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Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Cold Woods by Karen Katchur


Description:   "Buried bones of the past rise to the surface in this chilling mystery from the bestselling author of River Bodies.

When the long-buried bones of a man turn up in the middle of December, Pennsylvania homicide detective Parker Reed knows he’s in for a cold case.

Trisha and her friends were teenagers when Trisha’s stepdad went missing. Now, thirty years later, his remains have been found in the mountains. The women have always known there was more to his disappearance than meets the eye, and they must confront their grim past. Secrets can stay secret a long time in the lonely Appalachian foothills—but not forever.

When Parker and his partner identify the remains, their investigation leads them to Trisha’s childhood home. But the deeper Parker digs into the crime, the more he realizes that the truth isn’t always simple. In fact, it’s so complicated that even Trisha and her friends don’t fully understand what really happened in those cold woods."

Cold Woods offers a different take on mystery/crime in a couple of ways.  You would think the main character would play a larger role but instead, the author concentrates on the three friends and their families...and this makes the mystery more interesting.  What actually happened to Trisha's stepfather?  There are a number of secrets that come to light as the novel unfolds.  The conclusion was also a bit unusual, but I liked it.

Read in March; blog review scheduled for July 30, 2019.

NetGalley/Thomas & Mercer
Mystery/Crime.  August 13, 2019.   

14 comments:

  1. Adding this to my wishlist. :)

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    1. I haven't read this author before, but I will look for more. :)

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    1. I could use some more wintery, snowy, very cold settings about now!

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    2. This time of summer with all these hot days is the worst, isn't it?

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    3. The humidity is the worst--adding 5-10 degrees of misery!

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  3. Cold cases are always a big draw for me! All the hidden things that come out in flashbacks! This book sounds like a winner.

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    1. I might look into River Bodies, the first in the series. :)

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  4. Oh, you have my interest piqued about the ending! Unusual is not often used to describe endings!

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    1. :) It was an unusual book in some ways because Parker Reed has a smaller role than expected.

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  5. I read the first one, River Bodies, last year as I got it from the publisher. I have this on my kindle from NG as well, but just haven't made time for it yet. I skimmed your review in case of spoilers. It seems like you enjoyed it okay. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

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  6. I haven't read the first book, but I did like this one. :)

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  7. I like the idea of a Pennsylvania setting. It feels like a long time since I last read a crime fiction novel like this. Lately I seem to be reading cozies whenever I pick up a mystery. Or a romantic suspense. This does sound good. I am glad you liked it, Jenclair.

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    1. I've read very few books set in Pennsylvania. Wonder why that is? It would be interesting to see stats about novels set in different states.

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