As a devoted fan of Ruth and Nelson in the Ruth Galloway series, I had such high hopes for this new book. The premise sounded so interesting - time travel to Victorian London. What could go wrong? I’m still pondering that myself. Maybe I was missing the quirky characters associated with Ruth. But I did love the relationship between Ali and her son who bravely fought for each other when both appeared to be “lost.” I’m not giving up on this new series, however. I’ll be there bright and early for Ali’s next time travel adventure!
Rounding up to 3.5

I could not finish reading this book . I’m not really into detective/police series . Maybe I will try again in the future but for now I will move on to another story.

I am a fan of Griffiths' Ruth Galloway series so I was very interested to read this, the first in what (seemingly) is a planned new series. The premise has a sci-fi component- the main character Ali Dawson is a policewoman in the cold case unit, but the twist is they actually travel back in time to observe/investigate right after the murder takes place. Dawson travels back in time to investigate such a case (arriving in the 1800s to observe the dead body on the floor- I suppose if she had arrived just before the murder and seen who did it it would be a short book!).
In addition to the mystery she's investigating in the 1800s, a murder occurs in present day which she also needs to solve.
I enjoyed the story and the writing was decent. Ali Dawson has some Mary Sueish elements, such as captivating seemingly every man that encounters her despite the fact she's 50something. The plot was a bit oddly paced, as the present day murder wasn't introduced for some time and was wrapped up very abruptly. The 1800's plotline sort of got dropped, and was never resolved, as it clearly is meant to be carried over to the next book. I'd say it's an intriguing start to a new series- there's definitely enough there that would make me interested to check out the next installment!

I'm still hurting over the fact that we might not get any more Ruth Galloway books (at least soon). I was hoping for this new mystery--the first in a series--to fill the gaping hole left by Ruth, Nelson, Cathbad, and Co., but I was a bit disappointed by this one. I'll give it another try and will pick up the next one in the series, but as cool as the concept sounded I'm not sure if this is the book for me.

WOW! When I was first selected to read this book through Net Galley I was so excited and then I realized it had a time travel element (spoiler) and at first I was disappointed but I was so wrong. Griffiths has done it again. I was sad when the Galloway series reached its end but I think we have a new main character in Alison Dawson to take us into the future. I do not want to give anyway anymore details but a team of "cold case" police officers actually time travel to solve cases and this idea is woven seamlessly into a the mystery at hand. I was completely hooked and cannot wait for the next book.

Elly Griffiths is one of the best at her craft. Reminiscent of Jodi Taylor this was a smash hit. Loved the characters, the plot, a series!, can’t wait for the next one. Glad to have found a new character to follow Ruth.

A British detective unit that uses time travel to solve cold cases??? Absolutely yes! This book has history, murder, and fantasy. It gripped me from page 1! Ali and her cold case crew were a lovable and fascinating team and I just want to know more about them and hopefully see what they are up to next! I took off half a star because I felt some parts were a little rushed and I just wanted more time with the characters!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

4.5 stars for me!

This was a very good read. A new character for this author who is beloved for her previous books. This was a great start to a fun new series. Look forward to more@

I'm a big fan of Elly Griffiths' other series, and I think I will really enjoy this new one, too. While I don't always like time travel stories, this one appealed to me. Ali Dawson is a strong character and I'm interested to learn more about her, and of course her secret detective unit of the police. Griffiths does a good job introducing characters that seem real, even though they're operating in a world that has unreal elements. I wish the murder plot was a bit twistier but I was pretty satisfied with the story. I am eager for book two in the series!

Frozen People by Elly Griffiths
Imagine a police “Department of Logistics “ that isn’t confined to investigating the present. Its officers can go back in time to figure out a true cold case. This is the type of team 50 year old Allison Dawson belongs to.
Ali, a striking woman with bright red hair, lives in London and is assigned a case that takes place in victorian times and concerns the Collectors, men who supposedly collected women among other things.
Everything seems to be in place for Allie to go through “the gate”, back to 1850 to research Cain Templeton, an infamous collector and great-great grandfather of an important political figure in modern London.
But over the course of the visit, Ali discovers a murder and misses the gate back to the present. She must learn the customs and ways of living in the 1850’s and discovers a simpler, though less comfortable, way of living.
Meanwhile, her son is back in the present and is suspected of murder. Ali must find a way to return and figure out the murders and save her son.
I hope this is a new series by Ellie Griffiths. She’s got another winner in this

#netgalley

This is an author I always look forward to reading. Her style of writing and dialogue are engaging and fun.
The story centers around time travel which may turn some readers off. But then the reader would miss an exciting, thoughtful, suspenseful book.
The stories in the past and present both held true and were interesting by themselves. It didn't take a lot of imagination to believe it could happen.
The characters - which the author always does well - were intriguing and felt real. It was so easy to get caught up in the story.
It looks like this has the potential to become a series which would be fun.
Enjoy!

I've been a big fan of Elly Griffiths since reading my first Ruth Galloway story. Since then I've devoured all of the volumes in that series as well as Griffiths other series. I have come to expect great character development, suspense, quirky characters and interesting plot lines and The Frozen People did not disappoint. Griffiths does a great job of setting up for a series that will be interesting for it's time travel component as well as for the interesting story lines. Can's wait to read the next one. Would highly recommend!

I'm a sucker for time travel stories and this one was so much fun! I loved our main character and the author did a great job at incorporating so many elements into this story, including sci-fi, mystery, humor. and a little bit of romance.

I have been reading Elly Griffiths novels for a long time. The Ruth Galloway series was my favorite, but it appears The Frozen People will prove to be another favorite series. The Frozen People is book one on a time-travel mystery series that takes protagonist Ali Dawson on a journey back to the 1850s to solve a murder. Griffiths does middle-age, unconventional heroines extremely well. Women of a certain age are not too old to solve crimes or to find romance. The characters in The Frozen People are just terrific. They have depth and the kinds of lives that command the reader's attention. The Victorian London scenes are well researched and are detailed enough to make me thankful not to have lived then. The bitter cold, even inside the rooming house where Ali lives, is enough to make me want to return to my own time. There are a number of terrific twists, involving Ali's son Finn, who is the focus of another bit of crime solving.

I definitely do recommend The Frozen People. I totally enjoyed this novel, and I suspect all readers, not just Griffiths' fans will also enjoy it. Thank you to Penguin Group Viking and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC to read and review. The above are my honest comments,

My first five-star read of 2025! I have been an Elly Griffiths fan for many years now. The Frozen People brings together the very best of what Elly has done in her other series: the relatability of Ruth; the engaging detective work of Harbinder and Natalia and Nelson; and adds in a new talent. For the first time, Elly writes time travel, and it WORKS. The novel moves back and forth between modern and Victorian London. I'm now a fan of Ali, Finn, and Jones. Here's hoping that this becomes a series!

This is a new series from Elly Griffiths and quite different from her others. In this one Ali Dawson, a middle-aged police detective, is a member of a cold case team. But this unit works with a scientist who has discovered time travel, and the team members go back in time to solve the cases, usually just a few years back. But this time Ali goes back to 1850 to solve a murder and encounters a wonderful array of characters and experiences. Set in both the present and the past this is a light-hearted read, well-written as all Griffiths works are. Recommended.

Time traveling mystery! I loved this book!
There is a new police division tasked with traveling back in time to solve cold murders. They have been successful in the past, but this time there are kinks in the plan. Will Ali be able to return to the present to stop the killer?
Happy to see that this will be a series. Recommended.

I cracked open The Frozen People without reading the synopsis so I audibly gasped when Ali's job is explained. Ali is an intriguing character that leaps off the page so it's no wonder those she encounters on her travels are immediately intrigued. The mystery of Cain and The Collectors continues to keep me guessing and I was wondering until the end if Finn would get off the hook. My quibbles were the chapters with John in 1850 and other extraneous information that clearly set-up future titles in the series. All that being said, this promises to be a fun series with a lot of opportunity to show all Victorian London has to offer.

I hope this is the first in a new series!

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the premise of the story which is to travel in time to observe what is happening in the past. When Ali went back in time before, she went just to observe -- to see but not be seen. However, this time she is seen and becomes involved in the lives of the people there for the short time of her stay. In order to return to her own time, she has to go to the exact spot where she entered this world at the same time. When another person sneaks through in her place, she thinks she is stuck there for good. In her own time, a prominent member of parliament is murdered and her son is arrested for his murder. Once back in her own time (someone from the future comes back to take her place), she is intent on finding the truth because she knows her son is innocent. The murder in the present is connected to the her trip to the past. The dead man is the descendant of a man she meets in the past. I have to admit I began to be confused by the storyline.and felt the story ended abruptly although you can see the author is setting the story up for another book.