And there he kept her was such a great book.
Crime, drama, kidnapping and murder. This book has it all.

Jenny and Jesse make the error of their life when they break into Emmits home. The events that unfold after this event, Jenny and Jesse being reported missing, the families search for answers amid fear for Jenny because of her diabetes. The pieces slowly but surely begin to click into place as other events begin to tie the missing teens to other issues.

As the story goes deeper you learn so much more about all of the characters within this book and how each and everyone truly ties to a piece of this story.

I highly recommend this book especially if you like a good crime book!

This book was different then most other thrillers I've read in the past. Its different because we know who the kidnapper/killer is from the start. Most books leave you wondering who can it be? Even though we have this information from the start, the thrill and anticipation of what's to come next is amazing. I loved the way we got to know each character through their own personal stories and how they all tied together. We had a good mixture of different types of characters (the gay cop, the crazy neighbor, the drug addict,
the old man). I also enjoyed that the villain wasn't your average villian in that he was a morbidly obese very old man. I loved how graphic the horror scenes were! I will definitely check out this author's other books.

This book had me from the beginning. Two teenagers break into an elderly man’s house to steal prescription drugs and get caught. The characters in this debut novel were pretty well rounded, showing their good as well as their not-so-good, sometimes evil, traits. Emmett was a despicable man who has hidden his secret from everyone except Carl, an even more despicable man. Ben, the stand- in sheriff, is a likable character who could potentially be in future novels.

I really enjoyed this book and once I started reading. I couldn’t put it down. A great detective crime novel with a possibility of being a series? I can definitely see this as being the first n a series. You meet acting sheriff Ben Packard who has returned to a small town called Sandy Lake. A town with a personal history and tragedy to Packard. Two high school kids, Jesse and Jenny go missing in this small town. It is up to Packard and his fellow officers to find them. If you are a fan of Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series, you will love this book. The author brings to light many of the local towns people and develops their personalities and secrets, along with Packard having a secret of his own. A great book. I hope the author does turn it into a series.

I love a good debut author and this was no exception. This was a solid thriller and I've read a lot of thrillers. I will definitely be recommending this to others who love thrillers. I think it's unique in its own right and overall a solid read. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next! Thank you for the opportunity to read and review early!

3.5 Stars

I’m not a thriller aficionado, so I can’t tell you how this compares to other novels in the genre, but I found the plot of And There He Kept Her riveting. I enjoyed the dual POV, although it did eliminate any mystery elements. This is a true thriller novel.

I enjoyed reading Emmett’s perspective more since he was a complex character and interacted with other questionable characters. I could always expect suspense in his perspective. The main perspective, though, Deputy Packard, felt colorless to me. He’s very straight forward and by the books, but he has such a complicated past and interesting character attributes that had potential to make him a more interesting character. I just didn’t get a sense of his personality, of who he was when he was alone, because we never saw him that way. He was constantly working, so we didn’t get to see how he was outside of this. If we get another novel following Packard I would read it, though. I see the potential for his character to shine through in a future novel and I do hope it’s something we get to see one day.

Thinking back, there was one question still lingering on my mind after the novel. The whole point of the teens breaking into Emmett’s house is because Jesse’s sister had been threatened, but we never learn more about what danger she was potentially facing. It seems important given it motivates the inciting incident. Overall, I found this novel more enjoyable than not and was thoroughly entertained.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"A dark and complex mystery that will consume you, starring a protagonist who is equal parts quirky Milhone and steady Gamache."—Julie Clark, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Flight

"And There He Kept Her" is a dark and stormy mystery that kept me hooked! I loved the twists and turns and think Joshua Moehling hit it out of the park.

An amazing debut book! This story kept me hooked from the beginning and reading as fast as I could to find out what happened. A small town with BIG secrets, A new sheriff, and 2 missing teens. What a wild ride this was! Highly recommend if you’re looking for a crime/thriller book.

Debut author Joshua Moeling has penned a novel that started with a bang (literally) and ended with a splash. So much happened in between. I'm not usually a fan of books where I know the bad guy from the start, but here it worked.

We don’t know the why of what happened or even the other who’s but what follows is a twisted journey both to the past and through the present. Between feuding neighbours, dysfunctional families, love & loss and drug use I was kept on my toes with a vast cast.

It’s a disturbing story with lots of backstory into the life of Ben Packard and has the feels of the start of a new series. The characters here are so flawed both through their own doing, society and privilege. The story moved along at a nice pace but knowing so much at the beginning kinda took some of the suspense away.

While this wasn’t the page turned I expected it was an entertaining read.

My thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for an e-arc in exchange for a honest review.

What a ride this book is! I received an ARC of this for an honest review. I was on the edge of my seat throughout this book with its twists and turns and revelations. I was a little disappointed that the storyline of Ben’s missing brother Nick never came back up or was connected to the main case. I also thought the shootout at the end was a little anticlimactic for the buildup, but to be fair, it did seem true to the characters. For a book about two missing teenagers, there was a lot of backstory and feeling, and I loved that he adopted a dog again because it gave him some heart where he’s all work and no play for most of the book. I also felt like the town all knowing he’s gay was handled offhandedly and then it just didn’t matter by the end because he’d proven himself as a deputy. Overall, I enjoyed the book but I wish a little more areas had been fleshed out.

This is a really good debut novel.

What I liked:

-I actually have a soft spot for, let's call them, "situational" thrillers where the thrill doesn't come from intended events; it's not some concocted plan of a criminal mind. Characters show their colours because circumstances or other people's actions forced them to. It's why I kept thinking about No Exit or Fierce Kingdom or the beginning of Stillhouse Lake while I was reading.
And it's exactly what you have here.
-Moehling did another thing about this premise really well- he played with reader's perception on situation making them flip their stance several times:
*You open the book with teenagers break into a home of elderly man who has chronic pain wanting to steal his pain medications. He looks like a victim in this scenario.
*They find a room with bed and manacles attached to a wall: suddenly they are victims of this monster.
*Then the bigger monster appears and you kinda hope Emmett will prevail because other outcome is definitely worse.
This is the suspense I like to read because it hinges on characters not on plot. It's more about "What will they do now?" instead of "What will happen now?"
-The villain. I liked the fact he was old and he barely moved. So, because this is situational, Emmett really didn't want to deal with this in his old days with chronic pan in his back and legs. He just wanted to be left alone. But since he was forced into it, you see him for what he is and how far he's ready to go. I adored the fact he was so physically challenged to do basic things and author never let reader forget about this. His pov was chilling, especially in places where he flippantly thinks about his past crimes, but he also shows him being pathetic when he thinks about his wife.

Things I didn't like as much:

-Main character, Ben Packard. The biggest crime about this character is that he is bland. From his looks to his cliche-istic ManPain secret (it's the thing author put in their novels to explain unwholesome behaviour of their main character). I can guess where he was going with this, but if the grief was intention behind this, it didn't translate that well on the page. The dog, the bathroom... bones were there, but it just didn't stir the emotional response in me. There are some great side characters like Garry and his neighbour and Emmett for what it matters, but Ben was just bland. I get that Ben is more than his good looks and morning exercises, but it feels like it's the only thing I can say about him without mentioning his job that's tied to the mystery at the centre of the book. Since it smells like sequel is in store, especially with mystery about Ben's brother disappearance, I hope Moehling will throw some dirt on him and show some consequences of trauma, some issues that are 100% his. Like, if he's not in contact with his sister, I don't want it to be because of her overly rational nature.

-Rushed ending. Building the suspense up, Moehling still tried to bring the sense of community in small town while Ben looked for missing kids. Especially trough mundane cases of Sandy Lake police department. But the ending was so rushed and, in my opinion, resolved in least imaginable way possible: I hoped police officer remembered she saw insulin or the librarian's note or the ex wife... Anything but, Ben figured it out. It was ok, but I think it happened over the course of few pages.

I don't count predictability as a bad thing in thrillers, because it's not always about not guessing the ending-sometimes I just want to see how will the crazy play out. And There He Kept Her is predictable by the end, but it doesn't mean that story can't surprise you. It's obvious author has a lot of potential but lacks the experience and maybe, fierceness to explore his characters more deeply. But, don't let this discourage you, the book is perfect weekend read, just a really good fun. :)

This book was a 4 star read for me for sure and had me hooked within the first few chapters. The book follows a small town sheriff, Packard, who is racing against the clock to solve a kidnapping of two local teens. He slowly unravels bits and pieces of the mystery, while the reader also gains insight into the kidnapper’s side of the story. The characters are written with such depth, that the reader almost feels sympathy for the “villain”/antagonist, who at the end of the day, I think was just lonely and trying to fill a hole in his life.
I typically read rom-com novels but I was intrigued by the description of this book and it has absolutely created an interest in reading more in the suspense/mystery genre.I would recommend this book to any reader looking to be swallowed into a dark mystery. I was on the edge of my seat with this book and was entranced with the connections between all of the characters.

The way the story was tied up leaves an opportunity for a sequel that explores what happened to Packard’s brother all those years ago. I will definitely be recommending this book to people when it is released.

And There He Kept Her was a fast paced, entertaining police procedural. The author showed both sides of the investigation; the man who is committing these heinous crimes and the detective trying to solve them. This was a interesting version of thriller because there is no twists or thrilling reveals, but a quick and pulse pounding revelation of the detective putting the pieces together. A really enjoyable read!

AMAZING! I absolutely loved this book and couldn’t put it down. First book for Joshua Moehling and he nailed it on the head! The only thing I wasn’t happy about was I wanted to read another book by Josh. Can’t wait for the next one.

Very intriguing deep dive into every day persons who slowly show their psychopath sides. Edge of the seat suspense about the hapless teenager? Will she be rescued in time without major trauma? Hotshot police detective with personal angst is on the case. Thanks for an enjoyable read! Point taken off for leftover typos, etc.

A we-know-who-dunnit police procedural with a cast of dysfunctional and unlikable characters, delinquent teens and a gay protagonist. Difficult to maintain interest with the villain revealed from the get go.

This book opens with a compelling scene, drawing the reader in. The quick action depicted in the first chapter lessened as the story continued. Despite the numerous cast of characters, I found myself interested in only four: Packard, Susan, Jesse, and Jenny. I wanted to learn more about them. I wanted to get to know them and become invested in their lives.

The story is peppered with several subplots which, if developed more fully, would add strength and bolster the overall tale. More in-depth character development would breathe life into these people and entice the reader to become emotionally involved.

The storyline is certainly intense and Emmett is an ugly character--though I give kudos to the author for the parts of the book where, while Emmett isn't exactly sympathetic, we see there's some humanity to him. The awfulness of Emmett and Carl is balanced out by the likeability of Packard, a character we can't help but appreciate and root for. Overall, I enjoyed the book a lot.

While there was a fairly predictable ending and lacking any significant plot twists, And There He Kept Her was very entertaining and a fast-paced read. Would recommend! Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced reader copy!

A cop who has a secret and several untold stories moves to his favorite childhood spot and takes on the role of acting sheriff. He’s thrust into a case that tests his connections with the town and his own resolve to overcome his own tribulations to save his cousins daughter.

The plot is thick and is perfectly laid out. Joshua Moehling does a wonderful job of sinking his hooks into you from the first chapter and keeps you reading on your toes.

If you’re looking for a mystery that makes your brain explode with a warm and fuzzy ending, this is the book for you! I sincerely hope the author keeps the character and makes a series!