Bitter Falls

Written by Rachel Caine

Narrated by Emily Sutton-Smith, Michael Crouch, Dan John Miller and 2 more

An Amazon Charts, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling series.

She’s investigating a cold case no one else could—by going places no else would dare.

In spite of a harrowing past still haunting her, Gwen Proctor is trying to move forward. Until a new assignment gives her purpose: the cold-case disappearance of a young man in Tennessee. Three years missing, no clues. Just Ruth Landry, a tortured mother in limbo. Gwen understands what it’s like to worry about your children.

Gwen’s investigation unearths new suspects…and victims. As she follows each sinister lead, the implications of the mystery grow more disturbing. Because the closer Gwen gets, the closer she is to a threat that looms back home.

In a town that’s closed its ranks against Gwen; her partner, Sam; and her kids, there’s no bolder enemy than the Belldene family—paramilitary, criminal, powerful, and vengeful. As personal vendettas collide with Gwen’s investigation, she’s prepared to fight both battles. But is she prepared for the toll it could take on everyone she loves?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Jan 21, 2020
• ISBN: 9781799749691

Rachel Caine

Rachel Caine is the #1 internationally bestselling author of almost fifty novels, including the New York Times bestselling Morganville Vampires young adult series. Her novel Prince of Shadows won multiple awards, including being named to the Spirit of Texas Reading List, and most recently, Ink and Bone, the first of her Great Library series, is an international bestseller and critical success, and winner of multiple nominations and awards, including being named to the Lone Star List by the Texas Library Association.

Reviews for Bitter Falls

[Cynthia Jordan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

absolutely loved this book what a plot twist at the end

[Niqui · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very enjoyable. Very gripping. Listened every chance i got. Thanks

[Heather Dayton Harmon · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really enjoyed this book. At first, it felt a bit slow and then it picked up. The end was well paced and exciting.

[Rlynoyb · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I got hooked on this whole series. I enjoyed the mystery and investigative parts of the story. Gwen can be a bit much sometimes but I like her calmer partner Sam. I think what really keeps me hooked is the hope that this family will finally get some peace.

[Eedge Eeva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The same as others - brilliant! One more story, one more victory. Gwen knows how to get in trouble, that's for sure.

[Mary Lou Smith · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

She writes a great mystery to the end and we enjoy thoroughly

[Emily Lassiter Branch · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

How much stress and heartbreak and danger can one family take? If your last name is Proctor, turns out you can take a LOT. It comes with the territory when your husband/father was a notorious convicted serial killer and there's a segment of the population that's determined to neither forgive nor forget that, and wants to see you severely punished for that connection. This is the fourth book in the series, and continues in the same vein as the first three. Gwen Proctor is now working as a private investigator, trying to keep life as normal as possible for herself, her teen daughter and son, and her partner Sam. But friends and allies have become few and far between for them all in Stillhouse Lake, where Gwen had hoped they'd found a refuge where they could live a quiet, under-the-radar life. But events in the first three books in this series have made it increasingly unlikely, and there are elements who are actively "encouraging" them to leave. So the timing is good for Gwen to take a case that will take them out of town for a bit, even though it's a cold case involving a college student who disappeared without a trace three years prior. The result is another compelling read full of action, suspense, and the resilience of four people whose commitment to each other continues to strengthen.
I will say that this book could probably stand alone, but I highly recommend reading this series in order so that the reader can get the full effect of the past experiences of each of the characters and how they influence them in this time frame. There are bits that feel repetitive if you read them fairly close together (as I did), but I'm still happy I had the full background going into each of the books.
Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

[madison_fairbanks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bitter Falls by Rachel Caine4th book in the Stillhouse Lake series. Best read as part of the series in order. Contemporary mystery thriller. The local cult was apparently not completely disbanded after Gwen and Sam helped break it up in a nearby town. Now Gwen’s son and Sam are at risk and Gwen will do whatever she has to in saving them. Gripping and fast moving. Suspenseful with the cult itself being ugly. To say the least. I alternated between a paperback and the audio version. The had multiple narrators mimicking the chapters written in alternating POV from Gwen, Sam, Connor, and Lanny. I enjoyed this concept. As soon as each chapter started you knew if you were a harassed mother / Private Investigator or a young teen relearning learning about the nastiness of the world. The narrators were Emily Sutton-Smith, Michael Crouch, Dan John Miller, Lauren Enzo and Will Ropp. I think they all did a fantastic job with the emotions and storytelling. I look forward to the next and last book in this series.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gwen Proctor is trying to make a new life for herself. As the wife of a serial killer who has become a target for all sorts of creeps on the internet who can't believe she didn't know anything about her ex-husband's crimes, Gwen faces all sorts of harassment. Luckily, she has a job as a private investigator and a boss who believes in her. Her children Lanny and Connor also face a lot of harassment. Both are bullied at school. Things come to a head during an active shooter drill when the school admin is crazy enough to play sounds of gunshots and Connor suffers a PTSD episode and manages to break the jaw of one of the school bullies who was trying to get him to move. The broken-jawed bully happens to be related to the Belldenes who are the local drug dealers and who have a lot of influence in town. They pressure Gwen to move away immediately because her notoriety is bringing too much publicity and scrutiny that they fear will spill over onto their activities.Lanny sneaks out of the house with her friend Vee to attend a party and finds herself in the middle of a scene where another local drug dealer has attacked a girl who owed him money. The dealer works for the Belldenes and now wants Lanny dead too. This adds to the pressure from the Belldenes to get Gwen and her family out of town.Meanwhile, Gwen is working on a very cold case about the disappearance of a college student named Remy Landry. The young man's been gone for three years but someone has hired the agency she works for to look for him again. Gwen's investigation leads to a crazy cult related to the cult they already disrupted in Wolfhunter. And when the cultists kidnap her partner Sam and son Connor, Gwen has to find a woman who was involved with the missing college student before the cultists kill the ones she loves.The story is told from multiple viewpoints: Gwen, Sam, Connor and Lanny. It is narrated by four people who each portray one of the viewpoint characters and who do a wonderful time elucidating their personalities and ramping up the tension in the story. The story was exciting and filled with action and with tension. It was an excellent story and very well narrated.

[rmarcin-630843 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gwen has a job as a PI in the latest installment of this series. She is hired to find a young man, Remy Landry, who vanished 3 years ago. What Gwen uncovers is a cult, and the stakes are higher than she can imagine. This book has a lot of tension, not only for the danger m, but also for the mindset of the cult. Cults are a frightening problem, and their brainwashing and subordination is truly scary. While the ending scenes of the rescue are hard to believe, it was still exciting to read.#BitterFalls #RachelCaine

[infjsarah · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyable as all this series has been. The plots are of course completely implausible but Ms Caine knows how to keep you reading.

[olivermagnus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the fourth book in the Stillhouse Lake series by Rachel Caine. Gwen Proctor and her family are back, hoping to settle back in their small town. Gwen, now a private investigator, has taken on the cold case of a missing young man and soon discovers there are several more young men missing. In a town that’s closed its ranks against Gwen; her partner, Sam; and her kids, there’s no bolder enemy than the Belldene family—paramilitary, criminal, powerful, and vengeful. They make their presence known from the beginning. Gwen Proctor is a force to be reckoned with and when it comes to protecting her family, she takes no prisoners.

I think this series is particularly good in audio. The narrators add just the right amount of tension to their voices and made this audio book an enjoyable listening experience. I’ve been a fan of this series since I read Stillhouse Lake There is something about Caine’s writing that draws me in and keeps me engaged. This isn’t a series where you can read out of order. You really need to start with the first book in order to appreciate everything that Gwen and her family have been through. The good news is that even though this is the fourth book they’re fairly quick reads and are easy to binge.

[whybehave2002 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What began as a trilogy has grown to be a series with number 5 already in the works. The story continues to grow as the family ages and I can see why. The children and Sam are now very much a part of survival while Gwen takes on the role of a private investigator. I also want to bring to note a fun fact about the author...have any of you checked out the soundtrack that she always posts at the end of her books? Songs that give her focus and background to her stories. Picture yourself listening to these songs and seeing her inspiration. A very personal touch.

[tldegray-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was my favorite so far of the Stillhouse Lake series because it's here, in this tense, nail-biter of a book, that Gwen and her children start to believe there's life after what they experienced. They're more open now and that's a fantastic thing to read. [I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.]