The best part of this series is of course the characters. After ten books, they are very much alive, and new ones are perfect as well. Sometimes the plots suffer a little after a few books in a series, but not here. So, if you haven't read all of the ten books, go ahead, they're great.

An unusual approach to a murder mystery being investigated and solved by tech companies. The mystery itself is written and developed well with the characters being unlike the usual crime investigators. Their names alone will make you laugh. Unusual as the cast may be, the story line is solid. Given the crime and the clues, readers will have to work hard to solve this one before the end. It's a really different kind of murder mystery but I really enjoyed it!

The sadistic murder of Kelly Ramage is assigned to Minneapolis detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth for investigation. Bit Master hires Monkeewrench to find how the cybercurrency lost $400 million in a cyber attack and repair the flaw. Monkeewrench team member Roadrunner saves the life of a neighbor, Petra, who hunts war criminals from the Balkan conflict. Stefan, a computer hacker, is forced to work for Joseph who demands Stefan hack Bit Monster to reclaim the money stolen from him.

These are a few of the plot threads P. J. Tracy weaves into the rich tapestry of Ice Cold Heart, the 10th Monkeewrench novel. While Leo and Gino’s investigation dominates, Ms. Tracy skillfully develops each thread to create a complex mystery populated with comfortable, established characters along with new and challenging personalities. Another provocative and satisfying Monkeewrench adventure.

Book 10 already; wow! Although, to be fair, I came in to the series about book seven - having played catch-up prior to reading it. Originally written by a mother-daughter combination, P.J., the mother, sadly passed away in 2016 but her daughter, Traci, has continued the series solo, and has done a might fine job of doing so.
We start with a psychic visiting detective duo Magozzi and Rolseth. She tries to tell them of the impending death of a woman. With scant detail to go on, they all but dismiss her visit. But then a young woman, Kelly Ramage, fails to return home from a night out, her body subsequently found and they are reminded of what the psychic said. It appears that Kelly might have been indulging in BDSM prior to her death which also correlates with her interest in controversial artist Rado whose gallery opening she visited on the night of her death.
Meanwhile, the Monkeewrench crew are investigating the hacking of a cryptocurrency firm which resulted in huge losses from several of their customers. Roadrunner has his turn in the spotlight in this book, in the shape of neighbour Petra whose life he saves when he discovers her half frozen in the Minneapolis harsh snow. She has her own story to tell, which she does to Roadrunner and he, in turn, enlists the Monkeewrench crew to assist.
There is simply so much going on in this book, all tightly plotted and intrinsically interconnected, that to say much more would inevitably include spoilers. So I'm not! Suffice to say that it had me on the edge of my seat throughout as I, along with the characters, tried to cut through the noise, join up the dots, to figure it all out. Sadly I failed, but happily they didn't.
Apart from all the cracking characters that I have grown closer and closer to throughout this series, one of the things I really love about this is the wonderful setting. It's almost a character in its own right. In this book, it's front and centre once again - mostly due to the time in which it is set and the weather that brings. It definitely adds colour and atmosphere to the proceedings.
It's also interesting to see how the dynamic has changed for certain characters with the birth of Elizabeth. As well as the impact that this event has had on several others.
All in all, a cracking addition to what is already for me a well loved series. Long may it continue. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

P J Tracy this unlikely duo of mother and daughter have always churned out the most thrilling and compelling stories right from “Want to Play” (also called Monkeewrench).
This genius improbable group of characters with their quirky habits and weird ways get together to form Monkeewrench the software company, that also help the police in solving cyber crime.
Ice Cold Heart is the 10th book in the Monkeewrench series.
The plot revolves around the gruesome murder of a young woman who was probably a victim of extreme BDSM. She was last seen at an art gallery, so Detectives Leo and Gino make a visit there. What they encounter there disturbing and shocking images very similar to the murder scene. The detectives wonder if this art could have incited someone to commit murder.
The detectives discover more murders that have the bondage element that Kelly's scene has and realize that there might be a serial killer with perverse habits at work here.
The entire story then becomes an exhilarating roller coaster ride with a reclusive artist at large, a psychic who supposedly warns the detectives of the murder in advance but turns up dead, war crimes, a genius hack into a bitcoin company called Bit Monster with the perp having possible Eastern European connections, which all throws us readers into an exciting labyrinth.
One thing about P J Tracy is that their characterization is commendable. Each and every character in their books is well developed with distinct individual attributes. Unfortunately the mother in the duo passed away but the daughter Traci Lambrecht continues to whip out the best.
Thank you to Net Galley for the advance copy.

I love this series and really look forward to each book.I think the author strikes the perfect balance with great characters, witty banter, and a cracking crime to solve.It could just be me but I think the crimes are becoming slightly darker, but I am fine with that.this was another roller coaster of a ride, I stayed up way too late for 2 nights to read it, and I loved it.Really good story I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys this genre ,and in fact I have.Thanks to the publishers and netgalley for the ARC.

This is one of my favourite series, with much loved characters, set in a bitterly cold and snowy January in Minneapolis in Minnesota. Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth, MPD detectives are visited by a psychic, Blanco Szabo, wanting to report the future murder of a woman, but no details that could help identify the potential victim. A sexually unfulfilled beautiful married woman, Kelly Ramage, with inclinations that veer towards BDSM, leaves home for a secret sexual assignation that ends in her horrific murder. The anonymous, controversial artist, Rado, is exhibiting disturbing art pieces and video that suggest the killer is inspired by his work. After meeting a protester outside the art gallery, it becomes clear to the police that there is at least one other murder victim with a similar MO.

The Monkeewrench team of IT geniuses Grace, Harley, Annie and Roadrunner have been commissioned by cryptocurrency Bit Monster to improve their security after it had been hacked, resulting in huge losses. Roadrunner saves a neighbour, Petra's life, on a night where the freezing temperatures come close to claiming her life. Petra is searching for a notorious Balkans war criminal, Peter Praljik, last known to be in Minnesota. In the most twisted of narratives, there are further murders as the multiple threads begin to slowly connect after Leo and Gino join forces with Monkeewrench in a dangerous investigation. There is much joy to be observed from the closely bonded Leo and Grace, and their 5 month old daughter, Elizabeth, warmly embraced by the extended family that is the entire Monkeewrench crowd.

This is another wonderful addition to a beloved series which I have followed right from the beginning. I love the atmospheric wintry location with characters I adore and whom I have seen develop through the series, particularly Grace who has become marginally less paranoid as her relationship with Leo, and the birth of Elizabeth, and their calming and grounding influence. Roadrunner, for the first time, becomes emotionally entangled with Petra, partly because both of them have different but desperately traumatic backgrounds. This is an intense read, touching on the bleak history of the Balkans, and the unspeakable events that occurred there, and the ruthless, vicious perpetrators, some of whom ended up in the US in this novel. Fans of this series will love this, as indeed will crime fiction fans who have yet to encounter the MPD detectives and Monkeewrench. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. I loved the first Monkeewrench book. The next four books were good too, then I hit a wall with the sixth book. I stopped following the series after that.
Fast forward to now, and I found Netgalley. To my surprise, there was a P.J. Tracy book. I was so excited to get approved for it, and even more excited when I loved this book as much as I had loved the others. Ok, maybe not as much as I loved the first book, but it's up there with the other four. The same great characters and excitement.

I went out and bought book seven and eight. I just need to buy book nine and I will be all caught up. Thank you, P.J. Tracy, for continuing to write excellent books!

I thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. This author was new to me and I was not let down. It was a great story and very well written. The characters were easy to relate to and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I highly recommend this to everyone!!

4 stars for a satisfying mystery thriller. This is the second book that I have read by this author and I enjoy her books. The author bio says that the name P. J. Tracy is a pseudonym of a mother daughter team P..J.. and Traci Lambrecht. P. J. passed in 2016 and Traci continues to write.
Minneapolis police detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth join Grace Mac Bride and Monkeewrench(a software company specializing in viruses/malware removal) to unravel a conspiracy.
There are several different elements in this mystery: a serial killer, a woman searching for a war criminal and an art gallery showing sculptures of torture/murder.
There are other characters who help solve the mystery and I thought that the ending pulled all the treads together very well. This investigation takes place during a bitter cold snap, and the characters complain about the cold frequently.
One quote: Conversation between Leo and Gino-- "I mean, where's the fuming tirade over winter in Minnesota? At this point in January, you're usually gnashing your teeth and tipping over desks. You speak for millions of Minnesotans and we count on you to give voice to our grievances."
Gino rubbed his cheeks, trying to thaw them. "This is what acceptance looks like, Leo."
I read this book in 3 days and recommend it to police procedural fans..
Thank You Crooked Lane Books, P.J. Tracy and NetGalley for sending this ARC. #IceColdHeart #NetGalley

I love PJ Tracy's MonkeeWrench series. Great characters, past paced plot and good twists! Highly recommended! You can start anywhere in the series, but read them all.

Magozzi and Gino have have a quiet January with bitterly cold temperatures and no murders. They are so bored that they listen when a psychic comes to them telling them that there will be a murder and gives some cryptic clues. Then their quiet time comes to an end when they are called to the gruesome homicide of Kelly Ramage who is found handcuffed, spreadeagled, and dead in a friend's house. She had her head wrapped in duct tape which caused her death by suffocation.

The situation has some resemblance to the scene the psychic described but neither Magozzi or Rolseth are willing to put in stock in her visions. As they begin to trace Kelly's last hours they are led to an art gallery displaying the works of Rado whose "art" shows graphic depictions of torture and death of young women and sculptures that look like computer punch cards. They are also led to a seedy club where those who want to explore deviant sexual behaviors meet to form connections.

Meanwhile, the Monkeewrench team is trying to patch some holes in the security of a cryptocurrency company which has had some of its accounts raided for millions of dollars. It just so happens to be the same company that Rado uses because he won't accept anything but cryptocurrency for his works of art.

Also, another plot thread has Petra Juric trying to track down war criminals from the war in Yugoslavia. She intersects with the plot when Roadrunner, who is a neighbor, saves her life as she is dying of hypothermia. She is also the psychic who visited Magozzi and Rolseth's only contact which is needed when the police find her murdered with duct tape over her mouth, nose, and eyes.

The style of this book has each chapter at the beginning of the book telling a different part of the story from different points of view. Then the stories begin to come together and build to a cohesive and interrelated case.

The story was suspenseful and action-packed. It is a great addition to a long-running series but I think it would work as a standalone or entry point for new readers.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for an advance copy of Ice Cold Heart, the tenth novel to feature Minneapolis based detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth and the computer analysis crew of Monkeewrench.

When Kelly Ramage is killed Leo and Gino are on the case but it won’t be straightforward as it looks like a sex crime and Kelly was married. Not only that, information suggests that she wasn’t the first victim.

I thoroughly enjoyed Ice Cold Heart, the latest instalment in a series I have been reading since the start. The protagonists feel like old friends, the plot is suitably devious and convoluted and the perpetrator a real surprise. I wouldn’t say it is full of twists because it is more of a narrowing of investigative perspective with all the characters playing their part until the solution becomes self evident. That is not to say that there aren’t surprises or that it is easy to arrive at the solution, in fact the reader will need to be on their toes to keep up with all the developments, some of which are quite techie in keeping with the Monkeewrench theme.

The novel opens with a series of short chapters which are all told from a different perspective. Often this approach annoys me and fails to hold my attention but in this case Ms Tracy builds enough intrigue to hold the attention and arouse the curiosity of the reader. The change in point of view continues throughout the novel with Leo gets the lion’s share and providing a certain amount of continuity while the other points of view give a wider perspective which is needed with so much information and complexity to be assimilated. The novel, however, is not difficult to follow.

I like the friendship between the characters which gives the novel a warm glow. The humour and unstinting support they share seems natural and is in sharp contrast to the horror of the crimes. They are a bunch of loveable oddballs and may have an addition as Roadrunner has a new friend and potential love interest.

Ice Cold Heart is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

I devoured the latest in the Monkeewrench series. Despite the loss of her writing partner, Traci Lambrecht has lost none of their ability to create a gut-clenching thriller. If fast paced, nail biting, who is going to get killed or maimed next is not your thing there is equal time paid to some very fine wine and classical music. All the bases are covered and it is interesting to see another side of the Monkeewrench characters developed in this story. Grinder Veltliner and Korngold indeed.

Smoothing out the rough edges of Roadrunner and Magozzi added interest, depth and clarity that had not been forthcoming in the previous books. There is just the right amount of humor and tongue in cheek dialogue to temper the depravity of the latest criminal conundrum. I can’t help wondering what comes next. Can’t wait.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for a copy.

Book 10 in the Monkeewrench series, Ice Cold Heart, is an edge of your seat thriller. I enjoyed this suspenseful tale, with its twists and turn and engaging storyline. This it was what I have come to love about this series and this story is a fabulous addition.

The Monkeewrench cyber security team is hired to find the hacker who stole money from a BitCoin company. At the same time Detectives Leo and Gino, who are very close to the members of Monkeewrench, are trying to solve the murder of a young woman who was experimenting with S&M. Also, Petra is trying to find the war criminal who imprisoned her and her grandmother. Believably, all three cases are linked. The gathering of clues and the coming together of each case is written with great care with no loose ends.
The Monkeewrench team are a colorful cast of unique characters who are experts in the field of cyber security. Part of the appeal of the book is watching these characters act and interact. Leo and Gino are serious and caring about solving the murder. Petra is a damaged soul..
The story moves along at a good pace. Readers will be trying to connect all the dots along the way. The ending is surprising but makes sense. Read the other books in this series by P J Tracy.

The gang of monkeewrench are back and things have changed for Grace & Leo as they now have a daughter that everyone spoils daily. The team have a new case looking into how a large amount of cryptocurrency was stolen from one of the largest exchanges little do they know that Leo & Gino's case will all be connected as the dead are piling up and they need answers. Roadrunner saves a young woman from dying and he offers to help her find a monster but will he be able to find the killer before more people die? Will the secrets that someone is hiding be revealed and will the victims get justice? Another good read in the series. Great to see how the team has grown and hopefully we will see the others find happiness as well. I was lucky enough to receive a copy via Netgalley & the publishing house in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoy the Monkeewrench books, I like the characters and the writing and I also think the balance between personal life and detective/procedural can be sometimes be too much towards the personal, which bores me no end, but I think these books have the perfect balance.

It's Winter in Minnesota, so cold there have been no murders for a month, then Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth are called to a particularly vicious crime scene, with echoes of sado-masochism and bondage.

Meanwhile Monkeewrench have been asked to investigate a crypto currency raid, with all the normal characters being involved in this case.

Roadrunner comes into his own, when he saves the life of a neighbour, Petra, who is a troubled soul and has her own agenda in hunting for someone from her past

Please just read the book, it is really very entertaining and highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for giving me the opportunity to read the book in exchange for an honest review

P.J. Tracy does it again. A great quick suspenseful read that keeps you guessing along the way. I live in the Twin Cities Metro area and I love to read the books set in my hometown. She does a great job of describing the ridiculousness that is winter in Minnesota. As always, her characters are well done and believable.

I only found out that this was the 10th in a series by searching for it on Goodreads. I think it would have been beneficial for this to be known from the start because then I wouldn't have requested it. While perhaps this could have worked as a stand-alone, for me it didn't. I was confused, and I found the writing to be choppy which added to the confusion. I found the characters difficult to like and keep track of right from the start, (again this might've been different had I read the previous books) and I never really warmed up to them. The mystery itself was OK but one that I found myself skimming and even skipping some chapters to get to the end. Fans of the series may have better luck with this one but as a new reader, it just didn't click.

Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.