I really liked the first book in the series and the spooky atmosphere of this witchy town. This one seemed to suffer from a bit of a sophomore slump though. I liked it enough to keep reading, but after the shocking events of the last book this mystery ended up feeling a lot more mundane. There is some interesting character development with Natalie's grief, and I'm interested in reading the next book to see if it's more in line with the first one.

It's Halloween in Burning Lake, New York. Detective Natalie Lockhart has been assigned to the streets to help with crowd control. In the wee hours following the raucous celebration, the body of a young woman is discovered in a dumpster. Her only identifying features are a strange tattoo, a mark under her chin, and calluses on her left fingertips. Natalie realizes the ching and fingers identify the woman as a violin player, which takes Natalie back 12 years to the disappearance of her best friend on the night of her high school graduation. Is there a link? If so, what do the disappearances have in common. As she delves deeper into the case, Natalie uncovers secrets, unpleasant memories, and ultimately danger as she explores the high-stakes world of violinist proteges.

3.5 ⭐️‘S

Natalie is still paralyzed by the horror of the events of last Spring (Trace of Evil Book 1).Thousands of people flock to the town of Burning Lake for its Halloween festivities. Festivities that last for several days. On the morning after Halloween, Natalie volunteers for the annual cleanup. When the body of a young violinist is found in a dumpster, Natalie finds herself in the thick of her next case. When it comes to light that other young violinists have gone missing recently, Natalie hunts for answers, are the cases connected? It’s an all out hunt to find out what happened to Morgan, even as Natalie battles here painful past. Things come together a bit too quickly and neatly to make this as good of a read as it could have been and there are many references to a past with very few details of that past. While the entirety of this case starts and ends in this book the references to that past might leave the reader with many unanswered questions. It can be read as a stand alone, but would be better to read book 1 of the series first so those questions are answered. Unfortunately it looks like this is book 2 of 2 in the series leaving still some hanging threads. Threads that I wish Blanchard had sewn up if the series is indeed over.

Natalie Lockhart is still reeling from her sister's death and the notoriety that came with solving a high profile case six months ago. Policing the huge party that surrounds Halloween in Burning Lake is a distraction, until the body of a young woman is found in a dumpster. Natalie doesn't really want to be the lead detective on the case, but knows refusing it will reveal her inner demons.

She immediately recognizes that the Jane Doe is a violinist, like her high school friend, Bella, who disappeared the night of their graduation. She can't be certain whether there's a connection between the two cases, but is more certain the latest death is tied to the disappearance of another violinist a few months previously.

As Natalie navigates not just the case and the demands of her own police chief as well as the police from Chaste Falls, where both violinists lived, she deals with her own memories and deep ties to Burning Lake. She knows everyone's pasts, and everyone there seems to have one.

Haunting and atmospheric, THE WICKED HOUR is unputdownable. Autumn in upstate New York seems not unlike autumn in my native western Pennsylvania, and I am totally absorbed in the setting and the characters Alice Blanchard has created. #TheWickedHour #NetGalley

Detective Natalie Lockhart is back investigating the case of a mysterious Halloween murder. A woman’s body is found naked in a dumpster with no known cause of death. Natalie has barely recovered from her case last April when she is assigned as the lead detective. The fact that everyone was in costume has made it difficult to identify those who may have had contact with the deceased. Dogged determination leads Natalie through evidence and clues that suggest the killer may have killed before. At the last moment a conversation will lead her to the killer, but will she survive their meeting? Mentioning characters from the first book, who had nothing to do with this story, seemed unnecessary as unless you read the first book (which I did) they were just names and added nothing to the story. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)

I received a free electronic ARC of this police procedural novel from Netgalley, author Alice Blanchard, and publisher, St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read The Wicked Hour of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. The second novel in a series, The Wicked Hour is completely stand-alone, but this tale is told so smoothly, wrapped up so tight, that I will want to read all of this series. Alice Blanchard is an author I will follow.

Natalie Lockhart is a native of Burning Lake, and a detective in the employ of the city of Burning Lake, New York, a tourist town with a well-publicized 17th-century history of hanging witches and a renowned school of music. Summer is a fairly busy time for Burning Lake businesses, but residents make most of their annual income in the month of October, basically closing their doors on November 1st due to iffy weather and lack of interest. Their witchy reputation brings in the odd crazy person hidden among the waves of sunburned, hungry tourists, and this year is no exception. Halloween night brings masses of tourists - and one woman, found nude and dead in a trash dumpster downtown during the massive clean-up beginning on November first is the exception that proves the rule. But Natalie recognizes the callus under the chin and on the left-hand fingers of this woman as the well earned results of endless practice time spent on the violin. Natalie's best friend, Bella, bearing those same scars, had gone missing just after high school graduation, and Natalie recognized them again in a murder taking place six months ago right here in Burning Lake.

Bella's disappearance was written off as a runaway months later when a few letters and polaroid photos, posted from cities across the country were received by Natalie and by Bella's family. But with that summer murder and now this Halloween death, that is two women with violin histories, and Burning Lake has a world-class music school. And what about Bella? Is she really traveling the world? She hasn't been heard from for years. Perhaps the murderer isn't a visiting tourist, after all. He could be home-grown...

I found the description of this book intriguing but didn’t realize that it was the second installment in the Natalie Lockhart series. This does make a huge difference in the enjoyment of this book. To truly enjoy this book I believe you would need to have read the previous book. The backstory of the characters is important in understanding their current emotional state and in understanding their relationship dynamics.

I found the book to be rather slow and somewhat repetitive until it reached the 75% mark where it finally really held my interest. If I’d read the first book, I may have enjoyed this one much more than I did.

Apparently this is a second book in a series and I think it matters if you haven't read the first book. There is not an adequate backstory to provide information on what has happened in the past. Also, there were at least two instances of repetition of a paragraph that were nearly word for word about a couple of events. It took too long to get any interest in the what is happening now because of not having the character's histories. The police procedural portions seemed drawn out to fill space. There is more movement in the last quarter of the book than in the entire book and that was when it became interesting. I would not recommend reading this book unless you have already read the first book. Second half of the book was good.
I was provided an advanced reader copy and was under no obligation to provide a review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book is the second in a series. I haven't read the first so it left a few questions that didn't get answered. I did enjoy the mystery and the process that Natalie used to get to the bottom of her case. The characters were interesting. Natalie is an intriguing lead character. I liked her but she has experienced a lot of pain. I do want to go back and read the first book in the series to get answers about her past. The author did a great job of setting up the story for the next in the series. It was tantalizing enough to make me want to look for it when it is released too. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I love Natalie Lockhart!! I love this thriller/mystery book!! I can't wait to read more of this Author!! She definitely is now on my fangirl radar!!! Buy this book!!!

For as much as this a gruesome murder mystery, this book is really about grief. How we react to trauma, how we deal with our grief (or avoid it), coping mechanisms, etc. The heroine, Natalie, is drowning in her grief after the events of the previous book (and yes, the depth of this book can only be best understood after having read Trace of Evil). It affects her work and all of her personal relationships. And so throughout the events of this book, she struggles, wanting to emerge from the weight of grief, knowing there’s more to life, while tracking down a murderer. I think she comes out on the other side, if the epilogue is any indication, but I have a feeling that author Alice Blanchard won’t allow her heroine to remain optimistic for long.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

In the end, I enjoyed getting to know Detective Natalie Lockhart through this book, the second in the series. But I also know my enjoyment was dampened because I had not read the first one - and I strongly advise new-to-the-series readers to start there.

Natalie lives and works in Burning Lake, New York - a place that becomes a tourist mecca during its Mardi gras-style festivities at Halloween. Natalie herself is something of a heroine, following her much-publicized shooting of a serial killer sometime earlier. Apparently, she's never quite come to terms with that killing - nor with other events involving her sister and some school-age friends that are not fully explained here (I assume they were detailed in the first book). As part of her healing process, I suppose, it also seems as though she's had an affair with half of the town's eligible men (which at times tends to muddle her thoughts as well as how she does her job).

One of the events on Halloween night is a violin-playing contest, and this year is no exception. All goes well until it doesn't; the body of a young woman is found in a dumpster. She was one of the contestants - and, as it turns out, not the only violin virtuoso to have gone missing over the years. As the investigation progresses, a number of suspects emerge - some of whom force Natalie to question those she trusts. All this is complicated by her former relationship with her boss, Lt. Luke Pittman; she blames herself for breaking things off but doesn't know how or if they can get back to that status once again.

Woven into the story is a thread of witchcraft; it seems quite a few of the townsfolk are "into" it - some more seriously than others. There's no real evidence up front that the practice is in any way related to the young woman's death, but it's another avenue that must not be overlooked. Also woven into the story are glimpses of events from the first book, such as the sudden disappearance of one of Natalie's childhood friends who also happened to have been a budding violinist.

As I said at the beginning, I would have enjoyed this one much more had a more thorough background from the first book been provided. That said, it's good enough on its own that I won't hesitate to read the next one (the ending here, which was a bit unexpected, increased my anticipation). Thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.

What compelled my interest in the first book of the Natalie Lockhart series seems to be missing in the second book in the series. In the opening chapters, we learn about Natalie's depression and anxiety, Brandon's anger, and Luke's stand-offish behavior that drags on the story. Something more needed to take place between the characters, and the story lacked the intensity because of it. Maybe my timing for this one was off, but I felt a little lost in their relationships, and the plot was a little sketchy in places.

Great book, I really enjoyed this one. I look forward to the next book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

The town of Burning Lake, NY has a witch-filled past and present that brings thousands of tourists during the fall/Halloween season. While working the cleanup on November 1st, Detective Natalie Lockhart finds the body of a young woman in a dumpster. She soon discovers the body is that of a young violinist that came to Burning Lake to participate in a musical contest with the hopes of getting her big break. While working the case, Natalie is reminded of her best friend Bella, another violinist who went missing shortly after their high school graduation.

I enjoyed this book, but had a few issues. First, I didn't realize when I picked it up that it was the second book in a series, and I had not read the first one. While this doesn't always matter with some books, there were many references to the events of the previous novel without any real summary, which became frustrating. I looked for the first novel at my local library so I could read it before digging too far into this one, but alas they didn't have it. Second, I felt there were sections of the book that repeated information from earlier sections of the book (e.g. in two different spots, there were references to a young man who had been a suspect in Bella's disappearance with almost word-for-word description about what had happened to him). Third, I feel that the ending was rushed and there were many details in the novel that never really felt thoroughly explained. All in all, it was a quick and enjoyable whodunnit with some flaws.

Thank you Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the advance copy of The Wicked Hour in exchange for an honest review. Any time Alice Blanchard has a book releasing, send the ARC my way!

The Wicked Hour by Alice Blanchard is a solid sequel to Trace of Evil. Although it is not as haunting and creepy, The Wicked Hour deals with the darker side of grief.

I absolutely love how Alice Blanchard does not shy away from the tragedy Natalie faced in Trace of Evil. She does not gloss over it. In the time between the ending of Trace of Evil and the beginning of The Wicked Hour, Natalie's life has changed dramatically. She is still grieving and is not living her life. She is alone and barely holding on. Honestly, I appreciate all of this. Not glossing over the pure mess of the first novel makes Natalie so much more relatable and I enjoyed watching her develop as a character throughout the entire novel.

I love how there are quite a few suspects in Natalie's newest case. My head was constantly spinning. There are a good number of twists and turns to keep readers entertained. I did not see the identity of the killer coming nor did I anticipate that very shocking ending (LOVE THAT ENDING).

Why not five stars? The writing is a bit choppy and I felt at times I was repeatedly reading the same back story of Natalie's friend, Bella. Granted, I read an ARC so these issues may very well be corrected when The Wicked Hour is released. I will be reading the finished copy. My only other reason for a lower rating is Luke. However, I cannot rant about Luke without providing spoilers. Just note that he did not develop in this book as much as Natalie and I may or may not have had the urge to throw a book at him on more than one occasion.

The Wicked Hour is a must read for mystery fans. It's entertaining. It's dark. It's real. I am officially obsessed with this series and am already anxiously awaiting for the next book!

Once again, I find myself reading a crime series book out of order. At least this time, it’s only the second in the Natalie Lockhart series. But I still felt the loss of all the background from the first book initially. Still, once the book moved into the murder investigation, I felt at home.
Burning Lake, upstate NY, is home to a huge Halloween festival based on their history with witches in the early 18th century. During the clean up on November 1st, a young woman’s body is discovered in a dumpster. She was a violinist, there for a musical contest. Turns out, she’s not the first young violinist to go missing.
This is a realistic police procedural. Blanchard puts us firmly in time and place with a small town, a music conservatory trying to protect its reputation, even a closed fun town. The pace is swift with lots of potential suspects to pick from. Natalie is doubting herself after not picking up on a murderer until it was too late (in book one). So, her thoughts bounce between all the suspects. And mine bounced right along with hers.
There are some irritating sections where Blanchard literally repeats herself verbatim. But overall, I found this an enjoyable story and I would seek out book three.
My thanks to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

The Wicked Hour is a suspenseful police procedural novel. With a varied cast of characters, The Wicked Hour proved to be an interesting read. However, readers will probably enjoy this novel a lot more if they read the first novel, Trace of Evil.

Detective Natalie Lockhart is assigned to investigate the death of a budding violinist, Morgan Chambers. Morgan was found buried under a pile of garbage in a dumpster. Naked and without obvious signs of blunt force trauma or other signs of foul play, it's up to Natalie and her team to conduct a full investigation into the who, what, when, and where of Morgan's demise.

Without going into too much detail and spoiling the story, there were some aspects of the plot that didn't quite fit logically. Perhaps certain aspects of the plot were overlooked as I probably spent too much time trying to figure out the background into Detective Lockhart's depression and her relationship with her father and sisters. That being said, I probably missed out on a few key moments.

Overall, The Wicked Hour is a novel that will be appreciated by fans of the mystery & thriller genre. Three stars. I liked it.

I received a digital ARC from St. Martin's Press through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

This review is concurrently being posted on Goodreads and will post on my blog (with cross post to Twitter) on 11/24/20. Reviews on retail sites such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble will occur on publication day.

4.25 stars / This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com on 16 November 2020.


Burning Lake, New York is known for its history of witches and the wicked. Natalie Lockhart is a detective on the Burning Lake PD. Halloween week is epic in Burning Lake, with a music competition, parties, costumes and the witchy themes of the past. Post-Halloween festivities turn up a corpse in a dumpster, and Natalie is called to investigate.

As I hadn’t read the first book in the series, I was at a loss understanding the complexity of Natalie’s life and grief. While I still immensely enjoyed this police procedural, I definitely was lacking context. If you haven’t read book one, read it before this one.

The Wicked Hour is a well told story of a detective and her demons in the town in which she grew up. Although book one’s story may have been a bit revealed in this novel, I am still going to read it. I enjoyed the writing and the storyline enough to know I will enjoy book one, regardless.

It’s a shame this book wasn’t published sooner with its Halloween vibe. Would make a great October read!

3 stars for an entertaining mystery with flaws. This is book 2 in the Natalie Lockhart series and it would have been better if I read book 1 first. There was a murder of a Lockhart family member which took place in book 1 and Natalie is still grieving. She has pushed away friends who offered her support.
Natalie is a detective in the Burning Lake Police Department. She and the whole police force are on duty for the town's annual Halloween celebration, which draws about 100,000 tourists and is a huge moneymaker for the town. Burning Lake is a fictional town located south of New York state's Adirondack Park, the largest park in the continental US(bigger than Yellowstone NP). The fictional town condemned to death 3 women as witches in 1712 and now proclaims itself as the epicenter of Halloween and witchcraft.
Natalie volunteers for the annual cleanup on Nov 1 which lasts a whole week, because of the tremendous amount of trash left by the revelers. But then Natalie discovers the body of a naked woman in a dumpster. Natalie does solve the murder with the help of the team at the BLPD.
Pros: I liked the plot and the way it moved along briskly with several suspects. I was not sure who the killer was until the end. The characters were believable.
Cons: I have lived in New York state my whole life. Although this is a work of fiction, set in a fictional town, there were several things that bothered me. Natalie mentions that Detective Lenny Abruzzo has sent the dead girl's fingerprints to the DMV database. DMV stands for NYS Department of Motor vehicles. I have never had to give my fingerprints for my standard drivers license. This year I was given the option of renewing by mail or upgrading to a REAL ID DL. I upgraded and had to give a thumbprint. NYS does have a fingerprint database. It is maintained by the NYS Dept. of Criminal Justice.
Second, Natalie comments that Burning Lake has 10 historic wooden covered bridges. NY has 17 historic covered bridges in the entire state, and my wife and I have visited all of them. No county, much less a town, has 10. According to our WGCB(World Guide to Covered Bridges), Ulster County has the most with 5. Ulster County is about halfway between NYC and the southern boundary of Adirondack Park, going from the Catskill mountains to the Hudson river.
Third, she mentions driving on Route 17 out of town. Route 17 is actually the Southern Tier Expressway, just north of Pennsylvania, now being converted into I-86.
My wife read this book before me, and these items bothered her also. My wife also noticed many grammatical errors,but this is an uncorrected proof copy, so this is forgivable.
#TheWickedHour #NetGalley.
Thanks to Minotaur Books/St. Martin's Press for sending me this eARC through Net Galley.