Review: Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl

Publisher: Bethany House Publishers

Pages: 336

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Ex-FBI profiler River Ryland still suffers from PTSD after a case that went horribly wrong. Needing a fresh start, she moves to St. Louis to be near her ailing mother and opens a private investigation firm with her friend and former FBI partner, Tony St. Clair. They're soon approached by a grieving mother who wants them to find out what happened to her teenaged son who disappeared four years ago. River knows there's almost no hope the boy is still alive, but his mother needs closure, and River and Tony need a case, no matter how cold it might be.

But as they follow the boy's trail, which gets more complicated at every turn, they find themselves in the path of a murderer determined to punish anyone who gets in his way. With a killer on the loose set on finishing the job he started, will River be pulled back into her tormented past or finally face the demons that haunt her?

Kritters Thoughts:  The first in a series where two former FBI agents leave after a horrific tragedy, move to St. Louis to be near River's mother, and decide to put their skills in a new space as private investigators.  Their first case together happens when a mother approaches them to ask for help in solving the case of her son who has been missing for a long time and she just wants closure as to what happened.  River and Tony take this on with the hope of finding something and starting their new company on the right track.  

I like to make folks aware of elements of books without spoiling, so you can make a decision on if this book would be right for you.  This book and the second that I will be reviewing tomorrow both have heavy elements of Christianity woven in the story.  While this is a mystery, I would personally shelve this book in the Christian fiction book as it is strong in its language about that faith.  

Now for the mystery itself, it is self-contained in this book and the mystery is resolved, but as I know how book two starts, I for sure would recommend starting at book one as there are a lot of character developments and plot points that are needed from book one to book two.  I loved that this mystery had depth and layers so it took a bit for all the pieces to be put into place and while it took me awhile to figure it all out, I don't feel as though it came out of left field.  AND the pacing - spot on.  I love when a mystery book really gets sprinting towards the end and you just can't put it down - such was the case for this one!   

Rating:

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.