Atmospheric Suspense.....
Engaging and atmospheric suspense with a credible protagonist in the overwrought Jenny. A descriptive, slow burn to a fully tension filled ending. A solid mystery.

A thrilling read which kept me turning the pages, characters you care for and just brilliantly written. Great novel!!

Really enjoyed this book it was very atmospheric and suspenseful. I enjoyed the characters in the book and the area in which it was set. It was a beautifully written story full of emotion, twists and flowed really well. I couldn’t put this book down it had me hooked from the first page, it literally had me hanging on to every word devouring every word until I had finished it. I thoroughly enjoyed this book it was excellent and I don’t hesitate in giving it 5 stars.

Fantastic book with a creepy factor which keeps you guessing until the end. One murdered child and another missing is the basis of this fast-paced mystery. Jenny is sleepwalking and finding evidence that the police ohave missed. How can she be sure what is real and what is imagined? Brilliant storytelling.

It was an entertaining, atmospheric and fascinating read.
It gives you an impression of cold, winter, and grey skies.
The plot was engaging and I wasn't able to put this book down.
Even if it's not my usual type of mystery I really liked and appreciated it.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Head of Zeus and Netgalley for this ARC

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

When 14 year old Leigh Horde was found dead under frozen house, New mum Jenny felt a deep sense of unease.

Jenny, husband Will and baby Finn had recently moved to St Albans. Ever since the birth of Finn, Jenny was exhausted and lonely living in a new area. From her house Jenny could see the lake where Leigh died. Shortly after this Jenny started sleepwalking to the lake and heard voices shouting save me!!

DCI Maarten Jansen was running the investigation with DI Imogen Deacon. Jansen was Dutch who had transferred to the UK with his wife Livi and daughters Nic and Sanne. Jansen had received a job offer from Rotterdam was considering returning home.

Jenny was soon considered a witness when she finds Leigh`s mobile phone during one of her sleepwalking episodes. Jenny doesn't know why she is returning to the crime scene and wonders if she committed murder.

This book was not bad but not my cup of tea. The plot failed to grab me and I thought the characters personalities could of been fleshed out a bit more. I thought Maarten`s character was promising I would of liked to know what made him move to the UK. However I thought he was a bit of a cold fish but maybe the author might develop his personality in the next book

Rachael Blok's debut crime fiction is part psychological thriller and part police procedural set in St Albans as the festive season approaches. A young 14 year old schoolgirl, Leigh Horde is discovered dead, under the frozen ice of the lake. Jenny and Will Brennan have recently moved to the town from frenetic London, seeking a more rural setting to bring up a family. Jenny is a new mother, with son, Finn, feeling exhausted, suffering sleepless nights, isolated, having to cope with Finn on her own with Will out at work and often not coming back until late in the evenings after entertaining clients. Ever since giving birth, not unsurprisingly Jenny is missing her mother who she lost as a young child. She feels upset at the death of Leigh, feeling an odd connection to her. Jenny feels as if she is hearing Leigh's voice, seeing ghosts, and keeps finding herself sleepwalking to the lake with no idea of how she got there.

Feeling frustrated and not knowing what is happening to her, she is keeping her true mental state from her husband, who finds her strange behaviour totally out of character. Jenny decides to seek professional help and a space where she can be heard, and ends up being counselled by therapist, Dr Klaber, which she finds helpful. The police team investigating Leigh's murder are struggling to find any leads and cannot understand how Jenny is finding clues that they keep missing. DCI Maarten Jansen is heading the case, aided by DI Imogen Deacon. Maarten is Dutch, and in the process of being interviewed and offered another position in Rotterdam Police which he is seriously considering, taking account of his wife, Liv, and the needs of his two daughters, Nic and Sanne. Events take a turn for the worse when a 9 year old girl goes missing, and tensions in the local community rise sky high. Jansen and his team are struggling, the only lead they have is Jenny, but can she be trusted? Could she even be a suspect?

This is a great crime fiction story set in icy and wintry St Albans with a great character in Jenny, the new mother who is off kilter, seeing things, with secrets in her past, and driven to save the young girl, no matter what the personal cost. The police and Maarten in particular are unsure of what to make of her input but she has found crucial evidence. An entertaining, suspenseful and tense read that I thoroughly enjoyed. Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.

A serviceable thriller that I enjoyed well enough but I didn't feel that it really did anything new.

Under the Ice was a perfect wintry read, pacy and addictive with an intriguing mystery element and a sympathetic character in Jenny, a new mother who appears to be battling ghosts as well as the sleep deprivation that comes attached to a new baby…

The writing is beautifully immersive as we jump between Jenny, sleepwalking towards clues and the police investigation which ultimately focuses back on Jenny. It is tense and atmospheric, with a missing child’s life at stake and a snowy, chilly backdrop that makes you shiver.

The setting of St Albans is beautifully described giving an excellent sense of place and Under the Ice is unpredictable and highly readable, very creepy in places,with a cleverly done finale.

Very much enjoyed it. Recommended.