I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the THESE DEADLY WORDS by Nichole Heydenburg Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
What happens when the line between fiction and reality blurs?
All Camille Monroe wants is a quiet place to work on her novel. Hoping for inspiration, she retreats to a cabin in Asheville, with only her dog Brody as company.
Leah Strauss thought the summer after high school graduation would be amazing, but when her boyfriend Vincent suffers an untimely loss, her dream of the perfect summer is destroyed. Attempting to cheer up Vincent, Leah’s twin sister Ava and her boyfriend Noah join them on a road trip.
When a snowstorm strikes the mountains while Leah and her friends are hiking, they struggle to find their campsite. After becoming lost in the woods, they stumble across a cabin and seek shelter from the storm.
As the days pass, the guests feel increasingly unsafe in the stranger’s cabin. Camille seems to know all their secrets, and she doesn’t want them to leave. Who is this dangerous writer and what does she want from them? Their biggest problem quickly becomes escaping the cabin alive.
Tropes: Snowstorm, locked room mystery, cabin in the woods, 80s book, magical/supernatural powers.
Content warnings: alcoholism, suicide, swearing, murder.
*Review*
These Deadly Words gave me strong Secret Window meets the Evil Dead meets Purgatory vibes.
I thought the story came together a bit clunky and forced. Yet, I couldn’t stop reading it.
It was an intriguing premise, once you started comprehending the plot and what was driving it. The mystery and supernatural themes were great. While it has the vibes mentioned above, it was completely it’s own unique story.
The setting is well established with vivid descriptions.
The cast of characters is diverse enough to not be stagnant. Vincent’s character seemed to be the most dynamic, as you wonder what the cabin is doing to his already depressed state. Leah was an alright character after she got passed her “is her cheating me or isn’t he” fears. Noah and Ava are basic secondary character that still seem important to the stories progression. Poor Noah got the crap end of the stick. Camille is a nice villain, but I would have loved more of her backstory.
The dual POV was nice, as we got to see the situation from both sides. Honestly, I wasn’t sure at first is Camille was mentally ill or if there were supernatural factors in the story.
A lot happened in the first 30% of the book, but the author did a great job of twisting it back around.
While I could guess some of the plot twists, it was still a fun & entertaining read. I did not, however, see that last twist coming and would like that to be expanded upon. 😉
Content Warnings include: suicide, murder, underage drinking, mention of addiction and self harm, mention of infidelity, and mention of s*x with a minor in a position of power situation.
About Nichole Heydenburg:
Nichole Heydenburg is the author of The Quiet Girl and The Long Shadow thriller trilogy. She also owns Poisoned Ink Press, where she provides editing services to authors. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English with an emphasis in writing from Adrian College in 2014. When she isn’t writing, Nichole enjoys exploring new cities with her husband, reading, and drinking iced mochas. She currently resides near Asheville, NC with her husband, Zed, and their crazy dog, Mr. B.
Be the first to learn about Nichole Heydenburg’s new releases and other thrilling news! Subscribe to her monthly newsletter on www.nicholeheydenburg.com.
You can also follow her on social media
Sign up for Nichole’s newsletter!
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub
Title: THESE DEADLY WORDS
Author: Nichole Heydenburg
Pub. Date: April 25, 2023
Publisher: Poisoned Ink Press LLC
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 300
Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/THESE-DEADLY-WORDS
*Giveaway*
One (1) winner will receive a finished copy of THESE DEADLY WORDS, US Only.
Ends May 9th, midnight EST.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e2389ba21669/
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
| 4/18/2023 | Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer | Review |
| 4/19/2023 | @shangread_la | IG Review |
| 4/20/2023 | Writer of Wrongs | Guest Post |
| 4/20/2023 | jeff_of_allmedia | IG Post |
| 4/21/2023 | I’m Into Books | Excerpt |
| 4/22/2023 | YA Books Central | Guest Post/IG Post |
Week Two:
| 4/23/2023 | @thrillersandhistoricalfiction | IG Review |
| 4/23/2023 | Inked Book Reviews | Review/IG Post |
| 4/24/2023 | Review Thick And Thin | Review/IG Post |
| 4/24/2023 | Reveal + Review | Guest Post |
| 4/25/2023 | Brandi Danielle Davis | IG Review/TikTok Post |
| 4/25/2023 | @dastardly.reads | Review/IG Post |
| 4/26/2023 | #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog | Guest Post/IG Post |
| 4/26/2023 | A Blue Box Full of Books | IG Review |
| 4/27/2023 | Books With a Chance | Review/IG Post |
| 4/27/2023 | @jael_and_jenessa_reads | Review/IG Post |
| 4/28/2023 | The Bibliophilic World | Review/IG Post |
| 4/28/2023 | Author Z. Knight’s Guild | Review/IG Post |
| 4/29/2023 | zaineylaney | TikTok Review/IG Post |
| 4/29/2023 | Country Mamas With Kids | Review/IG Post |
Week Three:
| 4/30/2023 | Confessions of the Perfect Mom | Review/IG Post |
| 4/30/2023 | Book Briefs | Review/IG Post |
| 5/1/2023 | Kim’s Book Reviews and Writing Aha’s | Excerpt/IG Post |
| 5/2/2023 | Breysreviews | IG Review/TikTok Post |
| 5/2/2023 | Two Chicks on Books | Excerpt/IG Post |
Books with a Chance of Traveling 
Love the review. The book sounds so good and I can’t wait to read it.
LikeLike