Desperation is a dark road is the tagline to Hitchhikers by Chevy Stevens and it couldn’t be more correct. The year is 1976 and Alice and Tom are taking a trip to reconnect and save their relationship. Blue and Ocean are a young couple struggling to make it on their own. Alice wants to help them and offer to let them hitch a ride. What we soon learn is Blue and Ocean are truly Simon and Jenny and they are running from the bloody scene they left behind. The hosts become hostages and the tension is palpable as they travel across Canada. Every encounter with a stranger will find you at the edge of your seat. Stevens is a master of setting a scene and this novel is no different! Fast paced and deliciously dark! A must for any thriller fan to add to the TBR

A chilling, twist-laden ride to the final page, THE HITCHHIKERS is that rare novel that will break your heart as well as hold you in suspense. The author of the classic thrillers STILL MISSING and THOSE GIRLS has delivered her next breathtaking novel.’

Even though it’s been a solid decade since I’ve read it, I remember absolutely consuming ‘Still Missing’ by C.S.
So this book surprised me. But unfortunately, it wasn’t in the way that I’d assumed it would.

I hate to say it, but The Hitchhikers felt like a feeble attempt. There was no nail-biting thrill, no mystery or intrigue. No fun or anticipation. Plot was weak and the characters were weaker. Zero believability, for me at least and heavy on fluff & filler. In a nutshell, it was just a roadtrip of violence, brutality, imbecilic decisions and behavior.

Around the 88% mark is when the book seems to reveal a little meaning, insight, depth & history. But it came off as deficient, likely because it was a little too late.

None of this is easy to say because I’ve always loved CS. So I truly hope this was a one-off.
Of course, it may be just me that’s the problem. I’m not sure.

I am grateful for the opportunity nonetheless. Big thanks to NG and St Martin’s Press for this arc in exchange for review.

Pub: 10.07.2025.

What a thriller of a book ! 1970’s setting.
Be careful who you talk to would be the motto !

Alice and Tom, a pretty typical married couple are off for a camping vacation in the RV. One of them strikes up a conversation with “ocean” and “blue”. The younger couple could use a ride.

From that point on a whirlwind of violence as they are kidnapped and set out across Canada in search of money .
It’s a great story with a bit too much graphic violence , in my opinion, but the book works well.

It kept me up late reading to try to figure how this will end . The was satisfying I’m happy to say. Great character details
Thanks. Enjoyed the book

3.5 stars!

A super twisty thriller with complex and mostly grey characters that truly keep you guessing on who you can root for, or if you can root for them all the time. Are people really evil, or are we all capable of bad things when we or the people we love are pushed to the very edge?

I genuinely enjoyed reading this book, and once I got into it I found myself not wanting to put it down. I liked the individual characters, especially Jenny and Alice, and found myself rooting for both of them. Now, to get into a few pros and cons.

For pros, I really think the book was paced well. I never felt like I didn’t understand what was going on due to plot holes, nor did I feel like the plot was dragging at any point. I was immediately interested in the story and wondering how it would derail, and enjoyed myself every step of the way. I think that each character was distinct and their actions made sense with the personality they were written with.

My only con for the book is at times there are inconsistencies of what each character should know. For example, if people are using a fake name and they are called by their real name that the other characters haven’t learned yet.

Overall, I very much enjoyed the book, and would read more by this author in the future! Thank you NetGalley for access to the ARC in return for my honest review.

This was my first Chevy Stevens novel and I definitely enjoyed the writing style, and storyline. I loved the creativity that was used.

This novel started very descriptively painting a great picture and stage for the novel. I was immediately engrossed in the camping/RV lifestyle utilized in this book. I felt like it was pretty relatable and definitely felt to have a 1970s vibe.

I was not prepared for all the twists and turns this novel took, but it was not an easy book to put down. I really loved this one and kept flipping pages rather than doing anything in life I needed to!

Highly recommend this novel to the fans of slight thrills. Check trigger warnings though!

This is a great book. My first of this Author. Plan to read other books. I am grateful that I was able to read this in advance.

I have read a couple books from this author that I have enjoyed, so I was excited to get this one. What a ride! I liked the unique plot with the RV aspect because we are RVers. Thank you for the ARC, and I think this author has become an automatic read for me!

Yet another good read by Chevy Stevens. thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy.

The Hitchhikers was my first Chevy Stevens book. I will say that I really enjoyed the writing style! I am interested in reading more of her work now and will be adding others to my TBR list!

The story itself kept my interest all the way through. I did like the multiple POVs as well. I don't honestly know if it was the writing or my reading preference, but the different settings and atmospheric descriptions were definitely in my wheelhouse. There were a few small twists thrown in, which was a nice touch. The narrative did drag on a little in the middle, but it wasn’t monotonous. The ending was definitely interesting, but fitting.

I would make sure to read the trigger warnings and there are some graphic parts. If that doesn't bother you, then I would definitely recommend giving The Hitchhikers by Chevy Stevens a read!

I want to thank St. Martin's Press, NetGalley and Chevy Stevens for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I adore this author but I could not get through this. It felt very slow to me, almost repetitive as the story along the road dragged on.

I really liked the way this one started. Tension, action, and drama were steadily building and I was very curious to see where things would go. Unfortunately, they started going VERY dark and gruesome, and in a way that felt repetitive and obligatory rather than one in which things continued to build toward a resolution. I stuck with it, as I kept hearing about the book and how fabulous it was, but must confess that I started skimming about 25% in and just kept doing so until the end. This one wasn't for me. It felt like it was dragging the horror out rather than progressing toward a conclusion, and the horrible nature of the eponymous hitchhikers made that painful. I have not had much luck with Chevy Stevens in the past, frankly, and suspect her writing style and my reading style just don't mesh. This one wasn't for me...

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book by this author. Unfortunately it wasn't Suspenseful enough for my liking and I felt very bored waiting for the big Suspenseful moment that never came.

What a fantastic keep you on the edge of your seat read! I couldn't put it down!! Definitely recommend this one! It feels like it should be a movie!

This book was an absolutely wild ride. It starts off innocent enough and then some truly shocking events just keep coming. The twist at the end was done well.

Set in 1976, Tom and Alice are taking an RV trip across Canada to try to save their marriage after they're hit with a personal trauma. But when they pick up a young couple hitchhiking, things quickly spiral out of control and the entire book becomes a fight for survival. I loved the setting, the RV trip, the campgrounds. I loved how having no communication, no internet, no cellular, and no instant connectivity really set the book up in such a suspenseful way. The book is quite a bit slower than previous books by this author, and it evolves into a gritty and sometimes violent rampage in which the main character makes kind of questionable choices. But ultimately, it's a story of redemption and hope. If you like a slow burn thriller, this one's for you.

This was a free ARC available on NetGalley, and I thank the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to review. This is my own original review of this new book.

I did not like this book. The plot was simple and lacks engagement. There are four principal characters in the book. Blue and Ocean are a couple of hippie teens that are befriended by RV vacationers Tom and Alice in British Columbia around 1976. Alice recently suffered a miscarriage and her emotions are all over the place. Tom is a happy go lucky teacher who likes everyone he meets.

Turns out Ocean and Blue are really named Simon and Jenny. Both are on the run because they allegedly murdered Jenny’s mother and stepfather. After gaining the trust of Tom and Alice, the young couple proceed to kidnap them and lead them on a path of carnage and rampage.

Simon is the most despicable character I’ve read lately in a book. He is narcissistic and abusive with a violent temper. He piles up the body count as they travel eastward in rural Canada. Jenny is portrayed as a cute young thing who is clueless about everything, and oh yes, she’s also pregnant. Simon roughs up Tom early and he is incapacitated through most of the book. Alice tries to reason with Jenny over and over to no avail.

The story is about 100 pages too long. In the end I just wanted to see Simon and Jenny taken down in a hail of bullets but that didn’t happen.

Can’t recommend this one. I give it 2/5 stars.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I am a huge fan of Chevy Stevens and was thrilled to get this early copy. The story was suspenseful and the characters well done. The story was just too predictable for me and I lost interest. I did finish the book hoping for a great twist...it didn't happen. Overall , a good read.

I read this book after I received it as an ARC. The story was great but it kept dragging on and on. The writing was good there was just too much of it. It was way too long with too many things happening.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC. This was my fourth Chevy Stevens novel. Set in 1976, a couple on a camping trip trying to save their marriage but instead get the shock of their life when they run into hitchhikers who are on the run. I thought the premise of this novel was fun and I was definitely sucked into the story right away. I did feel like it was a little predictable and it felt a little longer than it needed to be. I got frustrated with the story halfway through and decided to push through. In the end, despite guessing what would happen I did like the way the story was wrapped up. Overall, I thought it was decent.

This was definitely one of my favorite Chevy Stevens books to date. I did not see those last couple twists coming at the end, and I read a lot of thriller/suspense books so it's not often I don't see a twist coming at all. This is a well-written story, it did seem to get stagnant a little bit in the middle, but I thought it had a great ending! Overall a great read.