I really enjoyed this book. Enough so that I immediately followed the author so I’d be notified of new books. It was twisty and kept me interested the whole time. I didn’t find it predictable, which a lot of suspense novels tend to be.

Book Review
And There He Kept Her
Joshua Moehling
Published: January 2023
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you ro @poisonedpenpress and @netgalley for my digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

#qotd : If you were kidnapped, do you think you could escape? How might you do it?

Blurb: "They thought he was a helpless old man. They were wrong.
When two teenagers break into a house on a remote lake in search of prescription drugs, what starts as a simple burglary turns into a nightmare for all involved. Emmett Burr has secrets he's been keeping in his basement for more than two decades, and he'll do anything to keep his past from being revealed. As he gets the upper hand on his tormentors, the lines blur between victim, abuser, and protector.
Personal tragedy has sent former police officer Ben Packard back to the small Minnesota town of Sandy Lake in search of a fresh start. Now a sheriff's deputy, Packard is leading the investigation into the missing teens, motivated by a family connection. As clues dry up and time runs out to save them, Packard is forced to reveal his own secrets and dig deep to uncover the dark past of the place he now calls home."

I was really impressed with this debut novel! A wonderful thriller for fans of the dark and deplorable. What's more, Moehling blurs the lines of good guy and bad, and you start to somewhat understand why the bad guy is who he is. You start to understand why the good guy is alone. You start to question who you're rooting for. I'm very interested to see Ben Packard's next case.
If you're looking for a dark and chaotic thriller, pick this one up.

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#thriller #dark #darkthriller #review #bookreviews #readthrillers #readmore #booklove #booksonbooks #arc #betterlatethannever #debutnovel

And There He Kept Her is not your typical thriller, mystery. Mainly because it's only a mystery to the police trying to solve it. The multiple POVs presented are from the acting deputy sheriff tracking the case and the guilty party. I appreciated this variation especially because it still offered a bit of suspense and the opportunities to try to figure out next steps as you read along. Everything came together smoothly. It was well written enough that you felt part of the action, and most importantly, there wasn't much repetition in descriptions.

The character development was great. Thankfully this is the first book of a series because the reader learns just enough to want to know more about this small town and it's inhabitants.

Two teenagers Jenny and Jesse break into a home in search of prescription narcotics. They are caught by the homeowner Emmett, while none of this is a spoiler as it is laid out in the beginning of the book. Jesse is murdered and Jenny is kidnapped.

Sheriff's Deputy Ben Packard is the lead investigator in the disappearance of the two teenagers. The lives of the teens, sheriff and the perpetrator of the crime's lives are all intertwined in one way or another. I found the book disturbing and do not think I will continue reading books of this nature. While the writing was great and the story told was captivating, these kinds of stories are not for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced reader copy.

This is the first in a thrilling series. Two teenagers go missing and someone has to find them. This read has a great cast of characters and the action is great. It does deal with drugs, killing and torture. I am definitely looking forward to the next one.

Dark and twist , which made me enjoy it even more so then I thought I would .Will be looking for more by this author

Two teenagers break into an older, disabled man’s cabin to steal prescription drugs and end up as missing persons with the local sheriff leading the hunt to find them.

While I enjoyed this one, I kept thinking that it probably would have been all the more intriguing if the reader didn’t have an idea of who the “bad guy” was and we were left guessing til the end. There were definitely still twists that made it interesting but I think that may have added more of a mystery to it. Otherwise, I think there are some unique elements to this one that kept me invested.

I really enjoyed this one, although it wasn’t the type of thriller I’m used to reading. We find out the identity of the kidnapper early on so there’s no big dramatic twist. But I really enjoyed the story of how Jenny came to be kidnapped, her captor’s motivations and the drama of small town Minnesota. Looking forward to the next Sheriff Ben Packard novel.

3.5⭐️

Jenny & Jesse go missing after breaking into the home of Emmett Burr. You find out real quick, like most, he does not approve of people breaking into his home and trying to steal his property. You follow sheriff’s deputy Ben Packard follow the clues around this small town to find out what happened to these 2 teenagers.

This Detective/Mystery Fiction is one of the stories that start from the ending and works it’s way back to the ‘why?’ Are these my favorite? Not normally. But Joshua Moehling did a good job for his debut novel.
I did like how Ben followed the clues and how he worked the case and followed the clues. Dual POV between the Ben Packard (Sheriff’s Deputy) and Emmett Burr (Bad Guy). Did it slow at times? Did I find myself drifting? Yes, but I feel like sometimes is with the territory when you start with the outcome.

I want to say thank you to Joshua Moehling, Poisoned Pen Press, & sourcebooks for the chance to read And There He Kept Her.

That first chapter was fire🔥!!! It hooks you right away. A gripping police procedural that reminds me of the TV show Big Sky. I was impressed with the character development and I found the story flowed well and was extremely well written. I found myself having empathy for the villian and wondered what was wrong with me! 😆 My only criticism is the Lord's name was taken in vain too much for my liking. Otherwise, it was a great debut novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this eARC.

Wow - great characters and simply shocking conclusion! Can’t wait to read more!

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the free e-book in exchange for my honest review.

Such an Uber creepy book. Loved every single page. And that title gives me the heebie geebies!! Can't wait to see what's next!

The main character has a very familiar backstory (troubled sherrif returns to hometown after a long period away, haunted by his brothers disappearance but wants to keep himself to himself - but then his cousins daughter goes missing.

This set up feels a bit stale to me and I has been overdone in the genre but I like it enough to put hte initial disappointment aside

You know who the kidnapper is from the start so what unfolds is more poilce procedural than thriller. The story is told from alternating perspectives which leads to a sympathetic lense on Emmet (even though he is truly pathetic) but I just couldnt marry the size and health of this man with the tasks he has supposedly undertaken.

Thebook was faced paced enough to make me finish it but I'm just not sold on the story or the charatcers. Will be interested to read a follow up if they decide to make it a series.

The title alone caught my attention and made me want to see what it was all about. Two teenagers are up to no good when they break into a house, and the owners find them. This is the start of a nightmare story. A very good read that keeps you interested. Thank you net galley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.25⭐
Genre ~ crime
Series ~ Ben Packard #1
Publication date ~ June 14, 2022
Page Count ~ 324
Audio length ~ 9 hours 28 minutes
Narrator ~ Linda Jones
POV ~ dual 3rd
Featuring ~ debut, police procedural, missing teens, drugs, r@pe, torture, abuse, dark

Ben, our police detective, is searching for missing teens, Jesse & Jenny.

It's more geared towards police procedural as there isn't really a mystery of whodunnit or where it's taking place as we have that information all along. And the where is not a great place to be. It's pretty dark and disturbing.

This was a pretty good debut if you can get past the horrible things happening to Jenny. I liked Ben well enough, he was about the only likable character, and his detective skills were great, so I'll probably give the next book a try sometime.

I was able to listen to a copy as well and I thought the narrator did a great job, but why was it not a man since both POV's were from men?

Two teenagers break into an old man's house trying to steal his pills. Unfortunately for them, the old man catches them and holds them hostage at gunpoint.

There's a new sheriff in town, and the now missing girl happens to be his cousin's daughter.

This book isn't one where you have to figure out who did it, you know from the beginning, but there is more to the old man's story than you initially believe. This book was very well written and was one I finished in a day because I couldn't put it down. The characters are all well developed and you feel connected to them with emotion, whether you like or hate them.

There are some disturbing scenes in detail when the teenagers are held captive.

I can't believe this is the author's debut novel. I am glad this became a series, looking forward to reading book 2!

Special thanks to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the digital book in exchange for a candid review.

Really enjoyed this novel. Story was very interesting and engaging. Looking forward to reading more by this author. Highly recommend!

I was absolutely blown away by this book. Deeply disturbing and fast paced. A small town sheriff is investigating the disappearance of his cousins teenage daughter. This book starts with a bang and ends with a bang. I found the main character so like-able and I was very excited to find of this will be a series.

This was a very average read to me. I don't have a ton to say about it either way. I wouldn't recommend this book but I also wouldn't caution a friend from reading it.

I will say this was longer than it needed to be and I felt a complete lack of suspense. I was also not aware this was a set-up for a series and wouldn't have picked this book if I knew that. Just a heads up for anyone who doesn't like series.

Sheriff Ben Packard is newly returned to his hometown, looking for a new start in life, even though this town is filled with bad memories. His cousin’s daughter and her boyfriend go missing, and Ben is racing to find them. This intense book presents Ben with obstacles not only in his job, but his personal life as well. It’s a thriller!
I was given a complimentary copy of this book, but my opinion is entirely my own.