This is a terrific stand-alone thriller by Lisa Jackson! Literally set 'North of Nowhere,' several families' lives are in the balance as a blizzard sets in and no one is sure who they can trust. This book kept me up late AND made me late for work!

I couldn’t get into this story at all. The author immediately dropped us into action with little explanation, and things just pick up from there. There’s just so much going on, and so little context. I read 50% of this one and did end up DNFing it because I was so lost. I kept expecting the pieces of the puzzle to start slowly fitting together but it was so slow paced I couldn’t wait it out.

I would classify this book as a strong suspense and not a mystery/thriller. If you go into this expecting a thriller you will be disappointed, like I was.

This was an awesome story full of action, adventure, edge-of-your-seat danger, and more! A family in hiding from their own crime family, never feeling completely safe and never knowing who they could or could not trust. When they’re found after five years, they’re on the run again. Things don’t go as planned and Kristin and Ryan McIntyre are stranded in the forest with a blizzard heading in fast. They’re being tracked by good guys and bad. Who will reach them first?

I figured out early on who a couple of people were, but it didn’t detract from the story. It just made me wonder how it was all going to work out.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks so much St Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for an advance read in exchange for this review.

Kristen and Ryan have been hiding from their father with their uncle for five years. They've been found and barely escape as their plane crash lands in the wilderness in the middle of a blizzard. What follows is a chase that unveils family secrets and lies as they try to survive.

This was quite the story! This is not a book that you will be able to read a little bit at a time. You'll want to finish in one setting because so much happens quickly! The McIntyre family is quite interesting and there was so much (bad) history. Yes, there are a lot of characters, but somehow the author masterfully handles keeping the plot going without jumping too much from character to character. I especially loved all the detail as they run in the wilderness during the blizzard.

The new stand alone novel by Allison Brennan, “North of Nowhere,” is a taut thriller set in the Montana wilderness during a violent snowstorm.

The story centers around Kristen, and her brother Ryan who are members of a crime family. They have been living undetected in Montana until the day their keeper Tiny, notices unwanted guests in their small town. Knowing that discovery is soon to follow, Tony prepares the two for escape. Unfortunately, the small plane they are traveling in crashes in the wilderness, and the hunt is on…

Allison Brennan always delivers on the suspense and cat and mouse-esq plot in her novels. Her characters are always well developed and you can always find someone to cheer for. However, this novel’s cast of characters is many and it is hard to keep track of exactly who is friend or foe.

That does not necessarily weaken the story, it just makes it a bit harder to digest and follow. I have been reading Brennan for quite some time and stuck with it, because she is so good.

I struggled with my rating on this novel because of so many characters, and because it seemed that the motivations of said characters were mentioned constantly. In addition, I thought the ending was a bit loose.

With that being said, the location of the novel is beautiful, the pace quick, and Brennan can tell a story. My final verdict is 3 stars as opposed to 4 given the number of characters, and I personally thought the ending could have been a bit tighter and cleaner.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Too bad I can not rate this "North of Nowhere" as a 5+!! Ms. Brennan has done a masterful job of telling not only a great story that keeps the reader's attention but building her characters so they seem very real and the reader seems as if they are there along with the characters.

Set in a beautiful part of Montana but doing a time of great trial for some of the main characters amidst the coming blizzard. All this combines for a heart-racing read full of suspense, drama, tragedy. The characters are complex with good and bad interwoven--honorable and dishonorable --compassionate and hard-hearted!! This juxtaposition of reality when dealing with real humans is what makes this such a great novel, in my opinion.

I'd definitely recommend a read...ideally in front of a fireplace with the favorite libation or on a sun-drenched beach. But wherever it's read, I think most readers will enjoy the story!!

Allison Brennan’s North of Nowhere has a little bit of everything you expect in a thriller. A crime family. Murder. Deception. A large Montana ranch. A blizzard. And escape. A rescue. Who can you trust and who will survive?

Five years ago, Kristen witnessed her mother’s death. Taken from her crime family’s estate by her father’s best friend and most trusted confidant, Tony, she ends up in Montana with him and her deaf younger brother. Tony maintains hyper vigilance while they live in a remote area of Montana, so when the day arrives that unfamiliar faces are in town where he patrols on his way to work, unprepared for the incoming blizzard, he returns home and prepares the children for what they’ve practiced for over the last five year: escape. What follows is a mind blowing, murderous plot in the depths of a blizzard with a long lost father, crime family matriarch grandmother, and more people than you can think when have been bought off by both father and grandmother.

There are several characters introduced in the book, but Brennan’s manner of writing makes it easy to distinguish each person’s role in the grand scheme of the story. Could I have sat down and plowed through the whole book in a day? Yes, but this is one that you taste and savor instead of demolishing. There is a lot of action, deception, plotting, and death that taking a sampling and letting your brain digest the masterpiece that Brennan has put forth is well worth it. This is one you don’t want to miss! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy. Opinions expressed are my own. This book is set for publication on August 7, 2023.

#netgalley #arc #allisonbrennan #northofnowhere #stmartinspress #minotaurbooks

A first caliber thriller which I could not put down. Kristen is such a great female protagonist I can only hope that Ms. Brennan follows up with her story ten years in the future. A total nail biter!!! I received an ARC from NetGalley and the opinions expressed are my own.

If you like edge of your seat suspense, please read Allison Brennan's latest. It's a thrill ride from beginning to end. "North of Nowhere" is sure to keep you reading late into the night!

Allison Brennan never fails to deliver a heart pounding keep you on the edge of your seat book. This one did have a lot of chapters that was sometimes hard to keep straight. BUT, I still loved every page of it and couldn't put it down until the end.

Thank you to net galley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have yet to meet an Allison Brennan book that I didn't absolutely LOVE! She does a great job with weaving in the fact that this takes place in the middle of nowhere or maybe that's what I think of being out in nature. It helped make the whole story a little spookier. It was very fast-paced in a good way and kept me wanting to turn the pages. I liked the back and forth with Kristen and Ryan and was totally into their backstory.

Too many people being shot at! Too many people with vengeance on their minds. Who has been injured? Who is dead? 48 hours of mayhem. Organized crime with a woman at the helm! Who has the guts to stop her? Even when she’s causing harm to her grandchildren. Would have skipped this one for sure but wanted to fulfill my obligation. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for granting me this ARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own. #St.Martin’sPress, #NetGalley.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this eARC.

I really wanted to like this book but I got maybe 35% in before DNF. I just didn't particularly like the story, there were too many people being introduced, and I tried to get through it but the story just wasn't unique enough or interesting enough to hook me.

Sadly, I could not get into this book, as much as I wanted to! I got to 15% before quitting. I tried to give it a chance. I just couldn't keep up with the way different characters kept being introduced so fast. I got very confused. I really wanted to see what happened with the story. Even though I disliked this book, I will still be open to reading other works by Allison Brennan.

This book, from the start, had the reader asking what was going to happen. It took the reader on a journey and you could really feel what the main character was feeling. Definitely recommend reading!

I absolutely loved the pacing of this! Like there wasn’t a dull moment! I could totally ses this as a movie. This was my first book by this author & I’ll definitely read more from her!

Fair warning- do not start this book right before bedtime or you’ll be sorry. I did, and I was awake most of the night. This is a heart pounding, edge of your chair thriller guaranteed to keep you invested until the very end.

This is a story of a mafia family looking for their kidnapped children who don’t want to be found in the wilderness of Montana during a snowstorm. What could go wrong? Only everything. This book has a large cast of characters and sometimes it’s hard to separate the good guys from the bad guys.

This was my first time reading this author and I’m not sure where I’ve been (maybe under a rock) as she has a large backlist I look forward to checking out. I recommend this to anyone with a love for mystery/ thrillers.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher For the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion. I gave it four stars.

A sister and her brother are running to safety. Their father and grandmother are dangerous. Along the way, they meet others who try to help them. Men are killed, and lives are endangered. It is horrific at times, but the story, despite red herrings, comes to a resounding ending. The character are realistic, and the cold, snowy setting is mysterious. This is a talented and gifted author who writes a cannot put down novel. This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher and the author.

I absolutely loved this book. I was on the the edge of my seat from the very start till the end. Kristen and her deaf brother Ryan are trekking through Montana during a snow storm with murders and their crime family chasing them. Lots of secondary characters that I liked and I would love another book to see where life takes them. I highly recommend this book.

Ruby has done her best to distance herself from her crime syndicate family, joining the Army to get as far away as possible. Her ultimate goal has always been to protect her niece and nephew, Kristen and Ryan from their brutal father, Ruby’s own brother, Boyd, and for five years the kids have been hidden away, safe from his nefarious touch. When Boyd finally tracks his kids down to the remote Montana homestead where they have been living, they escape in a small plane with the man who has been caring for them. The plan is damaged in the ensuing gun flight and crashes in the wilderness, leaving Kristen and Ryan to find their way to safety even as a huge storm approaches and a tracker hired by their biological father gets ever closer