Title: First Sign of Danger
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Published: February 17, 2026
Format: e-ARC
My Rating: 5 stars/5
Synopsis: Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are entering a new chapter of life as parents to their six-month-old baby. Their family is hidden away in the sanctuary town of Haven’s Rock where they can live safe and private lives. But when they encounter hikers too close to the borders of Haven’s Rock, they realize they’re in danger of being exposed.
When they find one of the hikers dead the next day, they realize that their paranoia was justified, but they’re no closer to finding out who these people were and what they were doing in the vicinity of Haven’s Rock. Only by tracing the hikers’ movements, as well as examining the recent behavior of their closest neighbors, the workers of a secretive mining camp, will they be able to figure out where the threat is coming from and shut it down. Otherwise, the lives of everyone in Haven’s Rock–and their safe, secure new existence–are at risk.
My thoughts from the Vault
Disclaimer: I received an e-ARC of this book. I chose to review it and this in no way impacts my opinion of it.
So I understand that I am terribly biased about this series seeing as it is one of my favourite series ever, but this novel was *chef kiss* amazing. Armstrong has a really amazing ability to keep me guessing with each turn of the page.
This book, (and this entire series) has such delicious suspense and mystery throughout. When Casey and Eric come across a couple hikers while out on a walk with their 6-month-old baby, Rory, I was immediately suspicious. So when one of those hikers turns up dead, Casey and Eric start to investigate.
I found this novel to be so interesting and it held my attention from the first page until the very last page. We receive some answers on the mining camp in this novel and also the absolutely devastating (to me anyways) news that the final Haven’s Rock novel will be out next year, 2027.
If you like mysteries and thrillers, you will love this series. I do highly recommend starting with Murder at Haven’s Rock if you haven’t read any books in this series yet (though I’d really recommend beginning with the Rockton series first but it’s not necessary to understand this spin-off series).
Alice's Book Vault 