A Spoiler-Free Review of Cold As Hell by Kelley Armstrong
Detective Casey Duncan is eight months pregnant at the beginning of Cold As Hell, the third mystery in Kelley Armstrong’s Haven’s Rock thriller series.
Armstrong’s smart and gutsy protagonist previously appeared in her Rockton series, with Haven’s Rock serving as its spin-off. Having not read any of the Rockton books where Casey first debuted, or the first two novels in this series, I can’t comment extensively on the characters’ backgrounds. I came in “blind,” but the story quickly pulls you in with an exciting start: a resident of Haven’s Rock is attacked and dragged into the woods. She manages to escape, and as Casey investigates, a body turns up, leaving her questioning whether the new sanctuary town is as safe as it seems.
That’s because Casey—like everyone else living in the secretive town of Haven’s Rock in the Yukon—has a troubled, violent past. She and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are now in charge of the town and responsible for keeping everyone safe. Haven’s Rock is an invitation-only refuge for those who need to disappear from the regular world—a peculiar notion that I didn’t think was really necessary. At several points in the story, Armstrong pauses the narrative to explain how Haven’s Rock functions, which sometimes felt repetitive and I found my attention drifting. All you really need to know is that it’s “a place for people to disappear, a fresh start from a life on the run.”
I enjoyed the story much more when the focus was on Casey, her husband, and the various supporting characters, who were likeable and engaging. The mystery and thriller elements are also strong, and Armstrong excels at writing suspense and action. Whether Casey and her Newfoundland dog, Storm, are tracking in the Canadian wilderness or she and Eric are battling a blizzard to catch a villain, you can feel the cold and the danger.
Overall, Cold As Hell is a fast read with an unusual premise but with an interesting lead character and enough thrills and charm to keep me turning the pages.
Many thanks to our friends at Raincoast Books for the advanced copy.
