Another good entry in this spinoff to an always lively and interesting series. Lots of deaths as greed, in the name of progress, come to Loon Lake. The excellent cast of characters continues to evolve nicely. ( )

thriller, northern Wisconsin, rural, greed, murder, murder-investigation, law-enforcement, lawyers, small-town, support-system, suspense, friendship, family, family-dynamics, family-drama, wealthy, attitude-of-entitlement, forensics, cooperation, fishing****

This the first book in as a spin-off of a previous series (I had not read them) but I bought the audio because I had received a free e-book copy of book two from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley and LOVED it. AND all the fly fishing tips!
This one is almost a stand-alone because the author does bring in continuing important characters in a way that does not leave the reader wondering who/what. The plot and the characters are intriguing and fast moving. Kept me reading too late!
Whitney Dykhouse narrator must be great doing bodice rippers. ( )

Lew is the police chief of the tiny Wisconsin town of Loon Lake. And she has a mess on her hands. There are very few murders in her small town and now she has 3 to deal with, and one is her own brother. But, Lew is not to be beat. She has to keep her head in the game and this is hard to do because her emotions are all over the place.

This is a very quick read. It has quite a few twists and turns. I especially enjoyed the twist involving Grace and her weird son, Noah. I wanted to jerk both of them bald headed! Don’t you just love a story which creates this type of reaction! This one definitely does. And the biggest feeling of rage is the one surrounding Pete’s wife…all I have to say is WOW! She is a piece of work!

The narrator, Whitney Dykhouse, really did a great job. Great cadence and emotion. Perfect for this murder mystery!

Need a good, quick story with a kick…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review. ( )

Wolf Hollow by Victoria Houston is a highly recommended mystery set in Wisconsin.

Police Chief Lewellyn (Lew) Ferris fights crime, teaches fly fishing classes, and enjoys the company of Doc Osborne in the northwoods town of Loon Lake, Wisconsin. When a group of 12 year-old preteens set a trap and try to instigate a citizen's arrest on a sexual predator, the man involved turns out to be Noah McDonough, the 24-year-old son of wealthy Grace McDonough, a local landowner. Lew makes the arrest and discovers this wasn't the first time Noah did this. She also uncovers the information that Grace is in the process of negotiating with a company for mining rights on her land. This would devastate the environment and the fishing in the area.

When Lew's brother Pete is discovered dead out by a nest of loons he has been observing, suspicions begin to rise since Pete, an environmentalist, was also involved with an organization planning to file a lawsuit to prevent the drilling on McDonough's land. The mystery deepens when Grace and Noah don't show up in court for his arraignment and can't be found. Then another body is found and it becomes clear that more investigation is needed to uncover the conspiracy that seems to be underway.

Wolf Hollow is an excellent choice for those who would enjoy a cozy-like mystery set in small town Wisconsin and love fly fishing. It is also perfectly easy to enjoy the novel even if you aren't a huge fan of fishing. All the characters you are supposed to trust are likable, and Lew has a group of trusted friends and colleagues to help solve the murder mysteries. The antagonists are very obvious. It is clear who you can trust so the enjoyment is found in the discovery of clues and information while putting all the pieces together to solve the crimes. There are not a lot of gory scenes and details, which is what makes the novel take on the feeling of a cozy mystery (with the exception of some language) but is also a procedural.

This is the first Lew Ferris novel in the continuing Loon Lake mystery series set in Wisconsin. There are many descriptions of fly fishing, as well as other fishing, which didn't bother me but may be a negative for some readers. It is easy to skim over the fishing scenes. They do add a natural element to the plot since the northwoods are an important part of the book and establishing the setting and culture of the area. The novel is well written. Although the mystery itself is not extremely complicated, it logically follows the clues and discoveries which is a plus in any procedural.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Crooked Lane Books.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2022/01/wolf-hollow.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4441653513 ( )

Although this is showing as the first Lew Ferris mystery, Lew and Doc Osborne have been the sleuths throughout the first 18 Loon Lake Fishing Mysteries. This one has more of a focus on Lew, the female and less on Doc but, as with the first 18 Victoria Houston mysteries set in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, is very enjoyable.

First off, I've read every one of these Victoria Houston Northwoods mysteries soon after publication. It's one of my favorite series (I notice that I read my first one back in 2000), and this installment is among my favorites in this long-running series. Every time I read one, I want to go back to the Northwoods on vacation. The depiction of the location, and the Northwoods lifestyle, are very well done. Add in a great plot and characters I've grown to love and you've got an outstanding, long-running series.

Very highly recommended!!

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review) ( )