Cold Heart Creek: A nail-biting and gripping mystery suspense thriller

Name: Cold Heart Creek: A nail-biting and gripping mystery suspense thriller
Rating: 4.614035129547119 (57 reviews)

Lisa Regan

Dec 2019 · Detective Josie Quinn Book 7 · Bookouture

4.6

57 reviews

Ebook

350

Pages

Eligible

About this ebook

In the stark light of dawn, the young couple are laid out on their backs by the dying campfire, their hands clasped between them. Their eyes are open, but their hearts are cold…

When a park ranger stumbles across the bodies of Valerie and Tyler Yates by a creek in the small town of Denton, Detective Josie Quinn is first on the scene. Still reeling from the news that her abusive mother is dying, Josie suspects this is more than just accidental poisoning, and she’s right: someone jammed a crudely carved pendant necklace down Valerie’s throat before she died.

Combing the area, Josie’s team discover a third sleeping bag indicating there could have been an extra guest around the fire that night. A lucky escape? A missing victim? Or a suspect on the run? Finding this person is the key to the entire investigation…

Trawling the couple’s photo albums for clues, Josie can’t imagine why anyone might want to harm these smiling, carefree young lovers. Until a face in one of the pictures stops her in her tracks and leads her to a farmhouse hidden deep within the forest – a special place where people go to escape, and to hide. There they meet a young girl with frightened eyes and bandaged wrists who knows more than she is saying. But the next day she’s found dead, choked with a matching necklace…

With her mother’s life hanging by a thread, Josie has an impossible decision to make. But first she must find the meaning of the pendant and catch this twisted killer before another innocent life is taken. Is she already too late?

An addictive and gripping crime thriller from an Amazon, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Readers who love Robert Dugoni, Angela Marsons and Rachel Caine will be sleeping with the lights on after this rollercoaster of a read.

Readers adore Cold Heart Creek:

‘OMG… WOW WOW WOW!!!! This book is just fantastic. Totally gripped me from the first page to the last. This story takes you on a cracker of a ride, a ride that I didn't want to end. I was totally immersed in the story... I love everything there is about Lisa Regan’s books. I cannot recommend highly enough this page turner of a book. 5 stars all the way. Just wish I could give it more.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘Amazing story… one heck of an intriguing mystery!... As soon as I started reading, I didn't want to put it down! It's like you're right there with Josie and her team and you can almost feel the same exhaustion that they do… I just love this series and I have no idea how I'm going to make it until the next book comes out!’ Netgalley reviewer, 5 stars

‘Perfect, wonderful and brilliant!!... her best one yet… astounding… everything you want in a police procedural with a whole lot more… so well written, the characters are all totally believable and none of it is ever predictable… much, much more than just a crime novel and each book is a 5 star read and more. So totally recommended. Lisa Regan you are a star, it’s a fabulous read.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘You cannot think about anything else except finishing it and getting all the answers… a perfectly paced and plotted police procedural that you do not want to miss!’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘Wow, this was a great book! I read it in one sitting. I could not put it down… There are so many twists and turns. It will keep you on the edge of your seat. I highly recommend this book. I give it 5 stars.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘GO AND READ THIS NAIL-BITING, UNPUTDOWNABLE BOOK.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

Ratings and reviews

4.6

57 reviews

Tara Stapledon

December 2, 2019

Deep in the woods two campers are found dead and there's evidence of a third camper. Josie's investigation leads her to a cult in the woods. She is haunted by nightmares of her past that get worse as she uncovers the depravity of the cult. As Josie unravels the mystery she finds out that not everyone is who they appear to be. A fast paced thrilling mystery that works well as a stand alone with enough detail and backstory to understand the main characters. Thank you #Netgalley and #Bookouture for this ARC #ColdHeartCreek

6 people found this review helpful

Glenda Quill

June 2, 2020

Another great story and great characters.Like so many,I can't put your books down.up to book 8 now and will be getting 9 in August.should be a good birthday present!!thanks Lisa for taking the time to create an ongoing series that you can pick up anywhere in the 8 books and know the backgrounds of the characters.truly magic

Monnie Ryan

December 2, 2019

If I ever made a list of my 10 favorite book "heroines," Josie Quinn would be in there somewhere. Yes, she's got emotional baggage as a result of an extremely abusive childhood, but unlike way too many other lead characters with similar backgrounds, she doesn't whimper and whine about it and gets on with her life in fine fettle (excepting perhaps those awful nightmares). That life, for the record, includes her duties as a detective in largely rural parts of Pennsylvania and Noah, a partner both professionally and personally (for the record, I like him a lot as well). As this episode begins, Josie and Noah are called out when two bodies are found at a remote campground about half a mile from Cold Heart Creek. At first blush, it appears that they were poisoned - even, perhaps, in a suicide pact. But further investigation changes the outlook in two ways: They are murder victims, and there was a third camper at the site who is inexplicably missing. The search for clues makes a significant stop at a fenced-in section of private property called The Sanctuary, a haven for societal misfits who, according to commune leader and property owner Charlotte, need to find themselves. Although all the residents are willing to answer questions, Josie and Noah are pretty sure they're not being totally honest. Then, on the drive home, Josie nearly collides with a very pregnant woman staggering out of the woods - who proceeds to give birth in Josie's car. When she's finally identified and hospitalized, the woman claims to have been kidnapped two years ago and held captive in some of the remote caves that dot the region. The plot thickens even more when a young girl Josie met at the commune turns up dead. Admittedly, there are bits and pieces that stretch credulity a bit, but overall this is a book I really didn't want to put down and could have finished in a day had the facts of my personal life not intervened. And while I have read and enjoyed other books in the series, this one stands quite well on its own. I do thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy.

5 people found this review helpful

Rate this ebook

Tell us what you think.

Reading information

Smartphones and tablets

Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.

Laptops and computers

You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.

eReaders and other devices

To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.