Reviews with content warning for Murder - The Boy Who Cried Bear

I have been a big fan of Kelley Armstrong for years. I fell in love with Casey Butler and Eric Dalton with her Rockton series and have been just as engaged with the Havens Rock spin-off.

The Boy Who Cried Bear is a fast paced mystery thriller in the deep Canadian wilderness written with care, knowledge of the region and a good sense of humor.

Haven's Rock was supposed to be a new lease on life for the residents of Rockton who weren't ready to return down south. Eric and Casey have been working hard to build a safe town for those who need safety and for the first time there are children in their secret remote refuge.

When one of those children sees a bear, a man? A bear-man? The town gets together to start looking. When that child goes missing a few days later, things get even more tense. With the suspicious miners a few miles away, a relatively unknown terrain and a few residents creating more trouble than they're worth Eric and Casey have their work cut out for them

An excellent addition to Armstrong's repertoire and I can't wait for the next installment. Therese Plummer is the perfect narrator for the series (outside her incorrect pronunciation of Newfoundland — it's not New-fin-land) and Armstrong knows how to balance high tension with great character dialogue.

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jocelyn62013's review against another edition

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medium-paced

4.0

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blueskyvibes1point0's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

**This is book 2 in the Haven’s Rock series. It is a standalone story but there is a connecting story arc so I recommend that you start with book 1, Murder at Haven’s Rock.**

In the wilderness town of Haven’s Rock, Detective Casey Duncan and Sheriff Eric Dalton find solace in its familiar surroundings, reminiscent of their past in Rockton. As they settle into their roles, they recognize the importance of safety in the wilderness, especially for residents unfamiliar with its dangers. When Max, the town’s youngest member, alerts them to a possible bear threat with human-like eyes, Casey and Eric delve into investigating, wary of the peculiar events unfolding around them, including the discovery of a dead body.

Rating:

1. Plot and Storytelling: 3/5. The plot was well developed and written, but it didn't quite resonate with me as much as other books in the Rockton/Havens rock series.

2. Characterization: 5/5 I adore Casey, Will, and Sheriff Dalton, and witnessing their growth throughout the series has been captivating. This book particularly marks significant changes for Casey and Dalton, and I'm eager to see how their journeys unfold together.

3. Writing Style: 5/5 Kelley Armstrong's writing style is a delight for me. It's wonderfully paced, engaging, descriptive, and encompasses everything I look for in a book.

4. Originality: 4/5 The mystery in this book brings a unique twist, and the setting presents intriguing challenges for both the reader and the author. Overall, I found it refreshingly original.

5. Emotional Impact and Resolution: 3/5 While I thoroughly enjoyed the book, it didn't evoke strong emotions in me one way or another. However, I appreciated the well-wrapped-up resolution and look forward to seeing how the interpersonal relationships and character journeys unfold in the future.

Overall score: 4/5

If you enjoyed this book, I do recommend that you check out the beginning of the series in Stockton Kelley Armstrong also has a supernatural series, the otherworld, that exhibits her strong writing and storytelling style.

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pagesofkenzie's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

“We underestimated the human capacity for blame. In the real world, I wouldn’t have made that mistake. I’ve seen how the most innocent of victims are treated…No crime is so horrific that someone won’t blame the victim.”

First off, thank you @minotaur_books @netgalley and @kelleyarmstrongauthor for the advanced copy of A Boy Who Cried Bear in exchange for an honest review.

The Boy Who Cried Bear is the second book in the Rockton spin off series, Haven’s Rock.

If you have seen my review of the first book in this series you would known that I was apprehensive about this spinoff at first. I felt that Rockton had run it’s course & I wasn’t sure how a new spin off series would work. But boy did it work!

The mix of old faces from Rockton with new characters, original to Haven’s Rock, allows for more diverse characters allowing for complex themes to arise in this series that were only lightly touched on before. Which is exactly why I’m rating this five stars. Armstrong is not shying away from important conversations, nor beating her readers over the head with them. She is able to balance important social commentary that has the reader self reflecting while enjoying a well paced story.

Because, not only are we seeing rare disability rep in regards to Parkinson’s Disease, Prosopagnosia, and Autism but the central theme of this particular novel revolves around the treatment of a Latinx mother and the damage that racial stereotypes have on protecting victims, especially those part of marginalized communities.

Besides the above mentioned, the story is well written, we have fantastic character development, the pacing is spot on and that ending leaves you with so many questions that you need more.

I will mention that this series is not without its content warnings. There are some very dark themes here that I haven’t even mentioned so I strongly suggest checking out the warnings before reading. StoryGraph is a fantastic place for this!

But overall I’m very excited to see where this series goes!

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bailsandherbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

4.0

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