A Killing Cold is a fun, slow burn thriller that is perfect for the winter season, especially while in the middle of a snow storm! This book was instantly gripping from the last sentence of chapter one to the very end when the twist reveals itself. You get wealthy family, secluded mountain retreat with blizzard weather, secrets, even murder in this crafty thriller. Theodore and Conner instantly hit it off after meeting at a party and get engaged all within six months of their relationship. Sus? It’s time for her to meet his family on a secluded mountain getaway where everyone is not very welcoming to say the least. Theo has received anonymous texts warning her to stay away from conner, AND finds a photo of her as a child at conner family home? What is going on?! Theo is on a mission to try to gain back her memory of her childhood and unraveling the secrets conners family is trying so hard to protect.

-only thing i had a hard time with while reading was keeping some of the characters straight. There are a lot of family members, names thrown at you and i caught myself saying “wait who is this person to conner again?”

Thank you Netgalley and Flatiron books for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Theodora Scott has recently become engaged to Connor Dalton. His family is very wealthy, and spends every Christmas at the family's isolated retreat, Idlewood. Conner's family is dysfunctional, and will they accept Theodora? But Theodora has secrets of her own- these secrets actually involve the Dalton's. But Theodora doesn't know this yet!

Whew- what a fun, claustrophobic ride! The characters were fun- some a little crazier than others. There were many times that I couldn't decide who was behind everything, and who murdered Theodora's mother when she was younger. And why does everything feel familiar to Theodora? There are so many clues dropped in the story, and putting together Theodora's past was interesting. When the snowstorm comes, and they are stranded at Idlewood, that is when the pace quickens even more.

I was rooting for Theodora, and the story of what really happened to her mother, and to Theodora when she was adopted was heartbreaking. I don't want to get into too many details because I don't want to include spoilers- but if you like a twisty ride, with past and present mystery, with a little dysfunctional family mixed in, then this is for you!! I have never read this author before, but I am going to rectify that!

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for the ARC. THis is my honest and voluntary review.

I think I need to give up on this author. The premise always sounds good to me but the actual story leaves me bored. I can’t promise I’ll remember what this is about a week from now.

I’ve heard good things about this author. This is my first book by her, and it was such a twisty, intriguing, and fast-paced book. I could not put this down. It was so well done. The twist and turns were just spectacular. This was the perfect winter read and I’m hearing good things about the audiobook so I applied because I would love to start all over again. It’s just one of those books where as soon as it’s over, you want to start it again! Can’t wait to read more from this author!

A Killing Cold is a chilling psychological thriller by Kate Alice Marshall. This story is dark and eerie, layered and complex, with an incredibly toxic family who will go to any length to protect the family name. This disturbing novel can get pretty far-fetched, but it is entertaining nonetheless.

When Theodora is invited to her mega-wealthy fiancé’s family home after a whirlwind courtship, she’s nervous to say the least. That feeling intensifies as she receives a cold reception and rigorous interrogation from the family members. They are an odd lot and she is made even more uncomfortable when they make it clear that she does not meet their standards and is urged to leave. The longer Theodora is there, however, trapped by the winter weather, the more buried memories from her childhood arise, secrets that she has long forgotten. While there, certain events occur that tie her horrific flashbacks to this very home and family.

A Killing Cold is wintry, descriptive, and the classic “closed room” mystery set in a remote mountain estate. There are graphic hunting elements that are gory and hard to read, as well as despicable human behavior that is hard to fathom. While this story was a bit dark for me and left me feeling melancholic, it was also attention-grabbing and gruesomely captivating.

I was instantly sucked in by the suspense, and loved the snowy setting. No shocking twists, but it was still enjoyable.

Meeting her fiancé’s family for the first time, Theo is faced with questions she both doesn’t want to answer and doesn’t know, while also dealing with growing suspicions that someone at the retreat is actively trying to get rid of her and feelings that she’s been there before. As always, Kate Alice Marshall always does a great job of keeping things interesting. This had so many twists and turns that kept me curious the whole time. While some stuff was incredibly convenient, it was done on a way that it was believable and I liked how things ended.

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating 4.5/5 ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to review this advanced copy of A Killing Cold!

Kate Alice Marshall is quickly turning into an auto read author for me. Each one of her novels is better and better! I enjoyed this one- the story unfolded at a great pace and the characters were well developed. The twists and turns were also not completely obvious and I was kept guessing until the end

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I thought Karissa Vacker did a wonderful job with the narration on this book! She was clear and concise and I always knew exactly what was happening. I loved the whole premise of the story, as winter settings are my favorite. Some parts felt a little predictable to me but there were others that caught me completely off guard! I would recommend to anyone who likes psychological thrillers and family drama, especially among the elite!

Such a creative locked-room style thriller! Theo, the main character finds herself in an impossible situation when she accompanies her fiancée, Conner to his wealthy family’s winter retreat. The plot line of her mysterious past being linked to the retreat complex was so intriguing and creative. I just had to keep reading to try and figure out how Theo was connected to this horrible and “easy to hate” family and I honestly enjoyed the aspect of wondering if she could even trust Conner. I understand that using the storyline technique of having the protagonist lie about her past adds to the mystery but I think it is being overused in current mysteries and thrillers and seems unrealistic. But this is really my only criticism of this book. Overall, the character development was good for a thriller in which the plot and unraveling the mystery is the main focus. And these characters were “something else” - they evoked a lot of negative emotions and it seemed that any of them could be the culprit. This aspect made the story so much more compelling and entertaining. I also enjoyed the heart-pounding scenes and narrow escapes. This book would make a great movie!

A Killing Cold is the third book I’ve read by Kate Alice Marshall and she continues to write thrillers that are binge worthy.

I will say, the plot had a lot of similar vibes to The Last One at the Wedding, but without the insanely annoying main character. (Sorry not sorry) Thankfully Marshall had her own ideas and twists to the story that I didn’t feel like I was reading the exact same book.

Definitely a thriller that I would recommend if you like wealthy family dramas with thriller twists.

I read and listened to the audiobook version of this and both were incredible. I have read all of this authors books and they continue to keep me intrigued. I look forward to her next title.

I don't know-- this one was so far fetched. You had to really believe in fate for this plot to work. There were so many twists that it was hard to keep characters and plot lines straight.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

moral of the story: never trust rich people, they can cover up anything 😶 (for legal reasons, this is a joke)

kate alice marshall always writes the most heart-pounding non-stop thrillers, and this one was no exception! I lost track of how many twists and diversions there were by 3/4 of the way through 🫨

when theo meets her fiancé’s family over the holidays, in the middle of nowhere ski country, she’s immediately drawn in by classism with severe flashbacks to the past she could never remember 👀 and although the characters seemed fine chalking the entire plot of the story up to fate, I wanted a deeper meaning!!!! I wanted a plausible explanation!!!!

the slow burn mystery was well written with the pacing of each action and event keeping readers on their toes until the very end! 2025 is shaping up to be the year of thrillers - I’m so happy to be out of my reading slump!

thank you to netgalley and flat iron books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!!

rating: 4 stars
wine pairing: new zealand sauvignon blanc

This book started out promising - set in the winter, isolated in the woods, a rich family with dark secrets. However, the plot twists seemed a bit over the top and I found myself becoming a bit bored with the book and its characters. I did think it was a quick read though and I'll plan to check out other books by this author.

I don't want this review to discourage anyone from reading it. Based on the reviews so far there are plenty of people who really enjoyed this book!

Thank you to Kate Alice Marshall, Flatiron Books, and Netgalley for this ARC.

There's nothing that Kate Alice Marshall can write that I won't love and A Killing Cold was no different. Usually, I see a few twists coming, and a few still surprise me. This book was refreshingly surprising, and while some of the plot twists and behaviors were a little "unrealistic", I'm always going to suspend "reality" and go for the ride. I usually hate when we can't trust our own narrator, or things are hidden from them and from us...why do things feel familiar, why is there a picture of her...you know how it goes. I want all the info right away, cause I'm greedy like that. But, I love the way we're let in on things and the way reveals come.

All in all, another win from an auto-buy author.

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙔𝙤𝙪 Flatiron Books for my complimentary copy!

𝑨 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆’𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕—𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆

𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧: Kate Alice Marshall
𝙋𝙪𝙗 𝘿𝙖𝙮: February 4th

📖 I have absolutely loved Kate Alice Marshall's other thrillers #WhatLiesInTheWoods and #NoOneCanKnow, so I have been so excited for this one, and I thought it was great! This book kept my attention, and kept me guessing with all of the lies, secrets, twists and turns throughout. I love a "locked room" mystery, and this one is set in an isolated retreat in the middle of winter which was perfect. It has an overall eerie feeling where you know danger could be lurking in any corner... The last part of the book was shocking and had me racing to finish and see what happens.

"𝘐 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘯𝘰𝘸. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵."

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮:
• fast paced
• suspense
• secrets / lies
• locked room mystery
• cat and mouse
• lots of twists
• unlikable characters

This suspenseful winter thriller comes out next month and you will not want to miss it!

A woman is invited to a retreat with her fiancé’s wealthy family to get to know them all better and win them over. As time goes on, she starts to realize that the family is hiding a huge secret and that she remembers being at the retreat before.

This is my third read from author Kate Alice Marshall with “What Lies In The Woods” and “No One Can Know” being the first two outings.

I can say that Marshall is an auto buy author for me at this point. She has yet to disappoint.

This book in particular has to be my favorite from Marshall. She has a knack for locking you into the story from the first chapter and never giving you the full clues of the mystery. When you think you know the big reveal, you never see it coming.

These are the books that keep my interest.

“A Killing Cold” comes out on February 4th and do I think you should read it? Absolutely. If you like family drama, a great whodunnit, and a broken memories story then this is the read for you!

I loved this book - it was just the right amount of twisty.

Theo is going to meet her fiancé's family for the first time. They got engaged only 6 months after meeting, but when you know, you know. However, there is a lot they don't know each other, both have some dark secrets, and Theo discovers she has more of a connection to the family than she ever thought possible.

I loved the suspense and tension throughout this one. Secrets were revealed to both Theo and the reader at the same time, which made me feel even more connected to the story. Theo is forced to unravel such a dark and twisty web of family secrets to get to the bottom of how she fits in.

Marshall used a similar writing method for her two previous thriller books, where the reader and the main character think they know the answer, but more plot twists keep coming. It doesn't always work for me, but this one really really did.

I recommend this one to all thriller lovers.

Ugh, my worst nightmare. Theo is trapped at Idlewood, an isolated winter retreat of her future in-laws who are rich and don't like her. She has also been getting creepy messages warning her to stay away.

Connor and Theo met at a friend's party and quickly fell in love with each other. 6 months later, she's his fiancé and they are visiting his family at Christmas. Now at Idlewood, Theo gets flashback to her childhood, her mother, and other people she vaguely recognizes. She doesn't have many memories of her childhood and was put into foster care when she was very young. The Daltons are rich, powerful, connected, and will protect their family at any cost.

This was a perfect winter thriller. So many family secrets make this a suspenseful page turner.