Shiver

4.5 stars

Hats off to Allie Reynolds on her debut novel!

The synopsis alone grabbed my attention, but the writing and plot sealed the deal.

A reunion in the French Alps sounds wonderful doesn’t it? Except when you are stranded at a mountain top resort, during a snowstorm and there is no staff on site. Plus, this reunion comes with some stress, ten years earlier, one of them, Saskia went missing and has never been found.

Milla accepts the invitation to the reunion getaway at Le Rocher, believing she was invited by one of her former friends. She has not seen any of her fellow snowboarder for ten years. She hopes to spend the weekend catching up with Curtis, Dale, Heather and Brent. She spent time with them, preparing for an elite competition, trying to work on her skills, maybe learn some new ones and of course to win!

They begin to feel that something is not right soon after they all arrived. Their icebreaker game goes awry when they realize that someone knows their secrets. They are getting uncomfortable, suspicious, and beginning to doubt each other. The “Ghost” of Saskia looms over them. She was Milla’s nemesis and biggest competitor and Curtis’s sister.

Trapped, and full of suspicion, tension rise as the temperature plummets. Who can you trust? Who really invited them? Who stranded them there? What really happened to Saskia? Was one of them responsible for her disappearance? Is she dead or alive? Suspicion falls on all them all. This is a chilling and atmospheric book. I love when the environment is very much a character in the book as well. This book is told in the present as well as ten years ago. We see them in the past, snowboarding, hanging out, competing, and being taunted by Saskia.

Allie Reynolds is a former freestyle snowboarder and avid reader. She combined her two favorite things to write this book. This was a captivating read which had me guessing and trying to figure out who was behind them being stranded. I found this book to be well written and perfectly plotted. I enjoyed both timelines and the alternative timeless really set the stage for the unfolding of the plot. I enjoyed reading as the characters changed, grew and evolved. Are they the same people they were when they were competing? Has Saskia’s disappearance changed them? Is their friendship still there?

Shiver is an intriguing, riveting, tension filled whodunit which I highly recommend.

Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.