A Killing Cold: A Novel

A woman invited to her wealthy fiance’s family retreat realizes they are hiding a terrible secret—and that she’s been there before, by the bestselling author of What Lies in the Woods.

A whirlwind romance.
When Theodora Scott met Connor—wealthy, charming, and a member of the powerful Dalton family—she fell in love in an instant. Six months later, he’s brought her to Idlewood, his family’s isolated winter retreat, to win over his skeptical relatives.

Stay away from Connor Dalton.
Theo has tried to ignore the threatening messages on her phone, but she can’t ignore the footprints in the snow outside the cabin window or the strange sense of familiarity she has about this place. Then, in a disused cabin, Theo finds something impossible: a photo of herself as a child. A photo taken at Idlewood.

I’ve been here before.
Theo has almost no recollection of her earliest years, but now she begins to piece together the fragments of her memories. Someone here has a shocking secret that they will do anything to keep hidden, and Theo is in terrible danger. Because the Daltons do not lose, and discovering what happened at Idlewood may cost Theo everything.

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Published Feb 4, 2025

304 pages

Average rating: 7.41

158 RATINGS

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Andrea-The Shelf Life Books

Jul 03, 2025

9/10 stars

Lies, secrets, twists, turns, and a shocking reveal that I never saw coming! When Connor and Theodora Scott met in California, six months ago, they fell head over heels in love with one another. Now that Christmas is around the corner, Conner has brought Theo to Idlewood. His family's east coast winter retreat. There is the main house and several large cottages for guests to stay. Connor is excited to introduce Theo to his family. Theo is met with cold shoulders and a barrage of questions from Connors’ grandmother and Uncle. As Connor shows Theo around the grounds, he can’t help to feel that Theo has been here some time ago. What Theo doesn’t tell him, is she has the same feeling. We know that something terrible happened at the winter retreat years ago which added to the mystery, the tension, mounting sense of danger and kept my interest piqued throughout the book. It was gripping and had me fully invested from the second chapter. Who could we trust, what would happen next and who really hold the truth to all the mysteries? I loved the setting of the book as well. The snowed in isolated winter retreat gives the reader that locked room feel. For all of the mystery thriller lovers, this needs to go on the top of your list!

Kati

Jan 01, 2026

6/10 stars

3.5⭐️

BookFairie

Aug 20, 2025

8/10 stars

This was a twisty thriller. I liked the bit of romance with a lot of hidden secrets.

Mrshrl

Jul 14, 2025

6/10 stars

This book was just meh. Very slow and then a chaotic ending. The way the flashbacks were written was very awkward.

AmandaLaBorde

Jun 17, 2025

4/10 stars

Theo has no memory of her life before adoption and a reoccurring nightmare that she’s convinced means something from that time. She is going to visit her fiancés family in a secluded mountain area and things start to look familiar while some of his relatives says she looks familiar too. A dead husband, a missing woman and her daughter, an abandoned cabin, and All. The. Secrets. Divorce, cheating, murder?, accident? Was her random chance encounter with her fiancée actually random or some elaborate ploy to find out what she knows, what she remembers? I couldn’t put this book down! I finished it in one day!