You will enjoy this one if you like police procedurals with a twist of nature. I would have liked to see a little more about the parks

Cold Burn is the second book in A.J. landau’s National Park series. It can be read as a stand alone book and I have not read the first book, Leave No Trace, so I was new to the characters. Cold Burn is a thriller that captivated me from start to finish and weaves multiple story lines throughout the novel. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers that include action and environmental issues.

While I am not a fan of reading a series without reading them all, I was gifted this book and didn’t realize it was a series until about a fourth through it. I didn’t have to stop and read the first book to understand the dynamics of the characters…. So for me this is an unexpected win.
In 2023 I promised myself to read more books about other cultures and happenings within the US grounds. This book didn’t disappoint on that and also while a secret conspiracy theory person this one amps you up to do some Google searching of your own to wonder…. Could this happen?

Definitely an action packed installment with this second installment of the National Parks Thriller. The beginning is a little confusing as it jumps around a lot starting with a missing geological team, dead bodies in the Everglades and what appears to be smugglers in a museum. But once the story starts to come together it gets crazy intense and the clock is ticking!

Gina and Micheal end up working together again but at first it would appear they didn't even know it and why. It is interesting to see how this all ties up. I also found it interesting to see how the Tlingit tribe fits in to this story line and I really end up liking the two main tribe members that help Micheal.

The only real issue I had with this book was a lot of the description was over the top and technical. I found myself glancing over the pages when there was a lot of submarine "talk" and I feel like it too a long time to introduce the Russians into the story.

I would try the next one in this series if there is one as I do like an action packed story with these two main characters.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read "Cold Burn" in exchange for my honest opinion.

This 2nd book in the Walker and Delgado series takes the reader from the glaciers of Alaska to the Everglades of Florida, with death and smuggling along the way. A timely piece on the dangers of Climate Change and inaction especially with two such special ecosystems as glaciers and everglades. Very well written, easy to engage and read.

Thefts of artifacts in Alaska. Scientists missing in an avalanche. Death by alligator in the Everglades. A missing nuclear submarine. How are these random events related? You’ll find out in Cold Burn, the second thriller in the National Parks series by Jon Land; Jeff Ayers; A. J. Landau. National Park Service Investigator Michael Walker deals with the Alaskan mysteries while FBI Special Investigator Gina Delgado is assigned to Florida. The events are linked and Walker and Delgado must discover how before an environmental disaster happens.

The nonstop action in Cold Burn moves from location to location as the investigators close in on the truth. Walker and Delgado are both strong characters who play off each other. All the disasters here seem possible as, unfortunately, does the ultimate conclusion. I’m looking forward to the next in this well written series. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Jon Land; Jeff Ayers; A. J. Landau for this ARC.

This book presents an interesting alternative to the last mass extinction event that arises now due to climate change warming up the atmosphere causing melting of ice and releasing the cause. It also includes the Everglades and a government experiment that ascorbates the situation. It is an engaging and thought provoking read.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Goodreads, Net Galley, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog.

Cold Burn
By A.J. Landau (Jon Land and Jeff Ayers)

This is the second in the National Parks thriller series. Having been a fan of Mr. Land for many years, I was thrilled to receive an ARC of this latest book from the publisher and NetGalley.

This book revolves around Michael Walker, an ISB agent for the National Park Service investigating crimes taking place within the parks, and Gina DelGado, an FBI agent serving directly for the President.

Michael and Gina worked together previously in "Leave No Trace", and have a good working relationship. While both are on separate assignments – Michael in Alaska and Gina in the Everglades – they soon realize that their assignments overlap. They both must succeed in order to literally save the earth from one man's greed and another's lust for power.

The tension mounts as the story shifts back and forth with the authors' consummate skill at raising the ante. I was not disappointed; this one will keep readers on the edge of their seats. And, as an added bonus, the reappearance of Blaine McCracken (McCrackenballs) and the seven foot tall Johnny Wareagle (the Indian) brings back so many memories of the earlier Jon Land novels. I can't wait for the next installment.

I have recently become fascinated with national parks, so I was excited to get this ARC. I left this thriller moved along a decent pace, and I loved the park setting. i was not aware that this was part of a series, but I will be going back to read them now

Cold Burn is my first introduction to A. J. Landau, so I had not read Leave No Trace before. I will now. This was a great read. While investigating stolen artifacts from the Tlingit people of Alaska, National Park Service Investigator Michael Walker stumbles across a smuggling ring using the artifacts to move a strange substance (no spoilers here ;-) An acquaintance from the FBI, special investigator Gina Delgado, is working a murder case in the Everglades. They end up working together to solve both cases and, yep, true to the genre, saving the free world in the process. This series is now on my Must Read List.

I haven’t read any other books by this author, but I loved this one so much! Super fast paced, loads of action, well fleshed characters, and very atmospheric! Will definitely check out their other novels now!

Cool story! I loved the themes of environmental preservation and living with the land that was at the center of the plot. It was masterfully woven into a story that grabbed you and didn’t let go until the very last page! At first, I was a little confused with the bouncing around between different locations, but then it all came together and made sense. If you read this and feel this way, keep going! It will definitely be worth it. It was riveting and the characters were well done. Read this book, it’s great!

Cold Burn is a mystery thriller taking place in the Everglades, and various places in Alaska. I found the story very hard to follow as chapters go back and forth between the various places and multiple characters. I had trouble differentiating between all the people, who they were and what agency they were representing. The plot was confusing also. After reading this book, I found that there is an earlier book that one should read first. Had I read that maybe I would have enjoyed this book more.

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of Leave No Trace, by A.J. Landau (a pseudonym for the writing team of Jon Land and Jeff Ayers), from St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

First of all, I was kinda wrong when I told my husband that this could be read as a standalone thriller. I said that when I was about halfway through the book. A little later, there was a big ol’ spoiler for the first book in the series. So, read these in order.

Re that first book: I immediately checked it out electronically once I finished this one. Which I termed “an airport thriller.” Not because there were any airports harmed in the making, etc. (which feels like it will be turned into something for TV/the movies), but because it’s something that I would recommend you buy in an airport book store to read on a plane.

Second of all (or maybe third, depending on how we’re counting): It probably goes without saying that I enjoyed this particular ride, given not only that I’m about to start on the first book, but am eagerly looking forward to what I hope are many, many more in the series.

All that said…..there were way too many words sometimes. Like, umm, do we really need all that background about how airboats work? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love me some airboat…..some of the best times in my life have been had down in the swamps of Louisiana. The technical descriptions of a lot of stuff seemed to weigh the narrative down, though.

Nits, I pick. Especially when these authors have done such a great job of making this entire book seem like something that was foretelling the news that’s happening—and to come—in 2025!! Yeesh!

PS
Gosh I sure do miss Henry Standing Bear as portrayed by Lou Diamond Phillips in the TV series Longmire (based on the Craig Johnson book series). I think the world would be an awful lot better place if more of us spoke without contractions. And, you know. Respected nature and communed with the spirit world, etc.

DESCRIPTION
Agent Michael Walker returns when multiple deaths at Glacier Bay National Park are just the first steps in a potential global disaster.

National Park Service investigator Michael Walker is battling smugglers stealing priceless artifacts when he’s dispatched to Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska, where, in the first stage of a potential global disaster, a team of scientists has gone missing.

Meanwhile, in Florida’s Everglades National Park, FBI special investigator Gina Delgado traces the murder of an environmental science intern back to another U.S. Geological Survey team’s ongoing experiments that are decimating the fragile ecosystem. That is before she’s dispatched to the scene of a sunken U.S. nuclear submarine, the entire crew of which has inexplicably been killed.

The connection between these disparate investigations lies in a deadly prehistoric organism, frozen for thousands of years in the ice until global warming brings it back to life in what could mean the death of all life on Earth. An organism that a rogue billionaire sees as the ultimate fuel source and a Russian strongman views as the ultimate weapon that can shift the global balance of power forever. Against that backdrop, Walker and Delgado find themselves desperately doing battle across multiple fronts against an ancient, unstoppable enemy.

My problems with this book probably lie in my expectations. I'd been a big Nevada Barr reader until her national park series ended a few years back. I enjoyed working out the mysteries and I loved getting to know the parks. The emphasis in Cold Burn is definitely on thriller rather then national parks. Yes, some key scenes took place in the Everglades, Sitka, and Glacier Bay, but I don't feel like I learned a great deal about the areas and most of the action took place elsewhere. The body count was in the hundreds, and there were plenty of explosions. It was actually a really good book, just not my usual flavor.

I received the digital ARC of Cold Burn and had high hopes. I did not read book one in the National Park Series.

This took me quite a while to get into, and even then it seemed hard to follow. Over all I did about it was a good story line and I gave it a strong three stars.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Back with Walker and Delgado,for a frightening look at the resources we have
in Alaska and the fight to,keep away folks who aim to steal and destroy the
natural wilderness along with infiltration at high levels of several government
agencies. Who can be trusted? What lengths will the Russians go to to collect
the natural minerals and geologic samples they have always wanted? To place
them in a huge advantage over our interests. How deeply buried are the folks
who aim to harm us…
I adore the well written descriptions of the beauty of Alaska, with the back
drop of majestic scenery and people most of us know little about. I could
see the oceans and along with the animals, it seems so glorious. Until
the Russians…
This book has lots of openings for the next book. My thanks to
Minotaur Books via NetGalley for the download copy of this
book for reviews purposes.

I had no idea what to expect when picking up this book, but it delivered more than I could imagine (and educated me along the way!) Lots of plots going on but they all weave together in the end!

A body is found in the Florida Everglades. A nuclear submarine is destroyed on its test voyage. A survey team disappears, trapped or killed by an avalanche. Art thieves turn out to be after much more.  In Book 2 of the Michael Walker National Park Thrillers (Minotaur Books 2025), it's up to National Park Service investigator Michael Walker and his intrepid team to unravel the connections if any. The cause seems to lie within the frigid cold of Alaska's beautiful environment so that's where they focus. Luckily, Walker has no problem with the cold weather or rough landscape. This story has a lot of moving parts and a myriad of possible causes, anything from global warming to climate change to something else. The more Walker digs into the seemingly disparate crimes, the more he concludes that nothing less than the future of the world is at risk.

The writing is good, but the hyperbole rich and the plot a bit complicated to follow. That's where it lost points--plot development and believability. Others might have no problem and then it would be higher.

Cold Burn by Jon Land is part of a series featuring National Park Service Investigator Mike Walker and Special Agent Delgado. It starts out in two locations. Alaska and Florida. It took a while for the story to merge and really got took off.
There are murders in both places and the threat of an ancient microbe. Throw in a crazy billionaire and you have a story.
I liked the characters and enjoyed visiting Mike and Gina again. I liked all the facts and information – though sometimes it was told more than once.
I recommend the series and this book. Thank you for an advanced copy for an honest review.