Another wonderful mystery by Nancy Mehl! I look forward to reading more about the characters and see where their story takes them. I like that there is an on going mystery.

In "Cold Pursuit," Nancy Mehl masterfully weaves a chilling tale of suspense and psychological intrigue that will have readers hooked from the very first page. With a gripping plot, well-drawn characters, and a relentless pursuit that keeps the adrenaline pumping, this thriller is a must-read for fans of the genre.

The story introduces us to U.S. Marshal Madison James, a determined and resourceful protagonist with a haunted past. When she receives a threatening message from a mysterious stalker, she is forced to confront her darkest fears. Mehl crafts Madison's character with depth and vulnerability, making her an authentic and relatable heroine. As the plot unfolds, Madison finds herself entangled in a dangerous cat-and-mouse game, where the line between hunter and hunted blurs, and the stakes are raised to life-threatening levels.

Mehl's writing style is engrossing, and she knows how to create and maintain tension throughout the novel. From heart-stopping action sequences to moments of introspection and self-discovery, "Cold Pursuit" keeps readers on the edge of their seats. The author's ability to build a palpable atmosphere of fear and uncertainty adds an extra layer of depth to the story, immersing readers in the world of danger and intrigue.

One of the strengths of "Cold Pursuit" lies in its supporting cast. Secondary characters are well-crafted, each contributing uniquely to the narrative. From allies with their own secrets to potential suspects, the diverse personalities add intrigue and complexity to the story. The relationships between characters are realistically portrayed, adding emotional depth that enhances the overall reading experience.

Furthermore, the pacing of the novel is well-balanced. Mehl skillfully mixes action-packed scenes with quieter moments of character development, allowing readers to catch their breath while eagerly anticipating the next twist in the plot. The seamless integration of investigative procedures and law enforcement protocols adds an air of authenticity to the story, highlighting the author's meticulous research.

In conclusion, "Cold Pursuit" is an enthralling and nerve-wracking thriller that will satisfy fans of the genre. Nancy Mehl has crafted a captivating tale of suspense, featuring a strong female protagonist and a relentless pursuit that will keep readers guessing until the final pages. If you're looking for a gripping thriller that delves into the depths of fear and courage, "Cold Pursuit" is a definite recommendation that will leave you eager for more from this talented author.

This New Series Will Have You Looking Over Your Shoulder!!!



From the moment the book starts you are in the thick of an intense situation and it continues throughout the book. Lots of twists and turns and holding of breath as things progress! This book will definitely keep you interested and the faith stories expressed will tug at your heart. What will happen next? 

I will try to wait patiently for the next book in this series, Cold Threat in January 2024!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the Publisher and was under no obligation to post a favorable review.

Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl is a tight and tense thriller. River and Tony are former FBI analysts who’ve opened a detective agency but find themselves being stalked. Mehl lets us live inside several characters’ minds, making the threats and danger feel personal. She also makes us question our assumptions. This story should haunt readers beyond the back cover of the book. Much fun.

Cold Pursuit - Nancy Mehl - 4.5 Stars, Rounding Up to 5 Stars - A spiritually uplifting Christian suspense novel that will leave you immersed from start to finish!

"And I will bring you through this storm. You are my beloved child, and I never left you."

I am not really a general suspense or thriller reader - but now I will be, as Nancy Mehl is now a new favorite author! WOW, I read this in 1 day ya'll. ONE. DAY. This was so close to a perfect read for me and I can't wait for book 2 as this ended on somewhat of a cliffhanger! It's fast paced, has great faith elements and discussions surrounding mental health (schizophrenia and synesthesia).

In the story we are following River Ryland and Tony St. Clair. They are now private investigators in their own practice and former FBI employees. River and Tony are great friends and now partners in this new practice together. As we see them start to work on getting new cases, there are remnants of a previous case that we see from the prologue still haunting them. They also have some personal issues they are each dealing with that bring emotional depth to the story.

As they get their first case to try and find a mother's missing teen that has been missing for 4 years, we get the perspective of someone named Brian - we know Brian is a killer but how is he involved in their case? Brian has schizophrenia and synesthesia - both mental illnesses that have went untreated for too long and he is suffering. Some parts of his POV as a killer were a little unsettling for me to personally read, but it really did add to the depth of the story and I understand why it was added. You have empathy and compassion for Brian because of what he is going through mentally, but you also don't excuse what he is doing because we know everyone ultimately is responsible for their own actions, regardless. We see how he is tied in with the case River and Tony are working through and it's all makes for an action packed story!

Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves mysteries, thrillers or suspense novels. I loved our characters and hope there will be a little bit of a romance form between them. I felt like it was hinted a little bit in book 1, so hopefully we will see more development there.

For content warnings: Clean read, but some of the killer POVs may be a little unsettling with mentions of the killings, blood, mental illness, etc. Also, River's mother has Alzheimer's so we see some of her struggles in that regard.

Thank you to Baker Publishing and Bethany House for providing a copy of this book to honestly read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

COLD PURSUIT (Ryland & St. Clair Book #1) by Nancy Mehl is a fast paced and gripping Christian suspense and the first book in this new series. These stories feature ex-FBI profilers, River Ryland and Tony St. Clair who have left the FBI and are opening their own private investigation firm.

Watson Investigations is opened by River Ryland and Tony St. Clair in River’s hometown of St. Louis. River left the FBI with PTSD after her last horrific case and her mother needs her now after her Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Tony follows and has mild aphasia and some loss of feeling in his hand and feet after being shot four times by the same perp. The killer is now in prison, but the DNA is not only his and there may be a follower who wants to finish the job of killing River.

At the same time, they get their first P.I. case. A mother whose son has been missing for four years comes to them for help finding him. She knows he is probably dead, but she would like his remains to put him to rest. They begin the investigation and follow a convoluted series of clues and help from people in his life that lead them to a surprisingly close suspect who is determined to punish anyone who makes him mad.

This is an intense suspense read with well-drawn protagonists. Their introduction in the prologue starts you off with a bang and this is the over-arcing plot that will continue in the series and keeps you on the edge-of-your-seat even as you follow their first P.I. case from start to finish in this book. The evidence, clues and twists come at you quickly even as they intertwine so this book is difficult to put down. I read Christian suspense/fiction from other authors and do not mind religious dialogue, prayer, or religious references, but there is too much for me in this story. It pulled me out of the thrills and chills. Overall, I really did enjoy the cold case mystery, the potential of romance between the two protagonists, and the threatening serial killer in the background who we know will return in the future.

A great start to a new Christian suspense series.

What a thrilling read. 5⭐️s

Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl drew me in from the very first page. The book begins with River and Tony, FBI profilers, who have found themselves in an impossible situation at the hand of a criminal they have been profiling.

The story jumps forward to their newly opened private investigation firm where Tony and River meet a mother seeking answers in the disappearance of her son. A cold case from four years ago, Chris seemingly disappeared and was never seen again. The trail of evidence that unravels before them reveals there is much more to this case than they ever expected.
Also in this timeline is Brian, a troubled young man suffering from schizophrenia, his story is told from the first person point of view. The pain of his inner dialogue and a glimpse into the medical condition from which he is suffering allows the reader to watch his character fully develop from within his own thoughts.

I love cold case mysteries. The unraveling of this story was more complex than I initially expected. The faith content was written beautifully, and the multiple POV writing was so immersive. I cannot wait for the release of the next book in this series.

Thank you NetGalley and Bethany House for an advanced ecopy to honestly read and review. All opinions are my own. Publication date was July 11, 2023.

This suspenseful story hits the ground running with characters that fairly jump off the page!

Cold Pursuit is the debut book in the new suspense series. Ryland & St. Clair, by veteran author Nancy Mehl, and was a welcome and exciting surprise for this first-time reader of the author’s work. With solid backstories for the main characters and an intricate and compelling plot, I was hooked by the story from the terrifying prologue to the final resolution.

The main characters, River Ryland and Tony St. Clair are well-developed, with complex and gutsy histories that made these two individuals matter to me at once. Both have struggles that are a result of a traumatic incident that occurred at their previous job. I found River’s family story equally compelling reading as the investigation storyline. Brian’s narrative was riveting.

The plot involves a cold case disappearance of a teenager, the two main characters establishing their private investigation firm and coping with the residual effects of their final case with the FBI, the lasting impacts of divorce, infidelity, and mental illness on families, drug use and overdoses, and the characters’ thoughts on their relationship with God. Some of these are difficult, tough subjects, and the author does a wonderful and sensitive job weaving them together to create a mesmerizing, edge-of-your-seat story. I can’t wait to see what the author follows up with in book two.

This suspenseful story hits the ground running with characters that come alive on the page. I recommend COLD PURSUIT to readers of thrillers and suspense.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Ryder Ryland is drowning. She's been kidnapped, forced in a trunk and thrown in a river. Her partner Tony St. Clair was shot before her eyes. It seems like the end for both of them.

Nancy Mehl writes Christian fiction, and she does it well. I've read several of her books and I've liked them all. Her characters are not over the top self-righteous or preachy, she writes them as real people with everyday struggles that show their need for God.

This book is kept me wanting to know how it was all going to be tied up although I did end up figuring out who the killer was but there is a secondary story that I believe will continue on into a series.

I liked it very much and I will read the next one as soon as it comes out!

Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl First in a new series, Cold Pursuit introduces River and Tony, Private Investigators who were former FBI Agents. Tense, suspenseful mystery with unique characters, a bit of romance, and unexpected twists. Learned about synesthesia and more about schizophrenia which the author skillfully wove into the narrative.
Thank you to the author, Bethany House Publishers, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

I love all of Mehl’s novels. Great suspense and mystery in each of them. Also when she brings in behavioral analyists. In Cold Pursuit we have former FBI behavioral analysts River Ryland and Tony St. Clair are attempting to start their own business as private investigators after the devastating trauma of their final FBI case. Their first customer concerns a missing person which as they delve into happenings and incidents surrounding this person, other things began to come to light.

I love all of Mehl’s novels. Great suspense and mystery in each of them. Also I especially enjoy when she brings in behavioral analyists. In Cold Pursuit we have former FBI behavioral analysts, River Ryland and Tony St. Clair are attempting to start their own business as private investigators after the devastating trauma of their final FBI case. Their first customer concerns a missing person which as they delve into happenings and incidents surrounding this person, other things began to come to light. Mehl deals expertly with a neurological disorder known as Synesthesia (which I had never heard about). It was an interesting, albeit scary disorder. She expertly shows what can happen with a mentally challenged person who was bullied all his life. All in all, as all of Mehl’s books we have mystery, suspense, real action along with a serial killer. Very well formed and believable characters with descriptions of all scenes that you can see with the mind’s eye. What an interesting book! ….Thanks to Bethany and the author for a copy to read and review.

Cold Pursuit, by Nancy Mehl, is another tale from this author full of suspense, action and the unknown. Ex-FBI profiler River Ryland and her former FBI partner, Tony St. Clair, team up to discover the whereabouts of a young teenage boy who has been missing for several years. Will they be able to bring resolution to his grieving mother or have they stirred up a hornet’s nest that will bring danger from a new direction!

Hold tight for an ending full of surprises!

Meet River and Tony, two ex-profiler FBI agents who have started a private investigation company. When a grieving mother asks them to help her find her son who has been missing for many years, they are unaware that this will lead to the uncovering of a serial killer. Will they find the missing teen, or will they be thrown into something more sinister?

This is a murder mystery that I enjoyed immensely. Nancy Mehl was incredibly clever in how she wrote this book. She linked the killer from River and Tony’s past to the present really well. This gave the book a chilling aspect as I was not sure when the killer would strike. She also managed to write the main antagonist in a light that made my heart bleed for him. In the book, he suffered from schizophrenia and synesthesia. As a character, he brought to light how people with mental illnesses are treated by their loved ones and society. Another mental illness that was explored is Alzheimer’s. River’s mother suffers from this disease, and that, along with a complicated past causes many rifts in their relationship.

A strong trend throughout the book is the exploration of God. Nancy Mehl uses her writing to share that God will love, forgive, and guide us no matter what happens. She explores unbelief and questioning of God and what people blame Him for. She also explores repentance and reconciliation.

The relationship between Tony and River was written well. Their friendship and fierce protection of one another was beautiful. It showed the intricacies of true friendship and loving people through their brighter and darker moments.

If you are looking for a gripping book with a strong emphasis on faith and the humanness that affects this, you should read this book! I received a complimentary copy courtesy of Bethany House through NetGalley and Interviews & Reviews. All views and opinions are my own.

If you are a fan of Nancy Mehl, you will probably enjoy this book as well. It is not my favorite by her, but I found it to be a good read. The ending left one thinking that there would be a sequel.

When I first stated reading this book the one word that immediately came to mind was sinister, then as I kept reading it was twisted and tragic. I can promise you if you start this book be prepared for a roller coster of thrills. This author takes you on a journey like non other from the view of the Killer to the way of the hero's. I felt like the author did a great job at catching the struggles of River and Tony and how with River's mom being sick and her fight to keep her mom safe to both River and Tony's struggle with being captured and hunted. I liked Tony he was the strong silent type but you could tell he balanced and kept River ground when it felt like her life was falling apart. Overall I can't say there was one thing I didn't like about this book and I can't wait for more from this Duo. It was well worth the read for sure.

Nancy Mehl’s latest, Cold Pursuit, is packed with twists and unexpected surprises. Tony St. Clair and River Ryland face their new careers as private investigators with the burdens of their damaging pasts. Additionally, she uses synesthesia—a neurological phenomenon where two or more senses cross. The combination of a cold case, powerful suspense, and a mystery creates a fascinating storyline. She addresses mental health issues with respect and utilizes anticipation to take the reader deeper into the current and cold case. I loved the profiling aspect that River and her partner Tony employ as they hunt for the killer. Cold Pursuit is a fabulous read!

This is a novel for readers who like more character thought and development than action and suspense. The novel starts with a very suspenseful scene but it is just a prelude to the later story. That later story is mostly Ryland and St. Clair getting used to working together, investigating their first case, and our discovering the personal issues they face. The plot moves along rather well in those areas and there is another spurt of suspense at the end.

We know who the villain is far from the end so there is no need to try to figure out the identity. Since the emphasis is more on character than action, there are several issues explored in the novel. There is Alzheimer's and elder care. There is PTSD. There is mental illness and a condition called synesthesia. There is also high school teacher misbehavior. Even though there is not suspense throughout, these interesting issues kept my attention. There is also a very strong and clear Christian faith message included.

All is not settled at the end of this novel and there is the potential for future suspense. I liked getting to know Ryland and St. Clair and will be watching for their next adventure.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book through Partners in Crime Book Tours. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Whenever I start a new Nancy Mehl suspense, I know there will come a moment when I’m absolutely gobsmacked by a twist I didn’t see coming. And even when I try to figure out the twist ahead of time (because I know it’s waiting for me), I rarely can. I’m still gobsmacked when it shows up even when I’m bracing myself for it. I don’t know how she does it so consistently but it’s always one of my very favorite parts of her stories, and that proved true for Cold Pursuit as well.

River Ryland and Tony St. Clair are former profilers with the FBI who left after a very traumatic experience that happened as they tracked a serial killer. Now they are partners in a private detective agency in a small St. Louis suburb while River cares for her mother who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. There’s a lot of family dynamics involved in River’s story, and I appreciated the emotional layers we unpacked in Cold Pursuit. I am also looking forward to further development of the existing layers – as well as exploring new ones – related to River’s family in the next books. River & Tony’s relationship is promising for romance potential as the series progresses, but right now they are just best friends and partners with the faintest stirrings of more. I suspect that Tony’s feelings have been leaning that direction a bit ahead of River’s, and I can’t wait to see who initiates any changes in their relationship status in later books.

BUT, first and foremost Cold Pursuit is a suspense novel that will have you on the edge of your seat as various threads intersect and separate and tangle together. River and Tony’s honed skills in behavior analysis serve them well in many ways in their new gig as private detectives, but their investigation into a missing son whose mother desperately wants closure stretches requires a different skill set as well. I enjoyed watching their sharp minds, intuition, and friendship work together on this case that takes them in directions they never imagined going, not to mention the twists that threw them – and me – for a loop. There’s an overarching plot thread that I suspect will carry across the series, and I can already tell that it will keep my heart in my throat until it’s resolved. I’m still shivering a bit when I think of a couple of scenes/revelations in this book!

Bottom Line: Riveting suspense. Unique characters. Layered relational dynamics. Realistic explorations of faith issues. A hint of romance. And those stunning twists. These are all trademarks of a Nancy Mehl novel and, in particular, of Cold Pursuit. You will find yourself unable to put down this story until you’ve reached the end and then you’ll inevitably start stalking the internet for word of book two. I look forward to watching Ryland & St. Clair’s relationship develop in future stories and also watching how the author resolves the series arc that had me on the edge of my seat throughout Cold Pursuit. Is it 2024 yet?!? Pick up Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl if you’re in the mood for an intriguing read that’s part psychological thriller and part cold case mystery with romance potential and a sweet message of faith.

(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book)

This is not a positive review of this book. I did not enjoy it for quite a few reasons--the Christian elements just didn't work for me. The mystery elements here meant much of the needed information came to the investigators coincidentally, literally knocking on the door. The writing was boring and felt like the author was trying to convince me of the reality of the story--more telling than showing. The characters, despite what they'd been through previously, didn't have a lot of depth. The disability trope is waved around, but not a lot of meat on the bones here.

River and Tony are both suffering from the after affects of their last case as FBI agents. They both about died. River decided to move to St. Louis because her mother is suffering from Alzheimer. Tony decides to move there also. He's never had a different partner than River and didn't want to start now. So they decide to open a PI office. A mother comes to them and wants her to find her son. He's been missing for four years. She just wants closure.

This is a fast paced mystery that will keep you guessing and kept me reading. There are several sub plots in the book as well. Interwoven is a mystery that doesn't get solved. River and Tony aren't even aware of what's going on. But they will.

I was given this book by Bethany House Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated in any way.