Beneath A Broken Sky Review

Author: Joshua Moehling

Series: Ben Packard #4

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

Release Day: May 26, 2026

Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for a complimentary arc of this title for review.

Opinions expressed are my own.

From award-nominated and USA Today bestselling author Joshua Moehling comes a tense, atmospheric thriller about one detective's search for a mysterious killer in the chaos following a deadly storm…

Review:  

Detective Ben Packard is navigating life as a gay man in small town Sandy Lake, Minnesota, having moved there following the death of his partner, Marcus. After devastating tornadoes rip through town, nefarious storm chasers descend upon the town with trees to cut, roofs to repair, and yards to clean up. Tempers smolder as the brutal summer heat blankets the explosive atmosphere already dense from the smoke from brush fires. And now, a woman who recently confronted the school board about the bullying of her gay son is found dead from the hands of an intruder. Suddenly, the facade of a serene, safe small-town cracks, torn apart and divided by whispers, finger pointing and the emergence of dark secrets. As Ben begins a murder investigation, a ghost from his past appears hurling accusations and stirring up old memories he thought he'd buried.

 Author Joshua Moehing has raised the bar on the Ben Packard series with Beneath A Broken Sky. He systematically rips apart the idealistic guise of a safe, peaceful town where everyone is welcome, safe, and treated equally. The murder is especially disturbing to Ben as it hits close to home with homophonic undertones nourished by an undercurrent of malevolence, social bias, bigotry and abuse. The symbolism between the devastation of storm damaged property, destruction of the perfect smalltown persona, and the collision of Ben's personal and professional life both past and present are masterfully delivered by the author. I love getting additional insight into Ben's personal life, having the band aid ripped off and watching as he maneuvers his new circumstances with events occurring that are beyond his control.

 Beneath A Broken Sky is a highly atmospheric, tension laden, tautly written thriller that I could not put down - my favorite of the series! While this book can most certainly be read as a standalone, the background and character development that begins in book one and continues throughout enhances the enjoyment of reading subsequent books including this one. Highly recommended to fans of tense psychological thrillers with an imperfect yet moral hero with a lot of heart.

Synopsis:

Detective Ben Packard has put down roots in the small town of Sandy Lake. A difficult thing to do; it's a hot, miserable summer, and a tornado has swept through causing irreparable damage. Trees are felled, homes destroyed, and people are desperate. Worse, the storm has also blown in a group of storm chasers with something to hide.

Then a woman is killed in her home. The mother of a gay boy and unpopular among the locals for the hell she recently raised at school when the administration refused to punish a group of students who were bullying her son, there's almost too many suspects to count. 

But to Packard, the case hits close to home. And when someone from his past shows up on his doorstep out of the blue, he realizes he'll have to confront the reality of navigating life as a gay man in a small town bent on tradition, no matter the cost.

The heat suffocates. The violence simmers. Before the summer is out, someone else will die.