Death on Ice has such a good premise, and indeed, the book is very enjoyable, but it does take a little while to get going. For those unsure about it, I would recommend ploughing on through the first 25% until we get to the crux of the matter.

This isn't really a story about a crime-fighting duo, or if it is, it's not the twins who are our crime fighters, but rather the two police characters, flown to the ship and asked to disentangle the complex murder, while also trying to solve the crime that has them in the Arctic Circle in the first place.

I enjoyed the writing style of the author, but it did take a little bit of getting used to. This is 'a busy book' as in, every word counts. That might sound strange, but often, especially with cosy mysteries, there are some elements that are story-filler and not story-related. This to me, felt a little bit like The West Wing of old, and other TV shows that are conversation and plot heavy i.e. you actually have to pay attention throughout the whole episode, and you need to do this with Death on Ice. It's not a bad thing, once you realise it.

And it is a cleverly spun tale, and by the end of it, I was entirely enthralled with our four main characters and some of the others besides (our lovely sleepy shark). I certainly did not guess the resolution.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

I thought from the description that this 'who dunnit' was going to be based on two scientist twins but found that this was really far from the truth.
Hardly Agatha Christie but the book was an OK read, sometimes too slow and drawn out with little excitement or expectation.
My thanks anyway to NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for this arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

An Artic cruiseship, with research scientists mixing with the ridiculously wealthy. A submersible vehicle allowing underwater research into the Greenland shark whilst the well-to-do watch on, go on snowmobiles and watch the Aurora borealis.

Whilst two scientists are in the submersible, a body is discovered out on the ice. One of the scientists has been shot dead with harpoon.
Everyone is a suspect, except Rose and Finn, who were underwater at the time.
Detectives Tom Hessian and Titus are flown on board to investigate.

The setting for this novel is lovely and really well described. You do get the feeling of isolation and cold from being in the arctic but also the luxury of the ship. The cast of characters are ok but I did find the authors constantly interrupting conversations to describe a thought mid-sentence very off-putting. The thought being described was sometimes so long, I'd forget who it was that was talking, once they continued.
Once I'd noticed this, every time it happened I found myself withdrawn from the story. As silly a thing as this is, it probably ruined the book for me.

I thought the two detectives, Tom and Titus worked well together and had a very good rapport. The romances on ship worked quite well and the overall plot was OK. The setting is really the star of this story.

Worth a read but I did find this a little to easy to put down.

I would like to convey my thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this novel. All opinions are my own.

A cozy mystery set on an arctic cruise ship. Told from different points of view, Titus and Tom are the main detectives, helped by twin scientists, Finn & Rose and there are plenty of otehr passengers and a few of the ships crew to keep track of. The plot is intricate & cryptic to the extent that I did lose the thread at times. On the whole, I thought the book was too long, some one had been murdered before the boat set off, but the other deaths started well into the book. I did like the personal stories of the characters, though some parts were a little irrelevant, the romantic side stories added interest but the attractions were not really explicit which semed a bit wishy washy .
An ok read, not really my style . Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC

Such a fun read! The characters were all so vivid and eccentric and fun.
The mystery itself was well done but also confusingly laid out, sometimes it seemed like there were long gaps between anything happening.
It was interesting to have two main narrators and then occasionally tidbits of narration from other characters here and there but it was really well done.

I love a rich people locked room mystery and this one did it so well, I did want more science from the other scientists but that's the geek in me.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy!

3.5 out of 5

This is one murder mystery that didn't do anything wrong but just didn't grip me. Death on Ice isn't one I'd discourage anyone from reading but for some reason I wasn't as enthused by it as I hoped.

The story follows a group of scientists on a luxury cruise ship as they deal with the murder of a colleague. Rose & Finn, the Blanchard twins and scientists on the Dauphin, become involved in the investigation and pursue an answer to this murder with the desire to bring the murderer to justice.

Thorp writes an admirable story with a good cast of characters. The story is more in line with the cosy murder mysteries rather than a dark, brutal murder mystery. So for anyone who enjoys mysteries, like The Thursday Murder Club, there'll be lots to enjoy in Death on Ice.

My biggest complaint would be the length of the book. At almost 400 pages it feels like it is only slightly too long. Thankfully Thorp keeps the mystery going and adds the essential red herrings to keep the intrigue going to the end.

There's a surprising timelessness to the story. While it is a modern investigation the language and melody of the dialogue is akin to Agatha Christie's writing making it feel like it would fit into a 1930's timeframe.

Objectively, there isn't much to criticise about the book and it is one worth checking out if you are a fan of the genre.

It's perfectly fine. The central characters are well drawn and despite eccentricities feel like real people. I wasn’t convinced that the story needed the addition of the two police detectives as it did detract from the twins (and when I say twins, it’s primarily Rose who we get insight into, along with her thoughts on Finn). There’s a mixed bag of passengers and fellow scientists and…

I’ll be honest, I found some of it slow going. After an excellent teaser in the first chapter that ends with a dead body, I could have done with the actual first murder happening a bit sooner. There’s quite a lot of talking and for when things do happen, I could have done with a plan of the boat. Who knows, maybe it’s in the non-review copy.

It does get rather complicated towards the end, as to who did what and why, but I’d rather see that than something where one character did it and the rest were there just to pad out the cast, although the introduction of the backstory of a couple of characters did seem to come out of nowhere (and go the same place).

As I said, it’s fine. It didn’t really grab me, but potentially I wasn’t quite focused as I’m struggling with a heavy cold at the mo. Why not try it and see what you think?

I think this is a great premise for a book, with the atmosphere of the ice and luxury cruise ship really leaning into the idea of a locked room murder. I thought the scene was set nicely and the division between scientist, holidayer and staff quickly indicated there was potential for misunderstandings! Occasionally there was a surfeit of adjectives when describing a scene, albeit nicely descriptive, and I think some more editorial support would have helped with this.

Unfortunately I didn't feel that the characters or relationships that developed were particularly believable - they all played their set role for the plot but the elaborate dialogue kept my investment at that surface level. I also lost interest slightly with the multiple subplots that spun out, particularly when revelations occurred which only had the vaguest advance signposting so couldn't be worked out by the reader as part of the mystery (eg. Dr Palgrave or Alicia Grey). These quibbles may just be my personal preference though in terms of how I approach detective books.

This might have been the formatting from the kindle version I read but I sometimes found the switch between the boat and the police duo a bit sudden as, beside a new paragraph, there wasn't anything to indicate a change in location.

Siblings Rose and Finn Blanchard are cruising the Arctic circle but in a working capacity as scientists on a research trip. They are on board with a cluster of fellow scientists and mostly set apart from the wealthy passengers travelling in luxury. That is, until a scientist who has brushed every single person up the wrong way is murdered on the ice. The only two people who could not have killed him are Rose and Finn as they were inside a submersible looking for sharks on the seabed. Everybody else, crew included, are suspects. Detectives are in the region investigating another crime and join the ship to investigate with the help of the Blanchards. They must discover whodunnit before another murder occurs.

Debut novel of Australian-born author (now living in Ireland) Death on Ice is a cosy murder mystery with characters who think and talk in an unusually wordy style which takes some getting used to. The Blanchards and police detectives are enjoyable characters, and the Arctic setting adds a nice touch. 3.5 stars

I’ll start by saying I enjoyed this book. It was an intriguing mystery, with genuine surprises. It was possibly over-complicated, but that doesn’t detract from an interesting story.

The things I didn’t really like were the odd style of writing where everyone has special qualities eg the captain is diplomatic and loved by all; Finn charms everyone etc. It would have been ok to have this said once, but they were constantly repeated to the point where it just became annoying. I think tighter editing would have helped with this.

Something else which could have been edited was the strange sentence structures used. Often I had to re-read a sentence (and sometimes say it out loud) to parse it properly.


Finally there is a strange gender identity sub-plot which seems out of place. It may be that the author intends for the twins to appear again in stories, and that this plot will become more relevant.


Having said all that, I do need to reiterate that it’s a good story, and I enjoyed it. A very easy read.

4.25 stars

I loved this book. It reminded me of the old murder mystery novels of the Agatha Christie era mixed with a bit of modern crime. The book cover suits the book.

There are two main characters. The book starts with Dr Rose and her twin. After the murder, the main lead is Tom who is in charge of the investigation, with Rose helping.

There is a range of characters and personalities. All these keep the book entertaining. This would make a great murder mystery movie with all these characters.

If you liked the standalone Agatha Christie novels you'll probably love this!

A nice crime romp for fans of cosy crime that kept me guessing right to the end. Plenty of twists and just enough detail for it not to be too much, but which linked nicely into the plot. I particularly enjoyed the diversity of the characters - it was done in a way which didn’t feel tokenistic like some books can do.

Delicious…
A murder on ice in the Arctic, sharks on the seabed, the brilliant Blanchards. The Blanchard twins may well be superior scientists but can they put their brilliant minds together to solve a murder? Everyone on the luxury cruise ship is a suspect, the twins were at sea and, so, it’s up to them to investigate. A wholly engaging and beautifully written mystery with a well imagined setting, a delightfully eclectic cast of characters populating a classic plot and a wonderfully eccentric pair of protagonists. This reader hopes for more to come from this delectable duo. Delicious.

A very good spin on a classic whodunit.

Think Christie but funnier, with more heart. The characters are crazy but relatable, and in the middle of Arctic!

I love a cosy murder mystery and this was one of the best.