Bitter Falls is the fourth in the Stillhouse Lake series. Things have moved forward and Gwen is now working as a PI. The town has turned against her family and they are all being shunned or worse, bullied. A paramilitary drug dealing family, the “hillbilly mafia”, has taken a particular vendetta out against them for bringing unwanted attention to the area.

Gwen is investigating a cold case - the disappearance of a young college student three years ago. We know from the prologue that he was the victim of a religious cult.

As before, each chapter is told from a different family member’s perspective. I appreciate this approach as it gives the reader different views on the same events and works to move the series along at a fast pace. And it’s definitely a fast paced book. It seems like something scary is happening to the Proctors or Sam in each chapter. And there’s never any escaping the press or the trolls.

Caine definitely paints a convincing picture, especially when it comes to the adolescents and their mood swings and defiance. Anyone who's dealt with teenagers is going to get it.

A lot of series you can pick up the latest and be ok. This is not one of them. There’s so much backstory, you really need to read them in order.

My thanks to netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advance copy of this book.

I love this series and this was the most intense yet. Gwen catches a case and it becomes more than she bargained for. Her family is once again under attack. Sam is facing consequences of his own. The relationships between these characters are what make these books so good. A read by this author is always an emotional rollercoaster. The ending is a good one. However, it left me wondering if this will be the last book. If it is, it's a satisfying conclusion. If not, I will happily devour the next.

Fantastic! Rachel Caine continues to push this story line into depths unforeseen. While this is the fourth book in her Stillhouse Lake series, it can absolutely be read as a stand-alone but one begs to question why? Each and every book in this series leaves the reader speechless. Her characters are brought to their knees over and over again but still get up swinging. Love that this is a mystery/thriller but also offers a brilliant portrayal of the strength and love of a non-conventional family. 5 stars


Thank you to #NetGalley for this ARC of #BitterFalls which was read and reviewed voluntarily by Tarrah Marie (@wayward_readers). All thoughts and opinions are my own.

After the ending of Wolfhunter River, I was hoping that the mysteries and danger would become less personal to our. Aim character, but that didn’t happen. While I also couldn’t put this thriller down, I found myself wishing that for. Change, her kids weren’t on danger, that she was a little more removed from the actual danger. However, it was a great thriller, and I could not put it down. I hope there will be more! Definitely purchasing for my library.

This is the fourth book in this series and, it breaks my heart to say that, unfortunately, it is my least favourite. I absolutely loved the first two books and book three was good too, but I personally think that the underlying story has run its course. I still love the characters but the story just seems so repetitive now. Maybe be it's time for the author to call it a day and try to give Gwen and her family a happy(ish) ending.

I like this book but I think the cult thing has overstayed its welcome in this series.


I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not paid for this review.

I've been a fan of this series ever since the first book came out, and the first two books are on my list of all time favorites. Book number three, while solid, didn't have that same wow factor for me and I was hoping that missing spark would be present again in book number four... But unfortunately I'm starting to think that maybe this series has been going on for too long, and maybe it's just better to leave things as it is? Don't get me wrong, I still think this series as a whole is brilliant and Bitter Falls is without doubt another solid read. BUT. I guess you can only have that many bad things happening to the main characters before it starts becoming REALLY unbelievable.

Like I said, I still think the writing itself is brilliant and Bitter Falls is without doubt an intense, twisted and thrilling ride. I still devoured every single page and the story once again had that unputdownable vibe, but I also started looking a bit more critical at certain aspects of the plot and that is never a good sign. Basically book four, like book three, misses some of that spark that turned the first two books into all time favorites for me. With everything that has happened already to Gwen, Sam and her kids, it is extremely hard to put together another believable plot and create a new life threatening situation they have to get themselves out of. The plot of Bitter Falls and its cult element is without doubt intriguing and definitely has that disturbing and twisted feel. It links back to things that happened in the previous book and gives us another backdrop for a story that will have your heart racing the whole ride. BUT. Like I also said, I started wondering about the credibility of it all and especially the ending felt a bit over the top. I'm still on the fence as to what to think of the second half of Bitter Falls... It was without doubt highly entertaining, filled with action, suspense and a lot of disturbing scenes, but unfortunately once again that wow factor I was hoping for wasn't present for me.

In short: I had a great time reading Bitter Falls and it is without doubt a solid and simply thrilling crime thriller, but sadly didn't live up to the sheer brilliance of the first two books. If you are a fan of Gwen Proctor and the other main characters and keep those expectations in check, you will find yourself having a great time though! A little note: this is one of those series that has to be read in order, because you will be missing out on too much background information and character development otherwise... And trust me, you definitely don't want to miss out by not reading the first two books especially!

Bitter Falls is a solid addition to the Stillhouse Lake series, though not my favorite. Readers who haven't yet started the series should definitely check it out immediately!

This is number 4 in this series and I feel it's a good stopping point. The book was good but not as good as the first 3. I love the relationships and how they've evolved.

I loved this series, but there is a time an author needs to let go and wrap it up. The time is now. This could be a book 3 slump which is normal, or a sign the series is slowly dying.

I received this ARC for an honest review. I LOVE RACHEL CAINE!!! 💖I read this book in under a day. It kept my attention from the very beginning and can’t wait for the next one! This is the fourth book in this series. It is about Gwen, Sam, Lanny, & Connor. Gwen is a private investigator and Sam is a contractor. Sam lives with Gwen and her children Lanny & Connor. Gwen is hired to find Remy Landry a missing collage student, but she was hired by All Saints International not his parents...Why? You need to read the book. I can’t really talk to much more about the story without doing spoilers and I don’t want to. Because it’s such a good book, I’ll let the professional tell the story. Rachel Caine does a wonderful job with the grabbing your attention and emotions. It was an exciting ride. I loved it all!

Loved this series of books. Plenty of action, great settings and wonderful characters I cared about. Well written and very suspenseful in parts with the perspective shifting from character to character. I think, however, we've seen enough of Gwen and family. There's only so much running away and resettling the family can do and eventually the story will become repetitive, which would be a shame as the 4 books were more than enough. Overall it was well worth reading the four books but time to retire them now, methinks! Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

I received this ARC from Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Netgalley.com, to Thomas & Mercer, and to Rachel Caine for this opportunity.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, suspenseful read. At times, I felt like the themes from previous novels were too present. There is the never ending moving from place to place, the people who torture Gwen because she was Melvin's wife, and the kids who can't seem to stay out of danger. It seemed a bit repetitive to me after the last 3 novels. Maybe I'm just ready to move on to a new series with this author because I really do like her writing style and her story lines. Still, I recommend this book. It's definitely worthwhile.

This is the fourth in a very good mystery series starting with Stillhouse Lake. I hope this isn’t the last. I recommend these books to anyone looking for a great series

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel Caine and Thomas & Mercer for the free e-book I exchange for an honest review.

I never tire of these books and the characters! I love Caine’s writing and each new book becomes my favorite! These novels are always action packed and full of tough moments for the family that you just can’t get enough of. I can’t get enough of Gwen and her kids; they are growing up through these novels and seem to real to me that I can’t help but root for them! Each new enemy this family faces becomes more difficult to deal with, but they always persevere! I just can’t say enough positive things about the Stillhouse Lake novels! I highly recommend if you love action packed novels with a close knit family!

Out January 21st!

I love Rachel Caine! So it's not entirely surprising that I would love the latest instalment of Stillhouse Lake. The story continues on in Gwen's life with her partner and her children. It also continues on from some familiar faces we met in Wolfhunter, the good ones and the horrific ones. This particular crime is abhorrent and dear lord, I wanted to shoot the villain myself. The writing is as brilliant as ever. I'm not a big fan of switching POVs however Rachel makes it work incredibly well. I loved how there were different stories told through four different characters and they ended up interconnected. Brilliant, brilliant book!

After loving books one and two in this series, and being a big disappointed with book three, the saga ramps back up in this fourth entry.

Now a full-fledged private detective, Gwen is on the case for a missing young man. This quickly turns personal as we find how deep this web goes.

Our main characters from the series continue to be fleshed out and characterized well. Caine does an excellent job with pacing and engaging descriptions. I can only hope a book five is on the horizons.

I definitely recommend this book, but only after reading the rest of the series to gain a better appreciation.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC copy for me to read and review.

Really enjoyed reading this book as much as the three previous ones. I absolutely love the character and while the cult aspect was scary it was also well created and I loved sister harmony’s character. Thank you for the opportunity to read!

If you haven’t read books 1-3 in the series, you can probably catch up with the major details by picking up on the background details given in this one. But why would you want to? You’d get so much more out of the characters and plot events.

With Bitter Falls, we get to see the day-to-day normal life of Gwen’s family. Though I’m sure she’d be happy to go back to freelance computer work, she has a family to support. Her skills are put to good use as a private investigator. I felt frustrated by her stubbornness to retain a sense of normalcy, as though forcing her kids to attend public school would pave the way for a mundane life, but I could also relate to her desire to be a typical family. The Tennessee setting was strikingly familiar. I could easily imagine the hiking trails and lakeside homes nestled in the mountains and foothills.

I’m torn between my insane delight at the invitation to read a new Stillhouse Lake book, and the guilt of wanting more, more, more from this series. Rachel Caine knows how to entangle her readers in the sticky web of suspense. Though it’s tough to keep a series going, she’s held the thrilling momentum from the start. Bitter Falls is a terrific addition to the series.

Bitter Falls is the latest story in the Stillhouse Lake series by Rachel Caine. Bitter Falls is easily a stand alone, but I'm very happy I have been with these stories since the beginning. At times this book is impossible to put down with lots of edge of your seat moments. I want to thank Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer for an early copy to review.