Kate Alice Marshall books have always felt a bit mixed for me and this was no different. While I did enjoy this book more than her previous works, the problem started shortly after the half way mark. Once secrets and twists were starting to unfold, the pacing became off and the reveals became unrealistic. I had a hard time connecting to the main character as a lot of her decisions didn't make much sense. Overall I still think this was an enjoyable read especially if you enjoyed her previous books.

This is the first book I've read from this author. It was fast paced and interesting throughout. It certainly kept me guessing until the very end. I will definitely look for more books from this author.

This is the third time Kate Alice Marshall writes an adult mystery/thriller novel, and it was also my third time reading a book by her. Even though this isn't my favourite book (which is No One Can Know), I did find it considerably better than What Lies in the Woods.
A KILLING COLD has, in my opinion, a clichéd plot and cast of characters, and it can also be very predictable - depending on the reader's experience/backgroud with this genre. However, in my opinion, clichés are welcomed when it is done right and efficiently, which I'd say is the case here.
I find this book very fast-paced, easily engaging with the protagonists as well as the antagonists (honestly, my favourite character was Louise, the grandma and 'chief' of the family), very atmospheric (a wintery scenario with snowy luxury cabins, a locked in situation), a dual timeline, different characters with different personalities, and that kind of 'everybody has a dark secret and everyone is keeping secrets from one another' type of mystery - which, again personally, appeals to me.
My only truly reservation lies on the conclusion: this story keeps building and building up to some grand climax and then it just ends. I thought it was too rushed. All the repercussions of the last 15-20% of the story (which when I think about it maybe it was the long climax) happen in the final chapter, that wasn't even a long one.
I still had fun with it and I genuinely believe other readers will, too.
*Just a small disclosure: there are some graphic and gory scenes with dead animals. Be aware.*

I'd recommend this book to readers who have enjoyed this author's previous works before, as well as to anyone who enjoys wintery mystery + a locked in secluded mansion + shady characters filled with dark secrets kind of story.

Thank you, NetGalley and Flatiron books, for providing me with a free eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
(be patient; this book will only be available on February 4, 2025)

After writing multiple young adult horror/dark fantasy titles, Kate Alice Marshall changes gears into adult thriller/crime territory.

It suits her.

This is my favorite from her since Rules For Vanishing

ARC review
A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall
Rating: 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release date: February 4, 2025
—
Theo has recently been engaged to Connor and has been invited on his (very wealthy) family’s trip on the mountain they own in the middle of winter. She’s choosing to ignore the warnings from a random number telling her to stay away from Connor and his family.
But when she arrives, there are things she can’t ignore… like the photo of herself as a child she finds in one of the cabins. What does this mean? Has she been here before? And if so, why does she have no memory of it?
After some other strange findings, it becomes clear that this family has secrets - secrets they’d do anything to keep buried.
Theo is on a mission to fill in the gaps of her childhood memories and discover her connection to this family and place before something terrible happens to her.
—
This was a quick, fast paced read with a remote, snowed-in setting that kept me on edge. While it had its fair share of excitement, twists, and turns, I thought it was just okay overall.

What I liked:
- The setting
- Fast paced
- Memory gaps
- Wealthy family with secrets

What I didn’t like:
- The storytelling was confusing in several parts
- Ending was a let down after so much buildup

I enjoyed this overall but was a little disappointed with the lack of creativity in the plot.

Theo is newly engaged and is meeting her fiancé’s family for the first time at their mountain estate. Rather than being welcomed with open arms, it is clear that she is not wanted there and that these people will do everything to keep their past secrets hidden.

This was a bingey and tense thriller with excellent character development and execution. The isolated, snowy cabin setting mixed with the large family made the “locked-in” with a killer storyline come to life. And while this was a thriller at heart, I loved all the family drama and Theo and Connor’s relationship, especially as they discovered more about each other while being at the cabins. The end got super twisty, but I found all loose ends to be tied up nicely.

Read if you like:
-Winter thrillers
-Locked in stories
-Atmospheric settings
-Past/present connections

Thank you Flatiron for the ARC!

So so many twists! I truly loved Theo and Connor! So many things got revealed and the twists truly shocked me. I was kept on the edge of my seat the entire time. Truly gripping, I had to read it in one sitting. I love Kate Alice Marshall's writing style, her way of world building truly makes you feel like you're a part of the story and experiencing it all with the characters. Such an amazing suspenseful novel! I loved how it unfolded! 5 stars!

I received this ARC from NetGalley and Flatiron Books to read/review. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.

This is my favorite Kate Alice Marshall book to date. It was dark, emotional, mysterious, and set during winter with snowy cabins. Involves a rich dysfunctional family with secrets to spare. The ending was a bit dramatic, but that would make it a great Lifetime movie, if it had a good cast. Some parts were a little confusing when the POV would change but was still in 2nd person. I highly recommend this book. I read it in 24 hours.

I wouldn't feel comfortable without starting this review with a slight trigger warning. The family is full of hunters, and it's described in graphic detail. I had a very hard time with a few of the scenes, but it is an integral part of the story, so I get it.

I started this book before bed last night and ended up not being able to put it down until my eyes could no longer stay open (72% of the book finished in one sitting). I was in the middle of the page when I went back to the app this morning and had to go back a few pages because I think I was half asleep during them.

This was one of those 'snowed in with a killer' books, but with like fifteen different things added. The characters and the writing sucked me in and I've already said it, but I truly could not put this book down. I think going into the book as blind as possible is the best idea, as there were a few things I forgot about the synopsis between requesting the book on NetGalley and receiving it. I was totally hooked the entire time, but the ending felt a bit rushed.

Kate, Alice Marshall is an auto by author for me. If she writes it, I will read it. A Killing Cold is her latest thriller. This was a fabulous book just as I expected.

Kate Alice Marshall does it again with this fast-paced cold thriller! This is definitely a book you can binge in one sitting! I found myself racing through chapters to find more clues and uncover all the dark secrets this wealthy family was hiding. I was hooked with the snowy secluded cabin setting, powerful and rich family vibes, and the characters, especially Theo and her shocking past. Truly a magnificent job creating scenes that get your heart pounding with some thrilling twists I didn’t see coming!

Do yourself a favor and add this book to your TBR!

𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒂 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏'𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆. 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆.

The book begins with a vivid flashback. The author puts you in the moment, and it's dark and visceral. You're left wondering what it all means.

Theodora or Theo is what she calls herself because she can't remember her name or her parents; she only remembers the names of the people who raised her. Her childhood was filled with cruelty and was devoid of love. When she met Connor, she had no idea that he was insanely wealthy and part of the powerful Dalton family; she just knew that she loved him. A mere six months later, the two are planning to be married, but first, Theo has to pass the test—she has to go to Idlewood, the isolated winter retreat belonging to Connor's family, to win over his skeptical relatives.

She's received some anonymous texts warning her away from Connor, but she figures it's a protective family member. It's only after exploring an old cabin on the property that she finds a photo of herself as a child. She's been here before. But when, and why?

I loved how Theo's past came back to her in bits and pieces, each layer of trauma slowly and carefully peeled back for the reader to digest and make their own connections with. This was a compelling thriller, but I enjoyed the psychological aspects of it just as much.

Tense, unsettling, and deeply atmospheric, A KILLING COLD was a deep dive into how trauma shapes our memories. Thank you to Flatiron Books for the early copy. At the time this review was written, this title was set to publish on February 4, 2025.

This was such a good read. I was hooked from the very beginning and could not put this book down. This was everything you wanted in a thriller it was fast-pace, anxiety building, sitting on the edge of your seat, and more. Loved the unreliable narrator trope, multiple twists and who-dunn-it theme. I definitely recommend this one!

SO SO SO appreciative to have gotten an ARC for this!!!


I would give it 10 stars if I could. It was so gripping from the beginning. I absolutely loved the family drama and twists.

Another great book my Kate Alice Marshall. A Killing Cold has a lot of characters that made the story a little confusing at times trying to keep the characters straight. Other than that I really enjoyed this book. It had a lot of twists that I did not see coming. The story flowed well and kept me turning the pages to find out what happened next. A killing Cold had a lot of secrets and drama which made it a fun and juicy read.

To Theodora (Theo), Connor Dalton is perfect. They instantly fell in love and were engaged. The only obstacle is to win over Connor's wealthy family during the Christmas vacation up at their secluded mountain cabin. Orphaned at the age of four, Theo has never known what a loving family was and is hoping to create that with Connor and his family. Except someone has other ideas, and Theo starts to receive text messages telling her to stay away from Connor.

Upon arriving to the Dalton's mountain estate, Theo has this nagging feeling that she's been here before. Her suspicions are further confirmed when she finds a picture of herself as a child in one of the abandoned cabins on the property, and all of Connor's family treats her with suspicion. In a family as wealthy as the Daltons, there's bound to be buried secrets, but how does Theo play into this family mystery?

This story kept me on the edge of my seat. I kept trying to guess what was around the next corner and found myself pleasantly surprised just when I thought I had it all figured out. The pacing of the story was consistent and I didn't feel like there was any parts that drug on unnecessarily. The author did a good job at building the cold and secluded atmosphere which mirrored Theo's experience with Connor's family. You trust no one in this story and I thoroughly enjoyed how the book wrapped up.

THANK YOU so much Flatiron for the ARC of one of my most-anticipated books!

I've read all of Kate Alice Marshall's adult books and I think they're getting progressively better and better! I think this is her best yet!

Much like her last one, NO ONE CAN KNOW, the story starts out with a young couple happily in love and in similar fashion, they might not actually know each other as well as they thought they did. Connor and Theodora are engaged and so excited to start their new lives together as husband and wife. Unfortunately, someone is set on making sure that doesn't happen and is sending anonymous warnings to one of them to 'get out while they can.'

This story was INSANE! Wherever you think it's going to go, I can almost guarantee that you're wrong. If you thought you've heard about toxic in-laws before then BUCKLE UP, because you haven't seen anything yet!

The snowy cabin setting was immaculate and I'm pretty sure literally gave me chills while reading! The end of this really felt like a true thriller, my heart was racing and I was STRESSED OUT. I finished the book and 1AM because I couldn't sleep until I learned how things turned out.

Marshall kept the surprises coming throughout the whole story and fed them to me constantly which kept me locked in the whole time. Truly a fun reading experience.

A lot of it was definitely PUSHING it as far as believability goes, but I'm always down for CRAZY in my thrillers, so it didn't bother me!

4.5 rounded up for GR

Theo is engaged to Connor and is spending Christmas with his wealthy family for the first time at their mountain estate. Right away she starts to realize that the family has secrets they don’t want revealed and some of these secrets may have to do with Theo.

This book was so good. Incredibly well written and kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time. Great character development and the storyline flowed so well, revealing just enough in every chapter to make me keep turning pages. I did feel like there were a couple of loose ends that were not tied up that I would have liked to see some resolution with, but overall this was a really good book.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Flatiron books for the advance reader copy. This is my honest review. 4.5/5⭐️. Publication date Feb 4, 2025.

Interesting book, there are many different angles that come into play ion this book. I really enjoyed it. The setting was perfect for all that was revealed throughout the book. Multiple string characters with complex backstories. My only downside is there too much backstory with this many prime characters.

Thanks NetGalley great read!

✨review✨

Add this book for February 3, 2025 to your TBR lists 📖❄️❄️

A woman with a secret past, but a new start with her wealthy fiancé. She’s been invited to their beautiful cabins in the woods. Little did she realize they too have secrets of their own. Theo fell in love with Connor in an instant. He was the package deal- sweet, kind, funny, and an added bond….he came from the kind of money she couldn’t even dream of. Life was turning around. She thinks this weekend getaway to Idlewood, would win over his relatives.

But she keeps receiving these texts from an unknown number. To get away from Connor. She then sees footprints outside the cabin, and has this very odd and strange sense that she knows this place.

Theo then finds a photo of herself…..here at Idlewood: she has no recollection of her past and her childhood. But she begins to piece together her past. And thing become dangerous for Theo, because Connor’s family does not lose.

This was such a gripping, and suspenseful story! I couldn’t read fast enough. I loved the main character and the setting of this story made it that much more suspenseful. A great thriller! Thank you @netgalley @katealice1959 @flatiron_books for this advance copy! #katealicemarshall #thrillers #suspensfulreads #akillingcold