Colleen Coble returns to Rock Harbor with her latest novel, “Beneath Copper Falls,” an intense romantic thriller.
After leaving a volatile, abusive and near-fatal relationship, emergency dispatcher Dana Newell returns home to the safe haven of Rock Harbor, Michigan. Moving in with her adopted brother, Chris, she steps right back into life in the Upper Peninsula — working with the sheriff’s department and training with her friend Bree in search and rescue.
Former smoke jumper Boone Carter, still dealing with scars suffered while on the job, runs a cabin and recreation center on Lake Superior. Still reeling from the unsolved murder of his sister Renee several years ago, Boone is working diligently with his cousin Allyson to solve Renee’s murder. As they find more and more similar cases — including some that reach into Rock Harbor, Boone hopes to finally put Renee’s death to rest.
As Dana tries to hide from her ruthless ex-fiance and Boone attempts to put the pieces together of these unsolved murders, the two grow closer and closer together and eventually must put their faith and trust in each other, tearing down their walls.
Will they ever solve the murders, and can their cases be related at all?
Colleen Coble does a great job diving deep into the characters and sharing their life lessons with us. She takes us on a brilliant journey as they grow. Dana learned at a young age that life can change in an instant into something horrific and twisted, and yet she manages to grow up into a kind and productive person.
Besides being a thriller, “Beneath Copper Falls” also offers many gems — the journey we face in finding a true haven; failure isn’t fatal, as Bree reminds Dana, but giving up is; we need to always strive to be faithful with both our lives and words; listen to the Holy Spirit’s promptings; the willingness to heal our scars, both literally and figuratively, physically and emotionally/spiritually; and focusing on the inward versus the outward in our values and characters.
Fans of Coble’s prior Rock Harbor series will love becoming reacquainted with these beloved characters. But have no fear, those who haven’t read the former books in the series can definitely read “Beneath Copper Falls” as a standalone novel.
Coble offers up another fantastic romantic thriller, with just enough romance to lighten the intense moments, but enough thrills and insights into the human psyche to please any suspense lover. Sprinkled with just enough red herrings to keep the reader guessing and thrown off track, she delivers another great psychological whodunnit.
Five stars out of five.
Thomas Nelson provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.
“Beneath Copper Falls” (a Rock Harbor novel) by Colleen Coble