4.5 stars for this one.
Just an excellent read. Fast paces, full character development and plausible crime family. Love the head villam being female and quite deadly.

Book Summary:

Kristin and Ryan McIntyre have spent years hiding from their father. As the head of the Lost Angeles crime family, Boyd McIntyre, their father, has plenty of resources to track these two down. Likewise, they have plenty of reasons to want to stay away from him.

Unfortunately, they're only successful for so long. Once again, they flee. Only for everything to take a turn for the worse as their means of escape crash. Will they survive the impending storm? Or will they fall?

My Review:

North of Nowhere is a complex family drama with dark implications. It's also a tale of survival. It's one of those stories that immediately sucks you up and doesn't release you until you've turned the final page.

In truth, the characters' backstory felt so complex that it felt like part of a series. I don't mean that in a negative way. It felt more like I had been reading about them for several hundred pages. Like I knew them.

It made everything that followed much more tense. Think about it. These characters were almost immediately thrown into a survival situation. One that looked pretty grim. I was on the edge of my seat. I may or may not have stayed up well past my bedtime (shhh).

North of Nowhere is absolutely worth the read, especially if you're looking for that perfect mix of thriller and survival novel.

Highlights:
Standalone Novel
Mystery/Thriller
Rampaging Characters

Thanks to Minotaur Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

After five years on the run with their godfather Tony, Kristen and Ryan have finally been caught. They've been running from their father, Boyd McIntyre, a very important member of the McIntyre crime family in LA. Tony, Kristen and Ryan thought they were safe in Montana, but their past comes back and comes back with a vengeance.

I found this story to be a great thriller and I'm certainly glad I read it during the fall season as it set the story up perfectly. I found myself on the edge of my seat, eager to find out if the characters are able to make it out of the woods they were stranded in safely, and it kept me up late at night to finish. I felt like the characters had such good development, and as a reader I feel for Kristen and Ryan and hope that their future is bright. I very much enjoyed how the story all tied up at the end.

The only complaint that I have about this book is the sheer volume of named characters that the reader has to keep up with. There are so many henchmen for the McIntyre family, which I sure is relevant, but it did start to get a bit cumbersome at time. No matter, I will certainly look forward to more by this author as I very much enjoyed this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this fast paced thriller. All opinions within this review are my own.

Great plot, great story. Descriptive writing that had me feeling cold the entire time I was reading. An author to watch for sure!

3.5, this was a fast paced family oriented thriller that has the suspense and excitement throughout the whole story.
I did find the end to be a bit drawn out.

I wanted to love this one. I really did. I've liked other books by this author... but I just could not get into this one! I'm not sure if it was just the characters, or the story it else, maybe it felt a bit- cheesy? I'm not sure.

What I liked:
• good premise
• great setting
• survival thriller
• fast paced

What I didn't like:
• predictable story
• too long

Exciting action-packed thriller set in the mountains of Montana in the middle of blizzard. Unending suspense and surprises abound as our heroes try to survive these life threatening conditions while evading capture by multiple bad guys. Very entertaining and fast paced.

A thrilling account of a desperate race for freedom by teen Kristen and 10-year-old deaf Ryan McIntyre.

Children of LA crime boss Boyd McIntyre, they have been hidden in Montana by Tony Reed (who loved their mother) for 5 years.

As the story opens, Tony realizes that they've been found. They escape in a stolen plane. and crash land in the wilderness, pursuit not far behind.

Rancher Nick Lorenzo searches for them, helped by his son Jason, and soon joined by the children's aunt Ruby. LAPD Detective Lance Jackson searches as well - but what are his real motives?

Don't miss this gripping read!

TONY REEDS been hiding his two godchildren for five long years, keeping them safe from their crime boss father Boyd McIntrye and their deceptively controlling grandmother Frankie. Eleven-year-old Kristin was traumatized after witnessing the murder of her mother before Tony took her, along with her younger deaf brother Ryan, and disappeared. When Tony awakens now sixteen-year-old Kristin in the middle of the night, she asks no questions knowing immediately they've been found. Grabbing their always packed escape bags, Tony, Kristin and Ryan execute their plan B for escape. Taking his bosses small plane, Tony hopes to get away unseen, but as he attempts takeoff shots are fired hitting him and the plane. He manages to lift off only to crash in a lake a few miles short of their destination. When it's clear he won't make it, Tony quickly improvises and instructs Kristin to take Ryan and their supplies and hike the rest of the way to their secret remote cabin. Time is critical as a massive snowstorm is descending on the mountains and their father Boyd and his armed men are coming for them. Tony has trained Kristin in all the elements of survival including how to handle a weapon. She'll kill or be killed before returning to the forbidding prison of her father and grandmother's home.

NORTH OF NOWHERE is a highly atmospheric, fast paced thriller with a large cast of players. The landscape and weather play a starring role in the story as characters are charged with surviving a blinding blizzard in the middle of nowhere in subzero temperatures. Brennan does a fantastic job of pulling readers into said wilderness to join the desperate search for the two missing children in a race against time to save their lives - from both the elements and the various highly motivated people determined to catch them before someone else does.

If you’re a fan of fast-paced, plot-driven books, then this one is tailor-made for you!

The story follows Kristin and her younger deaf brother as they desperately flee from their murderous father, Boyd, deep within the Montana woods. As a relentless blizzard rapidly closes in, Boyd and his crew, along with their Aunt, the sheriff, and a host of other vivid characters, are in relentless pursuit.

In this high-octane thriller, all these characters and elements collide in a whirlwind of drama, tension, and relentless pacing. However, I must admit that the character development leaves something to be desired. The story thrusts you straight into the action, and you find yourself constantly playing catch-up with the characters.

Also, there are a lot of characters, and the points of view shift frequently. I had some difficulty remembering who each character was and how they were connected due to the breakneck speed of the plot.

Personally, I wish there had been a bit more upfront backstory to help me become acquainted with the cast before diving headlong into the action.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thrilling, relentless, gripping mystery set in the wilderness of Montana amid a snowstorm. Thank you #NetGalley for the advanced copy. #AllisonBrennan has done it again with a gripping, page turner.

I did not finish this one, it was not for me, I couldn't relate to the characters, and just did not care for the story.

I love a mystery and I love a survival story, and this is a fast-paced combo of both. This book tells the story of a siblings who have been in hiding due to their family's involvement in organized crime. When their safe hiding place is discovered, they end up having to survive both the bad guys that are after them, and the Montana wilderness after a plane crash. Loved the setting and the storyline, but the pacing was a little weird for me in the middle. Overall a great mystery/survival story with good wintery vibes. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

A thrilling tale of siblings doing their best to survive the very worst. I love survival stories and this one had some good twists and turns.

North of Nowhere
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Allison Brennan

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: After five years in hiding from their murderous father, the day Kristen and Ryan McIntyre have been dreading has arrived: Boyd McIntyre, head of a Los Angeles crime family, has at last tracked his kids to a small Montana town and is minutes away from kidnapping them. They barely escape in a small plane, but gunfire hits the fuel line. The pilot, a man who has been raising them as his own, manages to crash land in the middle of the Montana wilderness. The siblings hike deep into the woods, searching desperately for safety—unaware of the severity of the approaching storm. Boyd’s sister Ruby left Los Angeles cutting off contact in order to help keep her niece and nephew safe and free from the horrors of the McIntyre clan. So when she gets an emergency call that the plane has gone down with the kids inside, she drops everything to try save them.As the storm builds, Ruby isn’t the only person looking for them. Boyd has hired an expert tracker to find and bring them home. And rancher Nick Lorenzo, who knows these mountains better than anyone and doesn’t understand why the kids are running, is on their trail too. But there is a greater threat to Kristen and Ryan out there. More volatile than the incoming blizzard, more dangerous than the family they ran from or the natural predators they could encounter. Who finds them first could determine if they live or die. . .

My Thoughts: Tony stole Boyd’s kids and hid them for five years to keep them safe from the family, a LA crime family. Tony gets wind that Boyd is close, so he flees to another town, except, when he is in the air, the plane is shot down. Now the kids are on their own knowing how dangerous Boyd is. Except Boyd is not the only person tracking the kids. Ruby, the aunt, Lorenzo, the farm where the kids lived, and some other rather questionable characters are tracking the kids. I could not stop turning the pages, I had to know how this turned out and devoured in a short time. We have a dangerous game of cat and mouse going on and a story of survival.

The story is narrated by various characters, from their respective perspective. Ruby, the aunt, is caring, compassionate, and wants nothing to do with the family but wants the kids to be safe. Lorenzo, the farm owner, has gotten to know the kids over five years and also wants them to be safe. Boyd, the father will do anything he needs to have his kids home again. Francine, the grandmother, is the head of the crime family and as ruthless as possible. The characters were well developed with mystery, secrets, depth, creative, and intriguing. The author’s writing style was complex, twisty, suspenseful, and kept me engaged from cover to cover. The author builds the characters in the present and past flashbacks, builds the plot into intense twisty layers, even when you think the last twist has occurred, another one comes out of left field and ends with an unexpected ending. The setting that the author used in Montana was perfect and atmospheric, well detailed that you really felt like you were there with the kids.

This compelling, gripping, captivating, disrupting psychological thriller will keep you guessing until the end. The middle could have been a tad shorter. However, I enjoyed this novel and devoured in a a few short days. I would recommend this to other readers and have read that the audiobook was amazing. Either way, just go pick up!

North of Nowhere is an action packed thriller that combines a crime lord family with the Montana wilderness. Great setting and the plot moves quickly. Those that love suspense and thrillers should give this a go.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

So, WOW! I am not normally a huge fan of action-type survival thrillers but have been lucky enough to have read several good ones here recently, so I gave this one a shot and it was much better than I was hoping for. Two kids have to go on the run into the mountains of Montana to escape their crime family led by their father. They are being chased by numerous people, both good and bad. There is a lot to keep up with and it could get a little melodramatic at times, but overall, this was a heart-pounding action/adventure thriller with fleshed-out characters and a nice twist that I didn't see coming.

Thank you to #NetGalley, Allison Brennan and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for this ARC.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Unfortunately, this was not for me. I was unable to get into the story and did not finish it. I encourage others to give it a try for themselves!

Wow! I was so excited to read this book and it did not disappoint me! North of Nowhere is non-stop action and suspense until the very end (and even at the end I thought there could be more coming at the folks in this story.) I just loved this standalone.

Kristin and Ryan were taken from their family five years ago. Maybe taken isn't quite the word -- they escaped with the help of another in the crime family and have been living in Montana in secrecy for the last five years. They love Tony, the man who liberated them from their nasty grandmother and father.

But when Boyd, their father discovers their location, Tony must try to protect the children as best as he can. Unfortunately, his plan doesn't quite work because someone other than their crime family father and relatives are also after them. When their plane crashes in the Rocky Mountains during an impending storm, things get really crazy as Kristen and Ryan must find their way alone through the storm to escape the people who would imprison them again.

There's some great tension and suspense as the people in the woods combine in different ways as they navigate the mountains, the storm and the criminals with guns. It's all very scary with children in peril, it gets intense, so readers be aware of that.

This was the first book in a very long time that I was tempted to read the ending before I got there and I think that says something about the level of tension and suspense there is in this story. Seriously, it's non-stop, especially knowing that things were about to get worse as they believe they are home-free. I loved that as a reader I had a clue that it wasn't over yet, and it made it even more tense to ride the story to the end.

I loved Ruby and Kristin and Kate. So many terrific female heroes in this story. And Nick Lorenzo and Jason are just wonderful too. I really fell for all of these characters, even felt a little bit for Boyd there at the end as he makes peace with his daughter. There's also one of the nastiest villains in this story, but I won't say more about that so you can experience the terror from a reader's point of view.

I really loved this book. There were times I had to put it down because it was a bit intense. Much of the book takes place during the storm and that did go on and on, and I was happy when that setting changed, but the story does capture being in a Rocky Mountain snowstorm quite well.

North of Nowhere is definitely on my favorites of 2023 list.

This is a story of survival. This is an entertaining and action packed thriller that will keep you reading. If you like thrillers set in the wilderness - and a cat and mouse chase - pick this book up!