Review: The Deepest of Secrets

I was late to the Rockton series party but I’ve been thoroughly enjoying my time in the secret town Kelley Armstrong created. The Deepest of Secrets (out today) is the last in the series (or is it?) and I absolutely devoured it.

Here’s the book’s description:

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.

Now, this is the last Rockton book. BUT Armstrong has teased on social media that this might not be the last book with these characters. I was excited before and am even more so after reading this one. I’m super attached to these characters and am definitely not ready to say goodbye so I’m really hoping she finds a way to bring them all back together.

Not only do I love the characters but I enjoy how Armstrong writes the mystery. It can get a tad annoying because the reader knows Casey knows something but not what and I for one can’t usually figure it out but it all comes together and it’s super satisfying and I forget that I was annoyed. The twists in this one were unexpected and I’m pretty sure I found myself saying “WHAT?!” at my ereader on more than one occasion. Is it the most ground-breaking crime thriller ever? No. But it’s hella entertaining and fast paced so I was all in from the start and couldn’t put it down. I actually read a good chunk of it while donating blood last week and I was able to totally tune out everything happening around me while reading it.

I mentioned this one was fast paced and I wonder if it was a bit too fast. Things were happening a mile a minute and I think I started to get whiplash. It wasn’t a negative, exactly, for my reading enjoyment. I really freaking liked this book. But it’s not necessarily a hallmark of a super well written and executed mystery. Does it matter in the long run? No. I’m still going to tell you to read this series. Just a consideration to keep in mind!

If the sound of this mystery series intrigues you, I definitely recommend starting back at the beginning with City of the Lost and reading all seven books. They’re quick and entertaining and I think you’ll get a lot more out of it if you know the entire history of Rockton as Casey experiences it.

I don’t want to say much more about The Deepest of Secrets because so much of what’s happened in the previous six books comes to a head in this one and it’s so much better if you go in without knowing too much of what’s going to happen. So I'll say again: this is a great series and you should read it. I’ve really enjoyed Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton series and I can’t wait to find out if we get to see these characters again!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*