Cold Heart Creek

This seventh addition of the Detective Josie Quinn series pulls Josie and her team into a double homicide at an isolated campsite that makes them question whether there was a third person who escaped. This leads the team down a rabbit hole that includes a reclusive commune with a cultish vibe and suspicious air.

I enjoy this series that balances police procedural with a main character in Josie who has more than her share of emotional trauma, but this installment didn't hit as hard as some of the others. There was less tension and no real nail-biter moments, and I wish there was more involvement from the secondary cast who usually surround Josie. Perhaps it was because I read this book in bits and pieces during my vacation in Iceland, but I found I struggled to remember who was who. 

While this wasn't my favourite book in the series, it does provide some closure for Josie, and I look forward to reading the next books which eagerly await me on my kindle.

Note: I strongly recommend you read this series in order

My Rating: 3 stars

Author: Lisa Regan

Genre: Suspense

Series: Detective Josie Quinn 7

Type and Source: ebook, personal copy

Publisher: Bookouture

First Published: Dec 2, 2019

Read: Aug 7-15, 2025

Book Description from GoodReads: As the sun rises, the last glow of the campfire is just visible through the mist and the trees. The young couple are laid out on their backs beside the small blue tent, their hands clasped between them, their eyes open, their hearts cold…

When a park ranger stumbles across the bodies of newlyweds Valerie and Tyler Yates by a creek in the small town of Denton, Detective Josie Quinn is first on the scene. Still reeling from the news that her abusive mother is dying, Josie suspects this is more than just accidental poisoning, and she’s right: someone jammed a crudely carved pendant necklace down Valerie’s throat before she died.

Combing the area, Josie’s team discover a third sleeping bag indicating there could have been an extra guest around the fire that night. A lucky escape? A missing victim? Or a suspect on the run? Finding this person is the key to the entire investigation…

The trail leads Josie to the gates of a farmhouse hidden deep within the forest – a special place where people go to escape, and to hide. There is a young girl there with frightened eyes and bandaged wrists who knows more than she is saying, but the next day she’s found dead, choked with a matching necklace…

With her mother’s life hanging by a thread, Josie has an impossible decision to make as she races to find the meaning of the pendant and catch this twisted killer before another innocent life is taken – but is she already too late?

An addictive and gripping crime thriller from an Amazon, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Readers who love Robert Dugoni, Angela Marsons and Rachel Caine will be sleeping with the lights on after this rollercoaster of a read.