Renowned author Delphine Larue needs a haven. A crazed fan has gone over the deep end, and she’s not safe. Her security team has suggested a house by a lake. Secluded. Private. Far away. In a beautiful area of the Northwest close to the sleepy town of Misted Pines. It’s perfect. So perfect, Delphine has just moved in, and she’s thinking she’ll stay there forever.

Until she sees the girl in the mist.

After that, everything changes.

Delphine quickly learns that Misted Pines isn’t so sleepy. A little girl has gone missing, and the town is in the grips of terror and tragedy. The local sheriff isn’t up for the job. The citizens are up in arms. And as the case unfolds, the seedy underbelly of a quiet community is exposed, layer by layer.

But most importantly, girls are dying.

There seems to be only one man they trust to find out what’s happening.

The mysterious Cade Bohannan.

The Girl in the Mist is the beginning of a new series, Misted Pines, by Kristen Ashley. It’s a standalone, suspenseful, thriller romance.

Delphine Larue is an actress/author in need of a private oasis until her stalker gets found. She ends up buying a secluded lake home in the little town of Misted Pines. When a little girl goes missing, Delphine quickly realizes that the only people she can trust are her neighbors and the enigmatic, Cade Bohannan.

I’ve been a huge KA fan for many years and I adore this author’s writing style, the characters that she writes about and the scenes she creates! Having said that, Delphine and Cade’s story was not my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I’m rating it 4 stars and here’s why:

*I totally enjoyed the older characters angle (both Delphine and Cade were in their early 50’s and yes, even “old” people like sex!)
*Although this wasn’t the MOST suspenseful or thrilling book I’ve ever read, I loved the whodunit twists and I struggled to put the mystery together which made the finale great
*I’m a sucker for a single dad who has his s**t together and Cade definitely checked that box
*I adored the side characters (Cade’s 3 kids and Delphine’s 2) and I’m hoping we’ll see more of them
*KA managed to tap into some political and social stigmas without being in my face about it
*It was a delight to get even a small glimpse of some of my favorite past characters

Now here’s why I didn’t absolutely love it:

*The beginning felt a bit convoluted and disjointed (the second half was better)
*I’m a fan of all the details KA often uses to bring her stories to life so I was actually MISSING some of those deets when it came to Cade (am I in the minority here?) which then made his character seem a little diluted..I couldn’t connect to him as well as I wanted to!

In the end, I’m intrigued and invested enough to keep reading this series! Told from the heroine’s POV with a happy for now end. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book.

Kristen Ashley is the New York Times bestselling author of over eighty romance novels. She’s a hybrid author, publishing titles both independently and traditionally, her books have been translated in fourteen languages and she’s sold millions of books.

Kristen recently released THE GIRL IN THE MIST, her first Thriller Romance. In February 2022, she’ll publish the third in the River Rain Series, the story of Rix and Alex, TAKING THE LEAP. Come Spring, she’ll release a new title with 1,001 Dark Nights, a novella from her Fantasyland series, GOSSAMER IN THE DARKNESS.

Kristen, born in Gary and raised in Brownsburg, Indiana and was a fourth generation graduate of Purdue University. Since, she has lived in Denver, the West Country of England, and she now resides in Phoenix. She worked as a charity executive for eighteen years prior to beginning her independent publishing career. She now writes full-time.

Although romance is her genre, the prevailing themes running through all of Kristen’s novels are friendship, family and a strong sisterhood. To this end, and as a way to thank her readers for their support, Kristen has created the Rock Chick Nation, a series of programs that are designed to give back to her readers and promote a strong female community.

You can learn more about Kristen and the Rock Chick Nation on her website: http://www.KristenAshley.net

So this book wasn’t one of my faves from KA but it was still a good read! Have a marvelous day y’all!💜