My first book finished for August is a recently obtained #ARC book 5 in the Alaska Wild series & it will be published on 12/5/23. I really enjoy the small town on Glacier Bay, Alaska setting of the series & this book had us right back in the action with Beth. There are two mysteries here-a woman found on an island by a glacier tour boat who says she was kidnapped & a teenage girl who disappears on the same island a few days later. Things were perhaps a bit too conveniently convoluted in this one but I still enjoyed it & love the characters & seeing Beth settling into Aslaks. The cliffhanger to book 6 is good—I just hate having to wait a year for it!

This title is the fifth in experienced mystery writer Paige Shelton’s Alaska based series. Shelton has written the Scottish Bookshop series, among others.

Lost Hours is an appealingly complex story. In it, protagonist Beth is working out her family relationships and feeling more at home in Alaska. When she goes on a boat trip to see the glaciers, she sees much more including a troubled woman on the shore.

Is this woman, Sadie, being truthful? What, in fact, has happened to her and who is she? Both Beth and the reader will want to know.

This book can be read as a standalone. That said, I suspect that many readers will want to spend more time with Beth and will go back to the first four books. This is especially true because of Beth’s own history. Readers will want to know more details about her experiences.

I definitely enjoyed my time in Alaska! I also liked the character development and the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur for this title. All opinions are my own.

4 stars for book 5 in the Alaska Wild series by Paige Shelton. This book would work as a stand alone, but I have read books 1-4. I would classify it as a cozy mystery--no graphic violence, sex scenes or foul language. Both my wife and I enjoy this series. She also rates it 4 stars.
This book has Beth Rivers who has moved to Alaska to get away from the man who kidnapped her, going on a tourist boat trip in Glacier Bay, Alaska, when they encounter a woman on an island covered in blood. This is the start of a mystery with many secrets. There some people who are not who they say they are, and have hidden agendas. Beth and variuos people do figure out what has happened.
Some characters in the book:
Gril, Police Chief on a 1 man force
Beth Rivers, a novelist and survivor of a kidnapping
Viola, owner of a half way house where Beth lives
Tex, Beth's boyfriend
Orin, manager of the local library and a mysterious govt. employee
Eddy, Beth's dad, who has moved to Benedict to be near Beth
#LostHours
Thanks to St. Martin's Press for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.

A mystery, a thriller and intense drama made this hard to put down. Characters were believable and setting was well integrated into the plot. Only comment was why wasn't’ Alaska a part of the title?Thanks to #NetGalley and #LostHours for advanced digital copy.

Fifth book in this exciting series Beth Rivers is an interesting character she is finally settling in to Alaska,As in each book in this series there are so many twists and turns that kept me racing through the series.A series I often recommend.#netgalley #st.martins

This is the fifth book in the series and could probably be read as a standalone but I highly recommend reading the whole series. It’s one of my favorites.
Beth moved to Alaska to get away from the world. She was hiding from events in her past. In this installment her story has evolved a bit and while she still enjoys being in the middle of nowhere, she’s not hiding anymore.
I love the characters in this series. I’ve lived in very small towns and I can picture these people there. And it’s heartwarming to see Beth developing a relationship with her father.
The story has a nice mix of every day life and the development of the mystery. I really like the way the author writes. I can easily picture the people and places. I have another series by her that I haven’t read yet and I’m hoping it’s as good as this one.
I did receive this installment of the series as a free ARC and am leaving this review voluntarily. I did purchase the other books in this series and the other series I have of hers.

A very suspenseful read for me.

Beth Rivers moves to Benedict, Alaska and upon settling and starting to relax in life she takes a tour boat and during the tour there is a woman waving for help from an island stating she was abducted.

This was a very good read and also a standalone read even though its book 5 in the Alaska Wild series.

I would recommend this book for anyone that enjoys a good mystery as this is a really good one.

Paige Shelton is a new author for me, and I plan on reading books 1-4 of this series since this one was so enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

For starters I want to thank the author Paige Shelton for giving us another installment in the
Alaska Wild series. It is one of my favorites! I also want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
If you are reading the reviews you probably have already read the publisher's blurb about the book. There is little I can add that wouldn't be repeating what already has been written.
I can say that I love the characters and the setting. Ms. Shelton has a way of making you feel you are right there.

Years ago, Beth Rivers fled the hospital for Benedict, Alaska. She had escaped captivity and hoped to be safe there as well as locate her father. Her father found her and life has been good, especially her involvement with Tex, who belongs to a local search and rescue group. While on a trip to see the glaciers, she notices a woman standing on the island shore, covered in blood. Once rescued, the woman, Sadie, explains that she was kidnapped and her captor was attacked by a bear. Beth is able to talk to her due to their shared trauma and Sadie tells her that she is in WITSEC. With no sight of a bear attack on the island, is Sadie telling the truth? Slowly some verification will cover part of her story, but Beth believes that there is much more to what ends up to be a twisted mystery with many facets. As they wait for Sadie’s handler, Beth receives some alarming news. A bit confusing at times, but had I read the previous books it might have made a difference. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (paytonpuppy)

Lost Hours (Alaska Wild #5) by Paige Shelton
Publisher: St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
Expected Publication Date: December 5, 2023

Lost Hours is the fifth book in the Alaska Wild series by Paige Shelton. This book can be read as part of the series or as a standalone mystery. I’ve only read one other book in the series and I’ll definitely be reading the rest!

The story was so good and I loved the characters! There were so many twists and turns that had me on the edge of my seat. I read this book in one day because I could not put it down!

I definitely recommend reading this one!!!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Aahh- that ending!!! I need the next book right now! 😆

This series is just so dang good and the newest, Lost Hours, is no exception.

A few things I love about the Alaska Wild Mysteries:
•intriguing storyline
•mystery within a mystery
•fast-paced chapters
•interesting characters
•phenomenal writing
•remote setting
•character development
•beautiful covers

Paige Shelton is one of my favorite authors because her books are so well written that they play out like a movie in my mind.

Lost Hours is book five in the series. If you haven’t started this series yet, you definitely need to pick up the first, Thin Ice, asap!

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

3.5 hearts

I am well into the Alaska Wild Mysteries . I would read the series in order as both the mystery plot arc and the personal relationships grow throughout the series. Beth came to Alaska to hide from a stalker. She doesn't remember everything about her abduction. She initially didn't tell people and didn't know who to trust. Now that her stalker has been caught she is feeling a bit better. She has also gotten to know and become friends with more people in this small town.

Lost Hours has plenty of mystery: a dead body, an abducted woman, and a missing teenage girl. Beth throws herself into investigating and danger. She has good reasoning and strategy to solve things but no defensive skills against criminals and continues to stupidly endanger herself. It's unrealistic how law enforcement lets her do it.

We see more of Beth's relationship with Tex, and her uncertainty if she will stay here or go back to Missouri. A new resident is her long lost father, Eddy. Beth doesn't trust him but she can't help but want to know him better.

Of course, Beth figures things out, working well with law enforcement. Her mother is MIA. The end has a bit of a cliffhanger which gives us an idea of the theme of the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! I really enjoyed Lost Hours by Paige Shelton. This is the fifth book in her Alaska Wild series. I have not read the previous four books, but this book does work well as a standalone. Paige Shelton gives you all the information/details you need to understand the characters & their backgrounds, and the story itself is fine to read without having read the previous books. That being said, I do think it would be worth it to read those earlier books if you do like this one. I certainly plan to when I get the chance. That's a testament to the quality of the story.

Lost Hours is a good bridge between a cozy mystery and a thriller. Definitely a book I found intriguing to start and then realized I didn't want to put it down. It's not a very long book so I think anyone could read it in one sitting. If you're like me you'll be turning page after page just to see what's happening next. I enjoyed the twists and turns. The ending will have you wanting another book as soon as possible.

I really enjoyed Beth as a narrator and liked getting to know her story. I would definitely read the earlier books just for more of her. Lost Hours does a good job with all of the characters, though there are definitely a lot of people.

I think I'm personally the most fond of the setting. Shelton does a great job making it feel like you're there in a small town in Alaska and I just loved that aspect of the book!

This is the first book I've read by this author. I haven't read the other books in the series and was able to fully enjoy the story on its own. I am curious about the other books, so I will be going back to read the others. I liked Beth Rivers as the lead character. She's likeable and smart. Her past gives her a different view on things. The setting of Alaska is almost like another character, and it gives the story a unique spin. The mystery was intriguing and had a number of twists. The characters were likeable and interesting. This was a great way to spend some time on a late fall afternoon. It was a great escape and kept my attention from the beginning. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

This is book 5 in the "Alaska Wild" series, although I've only read this and #4; the author refers to things that happened in previous books, but I think Lost Hours is fine as a stand-alone (or introduction to the series to make you want to go read the previous ones). Author Beth Rivers first came to Benedict, Alaska, a year ago to hide out, but now she feels she is part of the community, and her estranged father has moved to town to try to reconnect. Beth decides it's time to see the glaciers that the region is famous for, but the ship she is on never makes it to the glaciers because it comes across a woman, covered in blood, apparently abandoned on one of the small islands in the area. She says she was kidnapped from Juneau and brought to the island, and that a bear attacked her captor and he is dead and gone. Beth and her friends involved in local law enforcement try to figure out what's going on, as they suspect they're only getting part of the story, but things get more complicated when young tourist disappears under suspicious circumstances. I especially liked the multifaceted characters, uniqueness of the setting, and the unpredictable plot.

I always look forward to December because it means there will be a new book in the Alaska Wild series. I've been reading this series since book 1 Thn Ice. While I think you will enjoy it more if you read the series in order as there is an over-arching mystery, you can start with this one.

I must admit that Lost Hours isn't my favorite book in the series. It is still good, but there seemed to be something missing. It is book 5 in the series and it felt more like a placeholder than a book to move the story forward.

Just as we got to know Beth's mother Mills in book 3 Dark Nights and see their relationship, in this book we get to know her father and their strained relationship.

As I mentioned there is an over-arching mystery running through the series, but each book has its own stand-alone mystery. A woman is found on an uninhabited island and claims she had been kidnapped. Was she really or is it a ploy to get close to Beth? There are some holes in her story, but Beth and the rest of the town are willing to believe her or at least investigate until they have all the facts.

The mystery was okay. It didn't have the tension that the mystery in the other books had, but it was still interesting.

I'm glad I read it and I'm still looking forward to next December when the next book comes out. There is a little twist at the end that I'm eager to see how it plays out.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Tuesday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2023/12/lost-hours-by-paige-shelton-review.html

I received a complimentary ARC copy of Lost Hours (Alaska Wild #5) by Paige Shelton from Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press /Minotaur Books in order to read and give an honest review.

…With twists, turns and a plethora of red herrings the reader is led through a suspenseful, well plotted, brilliantly written and edgy cozy....

Lost Hours, the fifth entry in Paige Shelton’s Alaska Wild series. I am a huge fan of the author, and this series in particular, and was thrilled to get the opportunity to read and review this entry which I am pleased to say, did not disappoint.

We open with protagonist Beth Rivers, after a year of moving to the small town of Benedict Alaska. Fleeing there after escaping the clutches of kidnapper Travis Walker she has found a place so far removed from the life she once had as a best-selling author, shedding her pen name, Elizabeth Fairchild. Living at Benedict House, a halfway house run by Viola, who is one of the few who knows her true identity along with police chief Gril Samuels, his deputy Donner and undercover agent, Orin all of whom have gone to extreme lengths to protect her secret, help her heal and grow into her new identity as well as into the hearts of those in Benedict.

With her good friends, new boyfriend Tex and the resurgence of her estranged father Eddy, Beth is finally feeling more optimistic about life. When she hears the news from Detective Major that Walker has been captured, she is incredibly relieved and can finally live her life. While finally getting to be a tourist she takes a quick trip with Tex to see the icebergs. Things change when they stumble across a blood covered woman desperately flagging them down from the shore of deserted Lillybrook island. When they manage to get her on the boat, she tells a tale of being kidnapped, held hostage and ending with her assailant being killed by a bear. The kidnapping story resonates with Beth and wanting to help she agrees to sit with the victim until they get to shore. Sadie Milbourn, the victim, bonds with Beth and confesses to her that she is in fact in witness protection hiding out in Juneau. Feeling conflicted, Beth supports Sadie but when she refuses to speak with the Juneau police Beth believes there is more going on and she must decide how much she wishes to get involved. Unfortunately, the details of Sadie’s abduction are foggy, and with no evidence to support her story something does not sit right with Beth about Sadie’s story.

When they return to Benedict and with Travis Walker in custody Beth can now breathe deep but when her story hits the news, everyone now knows where Beth has been and what she now looks like, she is thrown off a bit, but it no longer matters, in a few months she’ll testify, and she can decide whether to return to her life as Elizabeth Fairchild.

With nothing to lose and her curiosity running wild she starts her own investigation to help Gris and Donner. When Beth’s father Eddy, who runs a fishing charter, asks her to join him to impress his clients the DuPont’s whose sixteen-year-old daughter Gracie is a huge fan, she agrees along as he stops at Lillybrook so she can do a more in-depth investigation. Exhausted from their fishing trip when they arrive at the island, the family is napping Beth and Eddy decide slip away to investigate the island. Not seeing anything unusual except a few friendly kayakers, they head back to the boat. Upon reaching the boat, they find a distraught Mrs. Dupont, upset that Gracie has disappeared. They must wonder if she has simply run away or has met a more dangerous fate.

With twists, turns and a plethora of red herrings the reader is led through a suspenseful, well plotted, brilliantly written and edgy cozy which will thrill and excite any mystery lover. Although good as a stand-alone, I recommend reading the series in order, and with a surprise cliffhanger, I cannot wait to read book six!

Lost Hours is the first book I have read written by Paige Shelton. It was just the kind of story that I enjoy reading, especially if there are twists that make the villain more difficult to discover. That is exactly what this story is, a cozy mystery with an edge.

While it isn’t the first in the series, I had no problem getting to know the characters or the back story. Beth and friends are intelligent, diligent, and critical thinkers who stay with a problem until there is a valid solution. The villains are ones who are cunning and manipulative. In no way was I sorry to see the whole truth come out.

As for Beth and what drove her to move to Alaska, well that is the continuing thread in this series. It makes the reader of this book want to go back, catch up with Beth’s story and then be sure to find out what happens in the next book. A series sure to become addictive.

An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Beth Rivers finally feels at home living in Alaska. With her friend, Tex, she goes on a boat tour to see the glaciers. But they don't make it as the captain receives a notice of a woman in distress on one of the islands. The woman claims she was kidnapped and that the man who took her was killed by a bear. No evidence to support her claim is found. She also claims to be in witness protection. Beth isn't sure what to believe, but when another kidnapping occurs she is determined to find out.

Dollycas's Thoughts

We return to Benedict, Alaska, where Beth Rivers has made her home since fleeing from the lower 48. She is fitting in well with the other residents and has relaxed since her ordeal a year ago. Her father, Eddie, is now in Benedict too. He has bought a boat and working as a fishing guide.  She is really trying to forgive him but she will never forget him leaving her and her mother behind.

It is unseasonably warm for July so she decides to finally see the glaciers from the water. She and her "man-friend" Tex board a tour boat and are enjoying the ride and the scenery when the ship takes a "sharp right veer" and a siren starts blasting. When the siren stops they see a woman on the shore of a nearby island screaming and signaling for help. She appears to be covered in blood. Tex helps with the rescue and brings her aboard the boat and tells Beth he thinks she can help the woman. Her name is Sadie and she says she was taken from her home in Juneau and brought to the island.

Later a young woman goes missing from the same island. Are the events connected? Can Beth help Police Chief Gril untangle the clues? Or will the events be too close to what happened to her that she needs to back off to save herself?

______

The characters Ms. Shelton has created for this series get stronger and more fleshed out in each story. Beth has truly become a part of the community and she has earned the trust of Viola, Orin, and Gril. She also stands up for herself in ways she didn't in previous books. Her relationship with Tex is evolving in a way that makes sense for both of them. Her father, Eddie plays a large role in this story and it was interesting to watch the relationship start to move in a positive direction.

The mysteries in this story take the readers along with the characters on quite an adventure. Beth pushes to be involved and I love that. Clues are found in interesting places, some discarded at first come into play later. The story had many layers that needed to be peeled away to move forward. There are twists, turns, and strange connections that all lead to an exciting end. Beth traveled somewhere I never would have been able to go. Ms. Shelton's writing was so powerful in the whole book but especially in that scene, I had to put the book down and take a couple of deep breaths. The author sets a fast pace from the start so I was not surprised that I read the book all in one sitting.

Lost Hours is a compelling story filled with suspense and intrigue. I am totally invested in Beth's life and hated to leave Benedict because while Beth, aka Elizabeth Fairchild, finished her current book by the deadline Beth's story is nowhere near complete. I see more danger in her future so it's going to be tough waiting a year for Ms. Shelton's next book to be released but this has been the case when I finish each book in this series so I know it will be worth the wait. She is an outstanding storyteller. I will be including Lost Hours on my Best Reads List for 2023.

Note: Each book in this series can be read on its own but to really enjoy the series you have to know Beth's story from the start.