I'm kind of accidentally following Erica Waters' career at this point but honestly, all of their books have such catchy summaries. a true-crime podcast is hosting a camping event with all their creepy followers to find a missing serial killer's bones? the protagonist is sapphic and only narrowly avoided being said killer's final victim, and watched him go over the cliff herself? like, sign me tf up, I'm already sold.

if you liked Ghost Wood Song or The River Has Teeth you'll probably like The Restless Dark too. all of them share the same spooky gothic-esque atmosphere, though they admittedly all lean in to different creepy elements. surprisingly, there was no awful and scary river in this one, tho I kept an eye out for it 👀

the good news is this book is very compelling and very easy to read. it felt, in a completely awesome way, like eating a bag of popcorn. I just kept sticking my hand back in for more! I did call the ending about midway through but I still enjoyed the journey getting there. I think this is my current favorite of Waters' work. they seem to specialize in protagonists that are kind of difficult to like 😅 Lucy had very valid trauma but good lord she was mean as a rattler sometimes. I did like Carolina, even tho she was a terrible pushover. I do wish their romance had been fleshed out more? I would've given this book a five star if that had been achieved but I just wasn't satisfied with what we got in terms of their relationship.

overall, I liked this book. I already find woods spooky, especially woods with fog rolling through them, so the vibes worked very well for me here. a fun and fast October read!

thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the arc 💜

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperTeen, and author Erica Waters for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

The Restless Dark intrigued me with the gorgeous cover and premise of a hunt put on by a podcast for the remains of a serial killer. Add in the fact that it is Sapphic, and I thought this would be a book I loved. Sadly though, I was pretty disappointed by this read. The book reads very quickly and is extremely gripping; as stated above, the premise is unique, and I think the blurb about it being similar to Wilder Girls (a book I also didn't love, which should have been telling) is extremely accurate. I enjoyed Waters' descriptions about the fog and forest the most, as the book felt truly chilling and creepy at times due to the setting. However, the twist/ending was extremely predictable to me and not very satisfying. I found the three main characters to be fairly static and generic beyond their individual traumas. I would have liked to hear more about/from Maggie, and I think including chapters written from her POV (since the other two alternated chapters throughout the whole book) would have helped the book. Given the prominent role the setting plays in the storyline, I would have also liked more explanation about the more fantastical elements that were tied into the location. The book felt fairly unfinished as a whole in terms of fleshing out the plot, which is a disservice for readers. I thought the romance elements were too contrived and didn't really benefit or serve the storyline as a whole. I can see how this will intrigue readers overall, and I do think that fans of fantastical YA mystery/horror will enjoy it. For me, it was too much of a YA book that could have benefitted from going a little deeper and being less predictable.

I'm glad that I took another chance on Erica Waters, because I liked this much more than her debut. A supernatural thriller unafraid to take shots at the exploitative nature of the emerging true crime industry, The Restless Dark is the perfect book for someone trying to make sense of the worst things to happen to them who isn't interested in being anyone's victim.

The Restless Dark is a twisty YA survivor thriller about what happens when a true-crime podcast hosts a contest to find a killer's bones. Told from the perspectives of three girls attending the event - there's Lucy who was almost the serial killer's first victim, true-crime fanatic Carolina, and secretive psychology student Maggie. Everyone has their reasons for trying to win the contest, but they all also have their secrets. The characters are engaging and unlikable. The narrators aren't necessarily reliable. This is a fun, twisty ride. Highly recommended! Be sure to check out The Restless Dark today.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for this eARC these opinions are my own. I think this story had a really interesting premise. A true crime podcast is hosting a competition to find the remains of the Cloudkiss Killer who used Cloudkiss Mountain to do terrible things and then met his demise there. Lucy was the last person the Cloudkiss killer kidnapped and would have killed had they not been found by police. She’s there to find the remains and put her nightmares behind her. Carolina has her own secrets and her own darkness that she is trying to put behind her. But in the fog maybe something evil lurks. Can they find the killers remains? Can they survive the mountain? I enjoyed this book and I enjoyed reading from the perspectives of people who were dealing with their trauma. I liked the twists and turns and Carolinas past was an interesting storyline as well. Highly recommend if you enjoy mysteries with evil elements!

I love true crime podcasts, but I love it even more when books are essentially based on them! The Restless Dark was a hard book to put down and I was eagerly gripping the pages from start to finish. I highly recommend this one to those who enjoy books like A Good Girls Guide to Muder

Waters takes horror by the hair and drags it through ominous mountain terrain. This story has everything- true crime enthusiasts, a scarred protagonist trying to calm the ghost of her past, love, determination and serial killers. The supernatural creepiness adds to the atmosphere of fear.

This book follows 3 girls at a true crime contest to find bones of a killer.
This book will take you on a journey through the darkest parts of humanity and help you find the will to keep pushing on.

I really enjoyed the beginning of this book, but as it went on it just became too obvious what the twist was going to be, and I just didn't find the climax and ending particularly satisfying. I would recommend this to reads who love unreliable narrators and unlikable characters.

The Restless Dark celebrates both the beauty and danger of the natural world. The book follows three girls who attend a camping event to find the bones of a serial killer, the Cloudkiss Killer. This event is being held by the hosts of an incredibly popular true crime podcast and anyone who finds the killer’s remains wins a monetary prize. The story is told in two voices, Lucy’s and Carolina’s. Lucy would have been another victim of the Cloudkiss Killer if police had not found them first. She’s traumatized and haunted by the memory of him jumping off the cliff into the fog below. She just wants peace of mind by finding his bones. Carolina is desperate to understand her own mind and she thinks she might find solace in this trip. This book has an incredibly unique setting. Erica Waters has a talent for creating unsettling atmospheres that make you feel trapped, suffocated, and alone. I did not predict a single moment of this book and I loved it. As long as you aren’t planning to bring this book camping with you, I highly recommend grabbing a copy! (Seriously, this book would be so scary to read camping.)

This was a great concept, I know in real-life I listen to a few True Crime podcasts so it didn't feel out of place. This was such a great mystery, I loved getting to know Lucy, Caroline, and Maggie, I liked how each girl was fleshed out and felt like real people. I was so invested that when the ending happened I wasn't prepared, it was so good. I loved the way Erica Waters writes and can't wait to read more from the author.

"Not that it matters what one of these true crime buffs thinks of me. Even if she is painfully beautiful. I’m only here to find Joseph Kincaid’s bones and get rid of the hold he has on me. To lay what happened to me two years ago to rest and go back to who I was before."

Holy wow. If you could see my face after I finished this book. First off, run. Run right now and preorder it. This is the first book I’ve read by the author but I fully intend to read all her others and cannot wait for new releases. Told from 3 girls points of view, who are at a true crime contest to find the bones of a lost serial killer, it takes you thru past and present and leads you on a journey that you aren’t ever going to forget. The true crime podcast hosting this completion as well as all its fans, touches really well on some of the true crime community and the issues at its core. As these 3 girls partner up and we learn about each of their past you will be questioning each of them and each of their motives. Will the bones be found and if they are, how many lives will be given up to Cloudkiss before they are. Be sure to clear your day because you will want to read this in one sitting. This book is going to be a top seller and I would love to see it made into a movie or series.