A Killing Cold is the third book I’ve read by Kate Alice Marshall and she continues to write thrillers that are binge worthy.

I will say, the plot had a lot of similar vibes to The Last One at the Wedding, but without the insanely annoying main character. (Sorry not sorry) Thankfully Marshall had her own ideas and twists to the story that I didn’t feel like I was reading the exact same book.

Definitely a thriller that I would recommend if you like wealthy family dramas with thriller twists. Audio was narrated well too.

I pressed play and didn't hit pause until I finished the audiobook of this cozy winter cabin read filled with wealthy family drama and lightly spiced with recollections of Christian trauma.

The plot tackles everything you learn in the description before you're a third of the way in. With recollections of the past interspersed with the tension in the present, I was pleased to be satisfied with elements of the narrative I accurately predicted and even more pleased to be a bit flummoxed by the multilayer twist. The ending was really well paced and left me pleasantly surprised with more than just the twist.

There was one moment I was worried the plot was going in a direction I would not be willing to follow, but Marshall weaves in clarification that's not what's about to unfold.

After this book, I'd read any psychological thriller Kate Alice Marshall publishes. With its fabulous twists, I'd recommend this slow burn to any psychological thriller fans and to anyone who enjoys mysteries and family dramas. If you're intrigued by the genre but would like to shy away from the darker and twistier side of things, this would be a great book to start with.

4.25 stars | I love the book, think it'd be an enjoyable reread, and would recommend it to anyone interested in the genre.

Content disclosures: Descriptions of bruising, gun, arrow, and knife wounds, and killing of humans and deer; mentions of physical abuse; brief door ajar physical intimacy; recollection of suppressed traumatic memories; descriptions of child abuse and endangerment including exorcism, toxic family dynamics; infidelity; deer hunting

Thank you so much to MacMillion Audio for the ARC! It was a great addition to a chilly, grey day and a great kick-off to my 2025 fiction reads.

A perfect seasonal read with unexpected depth.

Theodora "Theo" Scott and her fiancé Connor Dalton could not be more different: Theo, who works at a bookstore, has practically no memories of her early childhood and grew up with abusive adoptive parents; Connor, on the other hand, was born into an extremely rich and powerful family and has had the world handed to him on a silver spoon. Despite their differences, the two are newly engaged six months into their relationship. When Theo is invited to the wealthy Dalton family's isolated winter retreat to meet her skeptical future in-laws, she starts receiving threats to stay away from Connor. But even more bizarrely, Theo starts to realize that she has been to the retreat before... just as a blizzard makes it impossible to leave.

Chances are the setup of this story are familiar to you: an outsider marrying into an uber-wealthy and powerful family, usually after a whirlwind romance, with either the first family meeting or even the wedding taking place at said family's remote estate / lodge, where secrets and potentially bodies are hidden (see 2024's "The Last One at the Wedding" for a recent example of the exact same setup).

"A Killing Cold" unabashedly leans into this setup, yet the author manages to make it very much her own, which is why this book surpassed my expectations. Much of the book's appeal is derived less from its central storyline (though the plot becomes more interesting and somewhat more original than some other works of fiction using the same setup) but from the author's splendid writing. Theo in particular is a richly developed, complex protagonist whose horrible childhood is handled tenderly and with unexpected depth (not me crying over chapter 20...).

Overall, the whole book was fast-paced and hard to put down. The suspense was heightened with the locked-room setting created by the blizzard, and the Dalton family with its many despicable members provided a plethora of suspects with potential ill will towards Theo and/or dark secrets to hide. Definitely the perfect seasonal read to dive into while cozied up to a warm fire, but with so much depth to its main protagonist that you can enjoy it year-round.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book, which was flawlessly produced and had a splendid narrator in Karissa Vacker.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC of the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

"A Killing Cold" is slated to be released on February 4, 2025.

Kate Alice Marshall does it again! This creepy thriller was cleverly executed, connecting past and present without utilizing a dual timeline. I found the characters intriguing, and I was desperate to learn all of their secrets. There was a bit in the middle where things got a little repetitive, but it was redeemed in the end with twist after twist. The conclusion was well designed and satisfying. Definitely worth adding to your TBR.

If you’re an audio listener, this narrator did a fantastic job. Characters had separate voices without any cliche attempts at sounding masculine. The quality throughout the production is high, and the narrators tone and voice fit with the novels setting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC!

I read and listened to the audiobook version of this and both were incredible. I have read all of this authors books and they continue to keep me intrigued. I look forward to her next title.

I'll read anything by Kate Alice Marshall and this new book of hers did not disappoint. It hooked me from the start and kept me guessing until the end. With many characters having shady pasts, it was a constant question of who was to blame. I enjoyed the various characters points of view and how the narrator was mildly unreliable but still dependable enough to throw me off course! I recommend this read to anyone who's a fan of KAM.

Very engaging read! I had no idea where the plot was going... Basically at all times. It was very enjoyable for me on my long drive to focus on Theo's problems instead of traffic.

The ending had my jaw on the FLOOR and this is why I will always sing Kate Alice Marshall's praises. Loved this book and I really enjoy her work in general.

I highly recommend this one.

Karissa Vackar did an amazing job with the narration as well!

When Theodora met Conner she didn’t think much of it. However she doesn’t remember much of her life especially her childhood. When she is invited to spend the holidays with him at the family compound she starts getting these odd text messages. She soon starts getting glimpses of her childhood and starts to remember that she has been there before but to what extent. This book was exciting with a lot of twists and turns and finding out the truth was great to find out. I highly recommend this read.

Rich people with secrets? Stranded at a mountain hideaway? Ominous messages? Threatening footprints in the snow? Lost childhood memories revealing mysterious deaths? Kate Alice Marshall gives us all that in her new psychological thriller.

Theodora Scott is meeting fiancé Connor Dalton’s family for the first time at their secluded mountain retreat. She wants them to accept her, but something isn’t right. When Theo finds a photo of herself as a child, lost memories resurface making her realize she’s been there before - and not everyone got out alive.

Twisty, twisty, twisty and chock full of wealthy people behaving badly, A KILLING COLD left me breathless. Karissa Vacker’s narration is perfection (as usual). She captures Theo’s building terror and had me on the edge of my seat.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

As a fan of Kate Alice Marshall, I was definitely drawn to the premise of her newest release. Theodora Scott and Connor Dalton are recently engaged after a whirlwind romance and Theo is meeting his wealthy family for the first time at their isolated winter retreat. Not all is happy for the couple as Theo receives threatening messages prior to arriving. Then there are footprints outside their cabin, the suspicious relatives, and why does this place feel familiar to her? What culminates are secrets, cover-ups, and a backstory for Theo that stretched my suspension of disbelief. This story was saved by the setting and characters. The hunting scene was memorable and well executed. The characters were a mix of likable and unlikable and the MC was not unreliable with a drinking problem which was a nice change from the usual thriller tropes. Also, the relationship between Theo and Connor felt healthier than the average despite all they were going through. The tension and pacing were strong and the ending felt satisfying when I had been skeptical about that possibility. Narration by Karissa Vacker worked well for this story. Great choice if you want a wintry thriller.

OMG - this book! I loved it! This is my first read from Kate Alice Marshall and I am hooked. The twists totally blew me away. This is a must-read!

4.5 * When I saw Kate Alice Marshall had another book coming out, I had to listen! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for the advance copy. If you like books where you are trapped in a location with no where to run- this is for you! Just when I thought I knew what happened, plot twist... and they just kept coming! To say this book kept me on the edge of my seat, is an understatement. With this family poor Theo was marrying into, it was hard to know WHO it was she could trust. Lies, deceit, murder, and vengeance.... just a few highlights of the book!

Kept me listening until the end. I did not see the twists coming, which does not happen often! I always like the premise of an affluent family with secrets. The narrator of the audiobook was good as well. Bravo on this one!

{3.5 stars}

Thanks to Macmillan Audio for gifted access to this audiobook. All opinions below are my own.

This one reminded me of Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone meets Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six. A young woman joins her new, rich fiance's family on their annual winter retreat. Secluded out in the woods with no cell service, we begin the story with her hoping  that her fiance's family won't find out about her past as a poor orphaned girl. As she desperately tries to impress these snooty, judgemental people she begins to have flashbacks of her youth which she can't ignore.

I'll stop there to avoid spoilers. This one has a lot of characters and all play into what happens so you'll need to pay attention to who is who. It was definitely a convoluted tale with some morally grey characters but I didn't feel like it did the fully unlikable cast thing that is so common in thrillers. This was one of those reads where I enjoyed it in the moment but it didn't have any moments that will stick with me long term.

This was my first book by Kate Alice Marshall and honestly, I was really disappointed. The story follows Theodora (Theo) Scott, a woman with a terrible and secret past as she goes with her wealthy fiance, Connor Dalton, to his family's cabin for Christmas. Theo has ignored the mysterious and threatening text messages warning her to stay away from Connor, but she can't ignore the footprints in the snow outside of their cabin, or the gift left for her on the window sill, or the photo of her as a young girl with Connor's dead father that she found in the cabin. Theo begins to put together the memories of her childhood and it becomes apparent that the Daltons don't want the truth of what happened to her or her mother to come out.

The positives of this story are the setting, a secluded mountain compound owned by the wealthy Dalton family, and the mysterious aspect of Theo's childhood. I really did enjoy trying to piece together what happened to her as a child. And the narrator did a great job! Unfortunately, this plot is not a new one and I felt like I'd read this story before. The characters were overly villainous and predictable and I'm not a fan of a locked room mystery. Sadly, this will not be one of my top reads of the year.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. My review is honest and voluntary.

My walk today felt fitting to finish 𝑲𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝑨𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍'𝒔 𝑨 𝑲𝑰𝑳𝑳𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑪𝑶𝑳𝑫, narrated by the outstanding @karissavacker. I was thrilled to receive an ARC from @flatiron_books and the audio from @macmillan.audio via @netgalley all coming out on February 4th.

I am a fan of Kate Alice Marshall's and this one cements my auto-read author status.

Theo is heading to her wealthy fiancée home to meet the family after a whirlwind romance. They are almost as interested in finding out about her as she is about hiding her less than pristine past. What she doesn't know, is they have much more to hide. When holes in her childhood memory are triggered, it becomes clear this Dalton family and Theo all have decide how far they are willing to go to keep their secrets safe.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story! I was so excited to get an ARC and flew through the first chapters. Getting the audio was the cherry on top, as it added layers to the storytelling in which Vacker is so adept.

I loved the Gothic atmosphere, the locked-house, claustrophobic feeling, and the twists that had me first thinking I had it, and then humbling me. If you are someone who doesn't believe that coincidence or fate or whatever you call it can make truth stranger than fiction, there may be a slight challenge challenge for you, but I wholly believe all of that, so I was unfazed. After all, that is what makes a story, and this was a really fun and suspenseful one that had me contemplating the "small world" connections in my life as well as knowing when it is safe to share all the nitty gritty.

A fabulously entertaining suspense! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I’ve been a fan of Kate Alice Marshall since reading What Lies In the Woods. A Killing Cold was such a great listen. As soon as I saw Karissa Vacker was the narrator, I knew it was going to amazing. I loved the storyline and how bits and pieces of Theo’s memories would come back to her throughout the book. Another amazing read/listen by the author.

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙔𝙤𝙪 @MacmillanAudio for my complimentary copy!

𝑨 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆’𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕—𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆

𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧: Kate Alice Marshall
𝙉𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧s: Karissa Vacker
𝙇𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝: 9h 41m
𝙋𝙪𝙗 𝘿𝙖𝙮: February 4th

📖 I have absolutely loved Kate Alice Marshall's other thrillers #WhatLiesInTheWoods and #NoOneCanKnow, so I have been so excited for this one, and I thought it was great! This book kept my attention, and kept me guessing with all of the lies, secrets, twists and turns throughout. I love a "locked room" mystery, and this one is set in an isolated retreat in the middle of winter which was perfect. It has an overall eerie feeling where you know danger could be lurking in any corner... The last part of the book was shocking and had me racing to finish and see what happens.

"𝘐 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘯𝘰𝘸. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵."

🎧 Karissa Vacker is definitely my favorite audiobook narrator! I love everything she does, so this audiobook was perfect to me. She does a great job making the story come alive so you will enjoy it too!

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮:
• fast paced
• suspense
• secrets / lies
• locked room mystery
• cat and mouse
• lots of twists
• unlikable characters

This suspenseful winter thriller comes out next month and you will not want to miss it!

2.5 but rounded up for the dog

It kept me interested but the motivation of “preserving the family name” / reputation / etc just doesn’t do it for me. I wish there was a stronger focus on the romance as well. Definitely the mystery of whether or not Connor was involved was interesting, but I wish we learned he wasn’t at like halfway through so we could enjoy their genuine relationship.

Listening to Karissa Vacker narrate A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall was a fantastic way to end 2024! This chilly thriller is full of secrets and twists and some pleasant surprises. Despite being terribly sick while I read this, I was decently engaged throughout!

Full review on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6423962436