Buried Lies by Kathleen Donnelly @KatK9writer ‪@htpbooks.bsky.social‬

Posted January 22, 2026 by Anne - Books of My Heart in Book Review / 10 Comments

Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.


Buried Lies by Kathleen Donnelly @KatK9writer ‪@htpbooks.bsky.social‬Buried Lies by Kathleen Donnelly
Series: National Forest K-9 #4
Published by Harlequin on January 27, 2026
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 368
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer Maya Thompson and her K-9, Juniper, are both ready for a break. Ever since moving to Colorado, it’s been one investigation after another. Murder, arson, kidnapping…they’ve handled it all. Now that her boyfriend, Undersheriff Josh Colton, is coming home, Maya is looking forward to spending some quality time together.

Until she and Juniper find the body of a woman in a pile of forest debris meant to burn, that is. Then Maya’s just looking forward to having Josh’s help in solving the crime.

But when the victim turns out to be Josh’s volatile ex-fiancée, and all signs point to Josh as the main suspect, Maya and Juniper must dig into Josh’s past to uncover the truth…before the killer, fixated on revenge, finds them.

Wow.  I really enjoyed Buried Lies.  In fact, I devoured it in one sitting.  The earlier books in the National Forest K-9 series were good but this one felt great to me.  Throughout we have been with the point of view of Maya, a forest service ranger.  Her grandfather is sheriff and her fiancé, Josh is his deputy.  Maya has a K-9 Juniper, and Josh is just finishing training with Finn.  Maya is looking forward to his return.

Then it seems like everything blows up. Her on-the-run father has been leaving her notes.  Maya is worried about Pops and Josh.  She is also busy with murder investigations and trying to keep calm, rather than being furious or scared. Plus Josh’s family is in town.

There were multiple plot lines here which made it exciting.  The pace was pretty steady.  Maya and Josh did everything they could to solve the case and investigate smartly.  Maya had to trust a CBI agent friend where she would have a conflict of interest.  Best of all,  the dogs did quite a bit of work and were key in the story.

We knew Josh wasn’t guilty but it was tough seeing him arrested.  The rich have a lot of tools to keep themselves safe and to remain powerful.  The ending was a relief and hopefully a good foundation for Maya and Josh going forward.  I’m thrilled to see there’s another book, Deadly Revenge coming.

 

About Kathleen Donnelly

Award-winning author Kathleen Donnelly is a K-9 handler for a private narcotics dog detection company. She enjoys using her K-9 experience to craft realism into her fictional stories. Kathleen lives near the Colorado foothills with her husband and her four-legged co-workers.

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Posted January 22, 2026 by Anne - Books of My Heart in Book Review / 10 Comments

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