Book Series Binge: Q&A with Kelley Armstrong on Casey Duncan Novels

By Crime HQ

April 4, 2020

As the world is struggling with COVID-19 and the hardship it presents, many of us are turning to books for solace and distraction. Our TBR pile seems suddenly manageable, old worn copies of our favorite books have come off the shelf once again, and our ‘social distancing’ gives us the opportunity to discover new books and series.

Some of the themes of Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton series overlap with our current reality. Most of the series takes place in a hidden, off-the-grid town in the Yukon. Residents hiding from threats and danger in their former lives take refuge there. Isolated from family, friends, and creature comforts, they learn to depend on each other, and use ingenuity and determination to forge a new world for themselves. Casey Butler, the town’s only detective, relies on mettle and shrewdness to solve cases and keep order in town, while internally dealing with her own demons and fears.

As part of our #BookSeriesBinge, New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong answers three questions about the first book in the Rockton series, City of the Lost.

Would you like to live in the setting you created for the Casey Duncan novels?

Temporarily, yes. Permanently…probably not. Rockton is off-the-grid in every way. A tiny hidden town deep in the Yukon forest. No electricity, no internet, no contact with the outside world. It would be an adventure, but I suspect the isolation would eventually drive me nuts.

See our other #BookSeriesBinge features here

How has Casey changed since you began the series?

Unlike me, Casey has found a place she belongs. In City of the Lost, she really is lost, living one day at a time, always waiting to be punished for a crime she committed at eighteen. In Rockton, she’s found the purpose, stability and community that was lacking in her life.

How would Casey describe herself?

She would struggle with that. Casey grew up never being “enough” for her family. She has the confidence to realize that isn’t true, but would still find it hard to describe herself in glowing terms. She’d probably say she’s capable, which seems like a simple word, but it acknowledges that she is indeed “enough.”

Read Kristin Centorcelli’s Review of City of the Lost