Review: First Sign of Danger by Kelley Armstrong

 

First Sign of Danger (Haven's Rock #4) by Kelley Armstrong

Publication Date: February 17th 2026 by Macmillan Audio & Minotaur Books

Pages: 352

Audio Book Length: 9hrs 38min

Narrator: Thérèse Plummer

Source: Publishers

Rating: ★★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Audible | Libro.fm | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

First Sign of Danger is the fourth installment in the Haven’s Rock series, and while each book features its own mystery, the ongoing character arcs and history make it far more rewarding to read in order. Better yet, start with the original Rockton series to fully appreciate how this off‑the‑grid refuge came to be.

 

Like Rockton before it, Haven’s Rock is designed as a sanctuary for people who need to disappear. Victims fleeing stalkers or abusive partners, individuals escaping unjust convictions, anyone who needs a second chance. Every applicant is vetted to ensure they pose no threat to the community.

 

In this installment, Casey and Eric encounter a couple hiking near the settlement under circumstances that immediately raise red flags. Are they harmless backpackers, or are they spying on Haven’s Rock? Hunting for someone inside the community? Or connected to the nearby mining camp that’s been a growing concern?

 

The situation goes from uneasy to dangerous when they discover one of the hikers dead the next day. Casey, Eric, Anders, Yolanda and the usual crew at Haven’s Rock work the evidence to figure out what’s going on. All the while keeping an eye on the miner’s camp. There’s also a curious break-in without theft in town that seems unrelated. Casey and Eric examine all the details at every angle and a darker picture emerges.

 

First Sign of Danger starts quietly but soon spirals into the kind of tense, layered mystery this series excels at. I was genuinely surprised by how the pieces ultimately fit together, and by the thrilling revelations that set the stage for the upcoming final installment!

 

I’ve alternately read and listened to the entire series and I recommend either version. Thérèse Plummer narrates the audios and they are fantastic! She expertly performs male and female voices and a variety of age ranges and emotion.

5 Stars

Book Description:

New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong continues the atmospheric Haven's Rock series as Casey Duncan investigates a threat to their off-the-grid Yukon town.

Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are entering a new chapter of life as parents to their six-month-old baby. Their family is hidden away in the sanctuary town of Haven's Rock where they can live safe and private lives. But when they encounter hikers too close to the borders of Haven's Rock, they realize they're in danger of being exposed.

When they find one of the hikers dead the next day, they realize that their paranoia was justified, but they're no closer to finding out who these people were and what they were doing in the vicinity of Haven's Rock. Only by tracing the hikers' movements, as well as examining the recent behavior of their closest neighbors, the workers of a secretive mining camp, will they be able to figure out where the threat is coming from and shut it down. Otherwise, the lives of everyone in Haven's Rock--and their safe, secure new existence--are at risk.

Audiobook Review: Untouchable by Jeffery Deaver

 

Untouchable by Jeffery Deaver

Publication Date: February 17th 2026 by Brilliance Audio

Pages: 137

Audio Book Length: 3hrs 17min

Narrator: Christina Traister

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

While working a case in Prescott, Illinois, FBI Agent Constant Marlowe spots an unsettling exchange between a college student, Kathleen, and a man who instantly sets off her instincts. When Constant steps in, she learns Kathleen is being stalked and threatened after writing a letter to the university about potential brain injuries among the school’s football players. Instead of taking her concerns seriously, the situation spiraled when a chauvinistic talk‑show host blasted her name on air and twisted the facts for outrage and ratings.

 

I was relieved Constant intervened, Kathleen was getting almost no support from campus officials or local police, and that radio host was a piece of work!

 

This short mystery isn’t as straightforward as it first appears and I enjoyed seeing it all play out in such a satisfying way!

 

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Christina Traister, and she was fantastic. Her calm, steady delivery suits Constant perfectly, and she shifts into the other characters’ voices with ease. A really strong performance that enhanced the story.

4 Stars

Book Description:

For Special Agent Constant Marlowe, a quiet college town hides a nest of malice and revenge in this twisty novella by New York Times bestselling author Jeffery Deaver.

Special Agent Constant Marlowe is passing through the charming college town of Prescott, Illinois, when a chance encounter with a terrified student stops her in her tracks. Kathleen Delaine thought she was doing the right thing when she demanded an inquiry into traumatic brain injuries among the university’s football team. But after a manosphere shock jock picks up the story on his radio show and makes it personal, the online uproar bleeds into the real world. As Constant works to identify which of the host’s fanboys is threatening Kathleen, she discovers that behind the bullying campaign lies a vast and deadly conspiracy.

 

Audiobook Review: Enola Holmes and the Clanging Coffin by Nancy Springer

 

Enola Holmes and the Clanging Coffin (The New Adventures of Enola Holmes #4) by Nancy Springer

Publication Date: February 10th 2026 by Macmillan Audio

Pages: 336

Audio Book Length: 6hrs 59min

Narrators: Tamaryn Payne & Matt Biddulph

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Enola Holmes is attending a graveside burial when she hears a bell ringing from a freshly dug grave. When she investigates, she makes a chilling discovery: a young woman named Trevina, buried alive and with no memory of how she ended up there.

Realizing Trevina is still in danger, Enola brings her home and nurses her back to health while trying to uncover who sealed her in that coffin, and why. Soon, Enola and her charge are thrust into a deadly game of cat and mouse as the culprit, none other than Moriarty himself, sends his thugs after them. To complicate matters further, Enola learns that her brother, Sherlock Holmes, is investigating the same villain and warns her to stay away from the case.

 

I haven’t read the previous Enola Holmes books, though I’ve enjoyed the movies, and I’m not usually a big YA reader, but I found Enola Holmes and the Clanging Coffin a page-turner! It was clever, suspenseful, occasionally funny, and had a dark, sinister edge. Mystery and suspense fans will find plenty to enjoy here.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook. Tamaryn Payne narrates most of the story, with Matt Biddulph voicing the epilogue. Payne delivers excellent performances across the board, male and female characters alike, with just the right emotional nuance, and her English accent is a delight. The audio format really brought the story to life.

4 Stars

Book Description:

Enola Holmes—international bestselling and Netflix streaming sensation—returns when the rescue of a young woman sends her into battle with her brother Sherlock against his most deadly, implacable enemy - Professor Moriarty.

In February 1891, London, Enola Holmes—the much younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes—is attending a burial when she hears the faint sound of a handbell in the graveyard. It is not in Enola’s nature to ignore such oddities, no matter the occasion and when she investigates further, as is the Holmes' family instinct, she discovers something absolutely chilling. The ringing bell is attached to the tombstone erected over a recent gravesite and someone, buried within, is pulling the string to ring the alarm.

Galvanized into action, Enola and her companions swiftly and successfully unearth the coffin within, freeing a still-living young woman, one Trevina Trairom. Enola, by predilection and by trade a Scientific Perditorian, a finder of lost things, finds herself comforting and protecting this young girl. The girl herself is a mystery – she remembers very little, including her identity, and has no idea who has buried her alive, much less why. While protecting this mysterious girl from an enigmatic enemy, she discovers that Sherlock is engaged in a related mystery. Enola joins Sherlock in his battle against the scourge of London, the Napoleon of Crime himself, Professor Moriarty. Facing her most brutal foe ever, determined to protect and unravel the secrets surrounding the mysterious Trevina, Enola takes her place more fully than ever as a proud member of the Holmes family.

 

Review: Antihero by Gregg Hurwitz

 

Antihero (Orphan X #11) by Gregg Hurwitz

Publication Date: February 10th 2026 by Minotaur Books & Macmillan Audio

Pages: 416

Audio Book Length: 14hrs 12min

Narrator: Scott Brick

Source: Publishers

Rating: ★★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Evan Smoak was trained as an elite assassin for a covert government program, but after uncovering its darkest secrets, he walked away. Now he operates as the Nowhere Man, helping the helpless when they have nowhere else to turn. One of the reasons I love this series is that justice usually wins, bad guys get what’s coming to them in the most satisfying ways, something I wish happened more often in real life.

 

Evan’s abilities never cease to amaze me. Even when he’s backed into a no‑win situation, he finds a way through. And every time he delivers his signature line, “Look at me closely. And ask yourself: Do I look scared?” I know a well‑deserved smackdown is coming, and it always puts a smile on my face.

 

Each Orphan X book has its own mission, but the fallout from Evan leaving the program and the evolution of his relationships continues to build, so it’s best to start from the beginning. If you haven’t begun this series, you’re in for a treat: high‑stakes action, compelling missions, and sharp, dry humor make Orphan X one of my all‑time favorites.

 

The case in Antihero was tough. I was enraged over what happened. Evan had a tough time managing his reactions. He wanted to go nuclear and it was confusing for him since he’s never had so many emotional ties. The need to protect and destroy was overwhelming.

 

Joey continues to feel like a niece or daughter to him, and her desire to take on a bigger role complicates things. I’m thrilled with how Candi has been stepping up, and something revealed about her has me excited. Naomi Templeton is an intriguing new-ish addition, and I wonder if there might be something there for Evan. I like Mia, and I was happy to see her soften toward him, but I still don’t know how it could ever work.

 

I alternated between reading and listening, and both formats are excellent, the audiobooks are truly fantastic. Scott Brick is Evan Smoak to me now. His accents, male and female voices are excellent. His comedic timing is spot on!

5 Stars

Book Description:

In the latest in this New York Times best-selling series, Evan Smoak takes on his most complex mission yet―one where he has to not only protect but also avenge, and find a way to balance vengeance with mercy.

Once a black ops assassin for the government known as Orphan X, Evan Smoak broke with the program and went deep underground, using his operational rules and skills to help the truly desperate with nowhere else to turn.

When Luke Devine, one of the most powerful men in the world has a psychological crisis, Evan flies to the East Coast to meet Luke. While there, he learns of a young woman who was kidnapped off the New York City subway, clearly in danger and in need of aid. With no name and few clues, Evan and his team track down the missing woman, who was assaulted and abandoned. Evan offers his help―and sets out tracking down the young men responsible. But the woman insists that Evan abandon his usual methods―no vengeance and, in particular, no killing. Which will prove no easy feat given the mounting incoming threats from all sides. In a mission that takes Evan from coast to coast, from the poorest corners of society to the richest, Orphan X must figure out a way to protect the innocent, avenge the victimized, and balance justice, with a measure of mercy.

Review: Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman

 

Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman

Publication Date: February 10th 2026 by Berkley & Penguin Audio

Pages: 448

Audio Book Length: 10hrs 48min

Narrator: Travis Baldree & Jeff Hays

Source: Publishers

Rating: ★★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Love the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, so I was excited to read Operation Bounce House! It’s definitely different but it has Dinniman’s signature humor, characters you bond with and root for as they fight and try to survive! I enjoyed every minute and blazed through the story in one day!

 

Oliver Lewis and his sister Lulu are farmers in New Sonora, a planet colonized by his grandfather who has since passed. Oliver is happy in his life figuring out crops, bickering with his girlfriend, and playing drums in his ragtag band, the Rhythm Mafia.

 

But everything changes when Roger, the farm’s agricultural bot, reports that a scout unit has vanished after chasing down a mysterious radio signal. What Oliver uncovers is far worse than a malfunction: New Sonora is about to be invaded by machines remotely piloted by gamers on Earth. It’s all part of an Apex Corporation “eviction” program, “Operation Bounce House” fully sanctioned by Earth’s government.

 

Now Oliver, his friends and the agriculture bots must band together to fight off these attackers to his home.

 

I adored Roger, a sort of stand in robot uncle to Oliver and Lulu. I had to laugh at antics with Betty Sue, one of the “magic chickens” and the giant pig, Cindy! Plus: “A Pig Plus Some Chickens”!!

 

A definite recommend!

 

I alternated between the audiobook and the e‑copy and can easily recommend either format. Travis Baldree was a new‑to‑me narrator, and he impressed me. His performance as Oliver, and his range of Southern, Hispanic, and even techno‑tinged accents for the supporting cast, fit the story perfectly. And Jeff Hays makes an appearance, too, which was a fun bonus.

4.5 Stars

Book Description:

A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.

All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. As a fan of Earth television and culture, he figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication.

Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Corporation is hired to commence an “eviction action.” But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying their own AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their own homes?

The game is called Operation Bounce House.

Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known.

Sunday Post #326

 

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. I'm also linking up to The Sunday Salon hosted by Deb Nance @Readerbuzz.

Happy Sunday! 

Are you watching the Super Bowl today? My husband will watch more than I will, I'll probably just poke my head in to see the commercials and halftime. 

We had planned to go out to Texas on Friday but changed our plans. I'm happy because my husband had a medical procedure on Thursday and getting on a plane the next day would've been more than we wanted to take on. We went out to dinner with my sister and BIL Friday night and then went to a local library sale and I donated a bunch of books. For once I didn't bring more home!

Nevada City (in California) Public Library

Nevada City Public Library

The weather has cooled down a little but we've still been above normal temps. That will change this week. We have rain in the forecast with possible snow. 

Blue skies out our front door

The Flowering Quince on our trail has really started blooming!

1000 Piece Puzzle Completed: Main Street Books by Galison

 This was fast and fun to complete!

Read:

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James-4 Stars

It's Not Her by Mary Kubica-3.5 Stars

Impostor (Dr. Alexander Gregory #1) by L.J. Ross-4 Stars

A Box Full of Darkness was signature Simone St. James. A spooky mystery with a touch of romance and I loved it! I enjoyed It's Not Her but had issues with the writing/pacing and didn't like one of the main characters. Impostor was a everything I want in a crime procedural and I hope to continue the series!

Received:

Her Last Breath by Taylor Adams

First Ranger by Brian Andrews & Jeffrey Wilson

The Swamps by Seraphina Nova Glass

Untouchable by Jeffery Deaver

This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page

First Sign of Danger by Kelley Armstrong

Thank you to William Morrow, Blackstone Publishing, Podium Audio, Libro.fm, Brilliance Publishing, Berkley, Macmillan Audio and Bethany House Publishers (see below)! 

Instagram:

Taming Lady Temperance by Karen Witemeyer

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Rachel (@wavesoffiction)

How was your week?

Review: Impostor by L.J. Ross

 

Impostor (Dr. Alexander Gregory #1) by LJ Ross

Publication Date: February 3rd 2026 by Poisoned Pen Press

Pages: 304

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Dr. Alexander Gregory, a forensic psychologist, is called to the quiet town of Ballyfinny, Ireland, to help profile the killer of a young mother. The crime is chilling in its strangeness, almost no evidence, no clear motive.

 

Alex is a clever character I enjoyed the methodical way he helped the police zero in on suspects by examining the motive of the crime. His profile really helped, but there were several that fit the parameters.

 

Running alongside the Irish investigation is a second storyline involving one of Alex’s patients at the high‑security hospital in England where he works. The dual threads were equally compelling.

 

Impostor is a gripping crime procedural that pulls you right into the investigation. I love mysteries where you feel like you’re piecing the clues together alongside the experts, and this one delivered. The final reveal shocked me, not just the truth about the killer, but the twist involving Dr. Alex himself. I’m absolutely continuing the series.

4 Stars

Book Description:

There’s a killer inside all of us…

In the remote hills of western Ireland, fear spreads as the locals struggle to make sense of a killer who is seemingly one of their own...

Dr. Alexander Gregory, a psychologist recovering from the collapse of a high-profile criminal profiling unit, wants nothing more than a quiet life to finally sit and think things through. But his rare ability to understand the minds of violent offenders makes him hard to ignore—especially when a small town is shaken by a brutal murder. Reluctantly pulled into the case, Gregory finds himself confronting not only a cunning predator, but the darker corners of his own mind.

From internationally bestselling author LJ Ross comes a tense, atmospheric thriller that explores how far we’ll go to understand—and survive—the darkness around us.