This is a fun cozy – even in a cold setting. My rating 4.5.

Crystal is already thinking about changing her life when her unpleasant supervisor scolds her for being five minutes late after walking through the rain. On a sudden impulse, Crystal decides to quit her dead-end clerical job. But she can’t be out of work long as she has bills to pay. She stumbles onto an advertisement for a wilderness guide. After bluffing her way to getting hired she needs to pick up snowshoes and learn how to use them.

When she arrives for her first outing, she is pleasantly surprised to meet her handsome fellow guide, Conner. Together they lead a corporate group on a hike up the mountain to a beautiful chalet. Crystal is pleased things seem to be going well, even the friendship with Conner, until late at night the guests get into a fight. The next morning the company owner turns up dead and the wilderness outfit has to shut down guide activities until the murder can be solved.

Crystal isn’t impressed by the young detective, so she sets out to interview all of the company employees herself. She tries to make it casual and gets through a couple before one of the employees begins to suspect she is sticking her nose in where it doesn’t belong. Crystal continues to press on but will she press too hard and get caught up by the murderer?

I was pulled into the story right away by Crystal’s light character. Crystal is a fun, kind character and it is easy to root for her to make good on her new job. Of course, the reader can also see that Crystal is pushing herself into trouble. Conner is a nice romantic possibility who adds side interest to the mystery.

This is an easy read cozy mystery which I really enjoyed. I was pleasantly surprised to realize the author is a male. Nice job! I would like to read more in the series. I recommend this to fans of humorous cozy mystery.

Source: NetGalley 2019.

I enjoyed reading this book because of the events that occurred on Crystals first day at her new job. The book was well written with enough suspense to keep me interested. The main characters were strong especially Crystal who went out of her way to discover who committed the murder. There was also the romance so it was light hearted as well. I recommend that you read it.

I received an ARC through NetGalley, provided by the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:
Crystal Rainey is aghast when she realizes her new year's resolutions haven't changed one whit from the previous year. Wanting to escape a future as dreary as a Pacific Northwest winter, she walks out on her dead-end office job, despite her tenuous savings account.
Stumbling across a job opening posted by a wilderness guide outfit, an intrigued Crystal bluffs her way into the position. With handsome fellow guide, the stalwart Conner Oakes, she leads a corporate retreat on a snowshoe hike to a majestic alpine chalet.
But when the company's detestable owner turns up dead in the snow, she fears her new life and budding romance slipping away. She finally has something worth fighting for and is determined to solve the murder and grab her chance at happiness before it's too late.

Review:
Crystal and Conner + <3
This book was such a joy to read. It was so well written and heartwarming. I'd read a couple of so-so books before getting my hands on this one. It made all the others be very distant memories. This book was the perfect balance of comfort and mystery. It is a definite must read on my list!

This book was a middle of the road book for me. I enjoyed the writing and the plot points, but the basic premise of the book was a bit unbelievable for me. It was an enjoyable read, though.

This is a well written cozy. Crystal Rainey quits her job and manages to get into a position as a wilderness guide with a wilderness outfit. Along with her fellow guide, Conner Oakes, she takes a corporate retreat on a snowshoe hike. When the hated corporate head dies, Crystal sees a job she is coming to love as well as a new romance slipping away. Now Crystal must try to figure out the murder while keeping her budding romance and her future aspirations alive.

I liked this book. As I said it is well written and enjoyable. I liked the main character: a strong sensible woman, who never loses her charm and femininity. The “prince charming” in the book was also a great character, but I really took to Crystal. As a dog lover, I likewise enjoyed the reference to pet rescue. I agree with many that the inclusion of the mystery after the background foundation kept my interest in the book, as I wanted to know what would happen next. This is a good, easy cozy to read to pass the nights and days of a long winter away. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.

The author M.L. Erdahl is able to bring a wonderful balance between romance and the cozy mystery where the characters blend well together and are able to bring readers a fun mystery that flows well and gives readers something exciting to look forward to since this is the beginning of a series.

The author even made the landscape almost as if it is a character alive and working with the different characters in the stories.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of M.L. Erdahl Winter Takes All

Crystal Rainey starts every year with a list of new resolutions. This year, she creates her list and then accidentally opens her list from the year before. They are eerily similar. A year ago, she was in the exact same place. So she pulls a Jerry Maguire and quits everything. Too bad she actually needs money to live. So she bluffs her way into a job with an outdoor company. And her first trip's co-guide, Connor is pretty cute. Too bad the guests are fairly unpleasant and then, of course, one of them dies from means that seem less than natural. Crystal inexplicably decides that she should investigate the death and inserts herself right in, almost getting killed.
I could not get sympathetic to Crystal. She lies about her experience as an outdoor guide and, having worked with outdoor guides and knowing how easy it is for things to go wrong, it made me very hard for me to suspend my disbelief that everything would be "just fine." For other readers, this may not be a problem but it dropped my reading experience down a star. I also have less patience than I used to for well-meaning characters bumbling into an investigation but thinking that they are "helping."There are too many crime TV and podcast shows out there that mention that you should never mess with evidence and Crystal seemed like the type of character that would devour those shows.

Two and a half stars
This book came out October 23rd, 2019
ARC kindly provided by The Wild Rose Press, Inc. and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Winter Takes All by M. L. Erdahl is the 1st book in the Seattle Wilderness Mystery series, and my first book by this author. I really enjoyed this book, it has a little bit of everything, mystery, romance, and outdoor adventure. This book is fast pace and keeps you reading. I am looking forward to the next book in the series. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys the genre.
I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and the publisher. Thank you.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Wild Rose Press for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is my first time reading this author. I believe this is the first in a series. Cute book, quick read. Totally out of my realm. Wilderness guides! Fun! Crystals first snowshoe trip with client's and one gets murdered! She decides to try to solve it herself (I found this very odd) so she can get back to work faster?! What??? Anyway, it's fun and a bit odd but worth the read. 3 stars

a really fun read! fast paced interesting story with complex characters. Lots of snow! lol! I loved the ins and outs and twists and turns. A wonderful light read I received a copy from Netgalley and this is my hones review

romantic, cozy-mystery, situational-humor, verbal-humor

She spontaneously quit her awful job and got a new job she was totally inexperienced in, what could possibly go wrong?
While shopping for snowshoes she meets a yummy guy who offers to teach her the skill, then it turns out that they work for the same company of winter guides. On the very first trip, the guests don't get along, drink to excess, and one of them winds up dead. The cozy mystery is pretty well done, the budding romance is entertaining, and the humor is really giggle worthy!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Wild Rose Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

Winter Takes All is a well written, keep you on your toes cozy mystery with a nice romantic as an added bonus.

Crystal was an awesome character. She made a decision to change her life and totally just a right into it. Leaving her cramped cubicle and talking her way into a job as a wilderness guide. I truly love the tenacity this girl has. On her first assignment Two things happen Crystal realizes she made the correct decision with this job and a dead that shuts down her adventure company.

With sparks flying with her adventure partner Conner, an unexplained death and being stuck in a store until the mess is cleaned up, Crystal ups her game and works to get to the bottom of this crazy up and down mystery. Crystal and Conner are a wonderful couple. They complement each other well. They are funny and attentive and their romance comes naturally. That’s big points coming from an avid romance reader.

I was pleasantly surprised with Winter Takes All. It’s a keep you guessing, fun, humorous and touching story all in one. Author M.L. Erahl ties mystery and romance perfectly to make good story. The characters are fun and OMG that cat!

Winter Takes All could easily be the beginning of a series that I would thoroughly enjoy reading.

Entertaning book about a woman who gets a job as a wilderness guide. On her first trip one of the guests dies and she is determined to solve the case and find the murder. Not an easy task,but she will suceed

I don't read many cozy themed mysteries, so grabbed this ARC mostly to check what the genre is up to.

While there's nothing particularly wrong with this book, there's nothing very special about it, either. A young woman decides to investigate a murder on her own, because she doesn't think the King County Sheriff's office is up to the task. There's a romance element, but the main character's professed feelings about her love interest feel a little juvenile for a woman supposedly in her mid-20s. The Seattle-area setting did come through very strongly, which will be of interest to readers familiar with the area; I don't know the individual neighborhoods, so it didn't mean as much to me. The best part-- the character anticipating and participating in the hike-- was well-drawn, interesting, and scenic, but cut short, since she can't hike any more until the murder is solved.

Only of interest to readers who blaze through every cozy available. Primarily of interest to libraries in and around the Cascade Foothills; optional everywhere else.

A cozy mystery in the wintery Pacific Northwest! In Winter Takes All, we meet Crystal Rainey a twentysomething whose life is passing her by. In a moment of New Year's reflection she impulsively quits her dreaded job and starts a new adventure as an outdoor wilderness guide. Her first big outing is a corporate retreat snowshoeing up a mountain with an architecture firm. That's where the trouble begins, as Crystal has never snowshoed and the colleagues at the firm are at eachothers throats, thankfully her cute associate guide Conner Oakes helps her out and they make it up the mountain in one piece. But then there's drama in the chalet and the company's ego driven owner runs out in the snow and turns up dead.
Crystal's job is in limbo as the company's insurance is revoked until the investigation in the accident/homicide is complete. As her money begins to run out, she has to take a risk and try and get to the bottom of the mystery before she loses her career, budding relationship and home, but will it cost her her life?
A great series debut, set in the beautiful Pacific NorthWest, i'll be sure to read the next installment by ML Erdahl!

Crystal is excited to start her new job as a wilderness guide. Working along side hunky Connor makes it easy too. Things go from bad to worse though, when they lead a group of co-workers from the same company. The boss, who also has his wife along, is not a well liked man, and naturally is killed. More of a murder mystery than romance, but that's fine overall. Wish the banter and fun reading at the beginning would have lasted more, but that may just be me. Overall, I liked the twists and turns and would recommend.

The book began well I was enjoying this cosy festive read. Unfortunately it did go downhill towards the end. And I started losing interest. Sadly as I had been looking forward to reading this one

I loved reading this cozy classic! I appreciated that the main characters didn't have all this distaste for each other like in some romance novels and instead, the mystery served as the catalyst to keep the reader hooked - which kept me guessing way more than a standard romance! I loved it!

Crystal down on her luck after quitting her job finally lands her dream job as a wilderness guide. With no experience whatsoever she utilizes the internet to garnish some knowledge of what the job entails and proceeds to a rival outfitter to buy snowshoes as her first tour is the following day. Unbeknownst to Crystal, Connor the sales agent is her partner on the trek but being as he worked for a rival outfit he doesn't rat her out. All goes well the following day until after their arrival at the chalet, snuggled in bed suddenly Crystal is awoken by shouting and the departure of a snowmobile. Not until the following morning does she realize that one of the guests met an unfortunate demise. When the insurance company stops all future tours Crystal decides to play detective to expedite solving the case, as her funds are running low. Full of suspense and a budding romance between herself and Connor and along the lies of Ms Marple or Jessica Fletcher this book is a gem,

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book

Winter Takes All is an enjoyable, at times serious read. We follow the story of Crystal Rainey, an altogether relatable character who is bored of her crappy job and abusive boss. She makes a daring and risky career change to become a wilderness guide, but her first trip out is spoiled by a murder. Erdahl has created a fun and interesting mystery that touches on the serious subject of abusive employers and workplace harassment.