14. A Stranger in Town by Kelley Armstrong

#6 Rockton

listened via Libby/Library
narrated by Therese Plummer
Unabridged audio (10:46)
2021
368 pgs.
Adult Mystery series
Finished 2/18/2021
Goodreads rating: 4.23 - 2032 ratings
My rating: 4.5
Setting: Contemporary Canadian wilderness

First line/s: "As we hitch our horses to a lodgepole pine, shouts and laughter float over on the night breeze."

My comments: This installment has you thinking...a lot...about the "idea" of Rockton.  Casey solves the questions that has always bugged all of them about how the hostiles came to be.  Bears abound in this one, as well as a more clear understanding of settlements one and two and the hostiles.  The ending leaves us with the possibility of Casey and Dalton helping to create a "new Rockton" with the base of most important characters the story has introduced so far.  I get a little bored with some of the descriptions in the woods, but everything else came together quite well.  Unfortunately, it'll be another whole year before the next segment, darn it!

Goodreads synopsis:  Detective Casey Duncan has noticed fewer and fewer residents coming in to the hidden town of Rockton, and no extensions being granted. Her boyfriend, Sheriff Eric Dalton, presumes it’s the natural flux of things, but Casey’s not so sure. Something bigger is happening in the small town they call home.

          When an injured hiker stumbles from the woods, the sole survivor of a hostile attack, it’s all hands on deck. Even a member of the elusive Rockton council comes in to help. This council member also comes bearing news: Rockton is being shut down due to the hostile situation.
          Casey and Eric must now race to save the town that has allowed residents to have a fresh start, away from the mistakes of their past, while also getting to the bottom of this latest attack.