OMG- where has this series been all my life? Why am I only now reading it, and why can't I seem to book the books down? I am talking about Kelley Armstrong's Rockton Series, and the book that started it all City of the Lost.

Kelley Armstrong is a Canadian author and a New York Times Bestselling author. She has over 11 different series, as well as numerous stand alone novels. According to her website, she has always been interested in writing, but stories that were supposed to be about dolls turned into stories about undead and evil dolls. She is currently married, and lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and three children.

I have no idea how I stumbled on this series, but I am so glad I did. I will chalk it up to my new job and it's long commute (2 hours one way), and my desperation at having something to read during the drive. I have been adding multiple books when I search the OverDrive app's "available now" collection in audio books. I have to. I cannot do this commute without stories. The other day, my eye caught City of the Lost, and I took a gamble.

Casey Duncan killed a man. That is no secret. She killed her former boyfriend who was peddling drugs in someone else's turf. When the pair got confronted in a darkened alley, her boyfriend ran and left her to be raped and beaten within an inch of her life. After she got out of the hospital, she took a gun with her to confront her boyfriend. That confrontation ended in his death, but she was never caught.

Fast forward- Casey and her friend Diana are in their 30's. Casey is a successful homicide detective, "dating" an ex-con, and playing Russian Roulette with a new shrink by telling her that she is a killer. Diana's abusive ex-husband is back in the picture and Casey attempts to warn him off. That doesn't work and Diana gets hurt. Casey and her "boyfriend" also gets shot at, leading Casey to believe that they have finally figured out she killed her boyfriend all those years ago and it's finally time to get out of dodge.

Diana refers them to this super secret organization that accepts people into their community who want to disappear. The catch- they don't want either Diana or Casey. Money talks though, and Casey also agrees to end her stay after 6 months. Which is absolutely fine with Casey, because the Sheriff of this new place (Rockton), Eric Dalton, sounds like an asshole.

Rockton is a hidden place in the middle of the Yukon. There is no electricity, internet, and everyone is off the grid. There's about 200 people in Rockton, and the town is run by Sheriff Eric Dalton, "Entrepreneur" Isabel, Communications Liaison Val, and Deputy Will Anders. And now Casey. The thing about Rockton is that many are escaping bad situations. Some though are there because they paid their way in and are more nefarious than they appear.

Okay- so now that you have the idea, I loved this book and I have already finished book 2 and book 3. I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down. I loved the mystery component to the crime that was committed. I loved the background and premise of the town. Reminds me of a weird Utopian society. I think the biggest thing I enjoyed was the relationship between Eric and Casey. My husband and I have a very honest relationship. Like brutally honest, and I know it is a rare thing. Eric and Casey have that same type of relationship. Eric was "born and raised" in Rockton and does not feed into the "games" that people may engage in from the "South." The setting is also one I love- the Yukon. The middle of nowhere. Nature in the raw. It is an area where Casey can heal and rediscover herself. I can picture this place, I can smell this place, and I want to go visit this place.

I could go on. Go check it out and read it for yourself. You won't regret it.

Happy Reading.

Hession

https://www.hessionsreadingworld.com/2020/08/city-of-lost-rockton-1.html