Into the North

Lindsay Schopfer
Completed 12/11/2025, Reviewed 12/15/2025
5 stars

I chatted with this author at WorldCon in Seattle and picked up his fourth book in the Keltin Moore Adventure series.  I first met him a while ago at Orycon where I picked up the first three.  I really liked the first book, The Beast Hunter, but then stalled on continuing in the series.  Well, having such a wonderful chat with him in Seattle got me reinvigorated and have finally read Book 2.  I loved it.  It really came together for me despite being so long since reading the first.  His prose has a warm, cozy feel, despite being about chasing bloodthirsty monsters in the cold north.  The simple act of reading this book was a pleasure.  I easily slipped back into this wonderfully built world with enough references to his previous adventures to jog my memory without being info dumps.  So glad I finally picked these up again.  

Keltin has returned home from his adventures in Krendaria.  He’s accompanied by his new apprentice.  Jaylocke is a Weycliff wayfarer, from the nomadic tribe who can draw on their ancestors for help.  However, Jaylocke has lost his ability and needs to prove himself to be useful to his clan by learning a trade.  So, he’s hunting monsters.  After a very short stay, the two answer a call for help with the mysterious Ghost of Lost Trap, a monster terrorizing miners who are trying to cash in on the recent gold rush in the frozen north.  In the boomtown of Lost Trap, they meet up with their Loopi acquaintances from the Krendaria campaign.  They work at the Inn where the two are staying.  Bor’ve’tai, who fought with them previously, joins them on their hunt for the Ghost, using his psychic powers to manipulate the weather and his uncanny reading of people and amazing intuition.  The three have regular run-ins with the corrupt Hunters’ Guild that forces everyone to pay protection while providing none, similar to mob protection.  Between the Guild and freezing temperatures, the three try to hunt this seemingly teleporting monster before it completely wipes out the miners and the town.  

Keltin continues to be the brooding beast hunter but works very hard to be more social.  He has developed a fondness for Jaylocke, appreciating his apprentice’s levity.  Keltin has learned to be the patient mentor using everything as a teaching moment.  Jaylocke is fun, but not disruptively so.  He adds a snarky sense of humor that helps alleviate some of the dread of their mission.  Bor’ve’tai is very sweet.  He’s of the Loopi race, the ape-like people who are the target of a lot of discrimination and fear.  But to Keltin and Jaylocke, he’s family.  The theme of fear and hatred between the races of beings is often addressed throughout the novel.   Keltin does his best to be a barrier between that and his Loopi friends.

What I liked best about this book was that it was perfect for the time of year in which I read it.  It’s winter now, and the book takes place in the far north.  I loved being wrapped in my quilt reading about Keltin and crew’s attempts to track and destroy this teleporting killing machine through the snowy forest.  Yes, they come across many bloodied bodies and there’s a lot of bloody trails through the snow.   Still, I felt magically transported to this scary wasteland and felt like I was tracking the beasts along with them.  Even though I didn’t read it in one or two nights, I still felt like I was glued to the book.  In the end, I felt like I was part of their team.  

There are other subplots as well that are carrying through this series.  There’s Ketlin’s sister Mary and their mother.  Mary has become a governess for a wealthy family and their mother has moved in with their uncle.  So Keltin no longer has to support them from his hunting bounties.  There’s also correspondence with Elaine, who he met in the first book.  She’s clearly fond of him, but Keltin doesn’t know how to figure out his own feelings toward her.  Then, in the town of Lost Trap, there are other colorful characters, my favorite was the proprietor of the Inn where they stayed.  She’s a fiercely independent woman who shares many of the same values as Keltin, but is a lot more brash and forthcoming.  I liked them all.  They were as three dimensional as Keltin and his companions.  

I give this book five stars out of five.  This book far exceeded expectations.  Despite being over three years since reading the first book, I slipped right into this terrific world and cozied up to the characters and their journey.  My goal is to finish the books in this series because, well, I waited too long and now just want to devour them 😊