picking off her friends. How can she beat this game?

These Deadly Games is a young adult thriller that packs a punch. What made These Deadly Games so interesting for me was Diana Urban's use of current pop culture references, well known games, and gen-z phrases. The book felt current, relatable, and accurate to what young readers find interesting today. While gaming in a thriller book when I was a teen wouldn't have interested me, it does now, because it's so much more common of a hobby. Crystal and her friends are all competing to make it to the tournament for Mortal Dusk, in order to make the team of five they must take one another out. Unfortunately for Crystal, someone wants her to truly take them out in real life, not just in the gaming world. Crystal is a smart, strategic thinker, the kind of friend you want on your team and she tries to be levelheaded as she attempts to save her sister and her friends. I was totally wrapped up in Crystal's POV, forgetting sometimes she's young, because she handled things so well. I admit, when her friends called her out for everything being such a game, I had to agree, while also recognizing it's why she succeeded.

These Deadly Games is a standout read, one I highly recommend to young adult, new adult, and even adult aged readers who like unique thrillers. This one is twisted, it's not an easy one to guess the ending of, and I think it's connection to current times is excellent.

I loved the sterling of the book but the writing style I didn't care for. I was little disappointed it this one. I would give it 3.5 stars

Crystal and her friends are gamers. Their goal is to win the championship to get a piece of the prize. Crystal and her friends also have a secret from many years ago. One that no one has ever told. Crystal becomes in a game of life and death, so she thinks. Unfortunately, some of things she has to do can have deadly consequences. This book will keep you on your toes to try to figure out who the culprit is, the person behind the game she has to play. Thanks to Ms. Urban, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this book. I think there will be some high school students in our classes that would like to read this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an early copy.

Young adult thrillers meet the edge-of-your-seat trend of adult books in These Deadly Games! And it's a success that readers will absolutely enjoy.

This in part reminded me of the book The Chain (except better... Sorry, I did n-o-t enjoy The Chain), with impossible choices to make all through the book.

You know how you can figure out whether a thriller is really good? With flashbacks – if a chapter that's a flashback makes you groan because it's getting in the way of a good reveal, it's a good thriller.
This is one of those! Definitely frustrating to expect something really important to happen and have a flashback chapter instead (though they're obviously important). It's one of those books that you'll find yourselves still reading at 2AM...

2.5 - 3 stars

Fast-paced, and action-packed, this book was hard to put down, and I ended up finishing it in one sitting. Dark, twisted, and suspenseful, I also enjoyed some of the complicated relationship dynamics, with illustrated the often messy nature of friendships.

This book had a lot of twists and turns, and although I saw the ending coming from a mile away, it was still enjoyable enough finding my way there, and seeing where the author took us. I felt like this book tried to do a little too much though. I understand that it was trying to add context and depth to our main character Crystal, but the storyline about her father felt rushed, and almost shoehorned in. It felt like it was there just to make her seem more sympathetic, because of the cruel and awful things she is driven to do, and because of the mistakes and decisions she made in the past. And while that makes sense, and it's fine - it didn't really do a great job of it. We saw bits and pieces of her experience with her alcohol-dependent and abusive dad, but we didn't actually get to see much emotional development from her. In fact, despite the fact that we were in her head, it felt like we didn't know or connect with her much, and it also felt like we didn't see a ton of character development for any of the characters. We were told bits and pieces, but it felt like the best written character was actually Zoey, and everyone else was pretty one dimensional (especially Akira - which feels especially brutal, since I believe she is the only character of colour), and in some cases (Randall, Crystal, Dylan) - a bit hard to sympathize with or relate to, or even care about. It relied on some pretty common tropes, but many thrillers do, I just wish there was a bit more originality in there to help it stand out more. The ending felt pretty rushed, which I think did a disservice to the story, because the very last couple of reveals felt a bit weak, because of the pacing. I was almost excited, about the idea of [Dylan/Andrew] still being alive, but the pacing just rushed the ending and didn't give it the dramatic effect I think the ending needed.

Also, I am absolutely DEVASTATED about Matty's death. DEVASTED!

Overall, it was a quick and twisty/turny dark thriller that was still pretty enjoyable, and unsettling enough to make me feel a bit creeped out before bed.

This was a fast-paced teen thriller that kept me reading way too late! It was a little bit predictable, but all in all a solid YA read. Thank you for the ARC!!

DNF - Unfortunately I had to DNF this book. I was really looking forward to it after reading Urban's debut, but it missed the mark. There were too many characters to keep track of and I couldn't keep everything straight at first. I think the dialogue was not realistic. When I read the word "nothingburgers" I had to stop reading.

This book was a miss for me but i think it is a me problem not the book's problem. Thank you for letting me read and review this book.

I haven't read Urban's first book, so I didn't know what to expect in terms of plotting and writing style, but I very much enjoyed the story and felt that the plot twists were suitable (if predictable) for these characters. Will make a point to go back and read her first book!

Crystal loves getting lost in the world of multiplayer game Mortal Dusk. Her team is so skilled that they could even overtake a local gaming celebrity in an upcoming tournament. Crystal hopes to do well in the individual contest, as the prize money would go a long way in helping her single mother pay the mortgage. The team of six basically lives in the game world to increase their scores and determine which five players will earn a spot in the team competition. But they all have to go to school too... During class Crystal gets an odd text with a video of Caelyn, her younger sister (who is supposed to be away for a weekend field trip), gagged and bound. The message is clear: "You have 24 hours to win. If you break my rules, she dies. If you call the police, she dies. If you tell your parents or anyone else, she dies." Initially, filled with shock and disbelief, Crystal flees her classroom to make sure she read the message right. But each new message replaces the last, and she quickly realizes she will go to any lengths, will do anything to rescue her sister. Besides, the game seems fairly harmless at first. When Crystal realizes she has to choose saving her sister or her friends, her desperation increases. Told over a rapid, deadly game with brief flashbacks to a hidden secret, Crystal races against the clock to win what seems like an unwinable game.

THOUGHTS: Thriller and gamer fans will devour this mystery, desperate to uncover who is behind the anonymous messages. If you have April Henry and Karen McManus fans in your library, you'll want to add Urban's titles (All Your Twisted Secrets, 2020) too.

I don't know where to start but this book was not it for me. I tried my best but it was too predictable at times. I just knew where this story was going. It kept the surprise from me.

Holy mother of stress, this book KILLED me the whole time - yet somehow I couldn’t have stopped reading even if a psycho had texted me on an anonymous app to blackmail me… 👀

Goodreads synopsis:

When Crystal Donavan gets a message on a mysterious app with a video of her little sister gagged and bound, she agrees to play the kidnapper’s game. At first, they make her complete bizarre tasks: steal a test and stuff it in a locker, bake brownies, make a prank call.

But then Crystal realizes each task is meant to hurt—and kill—her friends, one by one. But if she refuses to play, the kidnapper will kill her sister. Is someone trying to take her team out of the running for a gaming tournament? Or have they uncovered a secret from their past, and wants them to pay for what they did…

As Crystal makes the impossible choices between her friends and her sister, she must uncover the truth and find a way to outplay the kidnapper… before it’s too late.

This thriller was EXACTLY the insane page-turner I needed to get me speed-reading again, my GOODNESS! I couldn’t tell you if anything in this book could happen in real life, but that’s why it’s fiction. I was creeped out the entire book, racking my brain as Crystal racked hers trying to figure out a dang solution to this crazy, impossible situation. The pacing is incredible, keeping my heart rate (probably too) elevated and my mind continuously blown after every twist.

A major hit apart from the “thriller” things was the cast of characters; Diana Urban did a fantastic job of crafting relatable, realistic, and lovable characters that you really didn’t want to die, you know?? I honestly loved them all, which contributed a lot to my stress because I was so scared for them HAHA.

I have to say (partially to brag but also because it feels necessary) I did predict the culprit around 50% into the book 😶. Honestly, I was actually surprised when I went back into my ebook to find the actual percentage, because I didn’t think it was that early. BUT I consider that a positive; so much happens in the last 50% that it didn’t matter than I had my suspicions early on. Plus, I don’t think it was Diana Urban’s fault. In fact, I thought she did a fantastic job of creating red herrings and making me question my own predicting abilities. From a literary standpoint, I realized there was only person it could be; however, there were a lot of blanks I still needed filled in by the end reveal, and I was SO shocked by how all the various threads weaved together. But that’s definitely all I’ll say on that because I don’t want to spoil it for you!

I don’t read thrillers often so I’m no expert, but this was definitely a hit for me! I felt so stressed the whole read but in the best way, and I so so enjoyed everything about this story! I highly recommend if you enjoy thrillers or are in a thriller mood, or if you’re looking for a fast-paced YA with great characters and an intense plot!

*I received an e-arc of These Deadly Games from Wednesday Books and Netgalley; all opinions are my own. It was published February 1st, 2022.*



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I've previously read Diana Urban's debut book and it was really nice to see her growing as an author! This book had me guessing the entire time and I never knew what was going to happen next. I had a such a hard time putting this book down! It read like a viral internet horror game, like where you didn't know if it's real or not, and it was a lot of fun. Really looking forward to anything this author writes in the future.

A suspenseful fast paced YA mystery/ thriller. This was a bit of a predictable ending for me the gaming lingo was a bit of learning curve for me. It was an over all good solid read. I'd round it up to 3.5 Stars if I had the ability to do so. I'd definitely read more books from the author.
An overall good solid fast paced read.

This is a very pulse pounding story that kept me turning the pages. The characterization could have been a little stronger but overall this was a good story that kept me on the edge of my seat. Solid four stars!