4.5 stars ⭐️ Cold Snap by Lindy Ryan

Woah was this novella great. I flew through this and absolutely loved the way that this was told. I could genuinely feel Christine’s paranoia, grief, and especially her guilt. The last 30% of this book actually freaked me out. I was on the edge of my seat with each and every page. I would highly recommend this!

Cold Snap is a chilling novella about grief and guilt. It’s been two weeks since Christine Sinclaire’s husband fell off of the roof while putting up Christmas lights and died. Her husband had booked a cabin in the woods for Christmas week before he passed, so Christine decided that she, her son Billy, and their cat should still go up for Christmas. When they arrive, the property manager told them to be careful of moose cuz they’ll stomp a body so deep into the snow nobody’d find it until spring. When Christine starts to see a horned figure watching her in the forest, she assumes it’s just a moose. However, moose don’t walk upright and definitely don’t talk to her in her dead husband’s voice.

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for sending me an advanced digital copy for me to review and enjoy! These are my honest thoughts and opinions.

Content Warnings: Gore; Animal Cruelty; Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) flashbacks; Loss of father/Grief

I'm torn on this novella. On the one hand, I thought Ryan did an excellent job of representing PTSD through the viewpoint character, Christine. While the flashbacks could get repetitive and intrusive in the narrative, that's exactly what PTSD flashbacks are like. I also thought that the grief shared between mother and son, and the tensions that caused between them, was well done. Finally, I thought the atmosphere of the isolated cabin was rendered well, as were some gritty details.

On the other hand, I struggled with the rest of the novella. It was never clear to me if we were dealing with a moose, a mythological or phantasmagorical being, a cryptid, a hallucination, or some combination of the above? I don't mind ambiguity, especially in horror, but it didn't feel like any one of these directions was built on enough to feel satisfying. Similarly, the ending just came out of nowhere. It wrapped up nothing and didn't seem to relate to anything in the novella prior. Totally willing to admit that may be an issue with me the reader and not the novella, but it stood out to me. I went back and re-read the last few pages over and over and it never felt right.

All in all, I think this was an okay read. If this sounds like something in your wheelhouse, it's fine. Not horrible, not great. Just fine.

The story revolves around Christine and her son Billy, navigating life after the death of Christine's husband, Derek. In an attempt to find solace, they embark on a getaway trip to the mountains, originally planned by Derek for Christmas.

Christine experiences a staccato rhythm of grief following Derek's death, haunted by the trauma of that moment, which leaves her startled by even the slightest noises that trigger memories of his passing. Throughout their journey, Christine is plagued by an ominous voice and figure, intensifying until the story's bleak conclusion.

While the book effectively establishes a descriptive atmosphere, it struggles to deliver a cohesive narrative and this often obscures rather than clarifies the events and the protagonist's imaginings. Despite the abundance of descriptive prose, the storytelling fell short, leaving me feeling perplexed and uncertain about the outcome. It's possible that my confusion stems from my own interpretation, but the narrative left many questions unanswered.

Thank you Netgalley and Titan Books for this advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

It's a quick and easy thriller/mystery about a grieving wife trying to survive and be a good mom. I never knew what was actually happening or what the main character was imagining. Is the monster in the wood real? While the book is an easy read and had me questioning the sanity of the main character and wondering what would happen next, I also found it confusing.

Most important things first: Does the cat live? (view spoiler)

So, yeah, I have no idea what I just read. This started off as a fairly typical “people in a remote cabin in the woods have scary things happen” horror story, and then it got very, very weird. I mean, people are passing out and there's a moose and it maybe talks and everything gets fever-dreamy and I don't even know what that ending was supposed to be. And then I dozed off and had a half-dream that the food that I'd eaten at the Greek festival earlier in the day was drugged and that's why I couldn't understand anything that happened in this book … and to be honest, that's still my best guess as to why this story is so weird because the only other solution I can come up with involves the author and an entire sheet of LSD. One way or another, I'm positive that hallucinogenic drugs were involved.

I did enjoy the beginning. Well, perhaps “enjoy” is a strong word because it's all rather depressing, but I was definitely invested in the story because I am a big fan of the whole “broken people go into the woods and get monstered” trope. And then a moose maybe started talking and I'm sure there is some sort of deeper meaning to everything that happened but it obviously all went right over my head. The Goodreads blurb says it has something to do with “the horrors of grief and the hunger of guilt” so I guess I'll just go with that.

Moose aside, however, the most baffling part of this book is why Christine brings groceries into the house, cooks and eats dinner, and then puts the groceries away afterward. I mean, if it's all shelf-stable pantry-type stuff, okay, I guess. But there were obviously cold/frozen items and now that I think about it, maybe it was the main character who was on drugs because that is the only way that the grocery thing makes sense.

Anyway, if you enjoy fever dreams and (view spoiler) and defrosted groceries, definitely give Cold Snap a read – perhaps you'll like (and understand) it more than I did. 2.15 stars, rounded down.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is October 15, 2024.

3.5 stars (rounded up)

Just before Christmas, Derek Sinclaire tragically died after hanging Christmas lights per his wife’s request. Christine Sinclaire is riddled with grief and guilt and decides to escape the house with her 15-year-old son and their cat. They go to a remote cabin in the Pennsylvania Wilds to wait out the holidays. Christine is likely experiencing PTSD, as she keeps reliving her husband’s death. A moose/shadowy figure haunts Christine promising to grant what souls desire – their wishes.

Trigger warnings:
-death of a parent/spouse
-guilt and grief
-gruesome cat death

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest opinion/review.

I enjoyed the cold, creepy atmosphere of this story and found it enjoyable overall.

(I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

"Just the three of us and the trees"

This short novella follows Christine a wife and mother who is grieving the loss of her husband decides to take the family trip Derek had planned for them. She takes her 15 year old son Billy, and their cat to a remote cabin in the woods for Christmas. Billy and Christine are both grieving in their own way and are trying to navigate life without Derek. Once at the cabin Christine isn't just reliving her husband's death, but she is starting to hear her husband voice coming from a figure in the woods.

What can only be described as a shadow monster starts to follows the family. Things go from bad to worse quickly.

This chilling novella deals with a lot of grief and guilt. Christine reliving her husband's death over and over again and hearing the snapping of his bones will leave you feeling disturbed and horrified.

The emotional baggage these characters deal with act like a fuel for this creature that wants to ripped you to pieces.

This story is definitely one that will leave you thinking about it overtime even after you are finished with the book. I highly reccomend this book, this is my first Lindy Ryan but won't be my last!!

Sad and heartbreaking novella that examines grief and the trauma the survivors left behind experience. This book is as cold as the rural Pennsylvania cabin that serves as the setting. Ryan breaks your heart twice in this one, first through the incredibly honest look at the grief and trauma that is splitting apart a mother and son, and the during the truly pulse pounding climatic scene. Short but pulls no punches at all.

Cold Snap is a chilling, haunting, brilliant, and atmospheric novella about loss, guilt, and grief. This is a book which is unique and left me reeling and thinking about the plot after I finished reading. I often questioned what I was reading and have a feeling that I will read this novella for a second time just to let everything sink in. Like other reviewers have mentioned, I often wondered what did I just read?

Christine Sinclaire has decided to bring her son and their cat to a remote cabin in Pennsylvania which they have rented for the holidays. It has been two weeks since her husband fell off their roof while putting up Christmas lights and died. After arriving, Christine begins to see a figure who talks to her in her husband's voice.

As I mentioned above, this book is atmospheric and chilling. It oozes with grief and loss. I must give big props for Lindy Ryan for originality and setting a gloomy yet brilliant mood for this novella.

Lindy Ryan first came on my radar with her book, Bless Your Heart, and she left me feeling unsettled and chilled with Cold Snap. This riveting book can easily be read in one sitting.

I can't wait to read what Lindy Ryan writes next.

Dark, chilling, atmospheric, and unsettling.

Christine Sinclaire, recently widowed, packs up her fifteen-year-old son and the family cat and flees to a cabin deep in the remote Pennsylvania Wilds to wait out the holidays.

When Christine begins to hear strange noises coming from the forest and sees a horned figure between frozen branches, she assumes it's just a moose since the property manager warned her about them. But moose don't walk upright like the shadowy figure does. They don't call Christine's name with her dead husband's voice.

This was a captivating story filled with the most perfectly detailed imagery that had me shivering to the last page! I swear I could practically FEEL that icy cold air around me as the MC ran through the forest!

I found it to be just long enough to be a quick but intense read. I didn't want to put it down!! It definitely left me wanting more, but at the same time, the author was able to wrap things up in a satisfying way in the end.

This novella masterfully blends grief and horror, set against the eerie backdrop of a remote cabin during Christmas. It's a heartbreaking and emotional journey that explores loss and the monstrous nature of despair. Lindy Ryan unpacks a powerful, chilling, and atmospheric tale that lingers long after the final page.
Many thanks to Edelweiss, Titan Books, and Lindy Ryan for the opportunity to read and review “Cold Snap” prior to its publication date.

A novella of grief and monsters is always something I like to read. Grief horror can take many forms and each is as different as the next. This one deals with grief in a gripping, guilt fueled "vacation" which turns horrifying.

A woman who recently lost her husband in an accident decides to take their fifteen year old son on a trip over Christmas to a remote cabin he'd already booked. The son is distant and sulking. He doesn't want to talk or really be bothered with any of it. But the mother believes this could get their relationship back on track.

When she sees and hears something monstrous in the woods, things are going to go from bad to much worse.

This novella is heart breaking to read as the author let's us see just how deep grief can be. The woman is guilt ridden, even though it's not her fault, to the point where she believes it should have been her that died instead of her husband. She feels guilty because she feels her son blames her and has withdrawn because of it.

But we'll see that this kind of emotional baggage can bring something much more horrible into the world. Something which literally wants to tear you apart piece by piece. And pretty soon, the only thing that matters is survival even though it might be too late.

If you like grief horror and emotionally charged narratives, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!!

This is a cold and sad little novella. A grieving Mother and son try to celebrate Christmas after her husband’s accidental death. Grief comes in all shapes and sizes, and Christine can’t get over the guilt of her husband’s passing. A monster lurks in the woods near their rented cabin, and it whispers Christine’s darkest thoughts. This was a very quick read that packed a punch.