Murder Road by Simone St. James

There’s something inherently eerie about a lonely stretch of road cutting through dense, dark woods. As twilight falls and shadows lengthen, that isolated ribbon of asphalt seems to harbor untold secrets and dangers. It’s the kind of place where you instinctively roll up your windows and lock your doors as you drive through, breathing a sigh of relief once you emerge on the other side. But what if you never made it out? What if something—or someone—was waiting for you in those murky woods, ready to drag you into the darkness?

This is the chilling premise that Simone St. James explores to haunting effect in her latest supernatural thriller, Murder Road. With prose as sharp and dangerous as a knife’s edge, St. James takes readers on a white-knuckle ride down Atticus Line—a desolate back road with a long history of mysterious disappearances and gruesome murders. At the heart of the story are newlyweds April and Eddie, whose wrong turn onto this infamous stretch of highway plunges them into a nightmare far darker and more twisted than they could have ever imagined.

A Honeymoon Derailed

As the novel opens, we meet April and Eddie Carter on what should be the happiest day of their lives. Fresh from their wedding, the young couple is en route to a rustic lakeside resort for their honeymoon when they somehow end up on the lonely, forested road known as Atticus Line.

In an act of compassion that will change their lives forever, they stop to pick up a lone female hitchhiker. But their good deed quickly turns to horror when they realize the woman is covered in blood from multiple stab wounds. As they race to get her to a hospital, a menacing truck begins pursuing them at high speed through the darkness.

The hitchhiker—a young woman named Rhonda Jean—dies shortly after they reach the ER. And just like that, April and Eddie find themselves the prime suspects in her murder. The local police are convinced they’re responsible, especially given the road’s long history of unsolved killings. Stuck in the small town of Coldlake Falls and desperate to clear their names, April and Eddie begin digging into the dark history of Atticus Line and its many victims.

Ghosts of the Past

As April and Eddie investigate, St. James slowly peels back the layers of mystery surrounding Atticus Line. We learn of other victims over the decades—young hitchhikers and travelers who vanished or turned up dead along that lonely stretch of road. There are whispered rumors of a ghostly female figure seen wandering the roadside at night. Some call her the Lost Girl, believing her to be the vengeful spirit of the very first victim.

The author excels at building an atmosphere of creeping dread and unease. There’s a palpable sense that unseen eyes are always watching from the shadowy woods. Strange lights appear in the trees at night. Cold spots manifest out of nowhere. And as April and Eddie dig deeper, they begin experiencing terrifying encounters that blur the line between the living and the dead.

St. James keeps readers guessing as to whether there’s a human killer at work or if something truly supernatural is responsible for the carnage on Atticus Line. She deftly balances moments of pulse-pounding suspense with slower burn psychological horror. The result is a story that gets under your skin and lingers there long after the final page.

Complex Characters, Tangled Mysteries

While the central mystery of Atticus Line drives the plot forward, it’s the richly drawn characters that give the story its emotional heft. April and Eddie are far from the typical horror novel protagonists. They come to the story already carrying heavy emotional baggage from their pasts.

Eddie is an army veteran still wrestling with PTSD and occasional hallucinations from his time in Iraq. April had a nomadic, unstable childhood with a criminal mother she’s been estranged from for years. Their relationship feels lived-in and authentic—two damaged people who have found solace and strength in each other.

As the investigation progresses, long-buried secrets from both their pasts begin bubbling to the surface. St. James excels at peeling back her characters’ layers, revealing the pain and trauma that shaped them. We come to understand why they react to situations the way they do. Their flaws and mistakes feel achingly human.

The supporting cast is equally well-realized, from the prickly local detective convinced of April and Eddie’s guilt to the oddball sisters obsessed with solving cold cases. Even minor characters feel three-dimensional. St. James has a knack for revealing volumes about a person through small details and mannerisms.

A Web of Secrets Unraveled

As April and Eddie’s investigation deepens, the web of secrets surrounding Atticus Line grows ever more tangled. Long-cold cases are revisited. Old wounds are reopened. Nothing and no one in Coldlake Falls is quite what they initially seem.

St. James proves herself a master of misdirection, laying false trails and red herrings that keep readers constantly off-balance. Just when you think you have it all figured out, she pulls the rug out from under you with another shocking revelation. The pacing ramps up as the story barrels towards its climax, with twists and turns coming at a dizzying rate.

Without spoiling any of the major revelations, I’ll simply say that the truth behind the Atticus Line killings is far more twisted and tragic than I ever expected. St. James weaves together threads of generational trauma, small-town corruption, and cosmic horror into a tapestry as intricate as it is disturbing. The final act had me frantically turning pages, desperate to see how it would all resolve.

Echoes of Classic Horror

While Murder Road is very much its own unique tale, horror aficionados will pick up on subtle nods to genre classics. There are echoes of Stephen King’s Christine in the haunted stretch of highway. The creepy small town with dark secrets recalls Twin Peaks. And the blurring of past and present, reality and nightmare, brings to mind the work of Shirley Jackson.

But St. James synthesizes these influences into something fresh and modern. Her prose has a lean, propulsive quality that keeps the story rocketing forward. The dialogue crackles with wit and tension. And she has a knack for creating vivid, skin-crawling imagery that sears itself into your brain.

A Master of Supernatural Suspense

Murder Road cements Simone St. James’ status as one of the premier voices in modern supernatural suspense. While this is a standalone novel, fans of her previous works like The Sun Down Motel and The Book of Cold Cases will find much to love here. She continues to demonstrate her skill at blending genres, crafting stories that are equal parts ghost story, murder mystery, and psychological thriller.

What sets St. James apart is her ability to root cosmic horror in very human emotions and relationships. The supernatural elements, while chilling, ultimately serve to illuminate the characters’ inner lives and the bonds between them. It’s telling that some of the most haunting moments in the book don’t involve ghosts or killers, but quiet conversations where characters reveal their deepest fears and regrets.

Final Verdict: An Unforgettable Ride

Murder Road is the literary equivalent of a roller coaster ride through a haunted house – terrifying, exhilarating, and impossible to forget. St. James has crafted a story that works on multiple levels—as a propulsive thriller, a tragic romance, and a meditation on trauma and healing.

The central mystery is satisfyingly twisty and unpredictable. The characters feel painfully real, their struggles and choices resonating long after the book ends. And the horror elements are genuinely unsettling, tapping into primal fears of the dark unknown.

This is a novel that will have you obsessively turning pages late into the night, while also pausing periodically to check that your doors are locked. It’s a ghost story for the modern age that proves there are still new terrors to be found on dark, lonely roads. Just be prepared—once you start down Murder Road, there’s no turning back.

Who Should Read It

Murder Road is a must-read for fans of:
• Supernatural thrillers with a mystery bent
• Character-driven horror that prioritizes psychological scares
• Stories exploring trauma, memory, and generational curses
• Atmospheric small-town gothic tales
• Authors like Riley Sager, Jennifer McMahon, and Catriona Ward

Content Warnings

The novel contains depictions of violence, death, and gore. There are also discussions of past trauma, child abuse, and mental health issues. While not gratuitous, some scenes may be disturbing for sensitive readers.

Simone St. James has delivered another masterclass in supernatural suspense with Murder Road. With its intricate mystery, richly drawn characters, and genuinely unnerving scares, this is a journey readers won’t soon forget. Just don’t blame me if you find yourself avoiding lonely stretches of road for a while after finishing it.