BOOK REVIEW: Trapper Road by Rachel Caine and Carrie Ryan

 

Gwen Proctor, recovering from injuries sustained in a battle with a madman who wanted to destroy her and everyone she loved, has become a paranoid shell of the woman she once was. She wants to do nothing more than hold her children tight and never let them go. But she also knows they are growing up and she has no right to interfere in the choices they make for their own lives. Then a shooting occurs at the school they both attend and she is called upon by the private investigation agency she works for to look into the disappearance of a teenage girl in another town. While the call seems to come at an opportune time to stay away from the press that her family seems to be the constant targets of she find that her assignment brings revelations about the missing child that represents a very present danger to her son and adopted daughter. Can they find out the truth in time to prevent another tragedy?

I found this book to be better than I expected. When an author passes away and someone else takes on the task of continuing a series they created there is a very large chance that there is so much baggage on either or both sides that the result can be very disappointing. I am happy to say that this is one of the rare exceptions. Carrie Ryan does an excellent job in staying true to the characters and storylines that Rachel Caine began. She adds a new spirit to the mix that brings the whole thing to life in a way that takes the reader back to the first novel, when the discovery of introduction was still new and exciting. It makes this an extremely entertaining and enjoyable exercise. The end is left wide open for another installment to the series and I am very excited to see where Ryan takes this story next.