Wow this was a fantastic, gripping read that I consumed in a day. the pace of this book was perfect, I was hooked from the beginning and it picked up at perfect intervals all throughout, with a great, big punch of an ending. a great read.

Top class novel- Elin andWill invited to stay at a hotel that was once a sanatorium, but things are not as they seem. I found it all consuming and hard to put down..

Really enjoyed this one. Has a bit of the Shining about it without the horror.
Lonely hotel isolated by bad weather at the top of a mountain with people disappearing.
Excellent

Oh, The Sanatorium! The modern architectural marvel, the hotel of dreams… why don’t you book in for a stay? You’ll never want to leave – and you might not…

I picked this ARC up for a creepy read (Thank you NetGalley!) and I was not disappointed. Elin and Will arrive at the Sanatorium to celebrate her brother’s engagement. During the conversion of the hotel, the architect, Daniel LeMaitre, disappeared in mysterious circumstances. Now completed and open to guests, the hotel’s disturbing clinical past is displayed in the architecture and décor – but is that all?

When guests start to disappear, Elin, a detective currently on leave, feels she has to find out who is involved. I felt a bit of resistance at first as the build up of incidents, suspects and general creepiness was relentless. It almost felt a bit like a pile-on of ‘thriller’ tick boxes - but eventually I gave in and embraced it - it made me smile wondering just what was going to happen next.

I fell in to the story, and wow - The Sanatorium is an absolute riot! It’s got suspicious characters. It’s got an impassable snowstorm (of course!). It’s got creepy masks and an unethical clinical history, and tension in spades. I just really enjoyed being utterly creeped out and suspecting absolutely everyone.

I’d really recommend this to anyone who wants to curl up and lose themselves in this icy, ominous world for a while.

4 stars – maybe a little prescriptive, but great fun overall!

The descriptions of the hotel and its location were unsettling from the beginning. The descriptive passages of the snow and cold added to the feeling of unease. There were numerous plot twists in this book and I kept guessing (incorrectly) who the killer was. I didn’t find out until near the end. An enjoyable read and one to read in front of a warm fire!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

I thought this was going to be a good read but it wasn't for me. I couldn't get into the story line, I couldn't get on with the characters and I did skim a bit just to get to the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House UK for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Elin and her boyfriend Will are traveling to a brand new Swiss hotel. They’ve been invited there to celebrate her brother Isaac’s engagement. The siblings don’t see each other often and there’s been a distance between them since the death of their younger brother Sam some years ago. Shortly after their arrival Laure, Isaac’s fiancée, goes missing. Then one of the hotel workers is found dead in a plunge pool. Although on extended leave from her job in the UK, police officer Elin offers to investigate for the Swiss police as the hotel is cut off from everyone due to adverse weather. Further murders occur and both Elin and Will are attacked. Elin also finally resolves her issues with Isaac.

Was looking forward to reading this one from the description of the story but find myself slightly disappointed. It’s a good story but I found it really slow going and was close to giving up on it on a few occasions.

Thanks to Netgalley, Random House UK and Sarah Pearse for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The book starts with an architect who has a part in converting an old sanatorium in the Swiss alps into a hotel. His plans are not welcomed and he faces protests from locals. A few years later Elin and her boyfriend Will are invited to her estranged brother Isaacs engagement party. Elin is not keen as there is a lot of tension between Elin and Isaac which seems to stem from the death of their younger brother when they were young. The hotel has a creepy feel not quite shaking the clinical and dark feel of the sanatorium. Then people start getting murdered and as a detective who is on compassionate leave it is Elin’s job to investigate.

I enjoyed the story overall but I was expecting something a bit more atmospheric and creepy. It was very creepy at the start but I felt that it lost that along the way and became a bog standard detective story with a bit of family drama thrown in. I didn’t like any of the characters, particularly the males so for me nearly every character was a suspect.

You could tell from the start that Sarah Pearse had spent a lot of time in Switzerland- her descriptions are brilliant and make you want to go there - except not to this new hotel which had previously been a sanatorium.
The description of the hotel reminded me of a tv programme where celebs visit 5 star hotels around the world.
Elin Warner , an English detective on leave, and her boyfriend Will go to the hotel to meet her estranged brother Isaac and his fiancé Laure - who had been a childhood friend but Elin had struggled with her brother Sam’s death and had dropped many of her friends. She also believes Isaac is somehow involved in his death.
The architect who designed the hotel had disappeared and now people are dying in the hotel.
Elin is a frustrating and not very likeable protagonist which was problematic for me and spoilt my enjoyment of the book. Despite realising in her last case that she shouldn’t rush into situations, particularly without backup or a plan she continues to do this throughout the book. How Will hasn’t dumped her I don’t know. The guy deserves a medal.
The storyline of the Sanatorium only comes to the fore in the last third and seems too complicated and unrealistic.
Lots of twists and turns - maybe too many.
Despite these comments I did enjoy the book.
3.5 stars ⭐️
Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in return for a fair review.

It’s not just an avalanche that has isolated the guests of the luxury spa & ski resort with a terrible past. Secrets and lies are about to cascade down around Elin and they are just as deadly as the unpredictable weather.

I found the idea of the story interesting but was disappointed with some of the characters as they seemed one dimensional and bland which this spoiled my enjoyment of the book. Unfortunately I wasn’t too keen on the main character which is a bit of drawback. Though it was something I read very quickly, and I didn’t see some of the twists coming so that was a positive thing.

Really atmospheric and tightly plotted, this was an unusual and well plotted crime novel. A great wintry read.

When Lucas Caron turns a disused sanatorium to a hotel, it’s not long before there are problems. The architect for the project, Daniel Lemaitre disappears which puts the project behind schedule.

Detective Elin Warner and her boyfriend, Will go to the Swiss Alps to stay at the hotel for the engagement of her brother, Isaac and Laure.

When Laure vanishes and a storm causing them all to be cut off from the rest of the world, Elin soon realises the danger everyone is in.

I enjoyed this book, the prologue sent shivers down my spine and I knew I was in for a good story. The author gives you a feel for the place, the descriptive writing means you can see it all in your head. It is an intense and chilling read. Full of atmosphere and interesting characters, I was excited to see where the story was going.

An enjoyable thriller that I would recommend.

My thanks to NetGalley and Bantam Press for my copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was quickly drawn into this atmospheric thriller which has a slightly creepy feeling to it, with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. The setting is well described; I could picture the scenes and even felt the cold!

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC for review.

This was exciting and creepy from the first page. I know this area of Switzerland well having visited it awhile ago. The descriptions made this book more atmospheric talking about the snow and cold. This was a very twisty book and I kept guessing who was doing the killing a lot and getting it wrong every time. I didn’t find out who the culprit was until near the end which surprised me, this made the book even more enjoyable. I’m sure there will be a sequel, at least I hope so. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Probably 2 ½ stars really. I think I would be more interested in a story around the main character when she is back. in UK at her job. A familiar plot, guests holed up in an isolated house/hotel and a madman on the loose! Too much snow for help to arrive. Sounds like 'The Mouse Trap'! I could imagine this on the big screen but not sure I would bother to go and see it. I will look out for her next book though, just in case. Thank you, Netgalley.

A very atmospheric read,that draws you in from the start. Lots of twists and turns which kept me hooked, but I didn't find it a smooth read at all. It jumps around a bit and I found myself having to re read a few times. Should have been great...but felt there was something missing. It was well written and Sarah Pearce really captures the feel of the place, but found the dialogue between characters quite strained.

A beautiful but deadly setting for a who-dun-it and why. The author's prose is well-suited to the spooky but beautiful atmosphere. Unfortunately other than that, this book didn't "wow" me at all. I found the character's a bit lacklustre and felt like I was being dragged through the plot rather than enjoying working out the mystery..

A luxurious hotel in a remote Swiss Alpine location, cut off from the outside world by an avalanche. A staff member is missing and then the body of another is found. A very systematic killer is at work. With the police unable to get to the hotel, Elin Warner - a detective in the UK who is on a hiatus from work after a case when wrong - steps up to investigate. But Elin is damaged by an incident in her childhood and by her recent work issues.

This is a very twisty turny mystery with lots of atmosphere, one of those books when you keep thinking you know who the killer is and then changing your mind. Also the cover is magnificent, However I found the pacing uneven and none of the characters felt like real fully rounded people. Also the killer's motivation was convoluted and unbelievable. It meant that the book got bogged down with explanations. But I'd still like you to read it so we can discuss the twist at the very end please.

I took a little while to get around to actually reading this, i felt that i needed to be in the right mood, it is a good looking book and without actually knowing what the book is about, it does have this kind of hold on you, it looks like a grand hotel in the mountains somewhere, but then you read the title and all that warm cosy vibes vanish into the synopsis.

When you get into the 'guts' of this book, then you find out that it is an atmospheric and suspenceful read, and one that is worth a read if you like this type of book, where you get trapped into this hotel, but being, what the building was used for before, does give you a little of the creeps, like this shadow hovering over you.

Elin the MC is visiting this hotel with her OH for her brothers engagement party, people go missing, a body is found and as a Police woman, she has to step in.

IBeing a big audiobooker, i would like to listen to this, see if they make it eeire or give you sound effects?

Imagine you are at a plush hotel in the Swiss Alps, imagine that it is a former Sanitarium, imagine that you need to settle unfinished business so that you can move on, imagine that you are not the only one needing to do this..
An interesting story, however, None of the characters show any warmth or endearing qualities, and it doesn't always flow seamlessly. Not exactly a page turner, although it is a good tale for a cold winters night.