When a thriller opens with four Kindle pages of character names and descriptions, and the entire book is under 350 pages, you know you're in for a ride. For me, that kind of front-loading signals trouble and too much concentration on who is who instead of focusing on plotting.

By the 25% mark, I found myself double-checking the series order, convinced I’d accidentally reread an earlier installment. I was sure that I had read this before. I was getting the rinse and repeat feeling. The pacing felt off, the energy flat. Gone was the dry humor that usually threads Cutter’s dialogue. Instead, we got descriptions about past characters and relationships. This is book seven. Readers who’ve made it this far don’t need a recap. They need momentum.

I’ve always pitched Arliss Cutter as an Alaskan answer to Jethro Gibbs from NCIS: stoic, sharp, and quietly commanding. But here, Cutter’s signature deadpan wit and moral gravity are muted. The moments where he’d normally deliver a single deadpan line. Missing. The tension that usually simmers beneath his silence? Absent.

Then, around the 200-page mark, the book wakes up. The plot tightens, a little snark shows up, the stakes rise, and suddenly, I’m hooked. The final stretch delivers what the first half lacked: urgency, clarity, and that Cutter edge. Then comes the ending. Out of nowhere, it hits like a sucker punch. I gasped. That twist alone earns the next book a spot on my list.

And then, just when you think the tone has finally gotten back on track, there’s a recipe. A literal chocolate cream pie recipe at the end of a book about federal agents chasing down killers in the Alaskan wilderness. They’re tracking, interrogating, surviving. This isn’t a cozy mystery. Cameron’s usual audience craves tactical grit, not dessert.

So yes, Dead Line is uneven. It drags, it detours, it misfires. But it also recovers. If you can push through the fog, the payoff is real. And when you are finished, you can track down your own dessert.

Another good entry in an overall solid series. After the culmination of the last book (IYKYK), this one felt a little less important, but not the least impactful. Several plotlines made this move rather quickly, but some were not resolved by the end (including a big reveal to our main character at the end) which makes me happy since it seems there will be more Arliss coming. The Alaska scenery is fun to play in, and Lola continues to be a fun character to ride along (along with Arliss, of course), I couldn't help but think the reveal of the sister felt a little anti-climatic. The series stand as high as the Longmire, Joe Pickett, or Cork O'Connor series, but I still have fun with these. Can't wait for more.

Pulse pounding crime and wilderness thriller.

In this 7th book of the series (and the first I have read), Deputy U.S. Marshals Arliss Cutter and Lola Teariki and their cohort are heading into the frigid Alaskan tundra on a manhunt for a contract killer as well as a dangerous group of assassins. The two cases are not connected, but they intersect in one of the coldest parts of the final frontier.

One of the main “characters” in this book has to be the cold weather. Reading about temperatures going into double negatives below zero made me shiver. Everything was made more difficult because of this extreme cold as it affected not only all the people but also all of their equipment. I can’t even imagine the type of cold that the team was forced to endure in their quest to find the evil killers as well as their protected witness and his mother. All of the characters in this story were intriguing and I hate that this is the first of the stories I’ve read not knowing the backstory though the author definitely gives enough information to answer most questions. Since I want more detail, I plan to go back and pick up some of the previous titles while waiting for the next in a series that is bound to become one of my favorites.

I liked the action, the plot, and the suspense in this thriller. I was fully invested in the work done by this interagency group in this location. I have always been fascinated by Alaska and the type of people who live there.

I love how the book has a cast of characters at the very beginning. I really appreciated being able to refer to this before I started as well as after I had finished.

I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC, both provided by the publishers. The narrator, David Chandler, did a great job with his deep, smooth voice and ability to perform various accents necessary for distinguishing between the many characters. His work definitely enhanced my enjoyment of this book and created the perfect mood for a totally immersive experience.

I've read all the books in this series and the last one I reviewed was : Bad River . Every time I think that the book is good and maybe I've had my fill of the series ( not in a bar way), there's a tiny hook at the very end that has me waiting for the next. This one was no different.

In the last book we finally get a deeper look at Arliss's mother. Or an introduction of sorts since this book is when we find out everything that she's involved in ( or do we? This is part of the end hook I felt). Despite the fraught feelings at home, our main protagonist has his work cut out for him.

We have almost three parallel narratives. One is an almost unrelated gang story with witness protection thrown in the mix. The other is the personal family one with Mim doing a lot of thinking and finally the main hunt for one criminal that becomes a much bigger one in extremely cold weather. The author is descriptive enough to make me feel part of the unimaginable cold that the climax of the book occurs in. I would never ever want to experience even anything remotely close to those temperatures!

I would not recommend this book to anyone who is unfamiliar with the series because it feels better to know the background and past interactions because simple explanations are not enough to get a good enough picture. I would recommend people to start from the beginning and work their way here.

There's a consistency to the series that feels rewarding without becoming monotonous. I

I received an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

This was the first Marc Cameron book have read.. Arliss Cutter is a Federal Marshall in Alaska. He works with a younger woman who he feels responsible for. He is also has accepted the responsibility of being a father figure to his dead brother's children. I liked all the characters, the plot was good, and the end had some hints of further books in this series. I did feel that there were a lot of people to keep track of that just showed up--maybe they were from previous books, but it was distracting for a newbie. There was also lots and lots of discussions about preparations for missions. I recognize all that equipment was necessary, but I did not need all those details. Otherwise, it was a good story, and I would read another one. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc with no pressure for a positive review

This is the newest installment in the Arliss Cutter series. I think this is my new favorite fictional detective. Arliss Cutter us a US Marshal who works in Alaska with is partner, Lola Teariki. The state of Alaska, with its dramatic weather, also seems to be its own character in these novels.

I love the writing style and the fact that this character regularly uses tracking skills in the books. I know a co-worker of the author who is a tracker and consulted on the books, so it's just fun to read the skill and see it being accurately portrayed in a fictional story.

The Marshals are in pursuit of a fugitive who is an ex-law enforcement office and knows how to evade them. They have their hands full as he sets up traps to slow them down, including dunking Lola in freezing water after breaking through the ice. Meanwhile, Arliss has some family issues going on, including his mother showing up after many years of being absent. There is a side plot involving a federally protected witness as well. The author weaves all the threads together by the end, in a neat bit of storytelling. The scenes out on the frozen tundra at over 70 degrees below are tense!

This is an excellent series and I can't recommend it enough!

Marc Cameron is perfecting Arliss Cutter in his latest installment. Likewise Cutter’s sidekick Lola Teariki, who is falling into frozen water, working out like a banshee, and once again with Cutter on the manhunt team. However, the main character is the weather, specifically the extraordinary frigid temperature which controls everything. What these US Marshalls do in the frigid realms of Alaska is courageous, but when you factor in the plummeting temperatures it all seems next to impossible. Challenge after challenge is thrown their way. At these temperatures, things don’t start, don’t work or they shatter and break. There is no normal but there is danger, lots of it.

This story, which is part mystery, part thriller and part law enforcement procedural, is woven seamless into an interesting, informative and gripping race through the Arctic wilderness to capture a criminal or two. This seventh installment finesses the building familial and romantic relationships. Cameron has written another great multifaceted adventure.

I want to thank Kensington Publishing Corp and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

Dead Line continues the adventures of Deputy U.S. Marshal Arliss Cutter in Alaska's wild north. The deputy is once again tasked with finding a fugitive that has escaped the 'Lower 48' for the wilderness of Alaska. Cutter is joined by Marshal, Lola Teariki, once again to battle their way across the frozen tundra. This time they aren't just fighting the bad guys, but the weather is heading to 70 below. Cold will definitely be a factor in this fight for survival.

The killer seems to be one step ahead of them at every turn and those closest to the guy, will not talk to the Marshals. Everyone is scared of who the killer has backing him. But being caught doesn't buy the criminals some freedom as they are one by one killed. Someone isn't taking any chances.

They eventually catch the killer, but they find they have more questions than answers to who is pulling the strings. So there is little satisfaction about a job well done, because they know that over the horizon is someone with the power to have killed at will anyone they want killed. Who is it will probably be answered in the next Arliss Cutter novel. I do love that we are left wanting more.

Ice in His Veins: A Review of Marc Cameron’s Dead Line

Forget fire and brimstone; the most terrifying hell is a frozen one, and Marc Cameron plunges readers headfirst into it in his latest Arliss Cutter novel, Dead Line. This isn’t just another high-octane thriller; it’s a brutal, brilliantly paced story of survival where the unforgiving Alaskan wilderness is as formidable an antagonist as any of the killers Cutter is hunting.


A Setting That Bites Back
The real star of Dead Line is the Alaskan wilderness itself. Cameron’s depiction of the extreme, life-threatening cold is a palpable presence throughout the novel. With temperatures dropping to a staggering seventy-two degrees below zero, the environment becomes a character, shattering equipment, grounding aircraft, and turning the simplest mistake into a fatal one. The constant, oppressive threat of the cold adds a unique and visceral layer of tension that elevates the story beyond a typical manhunt into a primal struggle for survival.

A Hero Forged in the Cold
Supervisory Deputy US Marshal Arliss Cutter is the anchor of the series, and he is in top form here. He is a man of quiet competence and deep-seated loyalty, burdened by a past that has taught him the true cost of failure. In Dead Line, Cameron masterfully balances Cutter’s tactical prowess with a tidal wave of personal complications that make him feel grounded and deeply human. He’s not a superhero; he’s a highly skilled professional trying to do the right thing while his world, both professionally and personally, threatens to fracture around him.

A Masterclass in Pacing and Plot
What truly sets Dead Line apart is its high-wire act of narrative juggling. Cameron presents two seemingly disconnected, high-stakes storylines: Cutter’s relentless pursuit of a fugitive ex-cop in the Alaskan backcountry and the desperate journey of a federal witness trying to reunite with his mother. The suspense builds relentlessly as the book alternates between these threads, leaving the reader to wonder how—or if—they will ever connect. The way Cameron weaves them together into a spectacular, frozen finale is a testament to his skill as a storyteller.

The Verdict
For fans of high-stakes, intelligent thrillers that prioritize authentic characters and nail-biting tension, Dead Line is an absolute must-read. It’s a story that will leave you breathless—both from the relentless action and the bone-deep chill that seeps from its pages. Marc Cameron is at the top of his game, and Arliss Cutter is a hero you’ll want to follow into the punishing, unforgiving cold.

Although Dead Line takes place in temperatures as low as 72 degrees below zero, it is easy to warm up to this action and adventure thriller despite the bad guys (and women) being cold-hearted, ice-cold killers.
In his seventh book of the series, Deputy US Marshall Arliss Cutter, head of the Fugitive Task Force, raised in the swamps of Florida, former military and an accomplished tracker, and his partner, Deputy US Marshall Lola Teariki, is assigned to locate a government witness gone missing. Sam Lujan, 24 years old, had been placed in WITSEC, the witness protection program, after testifying, four years earlier, against a Polish Mafia gangster who was later murdered in prison. Valerie Kot is the daughter of that man and she wants revenge for her father. Valerie hires a team of hit men and women to carry out that murder. Arliss and Lola soon realize that they must deal with a group of assassins and that they are now on a rescue mission. To complicate matters, Sam, wanting to see his mother again after so many years, provides her with his location in Alaska and now both he and his mother are on the run.
Butch Pritchard, one of the hitmen, is wanted for the murder of a pregnant woman in Missouri while Royce Decker, former St. Louis Metro PD Swat Sniper, the man who hired Butch for the murder, is the husband of the dead woman (that’s a cold blooded murder for sure). The US Marshall come to realize that Butch is running from another unidentified killer, one he fears much more the Royce.
The two Aussie hitwomen are sisters, Mads and Browny. They are psychopaths and admittedly, characters that were satisfyingly unique, as was their method of killing.
The weather itself, with each chapter providing the temperature, is an antagonist in the story. It is more of a nemesis to Arliss and Lola than the villains. The 58 below temperature poses a danger to them as well as to those that they hunt and to those they must save. There are detailed descriptions of their Arctic clothing and the effect of the cold on their equipment. Of course there are descriptions of the toll the extreme cold takes on bodies and there are a few frozen dead bodies as examples. The weather is as cutthroat as the assassins. The memory of it all is giving my fingers frostbite as I type this.
The relationship between Arliss and Lola, Arliss and Mim, the woman he has always loved and is his brother’s widow, (now that’s cold!), and Arliss and his mother, who is back in his life after abandoning him as a child (even colder), play a large part in the story and help the reader to get to know Arliss. Lola and Arliss are a remarkable team and Lola, still new to the job, is a wonderful female character, “kiwi” accent and all. She’s not afraid to say what’s on her mind while being fearless, stalwart, stoic and as stubborn and perseverant as Arliss. Any man, or US Marshall, would be fortunate to have her as his partner.
Much as with Marvel movies, don’t think it’s over when it’s over. Stay past the closing page to find the recipe for Aunt Chester Mae’s Rich Chocolate Cream Pie.
This was my first Arliss Cutter book but it will not be the last. Dead Line is a quick paced police procedural crime novel that will appeal to both men and women.
I want to thank NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for an advance copy of Marc Cameron’s novel. This is my honest review of Dead Line.

I need to thank NetGalley and the publisher Kensington for the privilege of granting me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This author continues to deliver satisfying crime novels with a good mixture of heart with family dynamics. Once again during the hot days of summer, the author delivers with another gem set in frozen Alaska. As the temperature drops to temperatures that are unfathomable, the suspense only heats up.

The novel begins, like the last novel, with Deputy US Marshals, Arliss and Lola, pursuing a fugitive in Alaska. The fugitive, Butch Richmond, is a hired assassin who murdered recently a twenty-five-year-old woman in her sleep in Missouri. The woman was four months pregnant. Arliss behind the wheel has lost radio contact with Lola, who is now on foot chasing the fugitive. While they want to capture this fugitive, they are more interested in capturing this fugitive to learn more about the person who paid for the hit, Royce Decker, the late wife’s husband and a former ST Louis Metro PD SWAT sniper. While Butch gets away, they capture his accomplice, who is deadly afraid of something more than the US Marshalls that captured him. So begins the hunt for an assassin that hopefully will lead them to their main target Royce Decker, a corrupt cop that needs to be stopped.

While I found enjoyable the main plot of the manhunt for Royce Decker, I find most appealing with this author’s work is how he shows us the human side of many of the criminals. You understand the motives of many of the criminals in the novel that gives them some depth. For example, you have Bobby Gant, a member of the Kot criminal organization, who has been given the task of surveilling for many years Josie Lujan to hopefully lead them to Sam Lujan, her son, who is under Witness Protection and former member of the KOT criminal organization. Gant, after many years, has started to have an emotional connection to Josie. But after he gets the break they have been looking for and a lead on Sam’s location, he is torn because he knows this is going to end in bloodshed if his boss has anything to say about it.

Besides these plotlines, the author mixes in some family drama that humanizes Arliss. Besides having to deal with hunting dangerous criminals in an unwelcoming Alaskan winter, he needs to come to terms with his mother, who abandoned him when he was very young, coming back into his life. There are some wonderful quiet scenes in this novel to where you see Arliss not as the gun-toting US Marshal to save the day, but also a man with emotional baggage- whether that is coping with his mother coming back into his life, his sometimes rocky relationship with his Mim, his late brother’s wife, or his relationship with Lola, his partner that can become testy at times because he sees her more like a daughter and doesn’t want to see anything bad happen to her. Because the author takes time with showing us Arliss’s family life, it helps the reader be more invested in the character as his childhood has molded him into the person he is today, for better or worse.

The only complaint is that while the novel resolves the main storylines, it hints at early a storyline of a mysterious person who many fear more than law enforcement that is not resolved by the end of the novel and leaves the reader having to wait for the next novel to continue the adventures of Arliss Cutter and his partner, Lola Teariki.

I hate having to wait to see what the author has in mind for his characters next. I hope we can expect another novel in the series next summer to cool off with.

Nothing better than a modern Western with a U.S. Marshal's set in the wild's of Alaska, with Arliss Cutter and Lola Teariki, they're tough as nail's, make a great team and they're no escape when they get on your trail.

Finally the author let's his US Deputy Marshall Arliss Cutter live up to his character being tough as nails, invincible, and doesn't have bad things happening to him. Where he gets injuries, in situations that using the author's own words contradict how badass he is and thankfully he didn't lose Grandpa Grumpy's Colt Python.

Totally like this series, the author done a great job with the Arliss Cutter series, creates great character's Mim's and her kids add to the story line and makes the bad characters seem so real. Nothing better than a read that's good verse evil, one were the good guys and gals win.

Thank you Marc Cameron, Kensington Publishing, and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Another top notch Alaskan adventure for Marshals Cutter and Lola. Arliss is one of my favorite characters to follow along with in these novels. Marc Cameron does such a wonderful job recreating the wild, untamed locale of Alaska and the environments impact on their fugitive hunting. Are we left with hints that the toughest and most ruthless villains are on a collision course for the next encounter??

This is the 7th book in the Arliss Cutter series. This one took a while to get going and didn't flow as well as the previous ones. Still, a good adventure with a cliffhanger at the end. I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Marc Cameron never disappoints and he hits a home run with the 7th book in his Arliss Cutter series. In my opinion there are multiple plot lines in this book, which keeps the story moving at a quick clip and sets up this series for the long haul and more books to come. Arliss continues to hunt fugitives, this time a murderer and the corrupt cop that arranged for the killing. There's a parallel plot line involving a man in witness protection and the gang that's trying to find him. The third main character/plot in this novel is the weather. I don't recall the Alaskan weather and geography ever playing such an active role in these novels and it added depth and uncertainty to the story. Add in the appearance of Arliss' mother who has her own surprises to share and his evolving relationship with Mim and this book is chock full of twists and surprises. I zoomed through this engaging novel only to want more at the end.

Bitterly cold chase for a killer in the Alaska wilderness

Supervisory Deputy US Marshal Arliss Cutter confronts brutal -72F conditions in his hunt for a murdering ex-cop. He and his partner, Deputy Marshal Lola Teariki, are on their most dangerous case yet. If the fugitive doesn’t kill them, the cold may. Lola's impulsive pursuit of a fleeing target endangers both her and Cutter. Dead Line is an excellent addition to the Arliss Cutter series. It delivers non-stop action and many twisting and intersecting plots.

Cutter and Teariki are part of a fugitive task force tasked with bringing in Royce Decker. The fast-paced, intense chase leads them from Anchorage to the bone-chilling wilderness near Fairbanks. There are more menacing dangers than Decker and the unforgiving cold. Who are the two deadly sisters, Mads and Browny?

What I love about the Arliss Cutter books is the glimpses into Arliss’s home life and how he became the way he is. Arliss is one of those stoic, silent, man’s-man type of heroes, but underneath the outer layer lies a man with deep emotions and loyalties. He has a complicated past and is in love with his brother’s widow. His mother has reappeared after abandoning Arliss as a young boy. Underlying all the action in the book is a recurring theme of mothers' choices and the impact on their children.

Marc Cameron, a former US Marshal in Alaska, brings an authenticity to the reality of policing in a brutal climate that can’t be missed. His descriptions of the effect of the unrelenting cold on humans and equipment are dead on. I could almost feel my nostrils sticking together and the pain in my lungs from drawing a breath. Fans of Paul Doiron’s Mike Bowditch and CJ Box’s Joe Pickett books will enjoy Dead Line.

Thank you to Kensington Books for providing access to a digital ARC on NetGalley.

A hunt for a trained killer is made worse by extreme weather conditions

The latest assignment for Deputy US Marshal Arliss Cutter and his partner Lola Teariki is to track down two men, a hired killer named Butch Pritchard and the man who paid Pritchard to kill his pregnant wife, former Missouri police officer and SWAT sniper Royce Decker. Both of these men will be difficult to capture, and tracking them through the brutal conditions of an Alaskan winter means that the marshals are up against an inhospitable Mother Nature as well. At the same time Sam Lujan, a young Apache man who provided evidence to convict a ruthless criminal in New York and has been living a quiet life in central Alaska under the protection of the Witness Protection Program, has just made a potentially fatal mistake...lonely in his new life far from home, he told his mother where he is living and invited her to come visit. A whole pack of killers and thugs are now on his trail as well. Cutter and Teariki must find their way to Lujan to make sure that he is safe and if needed to protect him. Few are as capable a tracker as Arliss Cutter, and neither he nor Teariki are ones to back down from a fight even against terrible odds....but have they finally met their match when nature and evil men are trying to kill them?
This is the seventh installment in the Arliss Cutter series, another fast-paced thriller that melds law enforcement procedure and the rugged Alaskan terrain. Author Marc Cameron's love of that corner of the world is evident and it is clear that there is incredible beauty there (but I'm going to be honest, I don't think I can work up the enthusiasm to visit a place where the temperatures can hit -58 degrees F....I'm shivering just thinking about it!). Mixed in with the dogged pursuit of the two fugitive killers and the search for a witness who has unknowingly given the woman who wants him to die painfully his location are the challenges in Cutter's personal life, namely his burgeoning relationship with the woman he's loved all his life (who just happens to be his late brother's widow) and the recent reappearance in his life of the mother who abandoned him and his brother when they were young (and whose main reason for showing up is to ask him to help her find her missing daughter, the half-sister Cutter didn't know existed...which is a request that takes chutzpah to ask of the child you left behind). Cameron's own experience as a marshal brings authenticity to the many details of the story, and the setting is as much a character in the tale as are the people. I found this to be another solid and enjoyable adventure, one likely to appeal not only to fans of the series but also to readers of Paul Doiron, William Kent Krueger and C. J. Box. Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for allowing me access to this gripping read in exchange for my honest review.

Another exciting episode in the US Marshalls series featuring Arliss Cutter. These books are set in Alaska where nature is always a big factor and never more so than in this story where the temperature bottoms out at minus seventy-two degrees! There's lots going on in this novel, making for some real page-turning action. I also enjoy the relationship development ongoing from book to book. If you are new to the series, I'd recommend starting with book one so you don't miss any of that.

Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new thriller via NetGalley. I'm sort of glad I read it during our hot, humid summer weather instead of in the dead of winter, lol. And thanks to the author for the family recipes he shares in each book. This time it's for Aunt Chester Mae's Rich Chocolate Cream Pie. (But I have to say I've stopped using Crisco after learning how bad it is for our bodies so I'll have to make a different pie crust if I make this recipe.)

This is a very good story with excellent characters; easy to read, entertaining, and with a good pace. The problem is the jumping around in time, especially when it's only for the descriptions of marginal characters.

Having just returned from a vacation in Alaska, I was interested in all the Arliss Cutter books by Marc Cameron. I discovered Cameron thanks to a visit to Northern Knives in Anchorage which was Cutter's shop of choice for knives. They featured his books in a display along with knives tied to the books.

I read Dead Line after reading the six preceding books in the series. As such, I got a good feel for Cameron's writing, his character development, and his accuracy in details about Alaska. Nothing is more frustrating than to read a book set in a certain area and the author totally gets the facts about the local geography wrong.

Cutter has a deep love, though unrequited, for his sister-in-law Mim whom he met as a 16 year old in a Florida bait shop. His late brother was faster off the mark and she ultimately married him and not Arliss. After his brother was killed in an explosion on the North Slope where he was working as an engineer, Arliss, a Deputy US Marshal, transferred to the District of Alaska to help out his widowed sister-in-law and his niece and twin nephews. Earlier books in the series solve his brother's death and the relationship between Mim and Arliss begins to evolve. I won't spoil the cliff hanger in this book by saying more.

Another family member who appears in this book is his mother Ursala who abandoned Cutter and his brother at a young age. They were raised by his grandfather affectionately known as Grumpy. After being out of his life for years, she dropped in unannounced with a request that he find his half-sister. Part of this book is devoted to explaining why she disappeared from the Cutter brothers' lives.

Arliss is both a supervisor and mentor to a younger deputy marshal by the name of Lola Teariki who is part Cook Island Maori and part Japanese. In this book, they are tasked with finding a fugitive murderer and then saving a guy and his mom who are in the Witness Protection Program. This brings them to the Fairbanks area where they face brutal winter conditions.

All in all, Dead Line is a good read and not just a dashed off sequel. It has good pacing, interesting characters, and a couple of good cliffhangers that make you want more.