Cold Panic

by D.L. Johnstone

$8 million in stolen cryptocurrency. One kidnapped boy. A killer seeking redemption.

Angie Eular’s life implodes the day her husband vanishes—along with $8 million in stolen crypto. Now her six-year-old son has been taken, and the kidnappers demand only one the missing money.

She can’t go to the police. The clock is ticking.

Then the last person Angie ever expected to see appears at her door. Joe Bank robber. Con man. Killer. And her estranged stepfather, who's been on the run for the past twenty years.

Joe promises to find Angie’s son. But why him? Why now? How can she trust a man whose entire identity is built on lies?
With the ransom locked away on the blockchain and her child’s life on the line, she faces a brutal trust the devil she knows—or lose everything.

Cold Panic is a fast-paced, emotionally charged crypto crime thriller, perfect for fans of Lee Child, Gregg Hurwitz, and Karin Slaughter.

367 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 30, 2025

About the author

D.L. Johnstone lives with his family north of Toronto. When he’s not writing, or walking his aggressively friendly goldendoodle, he works as a strategy and leadership consultant. He’s the author of best-selling thrillers Chalk Valley and Furies. His latest thriller, Cold Panic, will be published fall 2025.

If you’d like to contact him, please drop him an email at: dljohnstonewriter@gmail.com.

Reviews

[janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Angie Eular wakes up to loud, persistent banging at her front door. Before she even has time to get downstairs and answer, strange men are in her home, Henry, her son, must have let them in!

She wonders where her husband Walter is now. He's been away on a business trip, but she hasnt heard from him in days. Unfortunately, the strangers invading her home are also wondering where he is, and when Angie can't provide his whereabouts, they take her son until she can. If she wants him back, she's not to contact the police. She's on her own.

Henry's business partner Gordo is among the men in her home, waving guns around, they start searching for a trace of the money. Money supposedly stolen by Walter and not just a small amount either... 8 million in crypto currency!

When Angies’s ex-con stepdad, Joe Salter, offers his help, Angie fears for the worst. He knows how these people operate, but Angie feels she's getting in too deep.

Told in dual timelines, the switch and merge brilliantly, giving an insight in not only the present day and situation but the past and the backstory of Joe and his criminal past.

This is a real good guys, bad guys read with a lot of emphasis on the behind the scenes, shady goings on of criminal life.

Character execution was brilliant. Each individual was well developed and easy to visualise. Henry was a delight to read. He was an amazingly resilient little guy with an eye and ear for detail. It was his supposed 'innocence' that was their downfall for sure.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Cheryl Tabor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually I had a whirl of a ride with this thriller. It got to a point that bad guys become good, and good guys become bad. Angie Eular woke up to banging at her door. By the time she got up unknown people were in her house. her son Henry must of let them in. Her husband Walter had gone on business, but she hadn't heard from him other than right after he left on Monday and was on the road. Gordo was Walter's work partner and he was amoung the three in her home with guns asking for her husband and searching her house for so called money her husband stole from his boss. He wanted it back. They then kidnap poor little Henry as assurance Angie wouldn't contact the police and she'd find out where her husband was. This thriller will not let you down. It opens many moving parts in a money laundering operation and who's involved. Who wants in on the money besides the bad guys. Henry is a really tough kid and he's smart. He's paying attention to all the moving parts of these kidnappers and the boss. He's in the middle of them referencing to some gold bricks. Someone close to Henry that he doesn't know yet is looking for him. He infiltrates this gang of kidnappers/money launders to find out where Henry is. Hopping to find him before these bands of bad guys or supposedly good guys turn bad do something unthinkable to Henry. Should be more than five stars.

[Lady Di Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Angie Eular's husband Walter is missing along with 8 million in crypto currency, and the people looking for him, have taken her young son, Henry, to motivate her to finding her husband and the money. She's unable to go to the police, so she feels at a loss until her criminal stepfather Joe Salter, comes back into her life to help her get her son back. The story jumps between present day and Angie's & Henry's situation, to the past to provide support of Joe's backstory and crimes.
Cold Panic was a well paced crime thriller with a couple of twists you don't expect.

Thank you to D.L. Johnstone and BookSirens, as I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Crystal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay this book first of all surprised me that it was based in Ontario Canada especially talking about Scarborough and not far from my house haha that was abit strange but I loved it. It was a good read, slow in some areas but overall not bad. It wasn’t to suspenseful.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.