by Cynthia Chow

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of In Cave Danger, and a link to purchase it from Amazon and an indie bookstore where a portion goes to help support KRL.

Claustrophobic, fearful of heights, and favoring pink vintage couture over hiking books, Northwest Extreme outdoor magazine should not be Meg Reed’s natural habitat. Not enjoying the outdoors doesn’t mean that she hasn’t learned to appreciate or respect it though, and working for the publication has certainly forced her to push her boundaries and limits. Now that the magazine is facing a corporate buyout, and considering the precarious state of print publishing, Meg jumps at the invitation to an expedition through Lava River Caves of Bend, Oregon. The lava tubes are being opened as part of senior Congressman Riley’s promotional tour to push through legislation to ease up Forest Service land restrictions, something environmentalists find appalling. Meg sees this as an ideal opportunity to branch out and cover the political side of the issue, while still amping up Northwest Extreme’s social media presence through jaw-dropping photos of the site.

Once Meg arrives, she finds that there’s more than a little animosity between the National Park rangers and the Big Business politicians, the latter of whom seek to exploit the reserves for personal gains. Meg’s horrific discovery of a body once again lands her in the midst of a battle between man and nature, with her sense of right and wrong pushing her past her physical limitations.

As the novel delves into the mystery within the lava tubes and the research facility, Meg is forced to once again reconcile with the death of her father. A Pulitzer Prize winning journalist killed while investigating a Meth Madness story, Charlie Reed was Meg’s idol and the reason she landed at Northwest Extreme. At the age of twenty-four, Meg faces yet another step in becoming an adult as her closest college friends depart on their own paths, and she must accept the personal and professional changes.

Author Dyer-Seeley makes the Pacific Northwest come alive not just with the natural beauty of its mountain ranges, but with the ubiquitous draft beer pubs that have become the meeting grounds of incoming hipsters. Meg may act impulsively and lead with her heart more than her head, but she continues to be a vulnerable and sympathetic character who readers will want to see succeed. This fifth in the series ties up many loose ends, yet leaves so many promising avenues for Meg to pursue in the future. A suspenseful finale reveals that man is far more dangerous than nature, whose beauty continues to be endangered. Meg’s friends, not to mention her Reiki-practicing Gram, lighten the tone while still allowing the novel to be timely and topical read.

To enter to win a copy of In Cave Danger, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “cave,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen February 10, 2018. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address, and if via comment please include your email address.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section.

Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

In Cave Danger

You can also use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases using those links. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.