When two teens break into a remote lakeside home in the middle of the night seeking drugs, they get more than they bargained for. Emmett Burr hears them break in and is ready for them. Jesse and Jenny find themselves looking into the barrel of a shotgun, Emmett fires.

Emmett, morbidly obese and addicted to pain meds, has never fit in. His whole life has been about doing what others wanted him to do, and "settling". But even misfits have dreams and fantasies, and Emmett's led to decades of secrets that he'll do anything to keep. He can't have anyone poking around his property for any reason.

Ben Packard, acting sheriff, returned to small town Sandy Lake, Minnesota looking for a new start following a personal loss. He has history with this town, family here (a cousin), and secrets of his own. His top priority now is finding the missing teens while there's still hope of finding them alive.

Told in third person narrative from Ben's and Emmett's POV, this is a dark yet entertaining read. There are a lot of triggers within its pages, but the book description adequately alerts readers to them. Well-written, this debut novel puts the author on my Authors-to-watch list. I rate it 3.5 (rounded to 4) stars. I hope this is the first of a series!

My thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for allowing me to read an ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given. The book is scheduled for publication on 6/14/22.

What an excellent thriller! I was enthralled from the beginning. A very well-thought out and detailed story of what happens when two teenagers attempt to rob an unhealthy, elderly man. I liked how we knew what was going on with each main character at all times, without trying to guess what was going on. We're able to tell what each character is thinking and why they do what they do.

I love the character of Ben Packard, and sincerely hope this is only the first of a series of starring his detective skills.

I highly recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

5 stars

I was feeling in the mood for a thriller/mystery when I decided to delve into this advance copy of And There He Kept Her. I was not disappointed. This is a terrific book with an intriguing plot and expertly crafted characters.

Emmett Burr is an elderly, morbidly obese man with numerous medical maladies. His quiet life is interrupted when a pair of teenagers break into his home hoping to rob him of his pain medications. Little did the teens realize that Emmett is anything but a helpless old man. What started out as a burglary quickly escalates into a life or death situation for the teens and renews Emmett's fear that his long held secrets will be revealed.

Deputy Ben Packard has returned to his ancestral home of Sandy Lake, Minnesota looking to escape the pain of the tragic death of his lover. He is acting Sheriff when the pair of teenagers go missing. Unsure if the teens have just run off or if something more sinister has happened to them, he deals with small-town gossip and characters who try and obstruct his investigation.. As he gets closer to discovering the truth, he realizes that his own past may play a part in the current situation.

This is a fast-paced and engaging thriller. It's a beautifully written book with a dark plot and sprinkled with enough eccentric characters to lighten the tone. If you like Karin Slaughter, I think you'll enjoy Joshua Moehling as well.

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an advance copy of this book. The publication date is June 14, 2022.

Two teens sneak into the basement of an old man’s home in the middle of the night to find themselves stuck in a horrible nightmare. Now, one of them is dead and the other is being held in a hidden basement room that is set up for just that.. Keeping prisoners.

From the prologue of the book, I really thought this was going to be a fast paced thriller that bordered on disturbing. I was hooked right away, but it quickly turned into a very slow police procedural that digs deep into the character development.

Being from Minnesota, I did enjoy the setting and the many references to various places around the state that I am familiar with. Beyond that, I wanted to like this book more than I did. I kept waiting for a big twist or for it to turn into something more plot driven. However, it just did not become something gripping for me. It was enjoyable, and I needed to finish it to see how it would all play out, but it just wasn’t the edge of your seat I had anticipated.

Thank you to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and Joshua Moehling for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Officer Ben Packard has returned to small town Sandy Lake where he used to spend summers with his family after experiencing a personal tragedy. Soon after arriving, he is made acting sheriff while the sheriff goes thru cancer treatment. When his niece goes missing with her boyfriend in the middle of the night, Ben will need to confront and reveal his own secrets and will find out that many of the towns people have their own secrets, many more dangerous that others.

What was supposed to be a simple robbery goes incredibly wrong for two teenagers, who find themselves in more danger than they bargained for. Ben Packard, the interim Sheriff of this small town, has just returned and is tasked with figuring out what happen to Jesse and Jenny. Will he find them in time or has there fate already been sealed?

This book is the classic, small town…big problems. I loved this mystery/thriller I feel as though the characters were developed well enough that this could possibly become a series if the author wanted too. I actually took my time reading this book because I didn’t want it to end!! Such a well done debut novel!! Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this early release. This one was middle of the road for me. I didn't dislike it but I was able to figure some parts of it out and that is always a let down for me. I love not being able to figure it out until the end. This one was about 2 kids that were wrapped up in some sketchy drug dealings and ended up at the wrong place with the wrong person. The main character who I really liked, is the acting sheriff who has to try to find them and while doing so uncovers lots more to the story. I would definitely try more by this author.

Firstly thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book had a slow start and I think that was partly because after Jenny and Jessie become embroiled in the drama at the old man, Emmetts house, the story goes off in other directions with Packard and his cousin, trying to find Jenny and as Packard runs around coming up with clues as to the connections of everyone and the missing kids.
We do go back to the kids and Emmett, it's just that their not the only main plot. Throw in all these other characters and you have plenty of other dramas and I really enjoyed it.

Very easy to read, if a bit nasty to read at times. It tells a good story and it surprisingly has you feeling empathy for the bad guy at times.

What happens when the victim of a robbery turns out to be a murderer? This dark thriller answers that question when two teenagers try to break in and rob an elderly man in bad health. Things don’t turn out well for them.

The first chapter following one of the teenagers gripped me right away. After that, we follow the fill-in sheriff, Ben Packard, as he tries to find the missing teenagers. We also get POV chapters from the man the teenagers were trying to rob.

This fast paced thriller kept me up well past my bedtime. I couldn’t put it down once I got to the halfway mark.

This story is okay. Nothing specular about it. The toggle from past to present did little to hold my interest as well, nor does it push the story along. The characters were bland, and I had to move to finish this story.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

hi! thanks so much for giving me the chance to read an early copy of this.
i didn’t enjoy it AS much as i was hoping to, but found the plot interesting.
my review on goodreads is in the link

This is a the story of two missing teens set in the small community of Sandy Lake near Minneapolis. It is an adult mystery with graphic content, dark violent predators, and disturbing human behavior. It was easy to follow the plot.
Detective Ben Packard is the acting County Sheriff in this small town department while the current Sheriff is on leave. He's just moved back to his former hometown where his cousin, Susan, also lives. They aren't close but, she's convinced her daughter, Jenny, is missing and has asked him to help find her.
Jenny and her boyfriend, Jesse, were both absent from school. There have been other missing women in the past. This fact isn't lost on longtime residents. Ben must follow every lead, clue, rumor and possibility to find Jenny, if she's still alive. Jenny's dependent on insulin and time is running out.
Ben has a ragtag department and really only trusts Detective Jill Thielen. The ensuing search for answers to what happened to Jenny and Jesse leads to prescription drugs, long buried secrets, murder and secret relationships.
The ending is not a cliff hanger, but Packard could easily have more cases for an interesting police series.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance digital copy of "And There he Kept Her" by Joshua Moehling and to Poisoned Pen Press. These are my honest personal thoughts and opinions given voluntarily,

Unique plot! It’s got a lot of elements readers today will like. A little thriller, a little crime fiction. A police officer moves to a small town to take a deputy position after a loved one dies. He is made acting Sheriff due to an illness of the of the actual sheriff. At some point two teenagers go missing and he has to unravel the tangled threads that also involves multiple missing women from decades ago.

I did not want to put this book down. I needed to know what happened next. The writing was very fluid and flowed seamlessly from one scene to the next. Highly recommend! — in fact I already have. Can’t wait til it comes out in June so I can remind people to read it!

This was a fabulous thriller! I could not put it down, not could I figure out the ending before it happened (which to me is the sign of a great book!). The main character, Sheriff Packard is not the average small town law enforcement type that would normally be encounters in a book about a small town crime. He definitely has a well-described life of his own, having left his prior position when his boyfriend was shot and also the endless behind the back comments about his sexuality. Ben returns to his home town to escape the situation he is in. The story is fabulous, so many twists and turns and well-described characters that I had to keep reading, not because there was a big resolve at the end, but because the characters were fascinating and made the book so much better. Very fast paced which I loved and a also made it riveting and even somewhat alarming as I read more. I am definitely looking forward to a sequel to this debut novel. Do not miss this thriller!!!!!

Thanks so much NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press. Man, Poisoned Pen is really hitting it out of the park lately with thrillers.

What a stunning debut from Moehling. There are several smaller themes in this thriller, and he manages to pull them off almost flawlessly. Nothing surprising or big reveals here, straight up mystery thriller at its best!

I finished this book in record time. It was definitely a page turning suspense novel where I absolutely needed to know what was happening and what would happen next.
I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a thriller.
This book had some new twists, turns, and plot points that make it stand out from all the other books of this genre. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read an ARC of And There He Kept Her. #NetGalley

Oh my gosh. This book was SO good. It felt like I was reading an actual true crime based novel. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book in 2 days of picking it up!

The story follows a detective that returns to a small town of his past, when a family member goes missing. The twist and turns the story takes to draw everything together is interesting and even the “filler” pages keep your attention.

I will recommend this book to all of my reading friends!
Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book! It was definitely worth it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - BOOK REVIEW -

And There He Kept Her by Joshua Moehling centers around a small town in Minnesota where peacefulness should be almost guaranteed, but as we learn, peace is hard to find. Our lead protagonist Is “acting” sheriff Ben Packard. I like this character. He’s a no-nonsense guy determined to solve even the smallest of cases. He’s also a gay man trying to find his place. This story is about contrasts. Nothing is black and white, and as we find out, you can be a victim and a killer. Two young high school kids do something foolish, and tragedy ensues. There's a fine line between studying chemistry and stealing drugs. Hopelessness is the primary emotion with a belief in a future out of reach. As we see, small towns aren’t any different than large cities because there is always someone making a wrong decision, criminals aren’t always dumb, and sometimes they become victims until they aren’t. People have problems they can’t overcome, drugs are rampant, and alcoholism is a beast. The book centers around finding two missing teens with the Sheriff constantly pulled in different directions. I liked how Sheriff Packard had to compartmentalize his life and his work, and yet his work ruled his life. He hides his true self behind a public persona, but no one is fooled. Isn’t that the way most things go? It’s hard to keep secrets. I enjoyed this well-written story with a creepy vibe that made it hard to sleep. I look forward to more Sheriff Packard stories, and I think the author has found a multi-faceted and memorable lead in Ben. #thriller #AndThereHeKeptHer @jmoehling #murder #mystery #misery #joshuamoehling @netgalley #pageturner @poisonedpenpress #arc #triggers #missingwomen
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I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to NetGalley, and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this book. Pub Date: June, 2022.
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CONTENT WARNING: homophobia, grief, addiction, murder, violence, blood

This was really good for a debut novel! I was so impressed by the easy, flowing, and tense writing combined with a story that challenged how we view the roles that people play.

It’s easy to define victims and villains, or at least it is usually. However, this book takes that concept and turns it upside, creating characters who are both victims and villains, as well as showing the fallout from various horrific events.

When Jesse and Jenny break into an old man’s house to steal his pain medication, they’re surprised by the intended victim, and things definitely don’t go their way. It creates a cascade of events that rock the small town of Sandy Lake, Minnesota.

The chapters take place from the POV of Emmett Burr, the man whose house was broken into, as well as from the Acting Sheriff, Ben Packard. Ben has recently moved to Sandy Lake after his boyfriend was killed while responding to a police call. While he is new to the small town, he’s got old ties to the place, where he spent his summers as a child, until something happened to his older brother. It also talks about the homophobia he faces, and his journey to being comfortable in his own skin as a gay man in a small town setting, especially one who is on the police force. Emmett isn’t a likable character, but he wasn’t completely bad, making him the kind of character who will definitely haunt me.

This was a fast read, partially because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next, and partially because the writing was smooth and just the right amount of descriptive. It’s fast-paced, and while there weren’t a lot of major plot twists that shocked me, there was an aura of tension that flowed throughout the story. This is definitely an author to watch, and I was thrilled to discover that this is going to be a series!

I don’t really know what to say about this book. I didn’t really like it, but I didn’t hate it. It was darker than what I prefer to read, so I’m not sure why I requested it from NetGalley. The main character, Packard, was a pretty likeable dude, but the majority of the people in the book were not, and they were also not all that well developed. I think I’m just confused as to what this book was trying to accomplish, therefore I really have no idea how to feel about it. Since I never felt connected to the story, it just ended up feeling a bit pointless to me.

It wasn’t a bad book and I’m sure others will really like it. I just think it was not for me. 2.5 Stars rounded up to 3.