Haven’s Rock is a sanctuary town hidden deep in the Yukon for those who need to disappear from the regular world. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are starting a family now that they’ve settled into their life here. As Casey nears the end of her pregnancy, she lets nothing, including her worried husband, stop her from investigating what happens in the forbidden forest outside the town of Haven’s Rock.

When one of the town’s residents is drugged and wanders too close to the edge of town, she’s dragged into the woods kicking and screaming. She’s saved in the nick of time, but the women of the town are alarmed. Casey and Eric investigate the assault just as a snowstorm hits Haven’s Rock, covering the forest. It’s there they find a frozen body, naked in the snow. With mixed accounts of the woman’s last movements, the two begin to question who they can trust–and who they can’t–in their seemingly safe haven.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Haven’s Rock has no sex trade. Unless you count Gunnar, but he’s free, so there’s no “trade” involved.

You ever get the feeling we have some skewed ideas of what constitutes ‘nice people’?

“Well, at least we’re both remaining calm about this. Despite the fact there is a raging storm outside. I just hope we’re not in shock and are going to freak out in five minutes.” “You’re in shock. I’m in denial. Whole different land.”

Are you looking for me to play profiler, Casey? It is a game for fools and Hollywood detectives.

He’s a card-carrying member of a white nationalist group. Okay, maybe they don’t have cards, but they should— preferably stapled to their foreheads.

My Review:

The author hit a new level with this installment. There was more of everything – story threads, character development, levity, and personal issues tossed into the mix. At the same time, the small community was rocked by an apparent gruesome and sadistic serial killer living among them. I’m hoping there are many more of these to come.

Haven’s Rock is a well-hidden town surrounded by forest. And it’s supposed to be, being that it’s a refuge for those who need to disappear. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton already feel at home in their new town, which reminds them of where they first met in Rockton. And while they know how to navigate the woods and its various dangers, other residents don’t. Which is why people aren’t allowed to wander off alone.

When Max, the town’s youngest resident—taught to track animals by Eric—fears a bear is stalking a hiking party, alarms are raised. Even stranger, the ten-year-old swears the bear had human eyes. Casey and Eric know the dangers a bear can present, so they’re taking it seriously. But odd occurrences are happening all around them, and when a dead body turns up, they’re not sure what they’re up against.

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“Doing better” really isn’t Mathias’s thing. He was a criminal psychiatrist who killed criminals in creatively appropriate ways. He’s not a textbook serial killer, driven to murder. He just doesn’t mind killing when he thinks it’s warranted. He’s also a good psychiatrist and a really good butcher, so we let him join us in Haven’s Rock. And because no one dared tell him no.

The coffee maker is the kind of fancy home espresso setup that has me wondering just how many solar panels I’d need for it and how wrong it would be to use that much power to give me the perfect cup of coffee.

My Review:

Another seemingly unsolvable murder mystery in the secret frozen Yukon forest encampment of Haven Rock. I’ve become addicted to this oddly compelling series and am lamenting that I only have one more installment on my Kindle to devour. The various storylines are taut with tension with occasional well-placed and highly appreciated hits of levity to keep me from ruining my manicure.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

They aren’t allowed into the forest. That’s been made very clear. It’s dangerous and untamed Alaskan wilderness, filled with grizzlies and wolves and killers. Okay, no one said “killers” but they all know Alaska is where serial killers run when they need to escape the police.

Penny has never been what anyone would call outdoorsy— she once rolled in poison ivy to get sent home from summer camp…

I don’t have autism. I’m just an unfeeling bitch.

My Review:

This was my introduction to the scribblings of Kelley Armstrong and I now count myself a fan. The storylines held a persistent tension of arduous physical demands with lurking danger and impending doom, yet with welcome threads of snarky humor and wit cleverly woven through.

While this is the initial installment of a new series, the characters have been carried over from a previous one. Despite not having read the previous tales, I wasn’t hampered by my lack of awareness of their history as the author did an excellent job of filling in the requisite information. I have the next two installments locked and loaded on my Kindle and am immediately diving into the next book.

Death By Trauma
(Josiah Reynolds Mystery #21)
by Abigail Keam

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

“The invitation said formal attire, Franklin. That means getting dressed up.” “I am dressed up.” “Yeah, but not like Elton John.”

I did the Vulcan salute. “As a bonafide Trekkie, I swear.”

I had outdone myself in crossing the line! A girl scout I was not.

I feel it is a dog-eat-dog world, and I’m wearing milkbone underwear.

My Review:

Ms. Keam has provided us with another unsolvable mystery that could only be solved by the clever yet somewhat cranky Josiah. I do enjoy her amusing conundrums. The storylines are easy to follow and engaging with characters who are realistically flawed while simultaneously and authentically compelling. And I always come away with some interesting tidbits about beekeeping and bluegrass country along the way.

Favorite Quotes:

She had babysat Jeanie’s two-year-old twins a couple of months before, and had aged a decade in four hours.

I think this is officially the worst meet up we have ever had, including that time we went to the park in the rain and a tramp peed in my bag.

The more Jeanie looked at the castle, the more crumbling it appeared to be. It was like her body since having kids– neglected, sagging, mouldering quietly away unnoticed, the bottom of the priority list.

‘Back off!’ Jeanie could feel blood in her mouth. ‘Whoever the hell you are, you have two pissed-off and starving midlife women in here with you, so just give up now, okay?’

My Review:

This was a well-plotted mystery that seemed unsolvable, even for the ever-intrepid trio of the Bad Girls Detective Agency. The little pea in my brain certainly was not getting anywhere from spinning in place with the odd events occurring and the dearth of clues collected, and the general tone felt more tense than cozy. However, Ms. Marsh’s signature wit and lashings of amusing humor kept it from being too angsty. It was a long, cold, and tiresome night on empty stomachs for the group as they navigated irksome people and kept stumbling upon bodies.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Not to worry. I still have eyes like a hawk and reflexes like the jungle cats of the Amazon, according to my doctor.

Being out in public with Maverick was an interesting experience. He was warm and cordial to everyone they interacted with, but his face made people stare as if someone on a most-wanted list had walked past.

God, I’ve been nervous and excited all morning. Nervo-cited. Let’s hug.

My Review:

This one kept me reading long past my bedtime as I didn’t want to put my precious Kindle down. The storylines were easy to follow, well-nuanced, and cleverly layered despite having three timelines. The characters were well-developed and realistically flawed yet generally likable. This was my first exposure to this wily author’s word-craft; count me an instant fan.

About the Author

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Anna E. Collins is a Seattle area author who writes stories about the lives and loves of women—their hopes, dreams, journeys, and relationships—with the goal of making readers both laugh and cry. She grew up in Sweden as a voracious reader with a vivid imagination but didn’t start writing fiction until after she had kids. By that point, she had worked as a high school teacher for several years, married an American, undertaken two international moves, and needed a new outlet.

Her first (gargantuan and unpublishable) venture into fiction sparked a passion for creating people and worlds that illustrate and illuminate aspects of the human experience that connect us. A couple more books and a master’s degree in educational psychology later, Anna decided to make writing more than a hobby, and she has never looked back. Whether writing women’s fiction or romantic comedies, Anna aspires to create characters that jump off the page and relationships that are as imperfect as the ones we find in everyday life.

When not writing, Anna stays busy driving her teenage kids around, training her eternal canine companion, Archie the mini goldendoodle, and engaging in other creative pursuits such as drawing, singing, and baking. Her husband is her biggest cheerleader.