Eight strangers are on a tour bus on their way to a winter vacation in a lodge in the Rocky Mountains. When a winter storm hits and they get stranded in a remote cabin they quickly learn there is a murder among them. As each night approaches and their numbers dwindle who can you trust?

This book was full of suspense and kept me guessing who was behind the murders and why. As the story progressed my opinion of who the murderer was kept changing. I did suspect the murderer at one point, but I could not figure out why he/she would be committing the murders.
All thoughts and opinions are my own, I have not been influenced by anyone.

The friends in the cabin, the horrific snowstorm it's all been done so many times and this one was fine, good, but not good enough to stand out in this trope.

Dead of Winter was my first book by Darcy Coates. I knew it was billed as a horror, but for some reason, I had it in my head it was a ghost-y horror. It turned out to be a slasher horror instead. It was very fast-paced and the setting really was its own character. Icy temperatures and a limited number of characters gave the story a claustrophobic feeling, even though the setting was remote and the players were not locked in anywhere. Nature, itself, had them trapped. Dead of Winter was a fun story if you don't mind somewhat gory murder descriptions. The resolution was a bit predictable, and requires a bit of a stretch of the imagination. Overall, I enjoyed the story and pacing and would recommend to thriller lovers who would not be repulsed by a little more gore than the typical thriller. For a horror-lover, this one was pretty light.

This was fine. It’s a whodunnit-horror-slasher book, which is not always my favorite kind of horror. I had hoped there was going to be an element of winter survival, because to me that was a horrifying element all by itself, but it was a bit lacking here. (There’s never a mention of food, or people being hungry after the first day or two… kinda weird).

I liked that the characters were all kind of flawed and enjoyed a couple of the reveals even if I didn’t find them entirely surprising.

I thought the writing was fine and the pacing was quick. I do think it was maybe a little too long?

I would recommend this to fans of Darcy Coates other works, or if you are looking for a good mystery to solve. I don’t know if it’s really fair play but I think the clues and context are all there.

I listened on audio and thought the audio was well done. Would recommend if you enjoy audio books.

Finally, I did receive an advance egalley of this book for review (I’m sorry this review is late!) but I ultimately borrowed and listened to an audio version on Everand. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley.

This thriller of trusting no one will send a chill down your spine. Imagine being stuck in a cabin with strangers and they slowly started dying. But not just being killed but beheaded. Who can you trust? Everyone is suspicious at this point.

Some parts didn’t seem to fit in with the story and it seemed to drag but it was a solid read of trying to figure out what is going on at the same time as trying to find a way out from a cabin surrounded by snow. The twists and turns are worth the read. Just make sure you read this with your favorite throw, the chills will linger on until you finish the book.

If you took And Then There Were None and added a winter chill and a heaping scoop of gore, you'd get this book. With visceral descriptions of bodies found in the snow and fear that will give you goosebumps, this book is great for giving yourself a scare on a winter night. We follow a group that is on the way to a remote winter resort when the bus is stopped by a tree in the road and a big winter storm. They take shelter in a cabin to wait for rescue, but they start to get picked off one by one, their bodies cut up and mounted on display. I love the tension and suspense. I love a twist, even if it's one you can see coming. This book is dark in all the right ways.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review*

Amazing!!! Darcy Coats is one of the best!

I absolutely LOVE Darcy Coates' novels and this one fit the bill just nicely! I loved the mystery surrounding the book and trying to figure out what was going on. Loved this one!

I usually enjoy books by Darcy Coates but I unfortunately never connected to the story or the characters, so I did not finish reading this book.

Thank You NetGalley for this free eARC.

This is my first time reading this author and wow, I was impressed. I liked the characters and was trying to figure out in that tiny cabin who the killer was. Just when I thought I knew who the killer was, something happened and it wasn't who I thought it was. How did all these people end up in this cabin, during a blizzard, and who organized and orchestrated it. I couldn't put this book down. I will be reading more of her books.

Who doesn't love the cover. It seems so calm, serene, and just like a little together. One everyone will remember for a long time. A quick short read, full of twists and turns.

I really enjoyed this! The atmosphere was excellent and the tension was well done. I thought the ending was predictable so that part fell a little flat but overall still highly enjoyed this!!

*I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for my honest review.*

A different version of a closed room mystery - Christa is with a bus tour that runs into a snowstorm and has to camp out in an abandoned house they find. The next morning, the tour guide's head is found hanging from a tree. And the events just get stranger and stranger. What is going to get Christa and her fellow tourists first - the cold from the snowstorm or the killer among them?

Wow! This story really got me with the snow storm and the strangers and being alone in a room full of people. Questioning everything and everybody. There were a couple of things that threw me off that made me realize the author was not from the US even though the novel is set in the Rocky Mountains. It made me smile a bit but didn't ruin the story. The pacing was great and the reveals were fantastic. I am looking forward to reading more from this author!

I’m a firm believer that books like this should be rated purely on entertainment value, and this one is really a doozy.

I’m a sucker for any book that plays on the tropes of And Then There Were None, especially if the action takes place in a desolate place beset by snow and cold.

There’s not really anything new in the bones of this one, but it’s so well paced and fun, and it hits all the right notes for this subgenre.

There are some elements to the killings in this one that take it from the Thriller genre to the Horror genre, but as long as you’re not really creeped out by severed heads, you can read this one and enjoy it even if you’re a bit squeamish about true Horror like me. The killings are gruesome, but they mostly don’t happen on page and there’s a cartoonish aspect to them that makes them easier to take.

The structure and suspense in this one is excellent, notably so compared to other books that work with a similar model and setting. I did guess the killer and the ending, but it’s a clever one and Coates keeps the tension high and the excitement rolling all the way to the finish line.

Claustrophobic and tense, this story will keep the hairs on the back of your neck stiff. I felt the fear and paranoia through the dialogue and pacing. I recommend a read to those seeking a wild ride in a tight space.

Reviewing my past reads, and realized I never posted my review of this! I thoroughly enjoyed this read by Darcy Coates, and am very appreciative to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy!

Although it's been quite some time since I read this one, it has stayed with me. The character development, intrigue, and writing kept me enthralled and was descriptive enough to feel cold while reading. Haha! The twist surprised me, and that doesn't happen too often since I read so many thrillers. Highly recommend!

What a fine example of a locked-room mystery. A group of travelers are stranded in a snow storm. They find an uninhabited cabin and one by one, they start to die. It's a bit far-fetched and it's on the graphic side (especially for a lover of cozy mysteries), but it will keep you guessing. I loved that we gradually got to know each traveler and their strengths as well as their character flaws. I'm also a fan of strong female protagonists. I'm not 100% sure I believe that she could do all the things she did in her circumstances <spoiler>like when she ventures out into the blizzard almost immediately after regaining consciousness and treating frostbite</spoiler>, but it was fun to get swept up in the story and not question such things. It's probably not for the squeamish, but it's a great winter thriller.

I enjoyed this book even though I was fairly sure who it was at the very beginning of the book. I think I would have probably second guessed myself had I not read a spoiler that gave it all away. Regardless, this is definitely worth reading. Especially if you are a younger reader. I didn't find it as gory as some. I don't know if I would have figured out the motive if not for the spoiler. That is my fault though.

I received this from Netgalley.

I've quickly learned that I'm a Darcy Coates girly. Her writing is easy to read, but still mesmerizing. Honestly, every book I've read from her has been fun and this book is no exception! 10/10 recommend.

Talk about gruesome! This winter thriller is not for the faint of heart!
When Christa goes away with her boyfriend on what should have been a safe snowy expedition near his home town, she gets more than she bargained for. 
The story starts with a bang, we are in a blinding blizzard, with no idea how Christa got in this position or how she is going to get herself out of it. 
This book was nonstop- didnt let up for a minute! The group Christa is with begins to disappear and only their heads are left behind...who is doing this? Is it someone in the group? 
We go back and forth between the horror and what brought Christa to the fateful trek that day. We slowly learn about her and why this is all happening. 
With all the action, this would make a fantastic movie.

Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates is a chilling, atmospheric thriller based loosely on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. This was my first novel by Coates and I didn't realize that it was classified as a horror book when I requested it. I don't tend to choose horror books, but this was not bad. It was grisly, it was gory, it was bloody - don't get me wrong. But overall it was pretty good!

Christa and her boyfriend of six months have taken a two week long vacation to an isolated lodge in the Rocky Mountains and are travelling there with a handful of other people when their bus comes across a fallen tree blocking the road. While some of the passengers help to cut up and remove the tree, Christa and Kiernan take a little hike, but a snowstorm starts up and things just go downhill from there. The vacationers are now hunkered down in a vacant cabin to wait out the storm and one by one they start to get killed off.

The first half of the book was a little slower for me. I thought it was a little repetitive between the killings. I mean, there's only so much people in a snowstorm in the mountains can do/say as they wait it out. We find out a little about the background of each of the people stuck in the cabin, but not much.

The last part of the book was heart-pounding and exciting, with a few twists that you might be able to figure out but are still fun. If you like strong female characters that don't give up, atmospheric settings that pull you in, and locked room type tropes, you will enjoy this novel by Darcey Coates.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.