A terrific murder mystery! The story will grab you and keep you. The characters are interesting and real. You will not want to put this down.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was fortunate enough to win a print copy of this novel as well as receive a copy from NetGalley (I really should check my shelves first!).
Upon looking at Mr. Moehling’s web site, I discovered this is his first/debut novel. Talk about impressed! I am eager to watch Mr. Moehling’s writing career over the years, especially if this first book is any indication.
Jesse and Jenny – Teenagers who have very different lives but are drawn together.
Emmett Burr – He’s an interesting character, described as morbidly obese, with all the associated medical complications. There are two sides to Mr. Burr.
Ben Packard – Has moved back to the small town of Sandy Lake for personal reasons, trying to outrun his ghosts, trying to keep his secret just that – secure. Sandy Lake, being a small town where people talk, he discovers that people know his secret. Sandy Lake is also where his brother, Nick, disappeared.
Gary, Cora, Olivia, Carl (Cora’s husband), Sally (Ben’s cousin), and a few other characters all lend to this tale where you’ll find drug deals gone wrong, several unsolved murders, Nick’s backstory, Gary’s colorful past, neighbors fighting with each other, pasts that can’t be outrun. And the pink room, bad things happen in the pink room.
Again, I look forward to following Mr. Moehling’s career through the years. I suspect his writing will only get better. Be sure to get this one when it publishes in June 2022.

Ben Packard has come back to the small town of Sandy Lake, Minnesota. A family tragedy when he was younger made him leave, now another tragedy in his life pushed him back. He's a good detective, but needs a change in his life. When 2 teenagers go missing, one of them being his cousin's daughter, Ben starts digging into what is going on in Sandy Lake.

Emmett Burr is one of the 'villains' in this book. He's lived a very secretive life and now has killed one of the teens and has the other one chained up. We see things from his perspective and he is a very damaged man, although none of the abuse done to Emmett made me like him at all. He's an awful human being.

There weren't really any big twists or mystery in this book. We know who the villain is and we know who the hero is. It was mostly about the characters - Emmett and Ben finding out who they are. Not everything was resolved in this book, so I can see a follow up coming.

A dark and complex mystery that will consume you." could not put this book down was absoutely capitavating. they thought he was just a lonely old man. definitely a new crime author. I think anyone who likes James Patterson will truly love this book

I was intrigued by the description on NetGalley of this book, which said it is a "A dark and complex mystery that will consume you." I didn't finish the story. What happened and who did it is revealed early on, and I wasn't invested enough to stick around while Ben Packard, the acting sheriff, solved the case.

I went in blind reading this and I’m not disappointed that I did. Ben was troubled, but got the job done. Emmett was interesting as well to follow. I enjoy books where you get to be in the mind of the abuser. How he was able to hide under everyone’s noses. He felt no remorse. Brutal in a good way. I love a good disturbing thriller.

My thanks to Poisoned Pen Press, Joshua Moehling and Netgalley.
It's just a sad thing to admit, but even though I finished this book just a day or so ago, I don't remember much!
So, what I do recall is that this story didn't end up in my "shit list!"

I really really enjoyed this book. First of all, all the characters were so so SO well written! The love I have for Packard is so big. Emmett’s character literally made me go through so much emotions, I felt disgusted, then I was sympathetic, then I rooted for him. Just wow. Carl’s character too gave what should have been given.

The storyline was good, any big twists or mysteries were not needed. I liked the small reveal of backstories, the build up of relationships, how they got information to piece the puzzle together and solve the crime. My only real gripe was that the ending seemed rushed, after such a long build up.

Will be waiting for any followups about the case of Packard’s brother.

And There He Kept Her is a dark, slow burn thriller that kept me intrigued. Another small town with lots of secrets, a setting that I find hard to resist. There is a lot going on and lots of characters that are not so likeable. I read this in a day.

Two teenagers get a lot more than they bargained for when break into the house if an elderly man to steal his prescription drugs. But they picked the wrong old man to cross. What happens next is shocking and disturbing. Ben Packard was once a frequent visitor to Sandy Lake but hasn’t been back since a family tragedy. He has now come back as the acting sheriff, in order to have another fresh start. His search for the missing kids, with a family connection, will show him the hidden stories of this town.

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read

This is an debut novel from author Joshua Moehling. The story begins when teenager, Jesse, breaks into an older, reclusive man's house to look for something in particular to steal. Jesse brought his girlfriend , Jenny, along for this task, he thought it would be a quick chore. Things go horribly wrong for the pair, because the old man is home. And for reasons of his own, the home owner would rather not report the break and enter to the police, but handle things himself.

Ben Packard has returned to the small community of Sandy Lake to escape from his own personal problems. Sheriff Shaw has appointed Packard as acting Sheriff while Shaw undergoes cancer treatment. That places the investigation of the missing teenagers in Packard's hands.

The story is very well written and the characters were realistic. I would live to read more about Ben Packard, he would do well as a police procedural series and it would be interesting to see him unravel the mystery of his own brother's disappearance years earlier.

Thank you to Netgalley and Poison Pen Press for the opportunity to enjoy this exciting e-ARC.

A chilly small-town detective novel from a debut author. I think it’s going to be a hit!

Sheriff Ben Packard is somewhat new in town, haunted by his past.

One night, his second cousin goes missing. What follows is a complicated character study of a host of small-town weirdos; some lovable and some revolting, but nobody is completely bad or good.

If you’re looking for a book with complicated heroes and villains, this one is for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for a fair and honest review.

What fascinating characters and vivid setting Joshua Moehling has created in "And There He Kept Her." (Acting) Sheriff Ben Packard is one of my favorite protagonists from recent mysteries, and the supporting cast -- from evil doers to delightful oddballs -- means there's rarely a dull passage. I could do without plots about abducted girls, but this one didn't settle for being simply chilling, offering depth as well. I was surprised to learn this is Moehling's first novel, and glad he'll continue the series.

This gripping and suspenseful story will definitely grab your attention! The line between villain and victim gets blurred in this thriller about discovering what happened to two missing teens in a small town. This is not a light read, but it is deliciously dark. 4.5 ⭐️ rounded up. Thank you to #netgalley for the ARC of #andtherehekepther

An Outstanding Suspense Thriller

Joshua Moehling has given us some great characters in this book. Even the bad guy is multidimensional, on the edge of evoking sympathy. He was a bad guy who'd become pitiful. He hadn't abducted anyone in years, he was aging and in poor shape to do much of anything. An Outstanding Suspense Thriller

Joshua Moehling has given us some great characters in this book. Even the bad guy is multidimensional, on the edge of evoking sympathy.

He was a bad guy who'd become feeble and pitiful. He hadn't abducted anyone in years, he was aging and in poor shape to do much of anything. Then, the painkillers he relied on to get through the day delivered a victim to him.

Sometimes, you have to move beyond your pain and use what strength you have left or you won't be able to take advantage of an opportunity. Or get rid of obstacles.

The rest of the story unwinds like a fishing line being dragged out to sea by a shark. It's original, twisty, and suspenseful. My heart was in my throat as I raced to the end. Obviously, there are triggers in this book which may be disturbing. It isn't unnecessarily violent, though.

Thank you to the author, Joshua Moehling, Poisoned Pen Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a free advanced reader's copy. On my own initiative, I'm happily spreading the word about this great read.

Officer Ben Packard returns to small town, Sandy Lake, where he used to spend summers with his family.

When his cousin’s daughter goes missing with her boyfriend, Ben begins to investigate. The course of the investigation reveals some of his own secrets as well as that of the residents of Sandy Lake.

This was a great thriller from a debut author! I enjoyed it being told not only from Ben’s point of you but also from that of the perpetrator. I read this book super fast, it is definitely a page turner. I hope that Officer Ben Packard becomes a series, I would definitely read the next instalment! It was gripping!

It’s out 14th June 📚❤️

This was a different thriller to what I normally love, there’s nothing to guess and no major twists, yet this was no less nerve-wracking and tense. All of the characters were extremely well written, even the minor ones. Moehling managed to write Emmet in such a way that you are totally repulsed and terrified of him, but still have moments where you almost felt sorry for him. And There He Kept Her is dark, and disturbing, but it is not full of graphic violence, the pieces of information you are given are more than enough to set the scene and had my heart racing. I can’t believe this was a debut. I really hope there is a sequel!

Thank you so much Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the digital review copy

Some of the book is written from the point of view of the perpetrator (or at least one of them) in a series of abductions and murders of women in a small Minnesota town, which can be a little uncomfortable-making, since it seems to be an attempt to humanize someone whose motivations are really unfathomable. The main character is a sheriff's detective who's newly returned to the small town where he visited relatives as a child after the death of his boyfriend. He's not exactly closeted but isn't out, either, although it turns out to be a moot point. The story is set up to ease him into his new professional and personal situations, with room for development in a future series. I didn't get a lot of sense of place from this one, except that the town is economically depressed. I kept hoping he'd go back to Minneapolis just to get into a less-grim milieu during the course of solving an even grimmer series of crimes. The ending was a satisfying pay-off I wasn't expecting, and I would definitely read more by this debut author.

And There He Kept Her
By Joshua Moehling
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

It was...ok. There were essentially two different POVs and neither of them meshed well for me. It was entertaining and creepy. There were moments when I was thinking “Oh no!” However, it just didn’t do it for me. The mindset of Emmett was very interesting and I really liked Packard’s character but I felt like there was a great deal of effort made to shove a lot of his personal life into the professional side...and it didn’t flow well. There were a lot of facets to his character that never got polished or explored more. Basically, I wanted to know more about Packard.
It was a fun read overall. And it teaches you to never break into someone’s house lol.

I am not in the majority that read this book. I am far to conservative. I couldn't relate to the lead character due to their sexual nature. I don't have to read such a book and I refuse to do so. I ended it around the 100 page mark due to the aforementioned. I'm sure the writer will not appreciate it, but it is my pregractive what I read. Thanks to Netgalley for the Kindle Version of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book started out okay with a tense scene and high creep factor, but lost me completely when the cop shot the bear in the garage. I absolutely cannot stand when there is human animal contact that results in the animal dying. I won’t watch it in movies and I refuse to read it in books. It was an early scene and I hated it so much I couldn’t get beyond it. This ended up a DNF for me. It wasn’t necessary and added nothing to the book. This one just wasn’t for me at all. Thank you for the opportunity to try it.