Publishers Weekly
11/29/2021
In bestseller Armstrong’s explosive follow-up to 2021’s A Stranger in Town—her seventh novel set in Rockton, an off-grid Canadian Yukon refuge for people looking to disappear—Det. Casey Duncan and Sheriff Eric Dalton, her common-law husband, see their evening disrupted when someone posts a sign accusing Deputy Will Anders of committing homicide before coming to Rockton. Though it’s true Anders shot his army unit’s commanding officer while in a fugue state, Rockton runs on secrecy: nobody knows anyone’s real identity or personal history, and revealing such information is forbidden. After a group demands Anders’s exile and implies everyone who disagrees is hiding something equally heinous that warrants exposure, Casey and Dalton realize they must work quickly to find and punish the culprit before they lose control—particularly since the council that remotely governs Rockton wants an excuse to shutter it. Avalanching complications ensue. Armstrong shrewdly weaponizes her series’ conceit against her characters, pairing demagoguery with paranoia to amplify tension and maximize stakes. The mystery feels manufactured, but the tale still thrills. Rockton fans will be well gratified. Agent: Lucienne Diver, Knight Agency. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
Praise for The Deepest of Secrets
“Armstrong delivers a solid mystery for fans.” —The Parkersburg News and Sentinel
“This town feels so real. . . [Armstrong’s] ability to really focus on character development makes a story like this feel alive, as if the reader is observing everything in person.” —BookTrib
“Explosive.” —Publishers Weekly
Praise for the Rockton Novels
“Kelley Armstrong’s solid Casey Duncan Series… is turning into one of the best new finds of the decade." —The Globe and Mail
“As with the very best series in any genre, the real joy is revisiting people whose lives are still unfolding for us, in a place that feels remarkably real, yet not like anywhere we know….this is a series that covers all the bases.” —St. Louis Post Dispatch
"Thriller fans seeking something different will be delighted.” —Publishers Weekly
“The town of Rockton is not merely window dressing, and its characters aren’t superficially drawn. In fact, two elements feed off one another, with the vividness of the place adding depth to the people who inhabit it.” —Booklist
"The town of Rockton’s strong, atmospheric presence will interest readers of Armstrong’s Cainsville series and appeal to new readers, particularly fans of C.J. Box." —Library Journal
“Armstrong has created a unique milieu for setting her suspense novels, which is no easy task nowadays. Read one, and you will want to read the rest.” — BookPage
Library Journal
09/01/2021
Deep in the Yukon, off-the-grid Rockton exists to keep the secrets of its residents secret. Now someone is spilling them all, and Det. Casey Duncan (with her boyfriend, Sheriff Eric Dalton) must find out who is responsible, or the town will tear itself to ribbons. With a 50,000-copy first printing.
Kirkus Reviews
2021-11-30
A detective in a remote Yukon town shrouded in secrecy has to figure out which resident has turned traitor.
Rockton (population 171) was founded in the 1950s as an intentional community designed to support idealism, a place where people could find refuge from McCarthyism and the like, but in the present day it's turned into something totally different. Since everyone in town uses a false name, the town leaders, known as the council, have used the place as a haven for criminals, and not just those guilty of white-collar crimes. Under the council’s misdirection, a certain price can buy a resident paperwork that suggests their reason for seeking shelter is something more like embezzlement than murder. Only a select few citizens know the truth, like Sheriff Eric Dalton, who’s given limited knowledge of certain high-risk residents that he shares with Casey Duncan, his detective and common-law wife, on a need-to-know basis. In spite of the criminal pasts of some residents, Rockton's Yukon setting and the town's emphasis on shared responsibility mean that the residents have to work together for a common goal: survival. But someone is determined to stir things up when they hang up a sign revealing Deputy Will Anders’ actual criminal history. Casey and Dalton take the case personally since Anders is a longtime friend, but Casey’s certain that the root of the problem is the council and its plan to shut Rockton down. Casey has to find out which of the locals has defected to the side of the council in a place where no one is who they say they are, even as whoever’s behind Anders’ outing keeps upping the ante.
While the characters worry that this is the end of their hometown, Armstrong is just hitting her stride.
