This was a fast paced mystery. It kept my attention and I enjoyed it though at times I felt like some information was missing and I would have liked a bit more detail.
This was a good debut and I look forward to read more from the author.

When the body of a teenage boy is found in the bottom of a boat tied up to a dock at a summer lake camp, the local police department is under-equipped to handle the investigation. When it is discovered that a teenage girl was with him that day and that she is now missing, the FBI gets called in to help. With a Sheriff's department consisting of just four officers, Sheriff Marge is relying upon her son, Eli to help her solve these crimes. Eli has demons from his past though that prevent him from fully functioning as either a police officer, husband or father and instead lead him back to the bottle each day. Exploring the subjects of PTSD, alcoholism, addiction and mental illness, author Pease weaves these conditions into believable and sympathetic characters. Although the ending seems a bit rushed and leaves a few character's stories dangling, the overall story is intriguing and enjoyable. Recommended for fans of mysteries and suspense stories.

I loved this moody, atmospheric and dark debut novel. I appreciated that the main character had serious flaws but was still relatable and the storyline was engaging. Can't wait to recommend this to others!

alcohol-issues, local-law-enforcement, missing-persons, murder-investigation, Northwoods, cooperation, drugs-issues, friendship, friends, family, family-dynamics, FBI, PTSD, suspense, scars, second-chance, self-destructive-behaviors, self-worth-issues, secrets, lies, unputdownable, small-town, rural, tourist-town, family-drama*****

A wild ride of a debut!
Like most departments today, the sheriff's department in this out-of-the-way part of the Northwoods is woefully underfunded and understaffed. Always a problem, but when one teenager is found murdered and another goes missing, even the feds need to be called in. The department only has three deputies plus the sheriff, and one of those deputies seems to be going under from the weight of PTSD and life in general. This is an honest book of fiction that cuts close to the bone.
Caveat: I am an RN retired from the inner city in Wisconsin with family ties all the way to Duluth.
I requested and received a temporary e-galley from Atria/Emily Bestler Books via NetGalley.

Eli North, a veteran, uses alcohol to deal with PTSD after his deployment in Afghanistan. It has already cost him his marriage and his job as a deputy may be his last chance. But how long will the sheriff who is his mother be able to keep him on in underfunded department. When he discovers a dead boy who reminds him of his son, he is determined to find the killer. When it is discovered that the girl who was with the dead boy is missing, a rush is on to find her.
Cause of the boy's death reveals that the small town has not escaped the opioid crisis the country is facing. Twist ending.
#Northwoods #NetGalley

When I saw that William Kent Krueger had provided a blurb for this novel, I knew it had to be a keeper...and it certainly was! What an enjoyable debut novel -- I described it as a combination of William Kent Krueger's and John Grisham's styles.

Eli is a flawed main character, turning to drinking due to suffering from PTSD from deployment in Afghanistan. It is affecting his job as a sheriff's deputy, which he is holding onto by a thread thanks to his mother being the sheriff. When he discovers a dead body, developments quickly occur and demonstrate it will not be a typical murder case.

I thought the plot was fast-moving and kept me interested. While I believe some areas/characters needed more detail/development, I enjoyed this book and will definitely check out more from Amy Pease in the future.

Northwoods by Amy Pease introduces Eli North and his mother who just happens to be the sheriff of a small town in Wisconsin. Eli has demons from his time in Afghanistan and working with his mother is not helping. With the finding of a dead teenager and the threat of an opioid crisis in the town, Eli struggles to maintain his life. This book doesn't gloss over the problems Eli has which makes him, if not a likeable character, at least one that keeps your interest while hoping he makes it. I hope there is a sequel so we can see more of their story.

This book was a really enjoyable (if not fun per se), fast-paced mystery with realistic characters and a very real feel to the setting. Eli and Marge in particular felt very real. It is hard to believe that this was Amy Pease's first book for those reasons, but her experience in the medical field undoubtedly gave her some valuable insight into the opioid epidemic and the various clinical and pharmaceutical settings and staff portrayed in the book. I will say, I enjoyed the ending but was left wanting a little bit more in terms of wrap-up with the girl - why the poppy tattoo? Anyway, I did really enjoy it and I think the realism in terms of setting and character made it all the more unputdownable. I will be looking forward to more novels by the author in the future!

This book was a delight to devour!! What an amazing first effort. Such richly developed characters with a plot that is very top of mind, the effects on a small town of the opioid epidemic. In my mind the movie adaptation of this would be a cross between Mare of Easttown (with Marge in the Kate Winslet role), Dopesick, with a side of  The Firm.
There is so much detail about the location and the characters, you can smell the lake humidity and the scents of summer, from hot dogs roasting on the grill, to bonfires burning through the night.

We first meet Eli North as a small town detective, working for his mom, the local sheriff. He's broken man, separated from his wife, a father, but living in the past. He's haunted by the lives he took and the lives he could not save in Afghanistan. He deals with his PTSD by drinking heavily, blacking out, and occasionally showing up to work. In this story he's called on to do so much more, and you want him to succeed, because he's a highly skilled investigator that used to work for the Federal Fish and Game Department catching illegal poachers. You see glimpses of his deductive abilities as we read his back story and learn how he came to be where he is now.
This mystery begins when Eli stumbles upon a dead teenager in a boat at the edge of the lake. What might look like a simple accident, or an altercation gone wrong, is just the tip of a much larger plot involving corporate greed and profit at the expense of this small community. This is a very small town police department that consists of Eli and his mom, and 2 other characters. Marge knows she needs help, and enlists the FBI, who send a young looking, but experienced agent out to Northwoods.
Will the two of them be able to pull it together to help his mom solve this case?  
There are large sections of this book devoted to Eli's PTSD, flashbacks as to what happened in Afghanistan, and how he copes. This might be a trigger for some folks. It's heartbreaking to see him start to make progress, then falter two steps back the next day. You want to scream at him to get it together! But his journey will take time, and he eventually will have the breakthrough he needs to put his skills to good use.
Once they are embroiled in the mystery, the plot, nefarious characters, and motives, completely draw you in. There's some very clever reasons Ms. Pease comes up with for the pharmaceutical company to do what they are doing, which are pretty shocking. There are a few loose ends that are not tied up, so perhaps Ms. Pease plans to bring Eli back? This would be a welcome addition to a series with him as a lead character.
This is normally not my genre, I read historical fiction and thrillers. I'm so glad the publisher reached out to me to ask if I'd be willing to review this book. Thank you Atria Books and Netgalley for letting me be a part of Eli's journey.
I highly recommend!!

This is a great debut novel! It’s full of intrigue and complexity and it’s quite believable too.

Eli North is a veteran of the Afghanistan War. He’s suffering from PTSD, drinking too much and teetering on the edge of sanity, all while working as a Deputy under his mother’s guidance. Not even Eli has faith in himself that he’s up to the task but a crime needs to be solved, so Eli puts his best foot forward.

This book touches on real life struggles such as addiction, PTSD and the sometimes unsavory business of BigPharma. It has enough low hanging fruit for a possible sequel and I’ll be watching out for that. Four stars from me and I recommend to anyone who enjoys drama, mystery and police procedurals.

Thank you, NetGalley and Atria books for the advanced copy.

This book follows Eli, with a host of problems from his time in Afghanistan, as he works for the local sheriff department. He lives in the Wisconsin countryside, in a town with a disappearing budget that is also being swallowed up by the opioid epidemic. A teenage boy's body is found in a local lake, and Eli soon discovers that there is more to a community of wealthy people nearby, as he becomes further pulled in to the investigation by that community, a man working in pharmacy sales (hint: opioid epidemic previously referenced), and then a missing girl. If you like William Kent Krueger, this is a good book for you to pick up. Hopefully this is the start of a series, as I would love to learn more about Eli and tag along on more of his investigations! Thank you to the writer for depicting PTSD in an appropriate manner.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A "can't put it down" mystery with rich characters and riveting story. Set in the north woods of Wisconsin, it will appeal to all patrons.

Strong, likeable characters, an intriguing rural setting, a murder, and an abduction propel readers through Northwoods: A Novel by Amy Pease. Iraq war veteran, Eli North did not envision a future that included working for his mother, Sheriff Marge North. But, very little in his current existence resembles his life prior to becoming a soldier and a veteran. Eli is sent to investigate a noise disturbance and discovers the body of a local boy. He soon learns of the abduction of a teenage girl whose family annually visited Eli's sleepy resort hometown in Northern Wisconsin. These events have threads that extend far beyond the town’s boundaries into the opportunistic world of opioids as it collides with the practice of medicine. A satisfying resolution hints at the possibility of a sequel.

Northwoods, a debut novel by Amy Pease is a well-paced, credible mystery/crime novel. The characters are well defined, and the writing is lyrical and engaging. The story itself is dark, and there is a lot of pain endured by many of the characters, but the investigation is intriguing and overall the book seems to be a set-up for further adventures in the north woods. Pease handles a number of difficult themes very well - addiction, PTSD, the opioid crisis, and her detailed description of what it feels like to be inside a panic attack is well done. Can’t wait to read more with these very likable characters.

3.75 stars rounded up to 4.

I thought this book pretty good but the mystery part of the book was really lacking. I think this might have been the start of a series because I was left a little confused with the ending and it did not seem finished. This book explores PTSD and had some depressing and dark parts to it. There was great character development with Eli, his mom, and Alyssa. Eli was a beautifully written character and I really enjoyed getting to know him in the book. He struggles a lot and shows us what it's like to lose so much of everything you are close to.

The plot: Eli lives in the Northwood of Wisconsin after returning back from a tour of Afghanistan. He is really struggling with alcohol addiction and panic attacks and is now working as a police officer under his mother at Shaky Lake. One night he is called for a noise disturbance and ends up finding a dead body and later finds out there is a girl missing. All of this connects to a bigger crime involving a pharmaceutical company and Eli and his department are trying to put the pieces together.

Thanks Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

EXCELLENT mystery and police procedural I enjoyed the main character,, the fallible hero (a cop, with a military history), along with his relationship with his boss (who happens to also be his Mom).

A lot of potential growth available with the characters, this would make a wonderful series.

Amy Pease’s Northwoods introduces us to Eli, who after returning from Afghanistan, works for his mother, Marge, as a sheriff’s deputy in Shaky Lake, a small vacation spot for city dwellers to escape for some country quiet. He struggles from being laid off from his job at Fish and Wildlife as well as the end of his 20 year relationship with his wife. Typically, he uses the bottle as a way to cope with his PTSD and panic attacks. Until one night when a disturbance call goes out and Eli finds the dead body of a sixteen year old boy.

When the medical examiner finds evidence of a needle mark in the boy’s arm and bruising from a tourniquet, the sheriff’s department realizes that this is bigger than they thought. Enter Alyssa, an FBI agent from the Chicago office who is sent to help. Through the investigation, they suspect that big pharma might be a suspect as well, but how is it all connected? People in Shaky Lake know more than they are letting on. Some think in small towns, everyone knows everyone’s business, but when gossip and information is needed most, windows are dark, doors are closed, and lips are sealed. Who had the motive to murder a boy visiting with his drug addicted, rich country club mother and why is his teenage female friend now also missing? With grand midwestern writing and story telling that will draw comparisons to William Kent Krueger, Northwoods is a riveting novel. I do feel that there are a few loose ends as the story wrapped up, but maybe it means there will be a second book starring this flawed but interesting cast of characters. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced copy. Opinions expressed are my own. This book is set for publication on January 9, 2024.

#netgalley #arc #bookstagram #northwoods #amypease #atriabooks

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

I have mixed feelings about this one. It was dark and depressing, and accurately portrayed the feelings of one caught in a storm of PTSD-fueled angst. The "mystery" itself felt a little like an afterthought, and I had a hard time connecting with it. For a first novel it was ok, and I can see this as the beginning of a series. I thought the cover was pretty striking.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Even though it's not the type of book I typically read, I really enjoyed Northwoods! (if that's the appropriate word to use for a book that is pretty dark). Eli North has returned from Afghanistan with both physical and mental wounds that he is trying to heal by drinking the pain away. His mom, the sheriff of a small resort town in Wisconsin, gives him a job as a deputy in an attempt to get him back on track, and it's not going too well. When Eli discovers the body of a teenage boy, close to the age of his own son, he nearly spirals out of control, but maybe this case will end up being his salvation.

Eli was an amazing character--it was heartbreaking to follow the emotional journey of such a good man who had lost just about everything he held dear. The other characters, including Eli's mom and a young FBI agent who is sympathetic to Eli's struggles, are equally well-drawn.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review!

Eli North lives in rural Wisconsin in the small town of Shaky Lake where he grew up. After traumatic events during his service in Afghanistan, Eli is barely holding on separated recently from his wife and young so. living above an Asian restaurant, working for his sheriff mother, and looking at life through the end of a bottle. Eli cannot go long with a out a drink or several, and his sleep is riddled with PTSD nightmares. So, when Eli discovers the body of a young teen on the lake, things only get worse for him and his community.

Eli’s mother has the bare minimum of funds to police the town; when it is discovered that a teenage girl last seen with the boy is missing, an FBI agent comes in to help. As the investigation continues, it seems that the wealthy summer residents who all belong to the local country club may be involved. The opioid epidemic also looks to be related as well as a sketchy pharmaceutical company.

Eli’s inability to go more than a few hours without a drink obviously affects not only his mental acuity, but raises his family’s concern since he seems to be teetering very close to the edge of reason and the ability to function. The investigation helps remind Eli of his skills, prior to being deployed, of investigation and law enforcement from a previous job.

A fair amount of this story is one big pain fest because of all of Eli’s issues, the suffering of the teens' families, Eli’s mother and wife worrying for him plus the problems surrounding the possible drug related activities. This book appears to be the start of a series with indications that Eli is finally beginning to turn his life around after just about rock bottoming out. With Eli on the mend, hopefully the next story will focus more on a mystery to solve than his very difficult problems.