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Tethered
The bite is worse than the bark!
The rural area in South Carolina where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but he is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one mistake changed everything. Last year, a chain of events led to Aiken’s pet dog brutally attacking his younger sister, Lexie.
After Lexie stabs the head cheerleader in the school hallway, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says bullying led to the fight, but he is convinced there is more to the story.
As Aiken begins to unravel the mystery, he is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends. People say chained dogs can become vicious over time, and Aiken begins to wonder if the same thing happens to people.
The rural area in South Carolina where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but he is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one mistake changed everything. Last year, a chain of events led to Aiken’s pet dog brutally attacking his younger sister, Lexie.
After Lexie stabs the head cheerleader in the school hallway, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says bullying led to the fight, but he is convinced there is more to the story.
As Aiken begins to unravel the mystery, he is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends. People say chained dogs can become vicious over time, and Aiken begins to wonder if the same thing happens to people.
164 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 1, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 27, 2019
** Edited as review is now live on Kendall Reviews! **
“Some people say that the land where I grew up won’t let anybody leave.”
While the title may say County Line Horror #4, I jumped into this book without having read any of the prior releases in that line, and it’s safe to say you don’t have too. I suspect somewhere along the line we get some cross visiting characters or towns, but at no point did I feel lost or that I should’ve read something prior.
‘Tethered’ follows Aiken, our main character as he tries to turn his life around following a poorly thought through prank that backfired and got him and his pal Brent in a whole heap of trouble.
He’s moved in with his girlfriend and her infant son. He’s dropped out of school but has a decent job.
Then his sister does something awful and he has too many to drink, gets pulled over – DUI.
While he does the field sobriety tests, he catches some motion in the woods and a massive Rottweiler appears.
This is where Gibson throws us into a real fun, fast-paced ‘who-done-it’ mystery tale. I read this in one sitting and found the words just threw themselves off of the page. As the story unravels you’ll be guessing about who is causing all of this grief, but also finding yourself angry and frustrated over the small town mentality against the family Pine.
For the first time reading Gibson’s work, I have to say, he is an incredibly enjoyable storyteller. He works in a very efficient fashion – fewer words that still create big pictures. In a sentence or two, he’d describe the trees or the trailer or whatever and you were transported there.
I personally seem to be able to find great reads that have dogs on the covers, without reading the synopsis. I was gifted a copy of ‘The Art of Racing in the Rain’ by Garth Stein. I snagged a copy of ‘Unsaid’ by Neil Abramson years ago in the Calgary airport and devoured it. And now ‘Tethered.’ Three very different books, but each book is filled with family, heart and some tense drama.
Definitely a book I’ll be recommending to a lot of my fellow thriller fans.
“Some people say that the land where I grew up won’t let anybody leave.”
While the title may say County Line Horror #4, I jumped into this book without having read any of the prior releases in that line, and it’s safe to say you don’t have too. I suspect somewhere along the line we get some cross visiting characters or towns, but at no point did I feel lost or that I should’ve read something prior.
‘Tethered’ follows Aiken, our main character as he tries to turn his life around following a poorly thought through prank that backfired and got him and his pal Brent in a whole heap of trouble.
He’s moved in with his girlfriend and her infant son. He’s dropped out of school but has a decent job.
Then his sister does something awful and he has too many to drink, gets pulled over – DUI.
While he does the field sobriety tests, he catches some motion in the woods and a massive Rottweiler appears.
This is where Gibson throws us into a real fun, fast-paced ‘who-done-it’ mystery tale. I read this in one sitting and found the words just threw themselves off of the page. As the story unravels you’ll be guessing about who is causing all of this grief, but also finding yourself angry and frustrated over the small town mentality against the family Pine.
For the first time reading Gibson’s work, I have to say, he is an incredibly enjoyable storyteller. He works in a very efficient fashion – fewer words that still create big pictures. In a sentence or two, he’d describe the trees or the trailer or whatever and you were transported there.
I personally seem to be able to find great reads that have dogs on the covers, without reading the synopsis. I was gifted a copy of ‘The Art of Racing in the Rain’ by Garth Stein. I snagged a copy of ‘Unsaid’ by Neil Abramson years ago in the Calgary airport and devoured it. And now ‘Tethered.’ Three very different books, but each book is filled with family, heart and some tense drama.
Definitely a book I’ll be recommending to a lot of my fellow thriller fans.
January 16, 2021
Fear Street fans gather round! I stumbled across this book entirely by accident while in the midst of ordering other 90s, YA horror for my personal collection. I was pleasantly surprised to learn I could easily follow County Line Horror via Twitter and ended up purchasing a signed copy directly from the official website. In 2019...
Surprise! It arrived in record time and I'm just now getting around to writing a review! I have no excuse other than the fact that I'm such a content reading loner - I've become accustomed to discussing materials with my book nerd friend (author & editor!) ONLY. She politely scolded me yesterday and I've decided to clean up my act.
I'll first say that the cover is even more beautiful in person! Gorgeous finish, and definitely reminds me of something I'd see in 'Paperbacks from Hell'. No insult intended to the author here as there's no disturbing gore or cheap sex in text (although I'd love to see a cheesy tagline splattered across the front!).
The setting was calm and peaceful yet intense - dirt roads definitely don't equate to boring! In fact, the rural surroundings added to the mystery and suspense given that it's much easier to go unnoticed (criminal activities included) outside of city limits. A pack of bloodthirsty dogs, or even a single stray roaming the streets of NYC probably wouldn't last but a minute or two. In the country however, who would even hear an attack victim scream? Everyone is a suspect because everyone has enough privacy to behave badly. Well done.
I felt an old school vibe in the character development - not the deragatory 'good ole boy' tone but, one consisting of morals, values, hard work & handshakes. Of course, there's always a bad seed in every bunch! But while I was able to envision scenes when reading, I sometimes wished the author used more imagery in his writing. Showing v telling. This isn't a deal breaker, though.
I particularly enjoyed the turbulent times of the young adult, drama! Mostly because I'm 38 and don't have to live it anymore, haha, so I found it quite entertaining. Even still, I was empathetic towards their plight. It's difficult to know who to trust at such an age, especially when your own instincts can still deceive you. Coming into your own and saying goodbye to what you thought you knew. Well done.
I'd rather not spoil anything for potential readers so I'll just say that the killer got what he/she deserved in the end! Shoulda been nicer to animals ;-)
Surprise! It arrived in record time and I'm just now getting around to writing a review! I have no excuse other than the fact that I'm such a content reading loner - I've become accustomed to discussing materials with my book nerd friend (author & editor!) ONLY. She politely scolded me yesterday and I've decided to clean up my act.
I'll first say that the cover is even more beautiful in person! Gorgeous finish, and definitely reminds me of something I'd see in 'Paperbacks from Hell'. No insult intended to the author here as there's no disturbing gore or cheap sex in text (although I'd love to see a cheesy tagline splattered across the front!).
The setting was calm and peaceful yet intense - dirt roads definitely don't equate to boring! In fact, the rural surroundings added to the mystery and suspense given that it's much easier to go unnoticed (criminal activities included) outside of city limits. A pack of bloodthirsty dogs, or even a single stray roaming the streets of NYC probably wouldn't last but a minute or two. In the country however, who would even hear an attack victim scream? Everyone is a suspect because everyone has enough privacy to behave badly. Well done.
I felt an old school vibe in the character development - not the deragatory 'good ole boy' tone but, one consisting of morals, values, hard work & handshakes. Of course, there's always a bad seed in every bunch! But while I was able to envision scenes when reading, I sometimes wished the author used more imagery in his writing. Showing v telling. This isn't a deal breaker, though.
I particularly enjoyed the turbulent times of the young adult, drama! Mostly because I'm 38 and don't have to live it anymore, haha, so I found it quite entertaining. Even still, I was empathetic towards their plight. It's difficult to know who to trust at such an age, especially when your own instincts can still deceive you. Coming into your own and saying goodbye to what you thought you knew. Well done.
I'd rather not spoil anything for potential readers so I'll just say that the killer got what he/she deserved in the end! Shoulda been nicer to animals ;-)
April 25, 2019
"People say tethered dogs can change--they become mean over time--and I wonder if the same thing happened to us."
Tethered by Bryce Gibson is the fourth book in the County Line Horror series which is like the YA novels R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike used to put out under the Point Horror series. But what I enjoy about the County Line Horror series is that it is set in the country and the characters are real.
Tethered is about a nineteen-year-old guy named Aiken Pine who returns home because his sister has stabbed the head cheerleader at her school. Some people say that bullying was the underlying cause, so Aiken begins to dig into the mystery surrounding the incident. And as he does so, there are a lot more secrets and dangerous things lurking in the woods. Dogs become dangerous when they become tethered for so long. Aiken left, but there are a few people he knows that have stayed back home, becoming tethered in their own way.
The book is well-written and definitely has a nice country twang in the dialogue and the sceneries. The characters are very believable and, I imagine, can be relatable to a lot of other people who pick up this book.
I'm not going to lie. My first reaction of this book--judging by the cover--was that it was a southern version of Cujo, but that isn't the case. Sure, there are three big crazy, snarling dogs that show up unexpectedly, but there is much more to it than that.
The story isn't that long, but that wasn't the reason why I read it in in as little as two days. I read it that quick because Bryce knows how to keep you hooked, keep you guessing, and keep you wanting to know why and what is going on.
I definitely recommend this book to any fan of YA Horror.
Tethered by Bryce Gibson is the fourth book in the County Line Horror series which is like the YA novels R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike used to put out under the Point Horror series. But what I enjoy about the County Line Horror series is that it is set in the country and the characters are real.
Tethered is about a nineteen-year-old guy named Aiken Pine who returns home because his sister has stabbed the head cheerleader at her school. Some people say that bullying was the underlying cause, so Aiken begins to dig into the mystery surrounding the incident. And as he does so, there are a lot more secrets and dangerous things lurking in the woods. Dogs become dangerous when they become tethered for so long. Aiken left, but there are a few people he knows that have stayed back home, becoming tethered in their own way.
The book is well-written and definitely has a nice country twang in the dialogue and the sceneries. The characters are very believable and, I imagine, can be relatable to a lot of other people who pick up this book.
I'm not going to lie. My first reaction of this book--judging by the cover--was that it was a southern version of Cujo, but that isn't the case. Sure, there are three big crazy, snarling dogs that show up unexpectedly, but there is much more to it than that.
The story isn't that long, but that wasn't the reason why I read it in in as little as two days. I read it that quick because Bryce knows how to keep you hooked, keep you guessing, and keep you wanting to know why and what is going on.
I definitely recommend this book to any fan of YA Horror.
April 30, 2019
THE BITE IS WORSE THAN THE BARK!
The rural area where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but Aiken is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one horrible mistake changed everything.
When his younger sister stabs the head cheerleader, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says it was bullying that led to the fight, but Aiken is convinced there's more to the story.
As he begins to unravel the mystery, Aiken is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends.
And, even with all of that, Aiken has another problem… there’s a sinister dog that’s been following him around.
A dog that’s out for blood!
Thanks so much to bryce gibson for the pdf download of teathered there are no words to describe this story it was amazing reminded me of a 90's thriller with some modern twist I could not put it down I loved how it kept me on the edge of my seat if i saw an angry growling dog chasing me i would be scared and running for my life just like Aiken a great whodunit I kind of figured out who was doing it in the middle of the story it has a nice country vibe and also reminds me of one of my favorite book series point horror . The character's feel very real and relatable , if you love ya and dogs this is the story for you it was well-written and had a nice amount of pages I would recommend this book to my friends and family laura8759 .
The rural area where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but Aiken is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one horrible mistake changed everything.
When his younger sister stabs the head cheerleader, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says it was bullying that led to the fight, but Aiken is convinced there's more to the story.
As he begins to unravel the mystery, Aiken is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends.
And, even with all of that, Aiken has another problem… there’s a sinister dog that’s been following him around.
A dog that’s out for blood!
Thanks so much to bryce gibson for the pdf download of teathered there are no words to describe this story it was amazing reminded me of a 90's thriller with some modern twist I could not put it down I loved how it kept me on the edge of my seat if i saw an angry growling dog chasing me i would be scared and running for my life just like Aiken a great whodunit I kind of figured out who was doing it in the middle of the story it has a nice country vibe and also reminds me of one of my favorite book series point horror . The character's feel very real and relatable , if you love ya and dogs this is the story for you it was well-written and had a nice amount of pages I would recommend this book to my friends and family laura8759 .
June 17, 2019
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Aiken Pine is dealing with a few big things in his life at the moment. He's living with his girlfriend and her young son, but he's just lost his job. On top of that, his sister has been accused of stabbing a girl from school. The Pine's are quickly becoming ostracized from their community and tough times are getting tougher. Add on a the dogs that are seemingly hunting Aiken and out for blood and it's just not a good time for him.
Having read all of Bryce's books, I think this is his best yet. The characters feel more fully realized and everything from the pacing to the plot feels tighter. I also think this is his most adult book and honestly, had he gone full hog into making this an adult book it probably would have made a significant difference for the better. There's a lot of potential to explore themes and various plotlines that that he touched on briefly.
Check out our interview with Bryce from last year.
Aiken Pine is dealing with a few big things in his life at the moment. He's living with his girlfriend and her young son, but he's just lost his job. On top of that, his sister has been accused of stabbing a girl from school. The Pine's are quickly becoming ostracized from their community and tough times are getting tougher. Add on a the dogs that are seemingly hunting Aiken and out for blood and it's just not a good time for him.
Having read all of Bryce's books, I think this is his best yet. The characters feel more fully realized and everything from the pacing to the plot feels tighter. I also think this is his most adult book and honestly, had he gone full hog into making this an adult book it probably would have made a significant difference for the better. There's a lot of potential to explore themes and various plotlines that that he touched on briefly.
Check out our interview with Bryce from last year.
May 11, 2024
This book was pretty dang good and had a very unexpected twist, the only thing I would change is lengthening the explanation of what happened between some of the characters, it’s a lot of build up and then the peak feels a bit rushed. Other than that the pacing was great and I got through the book in 2 days. If you’re a fan of FearStreet books, this has a very similar feel. It’s intense and scary at parts, but not too much! Looking forward to reading more by this author.
January 6, 2020
Ok, so this one really frustrated me. Too much poor decision making on the part of the main character. Also, too much lack of justice for bullies. I think bullying needs a no tolerance policy with harsh legal consequences. I still gave it three stars because it had good suspense. Plus, I really like the ending:
August 23, 2022
A fast-paced and bloody whodunit.
I am so glad I found Bryce Gibson's novels. Each one is a character-driven thriller with plenty of surprises. The spectacular reveal of the culprit, the killer, is always satisfying. This one is no different. The pacing is lightning quick and once you start it is difficult to put down.
I am so glad I found Bryce Gibson's novels. Each one is a character-driven thriller with plenty of surprises. The spectacular reveal of the culprit, the killer, is always satisfying. This one is no different. The pacing is lightning quick and once you start it is difficult to put down.
November 17, 2025
it has pretty good bones (no pun intended). the story gets a little lost during the middle, but overall it was a good quick read. Definitely had one twist that I didn't see coming so that was nice surprise, but the reasoning behind it felt lazy.
February 26, 2024
Very easy reading, even from 1st person view. Easily relates to those who spent quite a bit of time in rural SC.
March 17, 2024
A good short read that can be used as either a palate cleanser to get into thriller again or to break a reading slump. Warning if you can't stand animal death, probably not for you.
August 7, 2024
Another very fast but fun read..
December 27, 2024
This one is a good one with twist and turns that keeps you guessing. The only thing is I wish there was more detail on his sister and the fight the final outcome and the friend that set her up..
July 19, 2025
Intense
The author has captured the essence of pure terror with this book. I don’t think I will ever look at dogs the same way again.
The author has captured the essence of pure terror with this book. I don’t think I will ever look at dogs the same way again.
July 14, 2026
going from perennials to tethered u can really see the growth in the authors writing from book 1-2.
really captivating story cant wait to read book 3.
really captivating story cant wait to read book 3.
March 2, 2024
I talk about this book on my YouTube channel Cinema Codey. The video is called “Book Suggestion Sunday!! The Books I read in June.”
An enjoyable, quick read. I have loved all of Bryce Gibsons books so far. I’ve read “Perennials” and “The Reading Buddy” as well. “Perennials” was probably my favorite. I can’t wait to read more books by him!
An enjoyable, quick read. I have loved all of Bryce Gibsons books so far. I’ve read “Perennials” and “The Reading Buddy” as well. “Perennials” was probably my favorite. I can’t wait to read more books by him!
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews