And There He Kept Her

368 pages

English language

Published May 11, 2022 by Poisoned Pen Press.

ISBN:: 978-1-7282-4789-2

(1 review)

They thought he was a helpless old man. They were wrong.

When two teenagers break into a house on a remote lake in search of prescription drugs, what starts as a simple burglary turns into a nightmare for all involved. Emmett Burr has secrets he's been keeping in his basement for more than two decades, and he'll do anything to keep his past from being revealed. As he gets the upper hand on his tormentors, the lines blur between victim, abuser, and protector.

Personal tragedy has sent former police officer Ben Packard back to the small Minnesota town of Sandy Lake in search of a fresh start. Now a sheriff's deputy, Packard is leading the investigation into the missing teens, motivated by a family connection. As clues dry up and time runs out to save them, Packard is forced to reveal his own secrets and dig deep to uncover the …

They thought he was a helpless old man. They were wrong.

When two teenagers break into a house on a remote lake in search of prescription drugs, what starts as a simple burglary turns into a nightmare for all involved. Emmett Burr has secrets he's been keeping in his basement for more than two decades, and he'll do anything to keep his past from being revealed. As he gets the upper hand on his tormentors, the lines blur between victim, abuser, and protector.

Personal tragedy has sent former police officer Ben Packard back to the small Minnesota town of Sandy Lake in search of a fresh start. Now a sheriff's deputy, Packard is leading the investigation into the missing teens, motivated by a family connection. As clues dry up and time runs out to save them, Packard is forced to reveal his own secrets and dig deep to uncover the dark past of the place he now calls home.

Unrelentingly suspenseful and written with a piercing gaze into the dark depths of the human soul, And There He Kept Her is a thrilling page-turner that introduces readers to a complicated new hero and forces us to consider the true nature of evil.

4 editions

pithypants reviewed And There He Kept Her by Joshua Moehling (Ben Packard, #1)

Review of 'And There He Kept Her' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

If you're looking for a quick summer thriller, this is a good pick – if you can stomach references to violence, murder and sexual assault. This was a quick listen and the author gets points for creating some interesting characters and creating a solid sense of place in Minnesota. Where I deducted a few points: the acting sheriff starts out well-written, but as the novel progresses, he does some things that I think would never fly in law enforcement, and he's prone to offering some two-dimensional Andy Griffith lectures. Still, a solid page-turner.

Subjects

American literature