Book Description
It’s an icy New Year’s Eve. Snow blankets a windswept Irish island as the wild Atlantic Ocean rages.
Six friends gather. It has been ten years since the tragedy that tore them apart. A lot can change in a decade…
Childhood bonds are now lifelong secrets.
Dear friendships have twisted into deep jealousies.
A happy reunion is shattered by a dead body.
The celebrations have barely begun when one of the guests goes missing. As the snow thickens, the body is found.
Then the storm wreaks havoc on the island. Everyone is trapped – there is no way out. No electricity. No phone signal.
Nobody knows who to trust. No one is who they seem. Because one of them is a killer, and one will be dead next…
An utterly gripping thriller that will have you hooked from the very first page until the final jaw-dropping, heart-racing twist. Fans of Catherine Cooper, Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware will be glued to the pages of this unmissable locked-room mystery.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Snowstorm' by Triona Walsh.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Triona Walsh, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 2nd February 2023.
This is Triona Walsh's debut novel.
I was originally drawn to this book by its intriguing and eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'An utterly gripping thriller that will have you hooked from the very first page until the final jaw-dropping, heart-racing twist. Fans of Catherine Cooper, Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware will be glued to the pages of this unmissable locked-room mystery.' I am a huge fan of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue, 53 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Ireland 🇮🇪, UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture.I have actually holidayed in Ireland so am intrigued to see if I recognise places based on anywhere I visited while there.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonist is Cara. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.
This book is fantastically written with vivid descriptions that absolutely grip the readers attention and puts them right in the middle of it all feeling the hair raise on your arms and feeling the sweat run down your back.
This book is an interesting 'locked room' mystery set in one of my favourite places in the world... Ireland!!! I listened to this book on Audiobook and absolutely loved listening to the Irish accents which Jacqueline did a fantastic job portraying along with bringing the characters to life. A group of friends return to the remote Irish island, Inis Mór on the Aran Islands, for a reunion but when a snowstorm hits the fun turns to fear when one of the group is found dead. I found the storyline to be a slow burn although it did pick up in places. It is very well written with an interesting plot and storyline. The fact that it is based in a remote location in a snow storm gives the book a chilling and ominous atmosphere which makes it a perfect book to read on a winters day in front of a fire especially during the moments that make the hair on your arms stand on end. The storyline is filled with friendship, secrets, distrust, murder, tension, suspense and everything you could ask for in a dark and chilling psychological thriller. The suspect list is quite small so you are continuously guessing which of the small group is a killer. There were several twists throughout the book. Unfortunately I worked out a few of them but I have read hundreds of crime books so it is getting harder and harder to shock me so please don't let that put you off as I still enjoyed the book even after guessing some of the twists. I enjoyed the way the victim "spoke from the dead" helping Cara work out who the killer is. Triona's fantastic and vivid descriptions leaves you feeling the sea wind in your hair and rubbing your arms feeling the snow storm. I love how everything is wrapped up and explained at the end leaving no loose ends which I am not a fan of at all so well done Triona.
This is one of the few books that I have listened 100% on Audiobook. If I listen to a book on audiobook I usually also read the physical book between but for the second time I listened to the whole book and I was impressed! I must say a HUGE congratulations to the narrator Jacqueline Milne who did a great job bringing this story to life. I would listen to it in the car and while walking at any opportunity and Jacqueline did a fantastic job on both male and female characters voices!!! I'm not only looking forward to reading more books by Triona but also to listening to more books narrated by Jacqueline!
The characters are realistic, strong and each have their own unique personalities. I really liked Cara and enjoyed her character development throughout the book. She is a strong female who is a complete bad @$$, I wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of her but at the same time she is someone you would definitely want on your side as the love for her friends shine through. I also really liked Patrick Kelly who I felt sorry for. However, I wasn't a huge fan of the other characters who I struggled to click with. Regardless of whether you live or hate the characters they all jump out of the pages and play their parts perfectly. I am looking forward to reading more books by Triona and seeing what she comes up with next!
Overall a chilling, atmospheric psychological thriller perfect for a snowy, stormy or winters day!
Genres covered in this novel include Domestic Fiction, Suspense Thriller, Women's Psychological Fiction, Serial Killer Thrillers, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, and Psychological Fiction amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Catherine Cooper, Lucy Foxley, Ruth Ware, Clare Mackintosh and Alice Feeney.
341 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle and £9.66 in paperback (at time of review) via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 4 /5 (I enjoyed 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
Tríona Walsh loves reading and writing crime novels but is fairly law abiding in real life. A twice winner of the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair competition she lives in Dublin with her four kids, three cats and one husband.
Social Media
Twitter: https://twitter.com/thetrionawalsh
Website: https://www.trionawalsh.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trionawalsh/
Purchase Link
Amazon: https://geni.us/B0BLHR3MG9social
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