This is one of those thrillers that stresses me out, in a good way! The author does such an amazing job at making the characters & situations realistic, I felt tense along the way. Seeing the story from three viewpoints really made it interesting. There’s some pretty wild twists I don’t think all readers will see coming. For a while there I was completely confused as to what the conclusion was going to be. It’s creepy chilling at times. And the background setting of Australia, where the authors lush descriptions, is an extra bonus.

🚐

Read if you like:
* He Started It by Samantha Downing
* Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent

This book was so creepy. I honestly do not really know what was going on half the time. There were multiple perspectives and multiple stories and none of them seemed trustworthy. They all had secrets that they were hiding and there were many dots that did not connect in their stories. I thought it was well done at the end when most things were tied up, however, since I felt lost during much of the book it often made it difficult to pick it up and read/listen. I thought the descriptions of the location in Australia was incredibly well done - I could easily picture the location and wanted to jump right into the book. If you are looking for a creepy read that is a little bit all over the place - definitely give this a try!
Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

Red River Road by Anna Downes is an amazingly written story with twists you won’t see coming!
The characters are realistic and portrayed so well. This atmospheric and haunting mystery will give you the chills.
The atmosphere was fantastic. I loved the build and how it began to feel a bit claustrophobic.
The author's writing style is brilliant, laced perfectly with enough intrigue and suspense, which will gradually increase the tension of the readers with the plot's development.
I highly recommend this book.

Thank You NetGalley and Minotaur Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was my second novel from author, Anna Downes, my first being "The Safe Place" back in 2020. I was eager to dive into this book, as I enjoyed the previous one.

I will be straightforward and say I had a really hard time with this book. It was really slow to get started and I couldn't connect with a single character. The fact that chapters switch back and forth between characters, but with no real way to know how their stories connect made it even more confusing.

By the end of the book the story did start to become interesting, but by then I was so frustrated and bored that I just wanted it to end. The ending seemed unnecessarily drawn out and completely unsatisfying.

This needs to come with a trigger warning about domestic violence, child neglect, and human trafficking.

I think, perhaps, I am the minority with my opinion of this book, so please read some other reviews and pick up a copy to decide for yourself.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me an e-copy to read and give my honest review. It was a 3 star read.

My thanks to Minotaur Books/St. Martins Publishing for the ARC of "Red River Road" in exchange for an honest review.
A welcome return to one of my favorite genres in books and movies. peril and terror in the Outback. And by that I don't mean having to wait too long for your Bloomin' Onion at the steakhouse.
This time it's Katy and Beth who encounter much fear, loathing and mystery as they travel together along Western Australia's picture postcard Coral Coast, filled with beautiful beaches, lagoons, shark whale sightings....... and abductors of women vacationers who are never heard from again.
Katy's travelling solo at first in her camper-van, in a desperate search for her missing sister Phoebe, whose similar lone tour of the coastal wonders ended with her disappearance off the face of the earth. Exhausted and haunted by what might have befallen Phoebe, Katy ends up with an unlikely young companion. in Beth.. This girl. with signs of physical abuse and fleeing something terrible in her past, begs Katy to take her along on the road trip quest for Phoebe's whereabouts.
There's way more to Beth than meets the eye, but Katy agrees.......and off they go, hitting the road on a trip fraught with ominous, dread filled moments. The woman find themselves tormented by ominous clues, mysterious notes found in their vehicle, odd collections of stones left outside the van. And what about that pushy stranger in the sunglasses who insists he'd help out Katy if she let him follow her on the search?
The suspense builds steadily until "Red River Road" finally detonates all of its twists and reveals, the biggest of which is one staggering jaw dropper of a surprise. That brings me to my only minor quibble here with the final chapters, which take up a huge amount of time explaining that twist in maybe a little more detail than you'd normally expect in a wrap=up.
But I wouldn't let that stop any reader who'd love to sign up for a wild dangerous tour through some of Australia's most spectacular locations. Thriller fans will want to say 'G'day, Mate' to this one.

I enjoyed the plot twists and integration of two women's lives on the roadtrip solo-travel circuit. The twist at the end was fairly expected, but a fairly climactic ending nonetheless. Very enjoyable read!

4.5/5☆

This was such a good psychological thriller! I love a good twisty, turny book with unreliable narrators - makes it feel like a real mystery you're solving.

My bump up to 5 stars on this app is because I didn't guess the ending. I had many thoughts and ideas of what could be happening but when it cake to an end, I was surprised to see I hadn't guessed the ending at all.

Katy Sweeneys sister Phoebe vanished last year while on a road trip in Australia. No trace of her or her van were found.
Katy decides to follow her sister’s path and look for her. While out in the middle of nowhere she runs across a girl named Beth with many problems of her own. The two team up and run into lots of trouble.
This was an exciting story with many twists and turns and a shocking ending. I loved it.
Thanks NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this eARC that will be released August 27, 2024!

NO spoilers from me for this one. It's got some magnificent surprises ahead for those who persevere through a beginning that might feel a bit draggy or odd. Told by Katy, Beth/Lily, and Wyatt, it's a tense tale of Katy's hunt for her sister Phoebe who went missing while living in her van and driving around Australia. She rescues Beth-who claims her name is Lily-from the side of the road, Lily who is trying to escape from someone. How does Wyatt fit in? The links will slowly become apparent. How reliable are any of these three as narrators? Katy's clearly got some issues, Lily's not who she claims to be, and Wyatt hears noises in his house. Trust me- it will come together. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a well written thriller with interesting characters in a great setting.

**Rating:** ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)

**Review:**

*Red River Road* is a suspenseful and atmospheric thriller that had me hooked from the first page. The plot is tightly woven, with well-timed twists that kept me guessing until the very end. The characters are complex and relatable, each with their own secrets that slowly unravel as the story progresses. The author does an excellent job of building tension and creating a sense of unease, making it impossible to put the book down.

What I particularly enjoyed was the vivid setting. The remote, eerie backdrop of the Red River added a layer of isolation that heightened the suspense. However, while the plot was engaging, I felt that some of the secondary characters could have been more developed. A bit more depth to their motivations would have made the story even more compelling.

Overall, *Red River Road* is a gripping read that delivers on its promise of thrills and mystery. I highly recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers who enjoy a good, edge-of-your-seat experience.

An Australian social media influencer living the #vanlife as a solo traveler goes missing, and her sister is trying to solve the mystery while retracing her steps. Sound familiar? It does, and I paired it with another recent release for the "books with similar plots" prompts on the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge. Despite having similar general plots, however, the mystery and all the twisty reveals were entirely unique. Every character had their secrets, and this one kept me guessing where the evil dwelt. What I also liked about this book is that while it took place in western Australia, the author maintained the pieces that made if feel like Australia. Too many times authors set a book someplace that really could have been anywhere. The local wildlife, plants, scenery, and even the KMart references kept if feeling real (and me Googling to learn more!). Who know that my first pharmacy intern employer is still alive and thriving half a planet away??? Definitely check this one out if you like missing persons thrillers and characters you don't know if you can trust.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Katy is on a mission. Her sister Phoebe, a travel blogger, has been missing for a year with no clues as to what may of happened to her. So Katy has decided to retrace Phoebe's journey from her old blogs and do her own investigation. 
    In her travels she meets another woman, Beth, who is stranded. Katy recognizes a woman in trouble and offers her a ride which then evolves into a team search and rescue for Phoebe.
    The other important character is 15 year old Wyatt and how he plays a role in the lives of these women. We hear all their voices individually, throughout the book and not till the end did it all become tied together.             
    In the meantime there were chapters full of mysterious events, puzzling recurrent male characters, deceitfulness, misplaced trust, and past histories that are painful to read about.
    There were many clues that I should have recognized that should have helped me to the ending but I totally missed it.  It lead to a bigger surprise for me.
    I have never traveled in a van but this book had me in the driver's seat, barreling along the Australian coast, meeting new people at stops with spectacular views. I never have to go back.

Red River Road is a thriller which takes place along the rugged west coast of Australia. There are more twists to this story than there are in a curvy coastal road. Three different narrators tell this story and all three have secrets to hide.
I enjoyed reading about Western Australia and the sights along the way. While that part of the story is interesting, the twists are what will keep you speeding through the book and wondering what hasn’t gone wrong! I would rate this book as just under five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advance copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you @macmillin.audio @netgalley @minotaur_books #partner for the gifted copies of this eARC and audiobook!

This was a first for me by this author AND set in Australia! I feel like that’s a double bonus because I love new authors and new settings. This one starts off following two women Beth and Katy, who meet in an unconventional way 👀. Katy is retracing the steps of her sister who was solo traveling and disappeared off the face of the earth the year prior. As Beth and Katy dig into her past they realize maybe her posting her travels on Instagram weren’t the best idea. Ya never know just who you’ll meet. 😳 I will say this book has made me think twice about letting people know my whereabouts! Eep!

This book instantly grabbed me because Anna Downes has written a wild way for these two comrades (Beth and Katy) to have met. In no way shape or form would I ever proceed with this friendship but it didn’t take away from my curiosity and continuing to fly through the pages to uncover this mystery! I found the ending of this book to be filled with so many twists…the kind of book that just didn’t stop. I am a huge fan of authors notes in books because many times they talk about where the idea of the book came from. Anna did share her backstory and I found her research source and idea fascinating. That alone made me go down a rabbit hole on google. 🫶Anyway, if you love suspenseful books, love to travel, have met random people during your travel and like Dateline…this book is for you!

I picked up this book without knowing much about it, and it was an incredible experience. The story was refreshingly unique and unlike anything I had read before. From the start, it pulled me in with its intricate and original narrative.

As I read, I found myself grappling with frustration, eager to piece together the reasons behind various plot developments. My buddy reader Marie and I spent a lot of time speculating and trying to decode the mysteries, which added a fun and engaging element to the reading process.

The depth of the story was both profound and emotionally heavy. It explored themes that were deeply moving and sometimes heart-wrenching. The combination of unexpected twists and deep emotional content made for a truly unforgettable read.

It's been awhile since a thriller has had me so engaged, with my mind constantly spinning trying to figure out the twist. Which I did not see coming!! Downes brilliantly weaves a twisty, atmospheric, psychological tale that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Told from 3 POV's, that are slowly shown how they weave together as the book progresses. While I'm not usually a fan of the unreliable narrator, I really loved how well done Katy's POV was. Everyone is hiding something and you never quite know where the lies are coming from. Interspersed with blog posts from Katy's sister Pheobe, who she is on the road to find, we are provided with a whole other set of breadcrumbs to follow. Trying to find our villain and their motive.

Full of beautiful scenery and chock full of realism, this one will make you think twice about solo travel. And who you trust. Both online and off. If you're looking for a fast paced, entertaining thriller than this is the perfect book to end out your summer reads!

Please take care for TW's such as : domestic partner violence, absent parent, missing sibling, assault, possible drugging, memory loss, just to name a few.

Thank you to netgalley, St. Martins Press, and the author for my e-arc in return for an honest review

"People do not just vanish. There is no 'thin air', no 'without a trace.' Everyone leaves traces; you just have to find them."

A twisty, dark thriller. I think #vanlife hasn't gotten more attention lately and I love that we're seeing more stories with it! A missing sister, a girl just pops up bleeding in another girl's van. And this is just the beginning of our story!

As soon as I started, it was really hard to stop. There were so many questions and clues and the twists kept the tension tight and my heartrate going! It was a race to finish because I wanted answers! This is a great story, I highly recommend!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

When her sister Phoebe vanishes without a trace during a solo road trip around Australia, Katy Sweeney sets out to follow the same route determined to find out what happened to her sister. As Katy makes her way through the route, she runs into another van lifer, Beth, and they decide to travel together.... but neither girl is what they seem.

I ended up really liking this one, but I felt like it dragged a little bit in the middle. I kept wishing the author would take advantage of the stunning setting and really painted a picture. This road trip that Katy & Beth are on is once in a lifetime for most of the world and I didn't really feel like I could picture it the way I picture Ragnar Jonasson's Iceland. That being said, the characters were good, plot was good, and the twist was excellent! Would definitely read more from this author!

Katy Sweeney is looking for her sister, Phoebe, who disappeared a year ago, three weeks into a solo trip in a van traveling around the Western Australia coast. Along the way, she meets Beth, and they team up. Beth. with secrets of her own, thinks helping Katy is the best way to hide. But as the twists mount and lies begin to be exposed, both women find they are in danger.

This was the best! I read it all in one go. It was just a wild ride. I was also googline facts about Australia because I invested as if it were real. The author also has a great section after the story where she talks about her inspiration and research. I loved it all!