Book Description
The near future is a world in which scientists and their AI got it wrong.
Rising temperatures have caused fires that burned landmasses, and the ash from these fires block out the sun. The resulting cold is extreme, like a nuclear winter, and was a mass extinction event for human beings the world over. Electricity grids, communications and services all failed. Societies collapsed. Humanity is reduced to small groups of survivors, scraping by however they can.
Resources are scarce, and bands of survivors resort to violence to obtain enough food and fuel to survive.
A man and his family group have survived the cruel winter by hiding in a house in Surrey, but when a roaming gang starts to ravage the area, they are forced to run. As they flee to safety, the cohesion and tolerance that had kept them going for so long starts to fracture…
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Cold' by Jim Pearce.
Read and reviewed for Netgalley, Jim Pearce, Matador, Troubador, Book Guild and Zooloo's Book Tours.
Publication dates: Kindle: 22nd November 2022. Paperback: 15th December 2022.
This is Jim Pearce's debut novel, though he has written non-fiction books previously.
This novel consists of 13 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are medium to long in length.
'Cold' discusses some topics that may upset some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Jim discusses toxic relationships, domestic violence, COVID 19, Violence, alcoholism, suicide and worldwide catastrophe/death.
This book is extremely well written and had me hook, line and sinker from beginning to end. The descriptions were so in depth and vivid that the hair on my arms was standing on the ends and my heart was pounding throughout. The synopsis, title and cover were perfect for the storyline.
Absolutely loved this extremely gripping, scarily realistic and heart pounding suspense thriller!!!
This book is a fascinating and thought provoking thriller that grips your attention from the first sentence all the way to the fantastic epilogue!! The title of the book sums up the storyline absolutely perfectly!! I must admit that this is not my usual type of book but when I seen it I thought I would give it a try and I am extremely glad that I did as I absolutely LOVED IT!!! If this isn't the sort of book you would pick up then don't let that out you off, expand your literature genres and you will not regret it!!! This book reminded me of a mix of 'The Dark Continent' by Scott Reardon, 'The Stand' by Stephen King and the movies 'The Day After Tomorrow' and '2012 Ice Age'. If you enjoyed any of these then you will LOVE this book!!! If you haven't seen or read any of them I would highly recommend them all along with this book!!! The world has been attacked with Covid, Famine, Floods and extreme weather changes. Sound familiar? In this book the world hasn't recovered from all of these when the rising temperatures cause fires, burning landmasses causing ash that block out the sun. We follow our main protagonist whose name is unknown (either that or I missed it and I triple checked) along his journey to survive from Surrey onto Cranleigh, Sussex, River Adur, The English Channel, Bordeaux, Lyon, Moutiers, Pralognan-la-Vanoise and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. He starts with his community family of his son Billy, Paul (dies) Lina, (does) Matt, Jane, Eva and Mary (dies). Along the way we also meet Bob, Kisi and Bella Richard, Pierre, Caroline and Serge amongst others. They use various transportation that they discover, fix and maintain including a land rover, a Catamaran, land cruisers, ski lifts and sledges. They are all trying to survive this post-apocalyptic dystopian world they have found themselves living in through many of their own doings all whilst trying to survive and escape looters, raiders along with a military gang determined to reek revenge on one of the survival members. Each of the chapters have titles that give the reader a hint of what is to come along with a fantastic artistic sketch related to that chapter including diagrams, maps and buildings. I was completely immersed in this heart pounding and petrifying realistic page turner that I just hope to God stays dystopian fiction and isn't really a true sign of things to come. Although, sadly it does seem to be a true warning of the consequences of climate change especially in regards to current events. Jim's absolutely fantastic and evocative writing skills really does bring the storyline and the characters to life and even though I was absorbed in this book in the sun in Cornwall I could feel my skin chill and my heart pounding in fear for the safety of the characters. I was completely invested in the characters and the team dynamics was absolutely fascinating!!! In a way several of the behaviours between some did remind me of 'Lord Of The Flies' which is actually mentioned in the book and is something else I would highly recommend reading, watching the film and/or even seeing in the theatre. If you have already seen and loved it then you will love this novel!!! The fact that Jim has done a lot of research as well as having all the experience he has gained in his jobs as oil driller in Saudi and Venezuela and geologist in a gold mine in Ghana plus spending time in Surrey and France absolutely shines through the pages. One of my pet hates is books littered with unnecessary mistakes but this book is so scarily realistic it is unreal. I am absolutely mine blown that this is Jim's debut fiction novel as his creative skills, imagination and writing skills read like an author who has been writing for years and if I hadn't read that it was his debut fiction novel I would not have believed it!!! The only negative I have about this book is the death of an animal but at the same time what happens also ensures the authenticity of the storyline. Playing devils advocate with myself I love the fact that Kisi (Bob's pet dog) plays such a large part in the storyline. I am a MASSIVE animal lover and actually run Golden Oldies Cat Rescue And Hospice so any books that include animals are always a bonus for me and the fact that Kisi plays such a big part is even better.
With realistic, strong and unlikeable characters that make you want to shout at, sympathise with and more this book will keep you glued to the pages. I really could not recommend this book more!!! It has got to be one of the best books I have read and I would love to see Jim bring more books out, I would especially love to see what happened to some of the other characters from this book.
This is one of those books that once you have picked it up you will not be able to put it down and it is also an absolute emotional rollercoaster ride of emotions so clear your schedules and get the tissues at the ready as even I shed several tears and that is not an easy feat!!!
Congratulations Jim on an absolutely fantastic and addictive page turning debut!!! You really could not do any better and it is one of the most fantastic debut novels I have ever read!!! Welcome to my favourite author club and here is to your next guaranteed success 🥂!!!
Overall an absolutely captivating, gripping and heart racing addictive suspense packed thriller!!!
304 pages.
This book is just £3.99 to purchase on kindle and £9.19 in paperback (at time of review) via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5/5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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Author Bio
This is Jim Pearce’s debut novel, though he has written non-fiction before. He’s been an oil driller in Saudi and Venezuela and a geologist in a gold mine in Ghana. Now he helps energy clients try to be more sustainable. He enjoys writing first thing in the morning at home in Surrey or enjoying the views in the south of France. He likes to transport readers to unexpected places where survival is a challenge and friendships tend to triumph despite individuals’ flaws. He is married with three boys
Social Media Links
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jim.pearce.1656
Twitter : https://twitter.com/JimPearceAuthor
Website : www.jimpearceauthor.com
Purchase Link
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