The Sons of Colria Valley: The River

by MJ Downey

Sterling Lawson has had one thing on his mind for the last thirty What happened to his parents? After they disappeared in 1992, he was faced with the reality that growing up doesn't always happen gradually. And since raising his brothers, they all have gone into different fields of criminology with the common goal of discovering where their mother and father went. But after a car is found in the valley river, Sterling and his brothers have to take the back burner of the investigation until they know for sure if this has anything to do with their parents Or if the body in the trunk is someone else entirely.

238 pages, Paperback

Published October 17, 2023

Reviews

[Claire G · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was skeptical of the five star reviews because there aren’t many to average it out. All I can say is wow. This book doesn’t have a large audience and I think that’s a real shame. I found this author on booktok and decided to give her a chance and she did NOT disappoint. Her characters feel like real people you can relate to. It validates that you can be a middle age guy and still be figuring life out.

My typical genre is romantasy but I tried this book as a slump buster like the reviews over on Amazon said and now I’m sad I have to wait for the next book in the series. I really think this could be our generations Agatha Christie.

So many indie author booktok books have been lukewarm for me but this one takes the cake. The descriptions were incredible, like I could actually see the characters and the town. So many books get too descriptive with things that don’t actually describe anymore. It was nice to find a book that you could actually use the descriptions.

I can’t wait to see what’s in store for her next book.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw this book on tiktok and was very excited to read it. When I finally started it, I was a little disappointed. The pacing of everything felt super weird, continuity mistakes, plus Sterling fantasizing/reminiscing about a 12 year old Noelle when he’s 16 years older than her, meaning he was almost 30 at that time? It gave me the ick. Big age gaps typically don’t bother me, but I felt that bit could have been left out. Speaking of things being left out, there were some things that happened in the book that I felt like were unnecessary.

I did love the relationship between the brothers. It felt very real. I will say, I didn’t see the big twist cliff hanger ending coming. I read through the book assuming their father was going to crash the funeral, but Sterling having the potential murder weapon? Gasp.

I am hopeful for the next book though.

[Sammi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can’t wait for the second book!!

[Keisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book, the cliffhanger at the end 🫣I can’t wait for the second book! If your looking for a quick mystery read this is recommended ❤️