“A woman invited to her wealthy fiancé’s family retreat realizes they are hiding a terrible secret—and that she’s been there before.”
A Killing Cold, Kate Alice Marshall
This is a perfect thriller for a winter read! We follow Theodora (Theo) Scott, a girl in her mid-twenties who is freshly engaged to Connor Dalton and currently spending 2 weeks at his family’s lodge, with the entire family. Theo and Connor have only been dating for a few months, and Theo is desperate to keep her personal history a secret from Connor and his family. But the Daltons are a powerful and wealthy family, and they’re not going to let just anyone join their ranks.
But Theo has other things to worry about. Like the foreboding texts warning her to stay away from the family. The footsteps outside their cabin’s window, where someone clearly watched her and Connor. An abandoned cabin that no one talks about. The mysterious whispered conversations the family has about Theo when she’s not in the room. And why it all seems familiar.
The pacing for this book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. As we bounce between Theo’s current predicament, her childhood memories, and the secret she’s trying to keep, the tension gets higher and higher. As we learn more about each of the Daltons, there’s more questions than answers, and it seems like none of them should be trusted.
This has definitely become my favorite Kate Alice Marshall book, and I think it’s a perfect thriller! The cast is fascinating, with every character hiding their fair share of secrets. The main character, Theo, acknowledges that she’s a very unreliable narrator, leaving the reader with no one to wholly believe. The hostile environment of an isolated lodge that only the family can access is terrifying without any context, but becomes claustrophobic as the plot presses on.
I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a classic psychological thriller or to anyone looking to break out of a reading slump. And if you’re very specifically looking for a thriller in a winter setting, this is a perfect pick!
Thanks to Netgalley and Flatiron Books for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
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