MURDER ROAD

4 stars out of 5

I'm a big fan of this author, and once again, she didn't disappoint. This story is a little bit ghostly, a little bit thriller and a whole lot entertaining.

Mind you, I've got to be honest; the ghostly part was a tough sell. It's not that I don't believe in "connections" with those who've gone before us; it's that this story relied a little too much on seeing things that couldn't possibly (in my mind) have been there. Still, it was impossible not to get caught up in the goings-on - especially when there are more than a few twists to keep things interesting.

Newlyweds Eddie and April Carter are off on their honeymoon (well, she hasn't had time to officially change her name to his, but she's planning to do that when they get back home to Ann Arbor, Michigan). Eddie once served in Iraq, and he still suffers from PTSD of sorts. While driving to their rental cabin upstate, he apparently misses a turn and ends up on remote Atticus Line Road. As they drive along, they spot an odd light; soon afterward, they see a body at the side of the road. It turns out to be girl who says her name is Rhonda Jean and that "He's coming!" Oh, and one other little thing: she's covered in blood. They manage to get her to a hospital, though not before a truck nearly runs them down.

But their good Samaritan efforts go for naught when the victim dies and the local police consider them the top suspects - not only for the murder of the young woman who died, but of several other hitchhiking victims who have met with foul play along this desolate road. But as they're finally in the clear - sort of - they're accosted by another victim; this one convinces them to hang around and try to find the real killer (or killers). As the story progresses, readers learn that both Eddie and April are victims of their own pasts - pasts that hold secrets they haven't shared with anyone including each other and that might hold answers to some of the mysteries they're encountering.

As I said at the beginning, it's an entertaining adventure from start to finish, and I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.

Murder Road by Simone St. James (Berkley, March 2024); 350 pp.