The Boy Who Cried Bear is book two in the Haven's Rock series by Kelley Armstrong.
I’ve been waiting so patiently for this book to hit. I loved Murder at Haven's Rock so I was excited when I was approved for this title.
I’m a big fan of Armstrong and her writing always keeps me so entertained and excited for more.
This is well-written and entertaining story with a solid mystery and complex characters. Her characters and storytelling is exceptional.
There were plenty of twists and turns that kept me guessing until the thrilling end.
I enjoy Kelly Armstrong’s writing style she is incredible at writing atmospheric stories. She makes you fell like you are right in the middle of it all.
I devoured this in one sitting, it is full of mystery and intrigue that doesn’t disappoint. It is full of twists and turns wrought with intensity that holds your interest all the way to the satisfying ending that will have you filled with anticipation for the next book in this series.

Thank You NetGalley and Minotaur Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

When I choose this book to read, I didn't realize that it was the second in a series and apparently the characters were introduced in a previous series. I feel like I was missing a lot of necessary details, although I warmed up to the characters eventually. A ten year old boy goes missing after reporting that he saw a bear just outside a tiny well-hidden forest town. As the search for him intensifies, it becomes clear that it wasn't an animal who took him, it was a person....and there aren't many suspects in the isolated wilderness.

I just finished The Boy Who Cried Bear by Kelley Armstrong and this is my review.

Detective Casey Duncan and her husband Eric have their refuse up and running. Haven’s rock is hidden from the world by a forest. It’s a place for people to disappear. A fresh start. The woods are dangerous so people aren’t allowed to go off alone.

When Max, 10 years old and a tracker, thinks a bear might be stalking a hunting party. He also swears the animal has human eyes. Taking the kid seriously but accepting this is very odd but the weirdness doesn’t stop there… When a dead body shows up, no one knows what it is that they are up against.

The book is the second in this series and like the first one, it started out slow but it is steady and strong. I love the build up and the book is wonderfully plot driven with just enough character storylines to keep even those who love character development entertained.

The author has this beautiful talent in leading you down paths of wrongness. Making you think you know what's going on then BAM! You get spun around again. It definitely found itself in this book. Book 1 was trying to lay the groundwork and build the foundation for the series. This one took off running. If you like slow and careful suspense series, this one has to be on your list.

I love Casey. She gets better and better for me. I am really excited to see what is coming next. The ending will blow your mind and I am confident that you will love this series too.

4.5 stars

Thank you to @netgalley and @minotaurbooks for my gifted copy

Christmas comes four or five times a year for me, when new books by favorite authors are released. On rare occasions those releases turn the day into April Fool or Halloween
I can happily say Kelley Armstrong’s The Boy Who Cried Bear (Haven’s Rock #2) is a Christmas present. Haven’s Rock is the follow up to the beloved Rockton series. Rockton was a small secret town hidden in the depths of the endless miles of the Yukon forests. Rockton was originally built as protection and sanctuary for committed anti-war protestors. It then switched over to providing sanctuary to others. With its third set of ‘owners’, Rockton started taking in serial killers, child predators, and others who could pay high premiums. Can we say “bye-bye Rockton?
Back to the real world, there were a lot of broken-hearted readers who were devoted to Rockton and its fascinating denizens. Ms. Armstrong heard our wails (or so I like to believe) and here we now are with the fascinating second book of the new series, Haven’s Rock. A core group of former residents of Rockton decide to join Casey and Eric in building a new and better town named Haven’s Rock, open only to those who truly need sanctuary. Exceptions are made for certain occupations.
The new majority owners of Haven’s Rock, the sheriff, Eric Dalton and his wife and detective, Casey Butler have decided to loosen up a bit on Haven’s Rock rules. They accept a mother with two sons who were tracked down in Witness Protection in an epic and tragic security failure.
The youngest, a ten-year-old boy named Max, claims to have seen a bear with human eyes stalking a guided hike. Everyone believes him about seeing the grizzly, no one believes him about it being a bear/man.
“Things fall apart, the center cannot hold”. Once again Haven’s Rock is plunged into multiple crimes, then the ugliness between residents begins. Matters worsen when Eric and Casey are forced to initiate contact with the mysterious miners who have built their secretive camp after Casey and Eric did all of the scouting to ensure the new location would be absolutely isolated.
One of the enduring, most loved aspect of Rockton and now Haven’s Rock are the basic decency of the main occupants of the town. Especially the love affair and marriage between Eric and Casey. They confront their problems together, no false histrionics, no invented drama. In The Boy Who Cried Bear , they have more than the usual problems in secretly running the small town while trying to keep it safe.
My wishes for future books would be for more Isabel and April and Will and……well, still waiting for those killer rabbits.
Then again if all of my wishes for this book concerning relationships, characters and setting were met, this book would be at least double in size.
The plot is a busy one, several threads are woven, some seem to be red herrings, some are straight forward. When will we learn what is being mined?
Max is a terrific new character, smart, brave, and observant. Hopefully the vigilante psychiatrist who is now a meat butcher will be able to help Max’s brother Carson, while the psychologist turned madam, bar owner and now just bar/coffee shop owner will be able to help Max. Reread that sentence and you will have the essence of Haven’s Rock.
How can one not be fascinated by this series and the one before it?
The Boy Who Cried Bear , as are all the previous Rockton/Haven’s Rock books are a mixture of fascinating crime, love, and adventure stories.
Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press/Minotaur books for an Advanced Readers Copy.

The second in the Haven's Rock series, The Boy Who Cried Bear by Kelley Armstrong takes place in wild and rugged Yukon where bears and wolves outnumber people. In Haven's Rock, small houses blend in with the environment as an extension of nature. Animals predate and stalk which is thrilling at times but terrifying at others.

Young brothers Max and Carson had been left fatherless when their dad was killed and their mother was injured. All three severely suffered emotionally and coped in different ways. Max and Carson's relationship was at times full of angst and when Max saw an animal (he knew animal signs), Carson wasn't exactly encouraging. But when someone goes missing, residents wonder whether the culprit is beast or human. Suspicion is rife as Detective Duncan and her husband Sheriff Dalton poke around and ask questions.

Count me in for wilderness stories, the more secluded the better. The setting grabbed me tightly. I liked the quirky characters and unique remote mentality. However, the story sadly didn't for some inexplicable reason and my mind wandered elsewhere. My heart wasn't invested.

My sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this novel.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Kelley Armstrong for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The Boy Who Cried Bear coming out February 20, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I didn’t read the first book in the series, but I received this from NetGalley directly. So I decided to read it anyway. I love wilderness crime type books. I love that it was set a remote place and the community was really small. They were parts of the book that I thought were really suspenseful, but I the characters as I thought I would be. I just wasn’t really feeling this. I’m not a huge fan of the pregnancy trope.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys crime novels.

Kelly Armstrong returns following Murder At Raven's Rock, with her popular Haven Rock's series with #2, THE BOY WHO CRIED BEAR —Detective Casey Duncan tries to solve a threat/mystery before it is too late in this chilling suspense.

Haven’s Rock is a well-hidden sanctuary town in Yukon, surrounded by forest and a place of solace and safety for those who need refuge (and to disappear).

Picking up from the last book, Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are pros, but they know the woods can be dangerous, and they encourage the residents not to wander off.

They now have 24 residents, including Max's family. Rockton did not allow children or couples, so they changed that. Max's family are the newest residents. He, his older brother, Carson, and their mother. They survived an attack on their family in which their father was killed.

Max (adorable), is the youngest resident and was taught to track animals by Eric. He is ten and swears there is a bear with human eyes. Since Max said he had nightmares about people sneaking up on him, Eric had been teaching him how to track sounds in the forest.

He tells his brother Carson they are being stalked by a predator. Casey and Eric take it seriously. Then things start happening, and someone goes missing. Then a body is found.

What stranger is hiding out in their woods? A serial killer? Or could it be one of their own?

I was hooked after reading the first book in the series and was delighted to return to Haven's Rock and catch up with all the diverse characters.

Atmospheric, action-packed, a well-written mystery crime series with a locked-in thriller vibe blended with psychological suspense and family dramas.

While this novel can be read as a stand-alone, I recommend reading the first in the series (which I enjoyed) to learn the key players and the backgrounds. Fans of Kelley Armstrong and the Rockton series will enjoy this one. I look forward to reading more from this author!

Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced review copy.

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JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 4 Stars
Pub Date: Feb 20, 2024
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The Boy Who Cried Bear by Kelley Armstrong
Haven’s Rock series #2. Spinoff of the Rockton/Casey Duncan series. Thriller police mystery.
Detective Casey Duncan and husband Sheriff Eric Dalton are the founders and enforcement of the remote and isolated small community of Haven’s Rock. Max is the youngest of the town residents and he, like everyone else, is taught to be mindful of the wilderness and not to go into the woods on their own. On a hike, Max feels their group is being followed. He catches a glimpse of something brown between the trees and voices a warning. He swears it had human eyes though no one is sure what that means. When a dead body is found and Max goes missing, it’s lockdown for the community while Casey and Eric search for clues and tracks in the woods.

Pulse pounding suspense as they figure out what’s going on even as Casey is sick. She’s still out tracking with Eric and their search dog doing their best to find Max before it’s too late.

🎧 I alternated between an ecopy and an audiobook copy. The narration is done by Therese Plummer who does a fantastic job of keeping the reader on the edge of the seat. Emotions are clear, with separate voices for Eric and Casey and several secondary characters. The same narrator does both this series and the Rockton series so the minute you start listening, you are already visualizing the woods, the remote and roughly built cabins, and the big loving dog. You can feel the cold because we’ve already been here and know what to expect.
The continuity is a great aid to throw you into the setting and the performance will keep you engaged.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and publisher Macmillan Audio.

Good follow up to the first in the mystery-thriller Haven's Rock series. Armstrong has created a secret society in the wilderness of Alaska where people can escape. Many people have found sanctuary here, including a family looking to hide. Max, one of the boys in the family, is startled when he thinks he may have seen a bear in the woods during a hike. The bear looks suspiciously like a bear-man, so he informs the town's Detective Casey and Sheriff Eric Dalton about the possibility of someone dangerous in the woods. After Max goes back into the woods alone to prove what he saw, he is kidnapped. Casey and Eric do what they do best: find missing people. Was Max kidnapped by the bear-man or someone even more threatening?

You do not need to read book 1 to understand the premise of this one because Armstrong does an incredible job introducing everything. The story is told primarily through Casey's POV with Max thrown in periodically. There are many trails to search, people to interview and Casey's story kept me glued to the pages. Casey and Eric are married and this was a nice addition to the story. Their relationship is very sweet and gave me some moments of rest that were needed - especially being able to see that these people have lives beyond their jobs.

There are many subplots in this book, including Casey's backstory about her ability to get pregnant, a neighboring mining corporation with intense security issues and other society members' reasons for being in hiding. All of these may seem like too many to keep track of, but Armstrong does an incredible job of keeping them credible. I was slightly disappointed by the ending only in the sense that most of the subplots were not concluded, which leads me to believe there is another book coming. But this wouldn't be a bad idea. I am definitely intrigued by this series.

Thank you Netgally, Minotaur publishers and Kelley Armstrong for the ARC.

I was not aware this was a second in the series but halfway through realized but kept reading. I believe reading the first one would have given me a background to some things but for the most part I was able to read without issue. I wi go back and read the first one in the series.

I enjoyed the story line and the characters. The mystery was good but didn’t much care for the ending but figure it’s due to possibly more books to come in the series. Would I recommend this book yes but read the first one before.

Detective Casey Duncan and Sheriff Eric Dalton are back for another exciting and dangerous adventure within their new town of Haven's Rock!

Casey and Eric have been working hard to create their own town in the Yukon which offers refuge to people whose lives have been in extreme danger and they have a need to disappear. Haven's Rock is in it's very early stages and they only have about twenty-four people in the community so far and two of them happens to be children which is a completely different situation for them to handle since children or families were not allowed in Rockton previously and this could open the door to different sets of problems if not handled properly.

The youngest boy is only ten years old and one day on a learning hike he thinks he sees a bear following the group but the bear is walking on two legs and has human eyes. Casey and Eric are unsure what to make of this sighting although they know the child saw something upsetting and they will investigate the forest because there could be a rogue or sick bear near their town especially when the bears should be in hibernation but many of the adults laugh the sighting off leaving it to a boy's imagination or in need of attention.

Strange occurrences around town begin to cause distrust and chaos among the community while Casey and Eric search for answers and when a dead body unexpectedly turns up in the forest and a missing person in town doesn't leave any clues to their whereabouts, they wonder if Haven's Rock will still be able to have a future since their whole community may be in danger from unknown human predators as well as wild animals.


Kelley Armstrong has done it again and written another wonderful and exciting standalone book to her new series of Haven's Rock. I can't get enough of her Yukon series with it's many flawed characters and personalities that make me crave the adventures of their patrons, many who have criminal pasts. The excitement stems from the townspeople being thrust into more or less primitive environment when compared with the lives they have all left behind. The only way in or out of Haven's Rock is only by small planes or helicopter plus there isn't any electricity so obviously no cell towers for internet or phones which are not allowed so every resident is kept safe and the town will always keep their anonymity and be safeguarded from the public ever being aware of Haven't Rock existence.


This book involving some new and old characters and bringing in children to the storyline just added another dimension to the isolated wilderness and the dangers that abound around every corner. If anyone gets hurt badly the nearest hospital is hours away although they do have a doctor on site who just happens to be Casey's sister, April. There were several different storylines within this novel and it really had myself guessing and guessing but the way all the back-stories intertwine is just magic! I always feel a little sad when I finish these books since I get so immersed in these terrific characters'. lives and the atmospheric writing of the isolation of the forest and the town only having the bare necessities of survival. This is a testament to the outstanding writing and storytelling by this wonderful and clever author!

I highly recommend "THE BOY WHO CRIED BEAR" to all readers and I can't wait for the next book to come out in this superb series!


I want to thank the publisher "St. Martin's Press" for the opportunity to read this novel and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given a rating of 4 1/2 OUTSTANDING AND ISOLATED 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌠 STARS!!

This is the second book in the series, which is a spin-off of the Rockton books. What a great story, but now I have more questions. What are those miners up to? I recommend reading the Rockton series first to see why they are at Haven’s Rock. ARC provided by Netgalley, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

The second Haven’s Rock finds Casey investigating rumors of a bear roaming close to town. As she investigates, she realizes there might be something more nefarious going on.

I’d recommend reading the first in this series before this just so you are familiar with the premise of Haven’s Rock. If you liked that one though, you will enjoy this one!

Away from civilization in an off the grid town, a boy who saw a bear-man goes missing. Every moment counts, but is the threat out there in the wilderness or closer than they think for Casey and Eric. The latest installment in the Haven Rock series kept the suspense taunt from cover to cover.



The Boy Who Cried Bear is the second in the Havens Rock series which is a follow up series to the Rockton series. One could read this latest out of order in a pinch, but for the full, wonderful experience getting the original Rockton series and then this series in order is for the best.



The first book, Murder at Haven’s Rock, placed Casey, Eric, and the wonderful Rockton gang into a new setting and also introduced a few more characters who are settling in as wonderful, quirky recurring figures who I was glad to encounter again. Even that ominous group in the mining camp and the interesting and isolated lady photographer and her wolf add to the color.



The focus of the book is a missing child, but of course there are layered elements surrounding the situation so Casey and Eric have a multi-layered case to solve involving some of the newer residents of Haven’s Rock with their secret pasts and potential secret agendas. The intrigue that this world of books is known for is building as the series arc moves into the second book. I like feeling that build even as there is a current adventure going on.



Also, on a private and relational level, Casey and Eric’s relationship has come to the point when the question of starting a family has come up. Casey’s traumatic past comes into play as she wonders if she can even carry a baby to term and if there would be more than the usual complications in delivery. They said they wanted kids at some point in the future and would put a pin in that discussion, but Casey is spotting physical evidence right and left that she might have accidentally blew past that discussion when she accidentally missed taking her daily pill. My heart was there with her as she wrestled with this and wondered about Eric’s reaction all while they are burning every waking moment searching for a missing child.



There were some great twists toward the end and the climax was as riveting as I could want. The denouement was good wrapping up some matters and leaving others tantalizingly open so I’m anticipating the next book hard.



I can’t recommend this series and the earlier Rockton series enough.

The Boy Who Cried Bear was a captivating read which had Casey and Dalton dealing with several issues. I enjoyed being back in the Yukon with them and the community members who I was introduced to in the first book in the series. They are an interesting, and for the most part, likeable bunch. Plus, those dastardly miners always seem to pop up.

The central mystery in this book is what happened to Max. Where could he be? Has someone taken him? Did he get lost in the woods? As the search goes into high gear, rumors swirl in the community of Haven's Rock. Fingers will be pointed, suspicions will be made, and some residents will show their true colors.

I also appreciated how Armstrong dealt with trauma in this book. Many characters deal with trauma, loss, PTSD, guilt, and relationship issues in this book. They are all handled with care.

I love Kelley Armstrong's books, and this was no exception.

This is Haven's Rock book #2 by New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong. This book does make reference to things that occurred in book one; however, it's a good stand-alone. There did seem to be a lot of different characters at the beginning and it was a little work to learn who was who. I haven't read book one, but I will be sure to now that I have been introduced to the excellent writing of Kelley Armstrong. I also look forward to the next book in this series.

"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," Haven Rock is located in the Yukon, which is a territory in northwest Canada. It's known for being wild with lots of mountains and few people. In a way, the setting itself is like a character in this book.

The novel starts with getting to know some of the characters. And after ten-year-old Max sees a bear with human eyes while on a hike, the story becomes pretty much nonstop action. I found myself turning pages and wanting to know more. I also speculated who were the good guys and who weren't. I found the book compelling, well-written, and layered, including a subplot involving the married duo: Detective Casey and Sheriff Dalton.

It's easy to understand why this book is an Amazon Editors' pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense.

Many thanks to Minotaur Books, Kelley Armstrong, and NetGalley for my ARC (Advance Reader Copy). Publication is set for Feb. 20, 2024.

In the second book in the Haven's Rock series, Max, the town’s youngest resident—taught to track animals by Sheriff Eric Dalton—fears a bear is stalking his hiking party, and the 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. When Max goes missing, it is a race against time to try to find him before the bear (or whatever it is that Max saw) finds Max.

I love this new series. I was already a big fan of the previous Rockton series, that this is a spin-off of. On top of the mystery in this book, there is a big surprise in this book, which I will not reveal because I do not want to spoil anything, but I am SO excited. I can't wait to see the trajectory this will send the series on. If you are a fan of mysteries, then this is an excellent series. I highly recommend it!

The Boy Who Cried Bear is the second book in the Haven's Rock by Kelley Armstrong, having more insight into the characters as the story progresses. Everyone is free to go or stay as long as they abide by Haven’s Rock’s rules. In the Yukon, this is a place for those needing a refuge or disappear from their past life. Because it is in the wilderness, there are dangers. However, it still remains to be people that are the most scary and dangerous. In this case it is a preteen boy who is missing, a sighting of a bear, or is it a bear and an unwelcomed nearby miner’s camp. The plot is complex but smooth, making it a compelling read.

The characters include the eclectic staff and the people who have come to stay there. Some of them I like and some I loathe, not necessarily because they were villains in this book. Yet, all are interesting as I formed opinions about them. Perhaps my opinions will change as the series continues. It certainly did for one supporting character as his past is revealed in this story.

Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton build this sanctuary as such after the problems at a place called Rockton from which this series is a spin-off. I did not read that series but do not feel that I am lacking in enjoying this one because of that fact. The case is solved completely in this story but did leave some unanswered questions.

An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Reading challenge category - 2023 Booklist Queen: animal on the cover ("bear")

Thanks to #Netgalley for the ARC.

Haven's Rock is a small town in the Yukon forest that basically functions like an off the books witness protection program. (You'd think they'd make it further than 10 miles from the local mining civilization, but *shrug*). One of the first two kids to be in town, Max, thinks he sees a bear-man and then goes missing. Casey, the town detective, and her husband Eric, the town sheriff, investigate his disappearance and find unexpected things along the way.

This was a very slow start, even though I had just finished the first book. It really feels like a series for people who read the Rockton series. I am not invested in these characters, so the personal storyline throughout felt unnecessary and hollow. It was an okay read, but I don't think I'll continue the series if she writes more. 3/5 stars.

I have read all of the previous books in regard to these characters. I enjoyed this book. The suspense was there. I was a little disappointed with the ending. Louie was not explained enough. The miner problem was left too vague.