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Blood Trail: A Novel
Not yet published
Expected 7 Apr 26A poacher-turned-game-warden is on the hunt for a bloodthirsty cult in this unnerving thriller from the authors of the “artful chiller” (Lincoln Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author) Wilderness Reform.
Clark Rickert was once the most prolific big game poacher throughout the Rocky Mountain west but when he lost both his son and his wife, he turned away from hunting. Now a game warden working for the very law enforcement officers that once pursued him so aggressively, Clark is overwhelmingly successful at his job.
So, when there’s a string of disappearances in rural Montana, Clark is selected to join a task force on an operation targeting a mysterious, violent cult in the area. As he works to uncover the truth, Clark begins to be plagued by visions and starts to realize that there is a deeper purpose to his assignment and the cult might up to something far more terrifying than anyone could have guessed.
From two authors who “set themselves apart with sterling prose” (Publishers Weekly), Blood Trail is an eerie and suspenseful horror novel that will sink its teeth in you.
Clark Rickert was once the most prolific big game poacher throughout the Rocky Mountain west but when he lost both his son and his wife, he turned away from hunting. Now a game warden working for the very law enforcement officers that once pursued him so aggressively, Clark is overwhelmingly successful at his job.
So, when there’s a string of disappearances in rural Montana, Clark is selected to join a task force on an operation targeting a mysterious, violent cult in the area. As he works to uncover the truth, Clark begins to be plagued by visions and starts to realize that there is a deeper purpose to his assignment and the cult might up to something far more terrifying than anyone could have guessed.
From two authors who “set themselves apart with sterling prose” (Publishers Weekly), Blood Trail is an eerie and suspenseful horror novel that will sink its teeth in you.
400 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication April 7, 2026
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January 20, 2026This was a DNF for me, but will likely work for others. It was...very, very military with acronyms and manly men being manly. I was very interested in the cult, but just couldn't stick with it. At the time I left the book (about 35%) there were two women in it. One was pretty. The other was capable. Neither was memorable. But there's hunting and shooting and men bro-ing out while being taciturn and grumpy.
So...if that's you, give it a try.
So...if that's you, give it a try.
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March 20, 2025ooooooh I need this yesterday.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 stars
What are the symptoms of testosterone poisoning? Because I’m pretty sure I have been afflicted.
Buried under a mountain of protein powder and military might, I think there was an intriguing premise. A primal evil awakening for another attempt at destroying humanity and a hero finally realizing his destiny is to battle this evil and save the world. Our hero, Montana game warden, Clark Rickert. Morally gray? Sure. Backstory? Sparse but something something wife and young son dead, something something. Rickert is joined by a cast of the most bad-assed special forces soldiers, soldiers that are each the most bad-assed bro’s who have ever assed a bad. The mission is to infiltrate a local cult that has “disappeared” several hundred local residents for nefarious purposes. Because the President of the United States knows what’s up and has blessed this mission.
Here is what this book read like for me:
Lethal violent surgical master hunter tactical assault deadliest ever assembled on earth ever seen on earth most lethal in history born for this most rage and cruelty humanity has ever known 7.62x51mm .300 Win-Mag .50 caliber bullets FGM-148 Javelin missiles chaos firing positions explosions hand to hand slaughter.
If you are really into military jargon, tactical mission plans, detailed descriptions of the multiple ways a trained, special forces bad-ass can kill and maim another human being, you are going to love this book. There are no emotional connections but the “band of brothers” is implied among the different tactical units. There are only two women in this story, one who appears for a few pages to be rescued and one that is the head of some government agency and part of the “leadership group” but who remains on the sidelines. This is very clearly a male-centric story about men being manly. Dialogue is very limited, but men don’t talk because feelings are uncomfortable, so this checks out.
What worked for me: The camp of it all. Once I was about 80% into the book, I completely gave in to the crazy. I started seeing this like the 2012 horror movie The Cabin in the Woods. If I had gone into this with that mindset, I think I would have enjoyed the reading experience way more. I do not believe that this was intended as horror comedy, but I honestly couldn’t help myself by the end. I also appreciated the lack of on-page animal death. The epilogue really, really worked for me. My absolute favorite part of the book. I wish the entire story had been written like the epilogue.
What did not work for me: There was so much telling and so little showing. Entire sections of the book happened in the past tense rather than in the moment. We were riding along in a recollection of what had just happened, rather than seeing it for ourselves. There were too many POV’s. It almost felt like an omniscient narrator, and I really would have preferred limited POV’s, or even one POV to be honest. The lack of dialogue didn’t work for me. I prefer to see characters interact with each other, rather than just listening to their thoughts. The numerous digressions that occurred to interrupt the flow of the story made the pacing awkward. Once we finally got into some sort of action, there would be a long digression to something not at all (or only tangentially) related. For example, a gigantic 371-year-old tree was about to fall in one scene. Instead of just falling, we had a full page or more describing this tree, what kind of tree it was, the year it was born, the kind of life this tree had and some young girl that had enjoyed the tree. Seriously. These kinds of interruptions really took away from the narrative flow and did not serve the story. Finally, the over-use of hyperbole to describe every character and scene. Not every soldier is the most deadly seen in the universe since the big bang. Also, telling me how awful something is just by telling me it made someone who saw it vomit is the same as saying something is just too awful for words. No, it’s not. This is a book. Use your words.
In the end, the epilogue really saved this book for me. I am not the target audience, but I am sure that there are plenty of readers out there who are. Confession: The first book by this author duo, Old Country, is one of my favorite horror novels of all time. Bear hunt, omg, iykyk. I read their next book, Wilderness Reform, hoping for that same magic and was disappointed but not discouraged from trying again. This is the third book of theirs that I’ve read and again, this one was not for me. I am not giving up yet, but my enthusiasm has taken a bit of a hit.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What are the symptoms of testosterone poisoning? Because I’m pretty sure I have been afflicted.
Buried under a mountain of protein powder and military might, I think there was an intriguing premise. A primal evil awakening for another attempt at destroying humanity and a hero finally realizing his destiny is to battle this evil and save the world. Our hero, Montana game warden, Clark Rickert. Morally gray? Sure. Backstory? Sparse but something something wife and young son dead, something something. Rickert is joined by a cast of the most bad-assed special forces soldiers, soldiers that are each the most bad-assed bro’s who have ever assed a bad. The mission is to infiltrate a local cult that has “disappeared” several hundred local residents for nefarious purposes. Because the President of the United States knows what’s up and has blessed this mission.
Here is what this book read like for me:
Lethal violent surgical master hunter tactical assault deadliest ever assembled on earth ever seen on earth most lethal in history born for this most rage and cruelty humanity has ever known 7.62x51mm .300 Win-Mag .50 caliber bullets FGM-148 Javelin missiles chaos firing positions explosions hand to hand slaughter.
If you are really into military jargon, tactical mission plans, detailed descriptions of the multiple ways a trained, special forces bad-ass can kill and maim another human being, you are going to love this book. There are no emotional connections but the “band of brothers” is implied among the different tactical units. There are only two women in this story, one who appears for a few pages to be rescued and one that is the head of some government agency and part of the “leadership group” but who remains on the sidelines. This is very clearly a male-centric story about men being manly. Dialogue is very limited, but men don’t talk because feelings are uncomfortable, so this checks out.
What worked for me: The camp of it all. Once I was about 80% into the book, I completely gave in to the crazy. I started seeing this like the 2012 horror movie The Cabin in the Woods. If I had gone into this with that mindset, I think I would have enjoyed the reading experience way more. I do not believe that this was intended as horror comedy, but I honestly couldn’t help myself by the end. I also appreciated the lack of on-page animal death. The epilogue really, really worked for me. My absolute favorite part of the book. I wish the entire story had been written like the epilogue.
What did not work for me: There was so much telling and so little showing. Entire sections of the book happened in the past tense rather than in the moment. We were riding along in a recollection of what had just happened, rather than seeing it for ourselves. There were too many POV’s. It almost felt like an omniscient narrator, and I really would have preferred limited POV’s, or even one POV to be honest. The lack of dialogue didn’t work for me. I prefer to see characters interact with each other, rather than just listening to their thoughts. The numerous digressions that occurred to interrupt the flow of the story made the pacing awkward. Once we finally got into some sort of action, there would be a long digression to something not at all (or only tangentially) related. For example, a gigantic 371-year-old tree was about to fall in one scene. Instead of just falling, we had a full page or more describing this tree, what kind of tree it was, the year it was born, the kind of life this tree had and some young girl that had enjoyed the tree. Seriously. These kinds of interruptions really took away from the narrative flow and did not serve the story. Finally, the over-use of hyperbole to describe every character and scene. Not every soldier is the most deadly seen in the universe since the big bang. Also, telling me how awful something is just by telling me it made someone who saw it vomit is the same as saying something is just too awful for words. No, it’s not. This is a book. Use your words.
In the end, the epilogue really saved this book for me. I am not the target audience, but I am sure that there are plenty of readers out there who are. Confession: The first book by this author duo, Old Country, is one of my favorite horror novels of all time. Bear hunt, omg, iykyk. I read their next book, Wilderness Reform, hoping for that same magic and was disappointed but not discouraged from trying again. This is the third book of theirs that I’ve read and again, this one was not for me. I am not giving up yet, but my enthusiasm has taken a bit of a hit.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
ARC
I'd like to thank Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to give "Blood Trail" an early read in return for an honest review.
Matt and Harrison Query have been on my radar ever since I read their two other novels, "Old Country" and "Wilderness Reform", last year. Hearing that they were releasing another novel, it skyrocketed to my most anticipated read of the year, so I was aghast when I recieved this ARC, knowing that I was in store for something special.
And something special this certainly was. It's a novel that I didn't want to speed through, though I easily could have sat and finished this in one sitting. Just like their two other novels, "Blood Trail" is a smooth read, that is not short on exciting, action-packed sequences, and a plot that has constant momentum, never losing steam. Though we know little about most of the characters, nobody felt as if they were only surface level, which made the events feel as if the stakes were even higher. The outdoor setting worked really well, making the set pieces of the action feel as if they were characters themselves, which made for an interesting dynamic when paired with Clark, the main character, who felt distant, rather than lively like the locations. It's as explosive as you'd think it would be when you read the description, which made for a read that was just one hell of a fun read. I'm intrigued to see if they decide to follow this story up, since there's still room for this story to grow more if they decide to continue on.
Being my most anticipated novel of the year, I had some really high hopes, and I am so glad to say that this delivered in every way that I wanted it to. It's genuinely a rush of a read, which I wanted to to eat up quickly, truly testing my courage to take it slow and enjoy the read. The Querys are a duo that have had three absolute knockout novels so far, and I cannot wait to see what they have planned in store for us with their next novel.
Be sure to give "Blood Trail" a read when it is published on April 7, 2026!
I'd like to thank Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to give "Blood Trail" an early read in return for an honest review.
Matt and Harrison Query have been on my radar ever since I read their two other novels, "Old Country" and "Wilderness Reform", last year. Hearing that they were releasing another novel, it skyrocketed to my most anticipated read of the year, so I was aghast when I recieved this ARC, knowing that I was in store for something special.
And something special this certainly was. It's a novel that I didn't want to speed through, though I easily could have sat and finished this in one sitting. Just like their two other novels, "Blood Trail" is a smooth read, that is not short on exciting, action-packed sequences, and a plot that has constant momentum, never losing steam. Though we know little about most of the characters, nobody felt as if they were only surface level, which made the events feel as if the stakes were even higher. The outdoor setting worked really well, making the set pieces of the action feel as if they were characters themselves, which made for an interesting dynamic when paired with Clark, the main character, who felt distant, rather than lively like the locations. It's as explosive as you'd think it would be when you read the description, which made for a read that was just one hell of a fun read. I'm intrigued to see if they decide to follow this story up, since there's still room for this story to grow more if they decide to continue on.
Being my most anticipated novel of the year, I had some really high hopes, and I am so glad to say that this delivered in every way that I wanted it to. It's genuinely a rush of a read, which I wanted to to eat up quickly, truly testing my courage to take it slow and enjoy the read. The Querys are a duo that have had three absolute knockout novels so far, and I cannot wait to see what they have planned in store for us with their next novel.
Be sure to give "Blood Trail" a read when it is published on April 7, 2026!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
I was invited by the publisher to read/review this book. The blurb basically suggested this: when there’s a string of disappearances in rural Montana, Clark is selected to join a task force on an operation targeting a mysterious, violent cult in the area.
Religious or political cults are something I like readying about. I was raised in a cult, deprogrammed as an adult and now, generally, like seeing how other people (authors) portray them. Many of them do a really respectable job. However, this book isn't about a cult. I'm still unsure what the book is about but they don't use the word cult correctly. This book is about the government(s), it's heavily about the military with all of its violence, guns and acronyms. It's geared toward testosterone laden men and, I don't know, was it supposed to be a religious wet dream or fantasy? Since I think religion IS fantasy I couldn't tell. It was so badly garbled in the telling and especially with the ending that the only thing I got out of the book was "Me Man. Me Have Guns. Me Kill Sadistically."
In today's America, the very LAST thing I want to read is anything about 1. The US Government keeping secrets "for my own good" 2. The US Military traipsing all over the midwest and western US heinously murdering Americans for any reason whatsoever. Some of us have lived through Randy Weaver, WACO and now the horrors or Minnesota and enough is enough 3. the religious nutters and their idea of the "apocalypse" - if that's what this was. Otherwise it was just a boogeyman and a bad retelling at that.
I do not recommend this book to anyone. I wish it wasn't even a book. I'm also really REALLY tired of misleading blurbs. If you can't sell your book by truthfully telling us what it IS about, then don't publish the book!!
Religious or political cults are something I like readying about. I was raised in a cult, deprogrammed as an adult and now, generally, like seeing how other people (authors) portray them. Many of them do a really respectable job. However, this book isn't about a cult. I'm still unsure what the book is about but they don't use the word cult correctly. This book is about the government(s), it's heavily about the military with all of its violence, guns and acronyms. It's geared toward testosterone laden men and, I don't know, was it supposed to be a religious wet dream or fantasy? Since I think religion IS fantasy I couldn't tell. It was so badly garbled in the telling and especially with the ending that the only thing I got out of the book was "Me Man. Me Have Guns. Me Kill Sadistically."
In today's America, the very LAST thing I want to read is anything about 1. The US Government keeping secrets "for my own good" 2. The US Military traipsing all over the midwest and western US heinously murdering Americans for any reason whatsoever. Some of us have lived through Randy Weaver, WACO and now the horrors or Minnesota and enough is enough 3. the religious nutters and their idea of the "apocalypse" - if that's what this was. Otherwise it was just a boogeyman and a bad retelling at that.
I do not recommend this book to anyone. I wish it wasn't even a book. I'm also really REALLY tired of misleading blurbs. If you can't sell your book by truthfully telling us what it IS about, then don't publish the book!!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
“Blood Trail” takes a while to get into, as early on, it is one of the oddest books I have read, not so much for the subject matter (which is definitely strange) but the way it is written/presented. The prologue is a little over the top but interesting and provides a good introduction to one of the main characters. Then comes the first chapter, which is so filled with gobbledygook that I seriously questioned whether there had been an error in the digital file and text from another book had gotten mixed in. Though later chapters suggest that Chapter I is actually part of the story. There are multiple sections of the story which are so heavily filled with military acronyms and detailed descriptions of weapons and accessories (far more than is necessary for the story itself) that it makes the text "clunky" and awkward to read. The authors seem to want to show off how knowledgeable they are, but in the process, they disrupt the fluidity of the story. There are also sections of the book where the writing seems to be deliberately obtuse.
However, once you get far enough into the book, and if you overlook some of the stylistic oddities, the story is actually rather creative, with some pretty clever twists. There is plenty of action to keep the reader engaged and plenty of suspense to keep the reader wondering what will happen next. The main character, Clark Rickert, has a complexity that may seem surprising, with mannerisms that result in him often being underestimated by the government officials and elite military personnel with whom he is working to stop an unfathomable evil.
I wonder how many readers will recognize that Lucy Westenra (Rickert's administrative assistant and a "cult" victim) was the name of Dracula's first English victim in Bram Stoker's "Dracula."
However, once you get far enough into the book, and if you overlook some of the stylistic oddities, the story is actually rather creative, with some pretty clever twists. There is plenty of action to keep the reader engaged and plenty of suspense to keep the reader wondering what will happen next. The main character, Clark Rickert, has a complexity that may seem surprising, with mannerisms that result in him often being underestimated by the government officials and elite military personnel with whom he is working to stop an unfathomable evil.
I wonder how many readers will recognize that Lucy Westenra (Rickert's administrative assistant and a "cult" victim) was the name of Dracula's first English victim in Bram Stoker's "Dracula."
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.
Blood Trail by Matthew and Harrison Query is not for the faint of heart - trigger warnings for severe scenes of cruelty and brutality against both animals and people. I cannot stress this enough, this novel includes imagery that has its place among the most graphic horror novels, and you won't easily be able to dismiss it from your imagination; it is gory, bloody and graphic beyond almost anything I have ever read. This is a story of death, destruction and loss.
Clark Rickert lost his son and wife and lives a joyless life of mere existence. He is called to help combat a cult of killers with an unimaginably high body count.
This story was FAR too bleak and hopeless for me, and was a DNF (did not finish) but it might be your cuppa.
Blood Trail by Matthew and Harrison Query is not for the faint of heart - trigger warnings for severe scenes of cruelty and brutality against both animals and people. I cannot stress this enough, this novel includes imagery that has its place among the most graphic horror novels, and you won't easily be able to dismiss it from your imagination; it is gory, bloody and graphic beyond almost anything I have ever read. This is a story of death, destruction and loss.
Clark Rickert lost his son and wife and lives a joyless life of mere existence. He is called to help combat a cult of killers with an unimaginably high body count.
This story was FAR too bleak and hopeless for me, and was a DNF (did not finish) but it might be your cuppa.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
READ MY FULL REVIEW AT Best Thriller Books
Violent, mysterious and completely engrossing, Blood Trail is a genre-bending tale that messes with your head and keeps you guessing to the very end. The Query Brothers have crafted a thriller that won’t give you a moment’s peace until you figure out what the hell is going on.
This story comes together in a way that ratchets up the tension, dripping pieces of information that forces you to keep going with a desperate need to figure things out, then exploding with insanely high levels of violence. Leaving you wondering what it is you just finished reading, but knowing it was something epic.
Violent, mysterious and completely engrossing, Blood Trail is a genre-bending tale that messes with your head and keeps you guessing to the very end. The Query Brothers have crafted a thriller that won’t give you a moment’s peace until you figure out what the hell is going on.
This story comes together in a way that ratchets up the tension, dripping pieces of information that forces you to keep going with a desperate need to figure things out, then exploding with insanely high levels of violence. Leaving you wondering what it is you just finished reading, but knowing it was something epic.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
These authors never ever disappoint, and now I need to go back and read the first book with this game warden Clark Rickert in it. This book had me hooked from page 1. Sorta supernatural, horror, mystery, suspense, amd tragedy all in one, which I loved. The characters are all strong, likeable and easy to fall into reading about. The only reason for 4 stars is towards the end it started to feel like the story was bring dragged out for some reason. That didnt last long though and the ending was great!!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I’m a big fan of supernatural thrillers, however I didn’t fully connect with Clark Rickert as a character. I understand that the story is built around his lone wolf nature, but I think I would have enjoyed the book more if I’d felt a stronger attachment to him. Overall, the novel reads more like an in depth police procedural, following Clark as he heads into the wilderness to stop an unhinged cult.
January 26, 2026
"Blood Trail" was a lot to handle. I finished it and I'm landing somewhere in the middle of the road with it. It was violent, bloody and there were a lot of graphic scenes (a majority of which required a palette cleanser after reading.) It's a very manly book and the two women in the book are awful.
Overall a solid 3.5, but be warned, it's a rough one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Overall a solid 3.5, but be warned, it's a rough one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Thanks to Atria Publishing and NetGalley. Well written, extremely gory, very militarily detailed, and too long. Started out as an interesting novel set in the wilds of Montana, then evolved into something else entirely. I like a good horror, but this just dragged on too long.
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