I enjoyed reading this thriller. While reading I was on the edge of my seat and hastily turning pages just to see what would happen next. With a carefully crafted plot, a nice storyline with a good amount of twists turns, and dark moments, and well-built characters that are so believable that sound pretty real to me. Looking forward to reading future books by this author.

Cold to the Touch by Kerri Hakoda
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genre: General Fiction (Adult), Mystery & Thrillers
Expected Publication Date: April 9, 2024

Cold to the Touch is a standalone mystery by Kerri Hakoda. I really enjoyed this one and hope it becomes a series! I loved the characters and thought the book was brilliantly written! The crime solving was fascinating. I enjoyed the glimpse into Alaska policing and the people there.

I thought the narration by Eric Fox & Abigail Reno was really good. I enjoyed how they brought the characters to life!

I definitely recommend reading Cold to the Touch! I look forward to reading future books by the author!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A Particularly Heartless Murderer Must Be Caught

The victim wakes up in a very dark room. She is gagged and blindfolded, her arms and legs are bound, and she is lying on a scratchy blanket that reeks of manure. The door opens, and someone comes in. Another man enters and angrily confronts the first man. A fight ensues that ends with a loud bang. She is lifted and slung over a man’s shoulder. He tells her, "Almost there." This novel's challenging case begins as this victim is taken to her fate.

The main storyline consists of four threads. An Anchorage Homicide detective, DeHavilland Beans, narrates most of the primary thread, the scope of which keeps expanding as more girls go missing. All are coffee baristas, most of whom are abducted from isolated kiosks late at night. All wore skimpy costumes. The investigation begins with victimology. Family, friends, employers, and coworkers are questioned trying to find a connection. The victims’ bodies suffer predation, complicating the determination of the cause of their deaths. The tension ratchets up each time a new victim is found. The weapon used is determined but doesn’t advance the investigation. To raise the tension even more, there is the victims’ thread, where they narrate several chapters just before they lead to their fate. There is another murder investigation being led by the other homicide detective. The difficulty is that Beans has a personal relationship with the prime suspect, so he spends precious time with the suspect. Then, that detective is directed to assist Beans. The only heat in this relationship is due to their friction. As the novel nears the end, the murderer narrates a chapter. This storyline grabbed my interest and held it to the end.

The background on Beans is extensive. The reasons for his poor reputation with his fellow officers are provided. There is a B-storyline between Beans and Dr. Ingalls. She is the Fish and Game expert on park predators. She had worked on a triple murder case with Beans where their relationship extended beyond the professional. Their relationship has soured since, and Beans is trying to reestablish it. She is assisting in this investigation and interferes with his investigatory duties. Near the end, I see a C-storyline hidden in the novel that I did not suspect. These aspects of the novel enhanced my reading enjoyment.

Some aspects that can cause some readers to stop reading are present in this novel. There is one intimate scene, but it did not raise a red flag for me. The biggest issue was vulgar and rude language. Again, it was far from the level that would make it an issue for me, but for some, it may be. Violence is described after the fact and initially from the autopsies. The victims’ narrated chapters provided the heartless behavior he showed to his victims. In the end, the violence is described as it occurs. These aspects earn the warning for readers to be forewarned. This is the first novel by this author, so there are no issues about not reading the previous novel.

This is the debut novel by this author, and I could not be more pleased with this novel. I did not find anything that I disliked in this novel. If you like action in your police procedurals, the beginning will likely be slow for you. I liked the unique way the discovery was made, which led to the murderer’s identity. While reading, I marked several potential loose ends, but all were cleared by the novel’s end. This is the first novel by this author that I have read, so she is in my Pending category. Based on the quality of this novel, I am sure that the rating will be in the Must- or Will-Read category. I will be looking for that next novel on NetGalley. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. I rate it with five stars.

I received this novel's free prepublication e-book version through NetGalley from Crooked Lane Books. My review is based solely on my own reading experience of this book. Thank you, Crooked Lane Books, for the opportunity to read and review this novel early.

The hunt for a serial killer in Alaska is the basis of Cold to the Touch (2024) by Kerri Hakoda. Detective DeHavilland Beans has nightmares after attending to a dead body found in the snow. Recognising his murdered local barista, she is the first of several murders, as Beans investigates the cases with help from the FBI and his fellow detective - who don’t get on. As the case unfolds, there are few leads, as the practicing Buddhist detective struggles with his disturbed sleep. An unusual yet endearing protagonist, with the Arctic environment and promising character development, makes for an enjoyable three and a half stars crime read rating. Hopefully, there will be more Beans adventures with this atmospheric, slow-burning police procedural. With thanks to Crooked Lane Books and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without inducement.

Anchorage Detective DeHavilland (Havi) Beans is disappointed when he stops for his regular early morning coffee at Snow Bunny Baristas and finds his favourite barista not there and the kiosk closed. Not only does Jolene Nilsson make the best coffee, Havi also enjoys his morning chats with the college student and part time bikini barista, who like him, grew up in a small Alaskan town. His concerns about her are later realised when her naked body is found lying in the snow, mutilated by wild animal.

With no trace evidence left on Jolene’s body, except for a single white rose found lying nearby, the police have little idea who could have done this to the beautiful young woman. Two days later another missing young bikini barista is found dead with all the hallmarks of the first murder and again no forensic evidence except a single white rose. Havi is concerned that they have a serial killer on their hands. Although you might think that Anchorage would lack the beach vibe where bikini barista kiosks are often located, there are a dozen to choose from in the city all employing young beautiful women. Havi also has the personal worry that his younger sister has just started working as a barista in a mall.

Set just before Christmas in Anchorage, the cold, bleak atmosphere of winter in Alaska works well to set the scene and the inclusion of chapters narrated by the killer and his victims add to the build-up of danger and tension. Like his siblings Havi was named after an aircraft by his bush pilot father and is an intriguing and very likeable character. A gentle part indigenous, part Japanese Buddhist, he keeps a cool head in danger and prefers reasoning with suspects rather than shooting first.

Since Havi’s last partner retired, the only other unpaired detective on the force, Ed Heller, has so far refused to be partnered with him. However, as the case develops, they are forced to work together, which they do surprisingly well along with a female FBI agent, Isabelle O’Reilly sent in from Portland. Short staffed and struggling to review hours of CCTV footage, they also receive some unexpected help from Cam, a young, autistic bus driver. Havi’s ex-girlfriend Raisa Ingalls is also called on as an expert and it’s clear she and Havi have some unfinished business.

This is an excellent debut novel. A very well written police procedural, well plotted with some dark and chilling undertones in the atmospheric Alaskan winter. Hakoda has created a wonderful character in Beans, a man with many dimensions and flaws in his personality and personal life and it would be great to see him feature again in a sequel or series.

Cold to the Touch by Kerri Hakoda

Excellent debut novel ~ Hoping this is the first in a series as I definitely want to read more by this talented author!

What I liked:
* DeHaviland Beans: homicide detective, detail oriented, dedicated, good at what he does, loving brother and son, Buddhist, has nightmares, protective, caring, grew up in a small Alaska town, works in Anchorage, likes animals, has an interesting backstory, would like to learn more about him
* The plot, pacing, writing, and setting that is almost a character in the story
* The police procedural aspects of the story
* The friction between Detective Ed Heller and Beans and how it changed over the story
* Meeting characters that, if this is a series, will be nice to get to know better in future books: Lieutenant DuBois, Dr. Chuckie Heffner-medical examiner, Isabelle O’Reilly-FBI consultant
* Cam Kristovich: young man who helped with the case
* The strength of the women in the story
* The way all the threads of the story were woven together to find the murderer with no strings left hanging
* That I felt I was immersed in the story and cared how it would end
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* Thinking about the pain suffered by those who were killed and also by those that knew and loved them

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more by this author? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for the ARC – This is my honest review

5 Stars

Fans of the serial killer genre should enjoy this procedural set in Alaska. Someone is killing baristas in Anchorage and Detective DeHavilland Beans is hot on the case, working with, among others, Raisa, his ex. I was not familiar with the Israel Keyes case so this was. for want of a better description, a novel of first impression. I liked the setting and the diversity of the characters if not the violence against women (which is obviously key to the story). Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I'd welcome more from Hakoda.

I switched back and forth between the book and audiobook for this read. I really enjoyed this serial killer crime thriller about women being kidnapped and murdered in Alaska in the middle of winter. It is a character driven slow burn that follows Anchorage homicide detective Dehavilland Beans, or Beans for short, as he investigates these murders with the help of the FBI.

I highly recommend this book if you like crime novels set in rural areas and fiction that reads like true crime.

Thank you Crooked Lane Books and Dreamscape Media for allowing me to read and listen to this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

(This same review was shared on the Barnes & Noble website)

Cold To The Touch Review

Alaska is the setting for Kerri Hakoda’s very good police procedural, Cold to the Touch: A Thriller. Anchorage, specifically, where it is deep in winter. For Homicide Detective DeHavilland Beans, the calm and serene morning of listening to an audiobook by the Dalai Lama is destroyed by a phone call. It is a Saturday morning, twelve days before Christmas, and the call regarding a dead body is jarring and upsetting for the man who is a Buddhist seeking karmic balance.

Cross county skiers first thought they a carcass of a moose buried under the falling snow. When they started seeing fabric at the mound behind some shrubs a few hundred yards off the municipal trail, they called for help.

When Detective Beans looks at the frozen body, he knows immediately who has been murdered, and left in the snow for animals to scavenge. Jolene Nilsson worked at a nearby coffee kiosk and one that the Detective Beans frequents. He had thought a lot about asking her out, as they had quite a bit in common, but he is 33 and she was 19. Going out with her never would have been right.

Any chance he ever had is gone as is her future.

The body is in bad shape. But, she clearly still has duct tape on her mouth. There is also nearby a single white rose. It seems obvious to Beans, the Medical Examiner, Chuckie Hefner, and others that she did not just wander out to the site and succumb to the elements. No, she was murdered, opened up for the animals to get to her, and then dumped by person or persons unknown.

It isn’t long before a second young woman is killed and she is not the last. As a pattern begins to emerge over the coming weeks, Beans is forced to work with Detective Ed Heller. Beyond the fact that Heller is old school and most likely believes, in Bean’s mind, that the biracial Beans got promoted due to his minority status, they just don’t get along.

Beyond the escalating case, Beans has things going on with family and friends. Some of it criminal, some of it personal, and all of them are bundled into various intriguing secondary storylines as the main one dealing with the murders goes forward over the next several weeks.

As the murders continue, and pressure from the media, citizens, etc., increases, Heller and Beans are on the hunt for the killer or killers that show no sign of stopping. Good thing the cops don’t either in Cold to the Touch: A Thriller by Kerri Hakoda.

This is a complicated and very good police procedural. The setting is rich, the characters in terms of Beans and others are complicated and interesting and the murders are a bit different than the normal run of the mill police procedural. The result is a complicated read that quickly pulls the reader into a far different world. A world that is hopefully the first installment of a series. Strongly recommended.



My ARC came from the publisher, Crooked Lane Books, via NetGalley with no expectation of a review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2024

The way this was written felt like a first draft to me, so I had trouble getting engaged in the story. It was very thin and stereotypical detective writing - a girl was murdered, a gruff male detective is working with his ex (a medical examiner) in the cold harsh Alaskan landscape, etc. It was just bland and not for me. Thank you to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this book was great, i had no idea who the murderer was, which makes a nice change! Definitely a page turner, an easy read but not boring- quire the opposite

ARC Review - Cold to the Touch was a good solid police detective Mystery Thriller. Following the perspective of Detective Beans as he works to uncover the identity of the killer, while managing and overcoming his personal demons was really well written. The author does a great job of keeping you on the edge of your seat while slowly layering new evidence as the case progresses. The climax of the book was fast paced and a really fun read. I felt the book started to drag in the last few chapters as the author wrapped up the story but overall this was a great debut novel. Looking forward to seeing what comes next!

Set in a remote Alaskan town, this police procedural features police detective DeHavilland Beans. When Beans’ favorite local barista turns up murdered, he vows to find her killer. But then another body and then another turn up. This was a well-written mystery with a very likable main character. I’m actually hoping Beans and his new partner, Heller, show up on my TBR again soon.

Young baristas are disappearing then found dead, frozen and murdered. The book takes place in Alaska. It is a mystery filled with suspense and has a good cast of characters. This is the first book I have read by this author and I will definitely read another by this author. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

So good! First, I love Alaska. If I wasn’t such a baby about snow, I could totally hide out there for the rest of my life. This story kept me engaged from the get go and I found myself irritated that I had to take care of responsibilities instead of just reading it end to end. The characters were so easy to get attached to and had great backstories. And that ending? Hoo boy, was it satisfying! I’m not going to give it away, but I’ll just say it has something to do with chickens. Being a small time chicken breeder (friends not food), I was fist pumping my way through the final showdown. I actually may have given a little triumphant whoop of laughter. I didn’t see anything saying this was the first of a series, but it easily could be. If so, I’m definitely reading the next one!

Huge thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

This appealed to my love of an Alaskan setting and psychological thrillers as well as my desire to support a debut author!

Twelve days before Christmas, Anchorage Homicide Detective De Havilland Beans is called to investigate a murder. When he arrives on the scene and discovers the victim is Jolene Nilsson, the half-Yup’ik Alaskan college student who serves his daily coffee, the case becomes personal. As he’s working with the coroner trying to determine the cause of death, another woman is murdered. Beans is certain there’s a serial killer loose in Alaska. Can he identify the motive or the killer before he strikes again?

I liked that we get to see Beans in all his roles; a detective, a brother, a friend, and a romantic interest. Hakoda has crafted this half-Japanese, half-Athabaskan/Irish main character with so much authenticity that I felt I knew him. I especially liked ‘Havi’s’ relationship with his sister. They brought out the best in each other.

The subplot with Frankie Ma and Sevy Concepcion was compelling and authentic as was the tension-filled subplot with the tree-hugging researcher for Fish and Game, Raisa Ingalls. For what I hope is the beginning of a new series, this was fresh and hopeful. The main surprise was that Hokoda was able to set the foundation for this series without bogging readers down with too many characters. Each one was unique, had his/her own voice, and gave us a reason to follow their story. It may have been a bit darker than I was expecting, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment.

My only disappointment was the swearing.

I was gifted this copy by Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

Thank you Netgalley, Crooked Lane Books, and Kerri Hakoda for giving me the opportunity to read this Arc.

This was a great classic thriller! This book takes place in Alaska. The cove is what really attracted me to this one! Here we have a few murders and Detective Havillard is on the case trying to get to the bottom of it. The book is full of mystery and suspense along with action and made for a pretty enjoyable read. One thing I don’t care for in books is when there is a lot of police activity. True crime is just not something I typically enjoy. This book however wasn’t too bad in terms of that. For someone who likes the whole murder investigation scene you would probably really love this one.

This is one of the few police procedurals that I’ve read that is so much better than the publisher’s description. Kerri Hakoda’s Cold to the Touch is an outstanding procedural in which all the departments work well together, and the supervisor is not a jerk. Set in Anchorage, Alaska, it’s a descriptive, fast-paced story with a likable protagonist. Fans of police procedurals will want to pick up this one.

The first body was discovered twelve days before Christmas. Anchorage homicide detective DeHavilland Beans was on call. He recognized the victim, Jolene Nilsson, a barista at Snow Bunny Baristas coffee stand. He had even stopped there that morning for coffee, only to find it closed. He and Jolese had often talked about their home villages because they both grew up in small bush Alaska villages. Jolene’s body had been dumped, and was ravaged by scavengers before being found. Beans vowed to himself that he would find her killer.

The one thing the Anchorage police department didn’t have was time. When another barista disappeared, murdered by a similar weapon, the department knew they didn’t have much time before the media hit them with questions about a serial killer. Because this body was found on federal land, the FBI was called in. The third victim had a connection to the department itself.

While Beans deals with a coworker who doesn’t like him, he also juggles other issues. Dr. Raisa Ingalls consults on the first case, a Fish and Game expert who had a brief, intense relationship with Beans. Even as he copes with the murder investigation, and Raisa, a friend becomes a suspect in a bookie’s disappearance. Each murder victim haunts Beams’ dreams. And, he fears the worst because his younger sister is also a barista. He warns her, but an older brother can only do so much.

The Anchorage area and the protagonist are brought vividly to life in Hakoda’s fascinating police procedural. It’s a fast-paced, riveting story with a lead character who has problems with family and friends. Looking for an excellent police procedural? Try Hakoda’s Cold to the Touch.

Thank you to NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books, and Kerri Hakoda for this ARC!
This book was everything I look for in a police procedural mystery/thriller. I was hooked from the beginning and enjoyed this book through to the end.
I found Beans to be incredibly likable as a detective, son, and big brother. It appears this book may (?) develop into a multi-book series; in which case I will definitely be checking back on the author’s page for more of Beans and Heller.
I have zero complaints about this book other than I hope there is more to come from this cast of characters. I need more!
5 ⭐️

Homicide detective and Japanese-Irish DeHavilland Beans of Anchorage, Alaska is forced to team up with former flame Raisa Ingalls, a researcher with Fish and Game to investigate a string of murders where the victims are all scantily clad baristas (which I did not know was a thing. There are precisely zero of these outlets in my small city but are apparently twelve or so in Anchorage? What the hell goes on up there?). And naturally DeHavilland’s sister just got a job at Starbucks.

This was a pretty by-the-book thriller. The author could have done a bit more with the location, I thought, and if this continues as a series there’s some promise here. Liked the difficulties with the coupling. Recommended for the genre.