If you are going to commit a crime, do it when the others are not looking. In Benedict Alaska, the town's annual Death Walk would be a grand choice. Sounding more suitable for Halloween, the Death Walk is actually an act of compassion. The townsfolk meet on a designated day, to check on residents who were snow bound. Beth, our protagonist, who in spite of herself, has settled into Benedict, checks on a senior curmudgeon. Finding him is one thing, getting help becomes more complicated.
Her neighbor and confidant, Orin, disappears. Beth's life in the lower 48 was complicated. Now Benedict offers more complications. Is her friend Kaye a victim or a murderer? What is Viola housing a chef? and whatever has happened to Orin. As always with Shelton, the setting is so real it becomes another character in the novel. Beth is getting closer to resolving some of her story, but this healing, introspective heroine has a lot more to share.

Full disclosure: I received this ARC from netgalley and Minotaur in exchange for an unbiased review.

From my blog: Always With a Book

This is the fourth book in Paige Shelton’s Alaska Wild Mysteries series and I think these books just keep getting better and better! The series has such a dark, gritty feel to it and each one is so completely atmospheric!

Once again, my favorite part of this series continues to be the combination of police procedural and amateur sleuthing. It just works so well here. While each book in this series contains a self-contained mystery, which in this book is about the people found missing during the annual Death March, there is the over-arching thread of Beth’s stalker that has been continuing since book 1. The author does provide some backstory to this continued storyline, though of course you will have a richer understanding if you start at the beginning of the series. And there is quite a bit of development in this plotline that has me very excited for the next book!

Setting is really important to this series and I love how the author uses it in each book. The whole idea for the Death March, the town coming together to check-in after the long winter, was just fascinating to me and I loved how she was able to then use that to set the scene for what came next. Again, these books are so atmospheric and it’s why I love reading them. The Alaskan landscape has always been so compelling to me and Paige Shelton has a way of bringing it to life in her stories.

I cannot wait to read the next book in this series, Lost Hours, which is due out later this year.

If you are a fan of books that take place in Alaska, you will enjoy this book. This book definitely shows how life in Alaska is different from the lower 48 states and that adds to the conflict and suspense in the book. If you are a fan of small town mystery books, this is also the type of book for you! If you like books where someone goes missing and the police use the help of someone not on their force to find them, you will also enjoy this book!

Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read and review this book.

I love the fact that Paige Shelton is such a versatile author. She writes a cozy mystery series and at the same time can write a dark thriller series such as the Alaska Wild series. This is book number four in the series and is just as good as the first one!

Once again we are in Benedict, Alaska and it's time for the Death March. Every spring the community comes together to make sure that everyone survived the winter. The town divides into groups and goes out to check on those in the surrounding areas.

Beth and her friend Orin go to check on and elderly man and find him in need of medical care. Orin decides to head back to get help but then suddenly disappears. It appears that there are secrets within the friendship and Beth is determined to find out what they are.

I love this series so much. It's dark and deals with many social issues that plague small town America but most especially in Alaska. So many challenges Beth has to overcome just to be able to be okay and then still survive. Shelton does an excellent job with making her characters flawed and real.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good thriller!

I like a series that brings you back to the same town with the same characters and it just feels like a continuation of the same book but an updated version. Like catching up with an old friend. This is a great mystery series set in Alaska. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for review

Once again, I blundered into a series, this time at book #4. I will say now, it is important to read this series in order. I was lost for parts of it and I missed some really important back story. I will be going back and reading the first three books in order! Winter's End is set in springtime in Benedict, Alaska. The annual Death March is set to occur, a seasonal ritual where the residents gather and set out in small groups to search the community for those who might have gotten ill or passed over the long, isolated winter. Just the day before, Beth had met and chatted with Kaye and Warren Miller, a young couple Beth just talked to the day before while walking her dog. The Miller family claims not to know where their son and daughter-in-law have disappeared to. As well, Beth, Orin and her dog, Gus, head to a secluded cabin to check on Al, a 94 year old man who lives alone. He is bad shape, so Orin goes for help. Several hours later, Police Chief Gril and his Deputy, Donner arrive without Orin as he has disappeared. What has happened to Orin? Where are the Millers? Are these cases connected?

Coming in at book #4, I have missed a lot of backstory, so the secondary storyline of Beth trying to locate her father had me a bit confused (my fault, not the author's). Beth is a successful mystery author, so her investigation skills and interest have developed along the way. She is also dealing with her own trauma, that adds another storyline to the book. Beth is a character that is dealing with PTSD from her past trauma and has been somewhat a loner. She is starting to make friends and had hoped that she and Kaye Miller would become just that. She is extremely worried about Kaye and begins to investigate the family. As in many stories about Alaska, the families tend to be somewhat insulated, often "preppers" and people who want to be left alone. The Millers fit this description. There are a lot of characters in the book, but Paige Shelton does a good job of making sure the reader gets to know them sufficiently to see their role in the story. She also describes the setting and lifestyle portraying the hardships, lack of amenities, loneliness, lack of friendship and communication, slower pace and danger of living in small town Alaska. The mystery was well plotted with twists and turns that kept me reading and listening whenever I had a few moments. Overall, this was a suspenseful story with a great mystery and some serious themes including: isolation, secrets, dysfunctional families, feuds, spousal abuse, PTSD and more.

I quickly fell in love with this series in book one, and am so happy to see it still going strong in this 4th installment. As the title suggests, winter is coming to an end in Benedict, Alaska, and it's time for the community's annual "death walk," in which they check in with every resident and see who's made it through the winter...and who hasn't. A woman Beth has become friendly with seems to be missing, but that's only the beginning of what turns into a mystery involving a decades-old old family feud, gold treasure, and a missing baby.

In the midst of trying to solve these mysteries, Benedict House gets an interesting new resident and Beth gets some new about her kidnapping case.

A very strong installment. I can't wait for more!

The fourth installment of the Alaska Wild series takes us on the Death Walk. It’s a tradition in Benedict where after the long winter all the residents check in at the town square. Those who don’t have people sent on a “walk “ to check in on them. Beth’s new friend has checked in but no one has seen her since the previous evening. Her body is discovered the next morning down by the river. Secrets abound this womens life, she had been talking frequently to a man from a rival family and it comes to light that she has a newborn at home. Beth dives in to investigate while still learning she is in the wilds of Alaska. what is worse confronting a bear head on or man.

I might have enjoyed this one more if I had read the others in this series first. There were quite a few questions I had while listening to this. I also found the main character, Beth, a bit foolish in some of her decision making skills. But, as most of you know who follow my reviews, I love anything set in Alaska. This story really brought out the culture and the community. So, if y’all need a decent thriller with a very good setting…THIS IS IT!

I love this series...it's got a "Northern Exposure" vibe (though unfortunately, you need to supply the soundtrack!). A fun series with lots of twists and turns that I enjoy reading

Thanks to St Martin's Press for access to a digital ARC on NetGalley.

I love this series and the setting in Alaska. The plot has many elements and I couldn’t put the book down. I enjoyed continuing on Beth’s journey.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Winters End is the fourth book in the Alaska Wild series which follows Beth Rivers in Benedict, Alaska.

This one seems to start off a little while after the last one ended, and we do get a bit of a recap in what happened between the books. Beth has struck up a friendship with one of the other women in town and when this woman turns up dead, Gril is trying to figure out who killed her and why. This led to Beth finding out all about this women's in-laws and the neighbors which was very reminiscent of the Hatfield and McCoy feud. With these two families' long history of violence and people in the town keeping secrets it takes quite a while for Gril and Beth to figure out what exactly happened, and why it happened.

Overall this book was okay and I did enjoy it. I was disappointed with certain parts and how while we had a resolution it really wasn't satisfactory considering how long we had been waiting. Beth and Gril and the gang did a pretty good job of figuring out what happened and dealing with all the family drama that was happening between the two groups all while making sure no one else from the town was getting involved which couldn't have been easy considering how small of a place it is. I still enjoy all of the side characters we have gotten to know throughout the story and I loved the two new characters that were added in. I hope at least one of them is still around in the next book.

Personally, I'm a little disappointed that the series keeps getting dragged out at this point. I really thought that this one would be the end and while it was for certain things it still had several unanswered questions that have left room for a fifth book.
(Read a finished copy from the library)

I went in blind here and haven't read any of the books in the series prior. I probably should have, but it didn't deter me from reading this one. I was able to catch on fairly quickly with the characters. I thought the cozy mystery elements were great and it was engaging for the most part.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc.

Winter’s End by Paige Shelton

This novel is the 4th installment of the gripping, atmospheric Alaska Wild Series.

This was a great book. Loved all the characters. Enjoyed them Alaskan environment. As always, wel;l- written. I recommend this book. It keeps your interest right to the last page.

Thanks to Net Galley for sending me an advanced reader’s copy.

This is the 4th book in the Alaska Wild mystery series, I really enjoyed it.
It’s time for the Annual Death March, where the town gets together to check on residents who might need help after the long cold winter.

Unfortunately for newer resident Beth Rivers, a woman with whom she’s started to make friends is found dead. Beth came to Alaska to escape a kidnaper, she wanted to move somewhere where she couldn’t be found. The longer she stays, the more she likes it.

She wants to help the police find out who killed her friend. It turns out that there is a Hatfield – McCoy type of feud going on in town, and Beth’s friend was a member of one o the feuding families.

The plot was so well executed, with lots of twists to keep you guessing. I’d recommend reading the books in order to understand the back stories of the major characters.

I recommend this book, 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed as in this review are completely my own.

In Benedict, Alaska, cabins are few and far between. Even in town, there’s rarely what could be called a crowd—except on Death Walk Day. Gril, the local law, began pushing the idea a few years ago. Everyone is required to report in come spring, just so he knows they’re still alive. After all, an exceptional snowfall, bitter cold, unexpected encounter with a bear, or a slip and fall, could be fatal. He says, just show up, check your name off the list, and you can go about your business for another year.

One of the people who doesn’t show is an eighty-year-old man who lives high on a mountain. Orin, the librarian and somewhat of a mystery himself, agrees to go check. Beth Rivers and her dog, Gus, go along. Finding the old man in poor shape, Beth stays with him while Orin goes for help, but between finding it and returning, Orin’s sidetracked and vanishes.

Beth’s had enough of vanishing in her life. After all, she vanished herself after being kidnapped back home. Benedict was as far away and as inaccessible as she could find. Then her mom, never all that stable, showed up out of the blue, and just as fast, disappeared again. Beth’s dad has been out of the picture for years, suspected to be in Mexico, but the phone number she has is never answered, messages never returned. Losing Orin too would be just too much.

Through a misunderstanding, Beth’s living in a halfway house for criminals. She has company when she wants it, is left alone when she doesn’t. For the first time, the criminal is male and a charmer at that. He’s also a darn good cook. It’s a bit suspicious when he offers to walk her dog multiple times a day, but he can’t be watched every minute, and where’s he going to run?

The Death Walk list shows Beth’s almost-friend, Kaye, and her husband Warren, are checked off the list but no one remembers actually seeing them.

And then there’s that feeling she’s being followed …

This is the fourth book in the series, all reviewed here, and the series is one of my favorites. The setting is unusual and the characters are odd, but mostly people you’d want to meet but wouldn’t expect to be your friend. Beth has grown as a character, finding her place in Benedict, unsure what will happen when her abductor is finally caught. Will she go ‘home’ or is she already there? Time will tell. After all, it’s just turning spring.

*I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley, St Martin's Press and Minotaur Books for my honest review.*

I am going to be totally biased in this review because I absolutely love this series!

Spring is just around the corner and Beth is facing her first Death March - the annual coming together to make sure everyone made it through winter. When a couple of residents don't check in, Beth helps with locating those who are missing. And when Orin, the town's resident FBI man on the DL, goes missing after a search, Beth becomes concerned and it is added to her list of things she is investigating - the location of her long lost father and a new friend who wasn't at the Death March.

The characters in Benedict, Alaska are fantastically written and so enjoyable to read and get to know through the novels. I am really enjoying how a new criminal or two show up at the Benedict House each novel. And bringing in just a bit of the past into Beth's current world in Alaska is very smartly done. Just a bit each novel and big set ups for the next in the series!

I can't wait for the next book in this series and I can't wait to finish some of my other series so I can start on Shelton's separate series. So much to read, so little time!

This 4th in the Alaska Wild mystery series involves a feud between families, a Romeo and Juliet relationship, a murder, a missing baby - and more!

Elizabeth Fairchild, a popular thriller author, took the name Beth Rivers and fled to remote Benedict, Alaska after escaping from an obsessed kidnapper

As always, Beth can't keep herself from investigating. I enjoy the Alaska setting of this series at least as much as the mysteries themselves.

This was a great addition to the series. I love that the book is set in Alaska, a place I have visited a few times. The setting is really well done. The mystery was great and I really enjoyed the characters. They need a bit more developing but I hope that will happen in future books. Overall I really enjoyed this book and look forward to more in the series.

I wish there were half stars -- this would have been a 3 1/2. This series about a Missouri woman and celebrated author in hiding in Alaska after an attack is holding up well, But I feel as if it has run its course, and although the title suggested "End," the ongoing plot doesn't seem to have wrapped up. In any case, the characters are strong and likable, especially in this entry, in which Beth Rivers has a dog, makes new friends (and loses one), and gets involved in a two-family feud. Fans of the series should be pleased.