The law enforcement team of the small town of Rockton tucked far away in the Yukon Territory have a few days off as the residents remain well-behaved during the lead up to the winter solstice. The Sheriff and detective maintain a professional and personal relationship and have taken the time to spend some much needed time reconnecting away from the prying eyes of town. Just as they’re relaxing into their trip, they’re interrupted by the discovery of a newborn baby, clutched to the chest of a dead woman, both abandoned in the woods. Though the woman is not a town resident, Casey takes on the case to figure out who killed the woman by tracking down the baby’s parents. The trail will take her through all the off-shoots of friendly settlements in the area, and some of the wilder, hostile groups, and Casey will have to decipher the stories she’s told in order to find the truth. Casey and Eric will also have to contend with the possibility that they may not find the parents, and ask each other if they’d be ready to become parents themselves.

The latest Rockton novel holds true to the series in style and scope and heart racing intensity. While it kept me hooked, the know-it-all tendency Casey has to read and break down situations immediately as well as the innumerable coincidences in Eric’s knowledge and the general entanglements of various groups here started to irk me. I will definitely keep reading Casey’s story as I’ve made it this far, but hoping for a more polished edit in the next!