I received this an ARC through Netgalley, I appreciate be given the chance to listen to the audiobook of Wolf Hollow, but I DNF'd at 42%. Whitney Dykhouse does an excellent job of narrating the story and really enjoyed the cadence of her voice. The book had been moving a little slow and is more of a cozy mystery. After Lew finds out her brother was murdered, and other unsavory activities in her area, she goes out and teaches someone to fly fish. I just couldn't get past that to finish listening. Just doesn't seem like what anyone who has lost someone close to her to murder would do, especially when you are the chief of police....

I love the author's descriptions of Loon Lake! Having spent time in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, it brought back great memories. I really enjoyed the character of Lew, an enjoyed meeting her friends. This was my first experience with Victoria Houston, but I will definitely look into more of her books. The characters were great, and the story kept me guessing. Every time I thought I knew who the killer was, I found I was sorely mistaken. I thought the narrator did a great job.

"Wolf Hollow" audiobook by Victoria Houston, (narrated by Whitney Dykhouse) takes place in Loon Lake, Wisconsin. Chief Lew Farris is running for sheriff when three people turn up dead. One of them is her brother Pete. Pete is six years older than Lew. He is retired and is very dedicated to conservation work. The other two are Grace McDonough (a local millionaire) and her twenty-four year old son Noah (who has recently had a serious run-in with the law). Are these deaths a coincidence or is something more sinister going on?

I enjoyed listening to this book because it gives vibes of a beautiful sleepy little fishing town where everyone knows each other. The book is clean with no graphic scenes. The characters were clear and vivid in my mind. The conservation tone added so much depth to the novel. A huge thumbs up for the fishing references and the way Lew's character was a female fly fishing expert. Lew and her boyfriend Doc's enjoyment of fishing together adds so much fun to the book. " Wolf Hollow" will be published January 11, 2022.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for allowing me to listen to this cute audio book in exchange for my honest review. I appreciate it very much.

Loon Lake a picturesque town in Wisconsin is facing some environmental trouble, with a plot of land pending sell to a sulfide mine , people start showing up dead. Our story begins with Lou the small town sherif getting called to a citizens arrest by a group of young people attempting to arrest a 24 year old man who was having inappropriate contact with a young girl in the town. This man arrested by these you kids is Noah the son of the property owner Grace who is trying to sell her land to a sulfide mine. The next day Lou is called to the death of her brother Pete who died mysteriously in the woods. Unsure if foul play is involved Lou’s begins an investigation. Not long after the body of Grace shows up in the bottom of the river and Noah is missing. With Noah not showing up for his court date people begin to believe maybe Noah is responsible for both deaths. That is until Noah is also found dead in a hunting cottage. With suspects showing up dead Lou begins to look into the connections between her brother and Grace family to understand what is happening in this small town.
This story was very similar to what is available in the small town murder mystery genre and really did not stand out to me. The writing and narration was great but what fell short for me were the characters. I did not really connect with any of the characters and there were parts where what characters were doing did not make sense to me. One example of this is after her brother if found dead Lou decided to go fishing the next day. I personally found this strange and could not believe that she would go fishing and have a picnic with friends. Another issue I had with the book was the detail that it went into on types of fishing. I will admit I am not a huge fan of fishing and only occasionally fish but this book goes into extreme detail about fly fishing that I felt could have been better utilized as character development.
Overall this book was ok for what it was a small town murder mystery but not something I would continue on with in the future just because I did not really enjoy the extra information as far as the fishing goes. I would like to thank net galley and Dreamscape media for the opportunity to read this book! I did post this review on goodreads as well with link https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4418044585 and storygraph with link https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/9adeee75-b970-44c1-a4f3-3625ec4ac587 .

Murder in a small town. Sounds ominous but then it is when bodies keep showing up and the person you think is the culprit is the next one murdered. This starts out with a bunch of preteens turning in an older teen for trying to lure a younger girl for sex and when the local sheriff is called she arrests the boy and is accosted by his mother who is the primary landowner around loon lake. When neither mother or son show up to court but they are the next to show up one by one murdered...Twists and turns and it all centers around the lake and development. Don't forget the election going on. Great start to a series!

In a small town in Wisconsin, it's mid-may and a group of preteens is trying to citizen arrest a 24-year-old male because he was trying to lure a preteen off of social media. This male ended up getting away and he happens to be the son of a wealthy landowner Grace McDonough. However when the kids explain what they were doing and why they provide enough information to Police Chief Lew Ferris so she is able to make an arrest for the act.
Then the unthinkable happens, Lew Ferris's brother was murdered. So while Lew is getting people to work on her brother's case she is trying to work on the other case. Then when they had the arraignment for Grace's son Noah neither one of them showed and they soon found their bodies and they were murdered too. All three murdered people were connected to a piece of land, two trying to profit off of it and another trying to advocate for an endangered species and the natural habitat.
Now, Lew is put to the task of trying to figure out what happened and how all the pieces of these murders are connected.
I listened to the audiobook and the narrarator was great, she fit the part very well! If you are looking for a new mystery, then this should be your next read! Family secrets, affairs, secret plans, and of course murder make this book a great mystery novel!
Thank you Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this one! It definitely was a treat!

In the town of Loon Lake one seemingly straight forward crime has somehow spiraled into 3 murders centered around a potentially lucrative mining deal. The case is particularly personal for police chief Lew Ferris as one of the victims is her brother who was working with an environmental group to stop the mining from happening.... The story is ok it’s rather obvious the murders are connected there’s no mystery there though the who and why aren’t immediately obvious but once you get one small detail then you know. But sheesh the people in this town are a bit crazy. How it ended was a bit interesting though I must say. Karma I guess.

This is my first book from the author so I didn’t really know that this is a spin-off from another series. I could do without all the fishing blah blah blah but that’s just because I have no interest in fishing. An ok story nothing special but not bad either. The narration was good.

Pros: The thing I appreciated most about this book is that its main character is woman over the age of 40. (It seems like most female protagonists are women in their 20s. It’s wonderful to see a more mature woman featured.) I also liked that there was some environmental/conservation commentary in the storyline.

I did not realize until after I finished reading this book that it is the first book in a new series that is connected to another series written by the author. I can see how fans of the Loon Lake Mystery series will be excited to read this series.

Cons: This book was just okay. I didn’t dislike it (and nothing was necessarily wrong with it), but I also didn’t care about the characters or the plot. In an overly saturated genre, it’s not special enough to stand out as a must read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to listen to this book.

I’ve shared this review on Goodreads and StoryGraph.
https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/52492253-282d-4533-88b1-f53ef3bda17b
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4395794733

Loon Lake is a popular fishing destination, but the natural beauty of the area is threatened copper and nickel are discovered on a local property. Grace McDonnough, owner of the property is bringing in a team to mine the pricey minerals, but environmentalist Pete Ferris is determined to stop her. Local sheriff Lew Harper gets dragged in when she arrests Grace’s son, Noah, for a disturbing sex crime. Not long after, Pete is found murdered in the woods, Grace is found dead in her car in the river and then Noah is found, also dead on his mother’s property. Someone is obviously willing to kill anyone who gets in their way – but is the killer motivated by concerns over the environment, or his wallet?