Well now.......

Running Cold had me running non-stop paces within my mind. This, folks, is an unexpected little gem of a read. Me thinks that I'll have to check out more books from this talented author. Susan Walter brings the blizz in blizzard.

Just when you think that life has taken its lowest ebb, it hasn't. Life keeps on givin'. Julie Adler gave up her stellar Olympic career as a highly competitive biathalon Gold Medal winner to marry Jeff. She left the snowpeaks of Canada to live in sunny Southern California. Julie settled for a career in sports medicine while Jeff, tech genius, had a start-up company in the works.

Promises line all marriages. The majority of these never fulfilled. Julie realizes that her marriage is on the rocks. After a liquid lunch with her friends, Izzy, Christa, and Suki,, Julie heads home. It's here that she finds that Jeff has shot himself in their master bath.

Fright takes flight. Julie checks their accounts and the the company accounts. They're broke.......like almost 0 Balance. She flees to the Banff Springs Hotel in Canada where her friend, Remy Delatour, is the manager. She needs a job like yesterday. Julie becomes a maid or "room attendant" in a nano second. Julie never even informs her friends. She's just gone.

Susan Walter is a screen writer and it shows here. We feel the biting cold of Banff with a stellar panoramic view. Walter sets up a scene with vivid details when a body is found at the hotel and Julie is the last one out of that room on the video. There are a few potholes on these snowy roads, but we forgive and move with the fast paced storyline. Walter seems to know the challenge of this icy terrain and it eventually gives us more solid footing through the conclusion. Be sure to check this one out. It's due to publish 10/8/24.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to the talented Susan Walter.

Susan Walter is truly the queen of multi-POV thrilling madness, and Running Cold is further proof of it!

After ex-Olympian biathlete Julie comes home to find her husband has taken his own life, she finds herself pulled back to what was home for her before she married Jeff - Banff. More specifically, the Banff Springs Hotel, where she gets a job as a maid. But when one of the long term guests is found dead, and certain evidence makes Julie look guilty, she must navigate both her grief for losing her husband, her anger and confusion that he left her with no money, and figuring out the actual killer to clear her name.

The last 20% is a wild dash to a climactic ending that really was a beautiful cap to Julie's character arc.

Fans of destination thrillers, murder mysteries and falsely accused main characters will devour this one!!

Julie Adler escapes to her old stomping grounds, an isolated ski resort, after her husband unalives himself. She works as a maid and tries to piece her new life together when an eccentric guest is found murdered and Julie is the prime suspect.

Atmosphere was big in this story. You can really feel the cold and environment that adds to the suspense and fear. I figured out the mystery early on, so didn’t get a big reveal. I think I may be at my limit with murders at hotels and resorts, that specially involve maids. Unfortunately I wasn’t as enthralled by this one as other readers, but I’ve enjoyed other books by the author so I will still try her next one.

“Hell is supposed to be all fire and hot lava,
But you don’t know hell until you’ve been as cold as me.”

Running Cold comes out 10/8

Julie Alder, former gold medal Olympian, is living her best life in California with her husband Jeff. Until she isn’t.
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She finds Jeff dead in their home of an apparent suicide. After looking through things, she realizes all of their bank accounts have been emptied. Lost and confused, she heads to Banff - where she used to train - to see her friend Remy.
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Remy runs Banff Springs Hotel. He gives her a place to stay and a job as a housekeeper to help her get by.
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A guest turns up dead, Julie is a suspect and she runs. She investigates and stays to think there is more to all of this - Jeff, the guest and so much more! I could feel her anxiety while reading.
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Multiple points of view give you many perspectives that peel back the layers of the story. And I’ve never been to Banff, but I felt like I saw it because this book took me there.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for allowing me an eARC and to be part of this tour.

Thank you @lakeunionauthors & @susanwalterauthor for my complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. Everyone at @thrillerbookloversthepulse is loving this one!

This is the fourth book I have read by this author and I have enjoyed every one, so I was excited to receive this book and be a part of the tour.

This one captured my attention from the beginning with a suspicious death in the first chapter. It quickly becomes a mystery as the main character makes a startling discovery and chooses to move away rather than explain the truth to her friends. By the end of the story, the action takes the drama to a whole new level of suspense! I loved the snowy setting and the ancient hotel in this one. At times I wasn’t certain that things would end well for the main character. I didn’t suspect who the killer was until it was revealed in the middle of the book. The conclusion is action based and full of suspense right up to the last minute. I highly recommend this tale of survival and suspense!

Fast paced and suspense filled! Julie Adler, a former Olympian, is deep in grief after her husband commits suicide and has left her penniless. Without a lot of options, she heads home to Banff to the luxury hotel run by a friend to work and to heal. But instead, she is caught in a web of intrigue when a wealthy patron is found dead and Julie is the prime suspect. Through a series of unfortunate events, Julie finds herself on the run and she has very little time to figure out who did kill that woman so she doesn’t end up in prison. Adding to her troubles, Julie is also being hunted by the real killer, because her husband’s death is a lot more complicated than she originally thought. This was SO GOOD! I love Susan Walters books, they are addictive and intriguing and so hard to put down! Thank you Netgalley, Lake Union Publishing and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be available for purchase on October 8, 2024

I absolutely loved this book, I adored the multiple POV and I think sometimes this is a really hard thing to get right in a book as it can get confusing but the author pulled this off completely! I cannot wait to read more books by Susan Walter

Being Canadian and living close to Banff, I absolutely loved and connected with the setting and Susan Walter did such a great job using it to her advantage to add another layer of tension to the story. It made the whodunnit and the fast pacing even more exciting for me. I liked the multiple POVs, but Julie was my favorite. Her character goes through the wringer with her husband's suicide, their accounts being empty, and then a murder happening at the resort hotel where she seeks refuge and a job, but Julie remains strong. All in all, a top-notch murder thriller.

Unfortunately not for me. In a world with SO many books being published, I just don't see this as a must in our collection.

The setting of Banff was a huge appeal for me and the descriptions didn’t disappoint! The plot focusses on Julie Adler, an Olympic gold medal winner, who finds her husband dead, their money gone and returns to Banff to seek help and a job from her old friend, manager of the Banff Springs Hotel. When a prestigious guest is murdered, Julie is the prime suspect.

The characters - likeable or otherwise - were well written and plot was good, but I found the storyline with Izzy and Jeff fairly pointless and I guessed who the perp was early on. The ending was more about the technical aspects of different types of skiing than the actual plot, which held no interest for me and it felt like a completely different author had written that part!

Enjoyable, despite those bits that didn’t quite work for me.

3 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Susan Walter and Lake Union for an ARC in return for an honest review.

😤 T H R E A T E N I N G T U E S D A Y review 😤 featuring “Running Cold” by Susan Walters!

BOOK REVIEW: 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤/5

Former Canadian Olympic gold medalist Julie Alder retired from training to move to California to start a new life with her husband Jeff. Julie had a luxurious mansion, a new career, new friends and a wealthy husband … until the curtain dropped.

One day Julie finds Jeff dead in their bathroom after what looks like a suicide attempt. When going through Jeff’s things, Julie realizes that all of their money is gone from their accounts. Struck with grief, Julie flees back home to Canada and asks her friend Remy at the Banff Springs Hotel for a job and a place to hide out in for a while.

“Julie had gone from champion to chambermaid to charlatan, all in one week. What an epic fall from grace”.

When a prestigious guest staying in the pent house winds up murdered, Julie was the last person seen going into her room and becomes the prime suspect! Julie must escape the police and solve the crime before the cuffs get slapped on OR the killer finds her first 👀!

I loved this book! The Banff setting was perfectly chilling and brings back a lot of memories for me. While living in Alberta, we went up to Banff and Canmore multiple times a year! There are so many ghost stories associated with the hotel which made it perfect for a winter thriller!

Thank you so much to @susanwalterauthor @lakeunionauthors @netgalley for my advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review! This 5 star stunner releases on October 8, 2024!

There are so many good thrillers coming out this fall and RUNNING COLD by @susanwalterauthor is one you won't want to miss. Told in several POV with short chapters, I flew through this thriller in one afternoon.

Julie is a former Olympian Biathlon Gold Medal winner. Her life is turned upside down when her husband commits suicide and she is left penniless. She decides to return to Banff, Canada, and her old friend Remy who runs Banff Springs Hotel. Remy gives her a job as a housemaid and a room to stay. When Julie is accused of killing the wealthy hotel guest Mrs Rousseau, she needs to evade the police and clear her name before the real killer finds her.

Not everyone is who they seem. Is there a connection between Mrs Rousseau murder and her husband's suicide? Will Julie find the answers before the real killer finds her? There are scenes that had me on the edge of my seat. There are murders, lies, and deception. I could not help but route Julie on and at times the suspense was intense. Make sure to pick this one up in October!

Thank you for the author, publisher, and netgalley for a copy of this book and this is my honest review.

Running Cold grabbed me from the very beginning. It is so immersive it completely transported me to Banff. The setting was so amazing, it made me, a die hard summer lover, want to go to Banff and learn to ski.

I loved the multi POV writing, it was so well done. Susan Walter really allowed to get us into the characters' mind. Julie, the MC, was absolutely amazing. She was a total girl boss and I loved everything about her.

Susan Walter is truly one of my favorite writers. Her books are fast paced and addictive. This one is no exception.

This book started out so good, I could not put it down. The writing and character building kept me engaged! Told in four parts.

Julie came home and found her husband dead in their bathroom, from an apparent suicide. After looking further into her husband's death, secrets spill out and Julie retreats to her past life in Banff, Alberta. She gets a job at a very nice hotel as a housekeeper. One of the hotel guest is found dead and Julie becomes the prime suspect.

"Home. I finally knew what the word meant. Home isn't a place. It's a purpose. Being great is not about breaking records, it's about moving powerfully into your purpose. My purpose, my home, was on the mountain."

Shocking Discovery, Secrets, and Solid Mystery!

3.5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy! This book will be released 10/8/24.

Wow! This book opened up with a bang. You don’t have to wait for the action because it literally comes full on. This story was very engaging and kept me on the edge of my seat. Definitely a page turner!

This was a mind-bending kind of experience, reading a cold, icy-cold story during a summer heatwave!
There is a multi-faceted MC (and a former Olympic athlete at that) and… a riveting murder mystery, all happening against the backdrop of Canadian winter. Twisty, atmospheric, filled with secrets, horrible, horrific, fast-paced, and also chillingly gripping read.
This was not my first book by Susan Walter and I’m fairly certain by now that I will be reading whatever she writes next.

Engaging mystery!

Julie's life is turned upside-down and she has to navigate many hurdles to figure out what/why things have gone so so wrong! That is okay though because she is a former Olympian! 🥇

She ends up in a fight for her life and runs someplace far far away in the middle of the night. She can't seem to escape the feeling of "someone watching" her.

Things get dicey, secrets spill, Julie will need to find out the truth before she loses her life.

I enjoyed this one and was invested in the characters and guessing what was happening. It wasn't a "I must read one more chapter" pace (for me), but I always enjoyed picking it up and following the clues. The killer was revealed pretty early (which I guessed) and that took away some of the surprise element.

Still a solid mystery with some characters to LOVE and HATE!!

There’s something about reading a cold-weather story while soaking up the ☀️ that just works for me. I’m not a skier, but @susanwalterauthor ’s writing drew me in right away. The atmospheric setting and characters like Julie kept me hooked.

The setting was also a major draw for me. I’ve got a special place in my heart for Banff, especially the Fairmont Banff Springs—I used to spend a lot of time there in a previous season of my life, so this book really brought back memories. And let’s be real, us Canadians love a good book set in Canada.

On a serious note, Jasper recently went through major fire damage, which adds a layer of poignancy to the story. My heart goes out to all who were impacted.

If you’re building your fall #thrillertbr the crew @thrillerbookloversthepulse and I recommend adding #runningcold . It’s been cool to read a book set in Canada especially one where I can share my insider knowledge of the setting. I liked her style so much I already have two more #SusanWalter books -Good As Dead and Over Her Dead Body - waiting for me on my @amazonkindle !

Thank you @lakeunionauthors and NetGalley for the gifted copy to read and review.

Really liked this book. Liked all the police procedure in this book and following Julie's story. Loved how pretty Canada sounded

"𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒛𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒄𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈."

Special thanks to @susanwalterauthor @thrillerbookloversthepulse & @netgalley for the #gifted eARC.

➡️ swipe for synopsis 👉🏼

𝙈𝙔 𝙍𝙀𝙑𝙄𝙀𝙒:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I just love Susan Walther. This is the second book by her I've read, and I just know I'm going to love it when I crack it open.
Her thrillers are twisty, fast-paced, and deeply intriguing. Running Cold is no different.

Imagine having the picture perfect cushy life with not a care in the world. Then, one day, you come home to find not only your husband de@d , but your life is a complete lie.
So, what would any level-headed adult do?! Runaway, of course!
And that's not even the tip of the iceberg with this book!

You are in for one chilling fast ride with this book! Be sure to pre-order this one ASAP!

𝙋𝙐𝘽 𝘿𝘼𝙔:
Oct 8th, 2024

QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Have you ever been skiing / snowboarding? Are you any good? Where do you go?

AOTD - I've never tried either, but I'm not very coordinated.

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#mysteryandthrills #thrillersandsuspense #thrillerbooklovers #thepulse #pulsepoint #runningcold #susanwalther #chillingthriller #thrilleraddict #thrillergirlie #upcomingthriller #bookbuzz
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