The Deepest of Secrets (Rockton 7) by Kelley Armstrong-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 15, 2022

It’s not always easy to live in the hidden town of Rockton, something Detective Casey Duncan knows firsthand. Tucked away in the Yukon wilderness, the community survives—and thrives—because the residents’ many secrets stay just that—secret.

But what happens when these secrets start to come out? Overnight, no one is safe. It’s not a question of if your secret will come out—but when.

Casey and her boyfriend, Sheriff Eric Dalton, need to find the culprit while protecting those who have been thrust into the spotlight. For a place built on privacy and new beginnings, Rockton isn’t handling these revelations very well. People are turning on one another, and when one of the loudest complainers turns up barely alive, it’s clear that their trickster is actually a murderer.

The threat of exposure is reaching its breaking point, and no one knows what’s going to happen next.

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REVIEW:THE DEEPEST OF SECRETS is the seventh and final (?) instalment in Kelley Armstrong’s contemporary, adult ROCKTON mystery, thriller, suspense series focusing on the fictional town of Rockton, in the Yukon.

SOME BACKGROUND: Rockton Yukon does not exist on any map, and the residents all have a questionable past, fake names and false histories. Most were once considered to be white collar crimes but with increasing regularity, hardened criminals have somehow paid their way into Rockton, seeking sanctuary against future prosecution, a safe place for two years before seeking asylum somewhere else. Built in the 1950s, Rockton is a refuge for people in trouble but a refuge run by a ‘council’ with the ultimate control, moving Rockton from a commune into a for-profit institution. Entirely off-grid, with no modern amenities, Rockton’s secrets are about to be exposed.

NOTE: If you are new to the series, the author offers up an introductory chapter focusing on the history of Rockton, and the key residents who have made a name for themselves throughout the series including Detective Casey Butler and her partner Eric Dalton..

Told from first person perspective (Detective Casey Duncan Butler) THE DEEPEST OF SECRETS focuses on the search for a killer who is targeting the residents of Rockton, Yukon, taking aim at the people in charge. Someone has uncovered the truth, the backgrounds and crimes, about several residents of Rockton, and in this, the remaining people have taken it upon themselves to ferret out the person responsible, targeting the ‘guilty’ before any chance at redemption. The once tepid relationships between the residents is threatened when betrayal reveals a murderer among them, someone who they believe has not paid for their crime but as a number of residents find themselves the victim of a potential killer, the council steps in to shut down a town that doesn’t exist. As Casey, and her partner/ common-law husband Sheriff Erin Dalton begin an investigation, people begin disappearing, and the number of suspects grows with every clue.

THE DEEPEST OF SECRETS is a story of betrayal and vengeance, power and control, murder and obsession, distrust and uncertainty, innocence and guilt. Kelley Armstrong pulls the reader into an intriguing, twisted and haunting tale of what if? Or how? A thought provoking series wherein if you were able to disappear without a trace, would you? Could you? Without any thoughts about who or what you left behind. The premise is detailed, intense, dramatic and original; the characters are spirited, edgy and often tragic. THE DEEPEST OF SECRETS is open ended, the main characters are considering their next step, outside of Rockton Yukon.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy