Sunday, October 4, 2020

Chilling suspense...

 "This could be the work of a madman, Tana. A bizarre, ritualistic serial murderer working in remote locations and using wild animals to cover his work."


 In the Barrens, a remote wilderness area on the border of the Arctic Circle, two biology students are found dead, mauled by wolves. Or maybe by a bear. It's hard for Constable Tana Larsson, a rookie RCMP who just started working in Two Rivers, a small town in the Northwest Territories of Canada, to determine just what caused the grisly attacks. Especially when she learns there were two similar attacks four years earlier. But when she starts to investigate, no one in town seems very happy about it. Especially not Cameron "Crash" O'Halloran, a local bush pilot who she suspects of illegally flying in alcohol to Twin Rivers, among other things. For some reason Tana seems to bring out the worst in him. (Although when he finds out she's five months pregnant he suddenly gets very protective of her.) She can't trust him. She can't trust the diamond company mining diamonds in the area. And the locals keep telling her to leave it alone before she stirs up the ancient spirits that haunt the Barrens. But Tana can't let it go. No matter how dangerous it gets.

In the Barren Ground by Loreth Anne White is a chilling and suspenseful mystery. It's also a novel about imperfect and flawed characters who have made mistakes in the past and who are seeking a second chance in life. I liked both Tana and Crash. They're such a study in contrasts. Tana is young and earnest and struggling to prove herself; Crash is older, cynical, and he has his own secret agenda for being in Twin Rivers. I loved watching how their antagonistic relationship gradually changed to a partnership of cautious respect and deepening friendship. I also loved the remote setting and how it played such a significant role in this novel. And that ending! It's a good one. I'd give this book at least 4 stars.

Happy Reading!

32 comments:

  1. I've read two of her books so far and I love her writing. I've this book on order and am waiting for its arrival. Glad you enjoyed this one! :)

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  2. I read this one in the spring, and I liked it, too. Love the setting.

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    1. It was the setting that made me want to read this one so much! All that arctic isolation. :)

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  3. This sounds great! The isolated arctic setting really has me curious. :)

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    1. The setting is definitely one of the reasons I checked this one out! :)

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  4. I think I might like that one. It sounds pretty good.

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    1. It's an intense mystery with great characters and an intriguing setting. All things I like. :)

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  5. The setting of this one is one I find fascinating. I can't even imagine how people live in that kind of cold...but then again, one of our fellow book bloggers lives in Yellowknife, up in the Northwest Territories of Canada.

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    1. That's true! One of the characters in this book grew up in Yellowknife. :)

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  6. I would imagine that this type of story would worn well set in arctic wilderness. I think that an author could create a very atmospheric book.

    I guess that when it comes to this type of story, animal attacks are almost never really animal attacks.

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    1. This book is very atmospheric! And suspenseful, too. :)

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  7. Oooh, I love arctic wilderness settings for books. I shall look this one up!

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    1. There's something intriguing about arctic wilderness settings, isn't there? (I like books set in Antarctica, too!)

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  8. Oh i like stories set in remote areas like this, and especially if they really deliver the suspense. This is a good one to know about!

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    1. Remote settings are the best, aren't they? :)

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  9. Not sure I am a fan of remote settings like this, but Tana and Crash sound interesting — and I like their contrasts.

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  10. This sounds fantastic. It's already on my TBR list and I can't wait to read it! Glad you enjoyed.

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  11. I really love that kind of cover, that sense of isolation and suspense!

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  12. I like characters that are flawed--it makes them more realistic. This sounds like a great read, Lark. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on it with us!

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    1. Their flaws always make characters more human. And I'm a very character-driven reader. :)

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  13. I'm a big fan of Loreth Anne White's stories, and I liked this one, but it wasn't my favorite from her. The romance was the hang-up for me. It was disappointing that Tana doubted Crash for so long. Hard to buy into a romance when there isn't trust between characters. Still, this was creepy and I liked that. It really reminded me of 30 Days of Night, the horror movie.

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    1. The mystery part of this one was very creepy. The romance part didn't bug me quite as much, but then I wasn't expecting a lot of romance in this one, so maybe that's why.

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  14. You kind of had me at the cover because I'm a sucker for books with cold snowy setting. Sounds good and I do tend to like flawed characters.

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    1. I love books with cold snowy settings, too! :)

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  15. This sounds excellent - I love suspense and flawed characters!! I also love settings in the far north.

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    1. The setting was so great! And I like flawed characters, too, especially ones I find myself rooting for. :)

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  16. Sounds like a good thriller. I haven't read anything by this author but I'm sure I have another book on my shelf.

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    1. She's written a lot. I haven't read any of her other books, but I want to now. :)

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