Overall I think this was a solid read. Yes there are parts that you will have suspend all belief, but I find that pretty common in suspense/thrillers. None of the characters are particularly likable. Could have used a little character development so that you cared a bit when someone was killed. It kept me up late two nights so that tells me I was into it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Dead Of Winter is a unique take on locked room thriller that goes from 0-60 in the first few pages. On the way to a remote lodge for a winter getaway, a group of tourists are stranded on the road due to a downed tree. Faced with brutal winter conditions, the group decides to seek shelter in a nearby cabin. The extreme winter weather and lack of supplies would have been harrowing enough of a situation, but as the group's numbers begin to dwindle at the hands of a killer, things get even more dire.

Darcy Coates uses her horror prowess to imbue so much tension into this thriller. The descriptions of the harsh winter conditions will have you shivering (even though this book is a summer release). I guessed the twist fairly early on, but Coates expertly uses red herrings to the point where I started second guessing myself more and more in the final chapters.

If you like locked room mysteries, definitely give this one a read! You will be stressed out the entire time you read this book, but it's so worth it.

Crossposted to goodreads at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5532201474

Dead Of Winter is an upcoming thriller novel by best selling writer Darcey Coates, which I got an opportunity to read, thanks to an advance copy by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. I am reading Coates for the first time. The book is a locked door suspense mystery with cabin in the wood kind of horror elements heavily thrown in.

Story is narrated in the first person perspective of Christa. The narrative style of Coates puts the reader in the midst of the events. While reading through the eyes of Christa, we are aware of only that which she knows about. At the same time we are part of all the paranoia and anguish that she feels. This made me as a reader, more immersed and invested in her perilous journey.

Could not put this book down! Dead of Winter was a thrilling ride for start to finish. Loved the way the story came together. I felt that the suspense really keeps you at the edge of your seat for the entirety of the novel. I'd highly recommend Dead of Winter for anyone looking for a fast-paced thriller that will constantly keep you on your toes.

A straightforward horror/thriller that I enjoyed for the most part. The horror elements were more successful than the thriller ones -very creepy images, gruesome, and some actually heart-racing moments. The thriller part, though, fell short, with the ending being obvious and the backstory more frustrating to get to than engaging. Great setting, with fantastic use of the environment around the action, and distinct characters I occasionally cared about. 3.5/5

Thank you to Poisoned Press, Darcy Coates, and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From the description, I thought this sounded like a good thriller.

The writing had a dark, gritty tone from the start. Initially, I didn't know much about the characters, but I wanted to know how they had ended up in the situation they were in. There was plenty of suspense, and an intense atmosphere that came to life while I was reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy to review.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book! This was my first book by Darcy Coates, but certainly not my last. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, and felt it was fast paced and I never became bored. Every twist and turn had me on the edge of my seat. I gave it 4.5 stars because I needed more! I wanted a follow up, like a six months later, and it kind of left on a cliffhanger. However, all in all I will highly recommend this book.

This was my first read by Darcy Coates. I enjoyed it, but I felt like it ended a bit abruptly. The motive of the killer felt a little forced and I wish there had been an epilogue or a couple more pages to the chapter. Overall though it was a gripping read that kept me guessing.
I did seriously enjoy the 911 dispatcher’s character, even though she was portrayed in a harsh way. I have been one for 7 years and I felt like Coates definitely did her research as far as how the job affects us. We almost all have gallows humor and it can make interpersonal relationships a little skewed because we can come off uncaring or morbid, because we see and also manage life and death emergencies every single day and it’s something you just get used to. There is an incident Blake, the dispatcher, talks about that made my blood boil, because I know there are dispatchers and dispatch centers that are negligent out there, but the incident would have never have been handled that way where I work. But I never felt Coates was villainizing the profession.

● Book Review●
• Name: Dead of Winter
• Author: Darcy Coates
• Genre: Thriller
• Rating: 4 ⭐️
• Pls check the TW before proceeding!
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●Thoughts ●
The cliffhanger at the end like what?!?!?! I'm like give me more like what happens after this whole incident like what???? This book reminded me of No Exit. Both takes place in the winter, everyone is suspicious and you don't know who to trust, and everyone is here for a reason. The pacing was mostly evenly paced. I like playing detective and this book was giving me a bit claustrophobic vibes and I felt cold all of a sudden. I felt like I could feel the chilly weather, the ice cold snow against my skin 😭😭😭. This book made me confirm that I don't want to hike in the mountains or go near the woods 😭😭😭. I guessed it right at the end who it was but I was triple guessing myself 😂😂😂. I almost could not predict who it was and the graphic details of the murders gave me a bit of goosebumps!
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● Appreciation ●
Thank you Darcy, Netgalley, and Poised Pen Press for the e-ARC in exchange for a honest review!
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● Tags ●
#bookreview #darcycoates
#thrillerbooks #thrillerbookrecommendations #deadofwinter #mysterybook #bookstagram #booktok #bookstagrammer #bookrecommendations
#books #mysterybookrecommendations #arcreview #poisedpenpress

I can’t express in words how happy I am that this book exists and I was able to read it.

I have been searching for a slasher that has me on the edge of my seat, cringing at the graphic details and shaking in my boots. From the bottom of my heart, thank you Dead of Winter!

This had me hooked from the very first chapters. I found myself trying to connect the dots and find out who the killer was before it was revealed but I wasn’t even close.

Dead of Winter would make such a fantastic movie. The imagery and the pacing of the writing felt like I was watching a movie already and I can honestly say I would eat it up.

This was everything I’ve been searching for and I am so excited to get my hands on a physical copy when it’s available to buy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

• Thank you Netgalley & publisher for the advanced copy •

This was really really good! It’s exactly what I look for in a thriller: a thrilling, engaging story, with good characters. The author knows her craft very well and, although the prose is clear and direct, her voice shines though.

I did spot the culprit very fast, but never solved the mysteries until they were revealed. It really hooked me from the inciting incident onwards. I recommend it to anyone, and I’ll definitely read more books by this author.

I am a newer fan of Darcy Coates, but this one was not my favorite, it had a lot of great elements but I’m a fan of her horror/ suspense. I am someone who gets to caught up in a story that I often overlook predictable elements. The book was well written and provided a twist I did not see coming. Overall it was a book that was excited to get back to and I do recommend for fans of suspense.

Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates.
Engrossing well written thriller. A tour group on an off season trip in the Rocky Mountains gets stranded in an abandoned cabin in the middle of a snowstorm with one of their party lost in the snow. They wake up the next morning with their tour guide murdered, head posted in a tree. One was an accident. Two is a murder. As they wait for rescue, one by one members of their group are murdered. Who is it? How can they keep each other safe? How can they stay alive?

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars. This was a fast paced thriller with a locked room setting. There were a lot of characters which I'm usually not a fan of. However, the author did a great job at making them all very different with specific and defining characteristics. I feel like there were a few plot holes. About halfway through the book the killer became predictable. There were a few twists that I didn't anticipate. Even though I predicted the killer I still enjoyed reading the story and the final revelation. One pet peeve was how many times the narrator had a dry mouth- someone get that girl a glass of water.

Thanks to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up - I LOVED DEAD OF WINTER!

Christa and her boyfriend, Kiernan, are headed for a long vacation at a secluded lodge in the Rockies when a felled tree blocks their bus's path and all hell breaks loose.

Who can be trusted? Who amongst them is a vengeful murderer? Are they all connected somehow, or just a group of unfortunate strangers trapped together?

It takes some skill to have a killer I can't figure out until it is staring me in the face, but WOW, Coates has something special here. I was gripped until the very last page, and absolutely couldn't get enough. The only reason I would give it 4.5 rather than 5 is that I would have enjoyed more character development - however, I acknowledge this is a major personal preference and there are a <i>lot</i> of characters to work through.


For fans of Yellowjackets, "Five Total Strangers" by Natalie Richards, and maybe even The Shining

Many thanks to Darcy, Poisoned Press, and Netgalley for a copy! 4.5 stars rounded up - I LOVED DEAD OF WINTER!

Christa and her boyfriend, Kiernan, are headed for a long vacation at a secluded lodge in the Rockies when a felled tree blocks their bus's path and all hell breaks loose.

Who can be trusted? Who amongst them is a vengeful murderer? Are they all connected somehow, or just a group of unfortunate strangers trapped together?

It takes some skill to have a killer I can't figure out until it is staring me in the face, but WOW, Coates has something special here. I was gripped until the very last page, and absolutely couldn't get enough. The only reason I would give it 4.5 rather than 5 is that I would have enjoyed more character development - however, I acknowledge this is a major personal preference and there are a <i>lot</i> of characters to work through.


For fans of Yellowjackets, "Five Total Strangers" by Natalie Richards, and maybe even The Shining

Many thanks to Darcy, Poisoned Press, and Netgalley for a copy!

This was way too predictable. I usually am able to predict the killer but not their motive, here I predicted the killer since the first murder. Also, the motive was clear when certain information about the main protagonist was revealed.

But I did like how atmospheric the book was. Really liked how vivid the setting and writing was. It was fast paced, I read it in one sitting, I was addicted to finding out if my theory was correct. There was some gore, I wished there was more, but I liked the amount we did get.

Usually, I love having predicted the killers in books, but only if I had put in some considerable effort into it. This book tried to dissuade me from my theory by presenting the reader with multiple red herrings, but still I knew who was behind everything. There were some really huge, blinding clues to the killer’s identity since the beginning.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dead of Winter
Author: Darcy Coates
Source: NetGalley ARC
Pub. Date: July 11, 2023

Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates is an intense thriller novel. The story revolves around Christa and her boyfriend, Kiernan, embarking on a winter-based vacation to the rocky mountains. En route to their lodge, the bus breaks down in a remote pass in the middle of a blinding snowstorm. The group disembarks their bus to find shelter, but Christa and her beau get lost in blizzard conditions. Christa loses her footing and falls off a cliff, separated from Kiernan. She is badly injured but eventually finds the abandoned shelter, where she reunites with the rest of the tour group. Kiernan doesn’t make it back. No heat, white-out conditions, and an irritable group of travelers make for tense conditions. Kiernan is missing in the mountains as multiple attempts to find him fail. But this isn’t the big problem. The travelers are suddenly being picked off one by one and killed in a gruesome manner ratcheting up the tension. It also ratcheted up my nerves as the story turned horrific. I wondered how Ms. Coates would resolve the story, and she did not disappoint. This is a thriller/horror story at its very best. The fear factor is off the charts. If you love the horror genre (as I do), this book is for you. #DeadOfWinter #frostbite #poisonedPenpress #mystery #thriller #horror #murder #death #blizzard #snowstorm #secrets #deadpeople #abandoned #whodunit @netgalley @poisonedpenpress @darcybooks
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I received a complimentary copy of this ARC. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and the author for the opportunity to read this book. Pub. Date: July 11, 2023.
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#book #books #bookaddict #booksofinstagram #bookstagram #bookstagramer #bookshelf #booksbooksbooks #readersofinstagram #reader #booklove #bookreader #reader

The experience reading this book was amazing! The scenes are very intense, chilling and gory, just like watching a movie! I don’t want to put it down. Thank you Netgalley, Poisoned Pen Press for approving me an ARC of this. A well-deserved 5 stars.

There’s a storm rollin’ in!❄️

Christa has hidden herself away from the world for the past two years. To help ease her back into society her new boyfriend arranges for a mountain getaway with a small tour group. This may be just what Christa needs to start living life again.

Only Mother Nature has something else in store for the travelers. After their tour bus gets stuck behind a fallen tree, the snow begins to fall…and fall.

Now the group of strangers are holed up in a small remote mountain cabin as the storm rages outside. Tired, hungry and cold and with no cell service, can the group survive until help finds them?

Oh, it’s not that simple my fellow readers! One by one, the members of the group are being picked off in the most gruesome of ways. A deranged serial killer on the loose? Or should they be looking at the person sitting next to them in the cabin?

Wow! This was a classic edge of your seat thriller that I absolutely devoured! It’s tagged as a horror which gave me pause since I tend to avoid that genre entirely. But don’t let that hold you back! IMO it’s more of a heart pounding thriller! Just to add to the atmosphere…I saved this for my mountain vacation and so glad I did!

Even with a fairly large cast of characters, you get to know all of them quickly and shouldn’t have any trouble keeping track of their back stories. The twists were amazing! A few I guessed and a few absolutely shocked me!

My first read by this author, who is known for her horror novels. So I’ll have to tread carefully picking up another. But her writing was so good I’ll just have to put on all the lights and make sure my guard puppy Gage is right by my side!

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press

Dead of Winter is based in the Rocky Mountains. This is the time of year you don't want to be outside because the cold gets in your bones. But for the travelers that were heading to their lodge for a getaway will be stopped on the side of the road... The question you have to ask your self, do you want to stay where you are or try and find better shelter in the unknows.
When people start going missing, you start to wonder if they went to go find help or if... you know you have to read to find out! This is one that you will not want to put down.
With this one being my first read by Darcy Coates, I will for sure keep her on my list to grab any new books!
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for this advance read in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.