The Boy Who Cried Bear by Kelley Armstrong is the second book in the Haven's Rock series. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton are trying to solve a case that involves a bear that may or may not be real. Every book I've read by Armstrong has been so well-written and enjoyable, and this book was no exception. Highly recommend this book as well as the previous series of books, the Rockton series. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it lately, but I sure am glad I came across Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton series and I’m doubly glad she’s kept the characters around for Haven’s Rock, a spin-off series that’s not really a spin-off just kinda a continuation of a series but with a different location. Or something. However you want to look at it, I was thrilled to have the chance to hang out with Casey and Dalton in The Boy Who Cried Bear, the second book in Armstrong’s Haven’s Rock series.

Here’s the book’s description:
Haven’s Rock is a well-hidden town surrounded by forest. And it’s supposed to be, being that it’s a refuge for those who need to disappear. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton already feel at home in their new town, which reminds them of where they first met in Rockton. And while they know how to navigate the woods and its various dangers, other residents don’t. Which is why people aren't allowed to wander off alone.
When Max, the town’s youngest resident—taught to track animals by Eric—fears a bear is stalking a hiking party, alarms are raised. Even stranger, the ten-year-old swears the bear had human eyes. Casey and Eric know the dangers a bear can present, so they’re taking it seriously. But odd occurrences are happening all around them, and when a dead body turns up, they’re not sure what they’re up against.
Since this is only the second book in the Haven’s Rock series, there’s still a lot to learn about the new hidden town. Casey and Dalton are figuring out how to run the town, who on their staff they can trust implicitly, and, you know, why dead bodies keep turning up. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be in charge of protecting folks who have escaped really crappy circumstances, only to have some people disappear and others wind up dead. Turns out living in the middle of nowhere doesn’t mean you’re safe from murder. Who knew?!

The book’s description is vague about the mystery in this one so I won't go into any specific details either. I want you to be as surprised as I was with the twists and turns. I will say that I’m really curious to see what book three will bring (even though I literally just finished book two before I started writing this…the dangers of anticipated books, eh? That you’re so excited about them and then rush through reading it because you just can’t help yourself and now you have to wait for the next one) because, well, there’s a bit of a cliffhanger at the end. Or…maybe not “cliffhanger” but…the bow isn’t as neat as you might want from a mystery. As a mystery reader, I’m a little annoyed but as a reader of this particular series? I totally get it. And I trust that Armstrong has a plan and all will, eventually, be revealed. (But seriously…why do we love book series so much? I think we’re all masochists.)

I love the characters in this series so much. There are a lot of them but they really do all have a purpose. It’s like Haven’s Rock itself. You wouldn’t be there - and definitely wouldn’t be staff - if you didn’t have a particular reason for being there. I loved being able to get more of a glimpse into Casey and Dalton’s married life (they have such a great, and unique, partnership) and see how some of the other former Rockton residents were faring. I will say there’s a side, more personal, storyline, in this one that is one I personally dislike but it’s very much a Me Thing, as much as I wish it hadn’t been brought into the series.

There are a number of times biases, especially around race, come up in this particular story. Armstrong is White (or at least very much White presenting) but Casey is Asian Canadian (I think Chinese but admit I cannot recall exactly) and there are a few other characters who are not White. In this story, Anders and Yolanda talk about being one of the only Black people in their towns. And another resident spews some ridiculous (and harmful) BS right to Casey’s face about “you people” being smart. Ugh, just reading it makes me rage because I know there are real people out there making those same assumptions based solely on racial stereotypes.

I really enjoyed The Boy Who Cried Bear and am so glad I saved it for a long weekend “treat” for myself. Kelley Armstrong has created a great series that’s so enjoyable (if you could call a series that features murders etc. “enjoyable”...) and I already cannot wait for the third installment.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Minotaur, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

I love Kelley Armstrong's books...it doesn't matter which genre it is. Rockton is one of my favorite series by Kelley Armstrong and I'm loving Haven's Rock just as much. Here we have book 2 and Casey and Dalton are looking for a missing boy from their wilderness community. It's been fun watching their relationship grow through each book and I can't wait for the next installment!

I also listened to the audio version. Therese Plummer is one of my favorite narrators, so this was an enjoyable one to listen to!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Publication date: 20 February 2024

The second Haven’s Rock novel picks up some time after the first book. There are more people in town; Casey wonders if they’re all vetted sufficiently. This concern grows when Max, a ten-year-old, disappears in the woods after saying he caught sight of a bear man. No one believes that it's sasquatch, or that the boy even saw anything, as his older brother feels.

Casey, Dalton and Storm begin searching, concerned for the boy’s welfare, and others in town are in some cases sympathetic, and in others dismissive, assuming the worst of the boy’s single mother, who is Latinx and whose reason for being in Haven’s Rock and the boy’s disappearance surely is drug-related. No bigots present in this town....

Casey and her older sister are still working on their relationship, but in addition to the disappearance, Casey has a health concern, which her sister April is annoyed Casey did not investigate years earlier. Casey is nauseated, dizzy, exhausted, and has missed her period.

So even though neither she nor Eric talked about children, this extra weight lands on her shoulders while the pair exhaust themselves trying to find the missing boy. They must, unfortunately, infringe on their neighbour's land, which has a secretive mining operation on it with suspicious a security team guarding it, and learn a few new concerning things about the settlement.

I have read much of Kelley Armstrong's work, and find her plotting and pacing compelling, and her characters well drawn, who experience extraordinary things while often struggling with personal or professional problems. Casey is someone I immediately liked in book one of Armstrong's Rockton series, and she continues to be competent, smart, vulnerable, and prone to self-doubt when dealing with her sister or when asking for things for herself. She's further along her journey, and I like that though Armstrong is slowly doling out bits of information about the mysterious neighbours, she leaves us with plenty of great character moments for Casey and even for young Max, who is in quite a lot of danger for most of the novel.

I thoroughly enjoyed this new exciting entry in this series, and cannot wait for the next Haven's Rock story.

Thank you to Netgalley and to St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Quick take: 4 stars. More Yukon whodunnit vibes, but with a kidnapping. I had no idea reading about people tracking other people in the woods would be compelling to me.

Kelley Armstrong's The Boy Who Cried Bear is the Second installment in the Haven's Rock series which is a spin-off of the author's Rockton series. Haven’s Rock is a well-hidden town surrounded by forest deep in the Yukon. It’s supposed to be a refuge for those who need to disappear or are in witness protection. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton already feel at home in their new town, which reminds them of where they first met in Rockton. They should, they've put a lot of effort and time into finding a permanent home.

Some former Rockton residents like Casey's sister April, Mathias, Kendra, Isabel, Kenny, Anders, and Phil have also come to Haven's along with Yolanda, who is the granddaughter of the woman who has helped Casey and Eric create this town and do background checks on anyone sent here. Casey and Eric know how to navigate the woods and its various dangers, other residents who are just arriving don’t. Which is why people aren't allowed to wander off alone. Just like Rockton.

Max is a 10-year-old boy who comes to Haven's Rock with his mother and brother after his father was murdered in cold blood, and his mother was shot after they apparently saw something they weren't supposed to see. Escaping to Haven's Rock is supposed to be a safety net to avoid those who were responsible for Max's family's troubles. Max has learned a lot from not only Casey but especially Dalton on how to survive. But when he claims to have seen a bear with human eyes, Casey and Eric take the sighting seriously despite not knowing exactly what it was.

When Max, who is smart, intuitive, empathetic, and responsible, is later taken by an unknown person, Casey and Dalton fear that trouble has followed them from Rockton. Could the hostiles have found their way here? Or, is it the miners who are doing whatever they are doing and are trying to keep people away from what they are doing? When a body is found, Casey is right there to find it as though death follows her everywhere. As the accusations start to point to something more nefarious by residents, Casey learns something that might change her ability to do her job.

This is where the author takes a jump back in time to when Casey was 19. The thing that happened to her when she was 19, drove her for 10 years to try to prove she's not another cold-blooded killer looking for revenge. She became a cop, later a detective, and several years ago, made the move to Rockton. She has done wonderful work since she was given permission to stay at Rockton, and she had hoped that Haven's Rock was her retirement retreat with Eric. I'm not going to speak on the issue because it kind of took a life of its own, ergo, spoiling the story.

Casey and Eric, with help from Emilie, Yolanda, and a few others, still draw a firm line on who can be admitted. Unlike Rockton which got out of hand, dangerous criminals aren’t permitted. Readers will gain a better understanding of the key characters and their backgrounds if they read the Rockton series first or start at the beginning of this series. But what about the miners who appear to be trying to encroach on their lands? Will they become a major issue? I don't make it a habit of saying it's okay to just jump in without knowing why you should care about any of these characters. I love Eric more today, than I did before I read this story, and no, again, the reason I refuse to talk about it is because it's a cliffhanger.

I have been a fan of Kelley Armstrong's books for a very long time since I first became aware of her Otherworld series in the early 2000s. Whether it is Urban Fantasy, Mystery, Time-Slip, or whatever Rockton or Haven's Rock could be classified as she consistently delivers unique characters and great stories.

The Haven's Rock Series is a spin-off of the Rockton Series, set in the contemporary Canadian Yukon. Rockton was a well-hidden town, founded initially for people fleeing political persecution. Over the years, it became a refuge for anyone who could pay to get in. Casey Duncan was fleeing her possible prosecution for murder and the revenge of the victim's family. Brought in as a detective reporting to the Rockton Sheriff, Eric Dalton. The pairing became both professional and personal. Casey and Eric are now a married couple. When Rockton fell apart, the two founded Haven's Rock. Haven's Rock is meant as an escape for people fleeing trouble not of their own making, and hopefully, fewer serial killers and psychopaths.

Haven's Rock has accepted a mother and two children whose father was killed in front of them after testifying in a trial. The two boys are the first children in Rockton or Haven's Rock, causing concerns they have never faced before. When the younger boy reports seeing a bear with human eyes near the settlement, no one knows what to think. The boy, Max, is insistent, and everyone is all out to find him when he appears to have been abducted. Plenty of strange people are out in the woods, but why would Max be abducted? Coupled with this dilemma, Casey and Eric have their own issue, which is also about a child.

The Boy Who Cried Bear is another gripping installment in this well-constructed series. While the novel could be read as a stand-alone, I think everyone should start with the first in the series and possibly go back to Rockton. You won't be disappointed!! Thanks to NetGalley.com and Minotaur for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

I love this series so much! The Boy Who Cried Bear is another fantastic addition. There is just something about Kelley Armstrong's writing that captivates me from start to finish.

In this book set in Haven's Rock, a secluded town in the Yukon, she weaves a thrilling story filled with mystery and danger. Detective Casey Duncan and Sheriff Eric Dalton are facing new menacing threats and trying to keep their town safe.

This was a very intriguing and well paced mystery with drama and compelling characters put into perilous circumstances. I loved everything about this book and eagerly await the next installment.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

3.5 stars!
Casey and her husband, Eric, are supposed to be getting a fresh start in Haven’s Rock, their new settlement in the isolated Canadian wilderness after things didn’t work out in Rockton. Haven’s Rock allows children, which is a change in thinking from Rockton. When Max, a young boy, goes missing after a recent suspicious bear sighting, Casey and Eric are on the case.

I have read some of the Rockton series and I loved continuing to follow Casey and Eric’s character arcs in the new spinoff series! I haven’t read the first one yet but I definitely would. I love the cast of misfits in Haven’s Rock, and how no one can really be trusted. The beginning had me hooked and I was flipping pages to find out what happened. However, I did find the length to be a bit much.

Yet another great mystery written by Kelly Armstrong! Deep in the Yukon wilderness Casey and Dalton are trying to make their patchwark town of people work together and keep to themselves. Iin effort to help more people, they decide to host their first family who come with their own slew of issues. When the young boy, Max, starts Claiming of seeing a Bear-man in the woods, some take him seriously while others blame it on his past trauma. That is, until one day Max disappears. Now Casey and Dalton are racing to find the boy and the supposed bear-man in hopes they can get there before something more awful happens. If only they could get more cooperation from their mysterious miner-neighbors who say they keep to themselves, but need armed guards at their camp to protect their site.
The book laid out a great mystery that left me kicking myself that I couldn't put some more of the pieces together. When you think the story is going one way you get hit with a curveball that makes you re-think how all of the pieces fit together. It certainly kept me on my toes. Overall it tied up the main mystery but left enough plot open to make me anxious for the next book in the series. I cant wait to read more!

What a great second book in the Haven's Rock series. Kelley Armstrong does a great job tying the 2 series together. Can't wait for her next book!
Thank you Kelley Armstrong & Netgalley for this ARC.

Haven’s Rock is a well-hidden town surrounded by forest. And it’s supposed to be, being that it’s a refuge for those who need to disappear. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton already feel at home in their new town, which reminds them of where they first met in Rockton. And while they know how to navigate the woods and its various dangers, other residents don’t. Which is why people aren't allowed to wander off alone.

When Max, the town’s youngest resident—taught to track animals by Eric—fears a bear is stalking a hiking party, alarms are raised. Even stranger, the ten-year-old swears the bear had human eyes. Casey and Eric know the dangers a bear can present, so they’re taking it seriously. But odd occurrences are happening all around them, and when a dead body turns up, they’re not sure what they’re up against.

The latest installment of Kelley's Haven's Rock series, the follow-along from the Rockton series, may very well be the best book yet.

This series has the best take on the "small town with a secret" trope, and this book gave us a new lens to view this world through - children!

As with all the books in this universe, the concern for the characters is real, the pacing keeps you pushing through to the end, and the twists are worth the payoff.

I highly recommend reading the books leading up to this one - at a minimum Haven's Rock- as there are many characters and intricacies that can't be done justice in a single book. If you're looking for a mystery, a great cast of characters, and a unique setting, this is the book (and series) for you.
5 stars.

In this 2nd installment of the Rockton spin-off, Haven's Rock, the first residents arrive and things do not go according to plan. There's a bear stalking the town and with their first resident minors having arrived, they need to track it and scare it from the town borders. But, what if it's a man in bear skins similar to the hostiles near Rockton? What goal would he have in mind? And how big of a threat would that be? Then their youngest resident goes missing, was he trying to get a closer look at the bear? Or is he just hiding in town somewhere after the epic teasing he got from his brother? You'll have to read to find out how this bear/manhunt turns out. I highly recommend reading all the books in both the Rockton and Haven's Rock series, but Kelley Armstrong fills the reader in on enough details that it can also work as a standalone.

Having recently finished “The Boy Who Cried Bear" by Kelley Armstrong, I am happy to have had the chance to read the Advanced Reader’s Edition e-copy; thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books!

Drama is always happening in Haven’s Rock and this time it was the presence of a fierce-looking bear-man who disturbed the community and caused concern. With one little boy lost in the woods looking for proof of what he believed he saw, this intense and mysterious search will have you trekking along the Yukon trails as the hunt for Max unfolds.

The Boy Who Cried Bear is a well-written, meticulously plotted, entertaining mystery with multifaceted characters set in a quirky town with a community that feels like family. The book has it all: murder, secrets, corruption, mystery, and plenty of suspense and atmosphere that keeps readers turning the pages into the wee hours of the morning; I would highly recommend it.….…

I have enjoyed everything I have read from author Kelley Armstrong and The Boy Who Cried Bear; the second book in her Haven's Rock series is no exception.

Haven's Rock is a small hidden town in the wilds of Yukon, Canada, a haven for people who need a place to lay low. Built by a wealthy benefactor, Haven Rock is so remote that it is a perfect place to hide. When Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, start bringing people in, no questions asked. They live in close quarters and, although consisting of vastly different personalities, they get along for the most part. For the first time, the town has let in children; a young Mother, Dana and her two young sons, Max and Carson, find refuge there after witness protection fails to protect them, leaving Dana widowed and severely injured to care for her children. Much to his brother's dismay, Max thrives as the only child in Haven's Rock. Max loves the wilderness and spends time getting trained by a group led by Eric and Casey on how to survive in the woods. On a group hike, ten-year-old Max believes he saw a bear stalking the hikers, but no ordinary bear; it walked on two legs and had human eyes. Although Casey and Eric take Max's sighting seriously, they both agree it is just a bear, but it is still concerning, as it is out of the bear's normal behaviour.

When Max fights with his older brother, he runs away to sit by the woods only to be blindfolded, kidnapped, and taken deep in the woods by a man dressed head to toe in bear skins. After days and nights spent in the woods searching for Max, Casey becomes ill, but there seems more to it. The town comes together, and strange notes appear as the investigation remains fruitless, implying that someone from Dana's past has returned to exact revenge. The more they dive into the case, the more the leads point in different directions, including to the town's neighbours, a corrupt mining company with a mysterious facility secured by armed guards.



Once again, Armstrong delivered a well-written, compelling mystery with multifaceted characters set in a quirky town that kept me glued to the pages. Alternating between Casey and Max's POVs, the reader has insight into what Max was going through while Casey and Eric searched for him. I couldn't swipe the pages on my iPad fast enough!

The book has it all: murder, secrets, corruption, mystery, and plenty of suspense and atmosphere that keeps readers turning the pages into the wee hours of the morning; I highly recommend it! I look forward to the next book in the Haven's Rock series. I was lucky enough to get an ADC and ALC I paired the ADC and ALC (IMO) Therese Plummer did an fantastic job narrating this story. She is one of my favourites and this performance was up to her usual high standards. I felt like I was there with Casey and Eric, trying to find this boy in the woods. The voices she used for the characters brought the story to life, and I thought she added just the right amount of emotion to her performance, which fully immersed me in the plot.

<b><br /> I would like to thank NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the ADC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 ⭐️

I was so exited for this one but I just didn’t like it as much as the first one. Overall the story is griping and the ending definitely set up what I expected to be a very exciting book 3 but .. the story did drag on and we really didn’t get much new character development … there were also way too many references to Rockton - which was somewhat ok in the first book - as it is a spin off but I don’t think it was really that necessary
I feel like the overall story could have been told in a novella - which this author is very good at doing as well - there’s actually a 0.5 novella for this series I still need to read and

Haven's Rock is the establishment that Casey Duncan and her husband, Eric Dalton, have established deep in the Canadian wilderness to hide people who need to be off the grid completely. A woman and her two boys have arrived in town; she is recovering from gunshots that killed her husband and traumatized the children. One of the boys, Max, begins to tell everyone he has seen a man dressed as a bear in the woods and when he disappears, it seems as though he may be right. As Casey and Eric search for Max, they begin to question if their retreat may be doomed to failure.

4.5 star rating.

WHY IT'S NEARLY A FIVE: As always, Ms. Armstrong is a master storyteller and writer. We have all the key elements we loved from Rockton: the scrappy group of survivors, a mystery that leads to more questions instead of fewer, and a potential bad guy who could derail everything.

One thing about her books is how difficult they are to review because you want everyone to have the same fabulous experience you do with no spoilers. This book is a must read for all Rockton fans.

WHY NOT A FIVE: While I enjoyed the first book of the Haven's Rock series I had some reservations. It felt such a tightrope balancing act of what I loved about Rockton and what I missed fighting each other. I'll admit, there's a character in this new series (the I have a right to do whatever I want bc of who I'm related to character) that honestly has series-ruining potential. I literally had to start skipping her. Instead of being the sharp or dangerous potential derailers that one Petra was or the mystery of the council she's just... entitled and annoying. Like, she vibes like a 12yo girl who didn't get invited to the pizza party.

As always an amazing read. I love the relationships between the characters, it's what always keeps me coming back for more of these books. I love seeing what kind of mystery there is to solve as well as watching the new town grow.

I continue to find this series charming. I know that the Haven's Rock books are considered a separate series to the Rockton books, but I think readers are going to get the most out of the series by reading them all. There is an adage in the TV world where the addition of children to a series can be "jumping the shark", but I think letting kids into the new community allows for further character development among these well known characters. The pacing of this book was quick and compelling as always, and kept me turning pages. These books are pretty simple, but the characters and the setting keep bringing me back. Good fun.