Agent Michael Walker is back on the case. Set in the beautiful Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska. Nonstop gritty action. A bit of history and education weaved into complex and compelling narrative. Walker is investigating the theft of Alaskan artifacts,  Gina Delgado investigating a death in Florida. How are the cases related? This is book two in a series, I was able to read as a stand-alone. An excellent fast paced read.

4.5 stars

Thank you to Minotaur Books / St Martins Press / Macmillan Publishers for the ARC.

Whew. I feel full with knowledge (chuckle). I just got a crash course in history and climate change…holy sugar. I’m not saying this in a bad way, but information overload. Whew (chuckle).

A. J. Landau gives us a very well thought out mystery that involves multiple National Parks, different countries, and kills people off with no qualms (chuckle). I have no clue whether they had or didn’t have any qualms, but lots of people die who they let us get to know first, seriously. I kind of had a hankering for the Captain of the submarine…just saying.

I have to admit in the early part of the book I was like how the heck does an avalanche in Alaska, a dead body in the Everglades, and someone smuggling Indigenous artifacts all tie together? Oh and someone wanting to go to Mars. See?! I can’t even keep it all straight and I read the book! (smile) Now it probably would have helped if I read the blurb first (I know, I know). So I will say it took a bit for me to connect with the story because there was just so much to try and remember. Never mind all of the history that is given and you don’t know what is important or not.

Cold Burn is a solid mystery about the climate, history, and present day human practices. I had just watched a documentary on Indigenous Alaskans so I was familiar with what the U.S. Government has been doing to them. I will admit to being completely clueless to the full history of Alaska and how Russia “owned” it before the U.S. in 1959. Just crazy.

The authors put in a lot of work into Cold Burn and it shows. Solid mystery with a cast of characters that make it worth reading. I learned so much and I’m grateful for it.

I read A.J. Landau's first book, [book:Leave No Trace|126919617] while looking for that title by another author. I went ahead and picked it up and have no regrets. Which brings us to Cold Burn.

Park Service Agent Michael Walker is called to investigate multiple deaths at Glacier Bay National Park. On the other side of the country, FBI special investigator Gina Delgado is called to investigate the death of a USGS environmental science intern. Beneath the icy waters of Alaska’s Elfin Cove, an accident causes the maiden voyage of a new stealth submarine to sink. During the rescue, it is discovered the entire crew is dead.

Meanwhile, the theft of cherished Native artifacts is occurring at an increasing rate.

AND, a billionaire thinks he is found the answer to the problems with his space program in a seemingly naturally occurring, but difficult to find substance.

A global disaster is coming fast, with pieces of the puzzle all over the map. Delgado and Walker race to try to determine what they are facing, and how to stop it.

This book was so twisty. Landau built such a story and each chapter felt like a cliff hanger. But the next chapter started an entire new rollercoaster.

I really enjoyed the National Park facts at the beginning of each chapter. This is a political crime thriller and it is non-stop. The only reason I put this down was when a new reveal came and I was shocked all over again.

Detailed, Fascinating and Clever!!

A murder mystery in the Everglades, a billionaire who is trying to fly to Mars, a missing geological team in Alaska, stolen artifacts, and a sunken submarine. Each is its own intricate and interesting story. As we get deeper into this narrative the tendrils begin to get woven together. All are relevant, all are connected, and it could mean a cataclysmic event on the horizon.

Great character building, and well laid out plot as the author provides each delicious morsel to the reader and both characters and reader discover the truth of the complicated and seemingly plausible threat.

An exciting tale. Switching locations from the Everglades to Alaska and other places at first was annoying. Once I got engaged in the story that was no longer an irritant but an enhancement. There was technical information that I tended to skim over. The action kept me reading. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

I had the pleasure of reading this as an arc and the story did not disappoint. Definitely a good story if you are into science, thrillers, and native tribes. Michael and Gina set out to save the world and many mysteries had to be solved in this story in order for it all to make sense. I would highly recommend this book to friends and family and anyone looking for a good story. thank you Minotaur Books and St Martins Press for allowing me early access to this great story and I hope everyone else enjoys it.

This was an excellent sequel and twisty thriller for those who are on trend readers and true crime addicts. Well done!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, A. J. Landau; Jeff Ayers; and Jon Land for the chance to read Cold Burn.

While the writing was easy to follow, it was too many technical terms that I just couldn’t enjoy it.

This second in series is filled with interesting facts/info that make it a bit more than just your average run-of-the-mill thriller. The series is obviously set in various US National Parks, and this outing covers both the Everglades and Glacier Bay.

Michael Walker, a National Park Service investigator, is tasked with uncovering a smuggling operation singling out priceless artifacts which he discovers contain a mysterious black powder substance. As the questions around the substance swirl, he is called to Glacier Bay to investigate the disappearance of a US team of scientists.

Meanwhile, Gina Delgado, our other protagonist and an FBI special investigator is working in the Everglades to discover the why of the death of a US Geological Survey Team intern and the possible connection to the experiments that are disrupting the fragile ecosystem there. She is also called to Glacier Bay to investigate the horrific and unexplained deaths of the entire crew aboard a US nuclear sub.

Are these cases connected? Perhaps by the discovery of a deadly prehistoric organism which was frozen for thousands of years and reappears following global warming?

This story obviously has lots going on...murder, theft, a power-hungry billionaire, and oh yeah, an organism that could effectively destroy life on earth.

Even though I had to suspend disbelief on several instances, I found myself enjoying the ride on this one. The plot is well-paced, well-written, and interesting. And while, at times, having two mains to toggle between was a bit distracting, Michael and Gina were both well-drawn characters that I found myself drawn into their diverse investigations. They are both intelligent and dedicated to their jobs, and I found myself looking forward to digging deeper into each of their lives.

I enjoyed this book more than I expected to and now find myself eagerly looking forward to further adventures.

My sincere thanks to the authors, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press / Minotaur Books for providing the free early arc of Cold Burn for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

Michael Walker and his wife, Allie, used to be park rangers, until Allie was killed in the gunfight that cost Michael his foot. Now he is a member of the National Park Investigative Bureau. He is sent to Alaska to investigate the theft of Tlingit artifacts from various museums but he uncovers something much more frightening: a microbe that might have been responsible or the extinction event that took place at the end of the last Ice Age. Meanwhile, Gina Delgado, a special investigator for the White House, is in Florida, trying to discover who murdered a young intern working for a science group studying the warming ocean climates. The lead scientist believes they might have found a fix. But how are these two cases linked together? Axle Cole, the world's richest man, believes he will be the first to establish a colony on Mars. He is is pursuit of a super refined oil, only found near a Tlingit village in Alaska. Too bad the Russians think they want it, too. After all, they used to own Alaska and want to own it again. This is the second in a series of National Park books and if you like adrenaline rides, I highly recommend this book.

Not quite for me, but I did enjoy my time reading this! Perfect for readers who love procedurals and in-depth science.

If you enjoy action packed thrillers set in parks in the United States, then look no further than A. J. Landau’s (pseudonym for authors Jon Land and Jeff Ayers) national park thriller series. Cold Burn is the second book in the series and it continues to feature book one protagonists FBI Special Agent Gina Delgado and National Park’s Investigative Services Branch Agent Michael Walker.

Michael has been assigned to a smuggling case involving artifacts in Alaska, but he’s soon sent to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve to help search for a team of scientists who are missing. Meanwhile, Gina has been sent to Florida’s Everglades National Park to find the killer of an environmental science intern. After teaming up with local Law Enforcement Park Ranger Clark Gifford, she is dispatched to Alaska to the scene of a sunken U.S. submarine in which the enter crew has died. Once again, there is a connection between the cases, but the story takes readers on a thrilling adventure before the big picture is revealed.

Michael and Gina are likeable characters and readers get to see their points of view as well as that of a couple of protagonists. The multi-angled view of the characters allows readers to see how each character connects to the story; adding depth and complexity that is effective. Additionally, it is written with smooth transitions that keep the flow going and the intensity level high.

The authors kept me rapidly turning the pages with gripping scenes, plenty of action and danger, a superb plot, and excellent writing. Along the way, readers also learn a bit about both national parks making this an educational as well as an exceptional thriller read. There are several twists and a couple of surprises. Additionally, the world-building is excellent. A constant sense of urgency, a state of uneasiness, and lots of action combined with great characters and a well-written plot make this suspenseful novel a must read. There are several topics woven throughout the novel including cultural differences, greed, power, grief, climate change, death, lies, corruption, and much more.

The authors’ note talks about when they used creative license with folklore and legends while the facts at the beginning of each chapter give readers more insight into the various locations. There is also a fair amount of scientific information included in the storyline that was shared in a way that was easy to understand.

Overall, this is a gritty, intense, and chilling story with complex characters. It’s intense and dramatic and kept this invested in the investigations from beginning to end. I can’t wait for the next book in the series. I recommend it to those who like political, action, and military thrillers.

St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books and A. J. Landau (Jon Land and Jeff Ayers) provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date is currently set for April 29, 2025. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

So I got about 25% through this book and it’s just not for me. There’s a lot going on, to much back and forth between POVs. I think people who like police procedurals and are into scientific research would like this one but I will not be finishing this one.

My thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books/St. Martin's Publishing for the ARC of 'Cold Burn' in exchange for an honest review.

Fasten your seatbelts for the second A.J. Landau thriller that unfolds among America's most treasured National Parks. In these books, you're apt to come across something far worse in the parks than a wandering moose, or a stray grizzly. We're talking catastrophic global threats here.......merciless terrorists, Russian commandos and in 'Cold Burn', a scientific, unthawed prehistoric threat that promises to become an extinction level event.

Luckily for mankind, we have Park Services special agent Michael Walker and FBI Special Investigator Gina Delgado on the case, each of them looking into bizarre deaths and disappearances. In Alaska, Michael's probing the deaths of an entire U. S. submarine crew and the disappearance of a U.S. Geological survey team. In the steamy Floriday Everglades, Gina's probing the baffling murder of a reporter, whose body was found relatively untouched amid the Park's predatory wildlife. What's going on......and why?

The answers are frightening to behold. as Agents Walker and Delgado separately go up against some powerful adversaries, one of whom may very well be a mole working within Washington's halls of power. The fate of world's at stake - Gina battles assassins in the Florida swamps, while Michael, with the help of a reclusive, combative Alaskan Native American tribe, takes on no less than a small army of invading Russians.

Yes, the science involved here is questionable (very similar to the James Rollins' 'Sigma Team' thrillers, but once the mysteries are laid bare, the non-stop action commences. As we expect of them, Walker and Delgado are pushed to edge of their physical limits, displaying fearless heroism and resourcefulness. against overwhelming odds.

This book's simply pure popcorn-beach read fun, designed to keep you fast 'n furiously turning pages. Those who keep up on current events will chuckle over who some of the villains obviously resemble but I'll say no more to spoil any of the thrill ride 'Cold Burn' takes you on. This one's destined to become a beachside/poolside necessity.....and anywhere else at any other time of the year too.

"Cold Burn" by AJ Landau is an engaging read that kept me wanting more. I was engaged right from the first page and I couldn’t put it down!

I was unaware this was part of a series until I started reading. Cold Burn by A.J. Landau is the second book in the National Parks Thriller series. I enjoyed the characters and story, but there was a lot of sciencey business in this one—I feel like that might not be some people’s vibe. It was a little hard to follow at times for me. There were also several storylines weaving together for the plot and that also made it a little hard to follow until the last 1/4 of the book. Overall, I enjoyed it enough to go back and check out the first in the series.

I'm not sure I have the appropriate word to describe how I feel about this one. Mesmerizing? Un-put-downable? This book was fantastic! It took a few chapters to really get into this book, I initially found the rapid changes of location to be a bit off-putting and wasn't sure I wanted to continue. But when it all started to click into place, I left that feeling behind and couldn't stop reading. There are good guys, there are bad guys, and there are a couple of nebulous maybe good/maybe bad guys. Following the story of the mysterious ailment was fascinating, but there are some great subplots - the billionaire wanting to be a trillionaire, the various studies by the USGS, the Russians - it all tied together very neatly. The only element that I am not certain of is the small blurb at the start of each chapter, describing some bit of history of the park at the center of that section. It's all very interesting but it doesn't really tie into the story. Is it intended to be background or am I missing something about the connection? I did not read the first book in this series, and I feel that this book is easily a stand alone novel. But now I'm going to read the other book!

This ARC was provided by NetGalley and the publisher, the opinions expressed herein are strictly my own.

I had high hopes for this book. However it pretty much disappointed me. I didn’t care for the jumping back and forth in each chapter. I found it confusing and hard to follow. I do think they did a good job researching each park. The small snippets about the park before each chapter was interesting.

Cold Burn is the second in the National Park thrillers series. In this book, Michael Walker, an Investigative Services Branch agent for the National Parks Service is assisting with an investigation involving a deadly microbe that is causing deaths of people and fish alike by freezing them from the inside out.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series and was excited to read this one. I also enjoyed it, however this one seemed to have more separate storylines that took longer to come together. There was also a good deal more science terminology and explanations than I was expecting. Regardless of those things, I will definitely read any future books in the series as I enjoy the characters and the adventure of the plots.

Really interesting take on the climate crisis with multiple intersecting storylines. The possibility that this could happen is terrifying, so I’m glad this is fiction… for now.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for access to this book in exchange for an honest review.