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Where Blood Runs Cold
Where Blood Runs Cold
Apr 30, 2025 3:43 AM

Author:Giles Kristian

Where Blood Runs Cold

** WINNER OF THE 2022 WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE **

THE TIMES' THRILLER OF THE MONTH

'A heart-pounding survival thriller set in the starkly beautiful far north of Norway. Gripping and adrenalin-fuelled, yet also written with a tenderness that warms even the most chilling of chases.' LUCY CLARKE, author of The Castaways

Erik Amdahl and his spirited daughter, Sofia, have embarked on a long-promised cross-country ski trip deep into Norway's arctic circle. For Erik, it's the chance to bond properly with his remaining daughter following a tragic accident. For Sofia, it's the proof she needs that her father does care.

Then, far from home in this snowbound wilderness, with night falling and the mercury plummeting, an accident sends them in search of help - and shelter. Nearby is the home of a couple - members of Norway's indigenous Sami people - who they've met before, and who welcome them in. Erik is relieved.

He believes the worst is over. He thinks that Sofia is now safe. He could not be more wrong.

Because he and Sofia are not the old couple's only visitors that night - and soon he and his daughter will be running for their lives . . .

And beneath the swirling light show of the Northern Lights, a desperate fight ensues - of man against man, of man against nature - a fight for survival that plays out across the snow and ice.

A story of endurance and of the desperate, instinctive will to survive, of a father's love for his child, of knowing when to let go - and of a daughter's determination to prove herself worthy of that love, Where Blood Runs Cold is a pulse-racing thriller from a master storyteller.

'A terrific winter chiller . . . utterly gripping.' AMY McCULLOCH, author of Breathless

Reviews

A high speed avalanche of a thriller.

—— THE SUN

Stunning . . . spell-binding tension.

—— DAILY MAIL

A terrific winter chiller set in the unforgiving Norwegian mountain landscape, Where Blood Runs Cold depicts exactly how far we will go to survive - and to protect the ones we love. Utterly gripping.

—— AMY McCULLOCH, author of Breathless

Riveting . . . Kristian gives this extended chase a nightmarish intensity.'

—— John Williams , MAIL ON SUNDAY

'Where Blood Runs Cold is a heart-pounding survival thriller set in the starkly beautiful far north of Norway. Gripping and adrenalin-fuelled, yet also written with a tenderness that warms even the most chilling of chases.'

—— LUCY CLARKE, author of The Castaways

Impressively sustained . . . echoes of Hammond Innes's tales of adventure . . . even of Michael Crichton. But the strongest element, the crystalline depiction of the Arctic landscape, where the sapping cold is the real enemy, is all the achievement of Kristian . . . also an affecting tribute to paternal love and the power of the human spirit.

—— James Owen , THE TIMES 'Thriller of the Month'

Compulsively readable, and written with real heart - I devoured this.

—— SAM LLOYD, author of The Memory Wood

The best Giles Kristian novel so far - and that's setting the bar almost impossibly high. Moving from the past has freed up one of our generations most creative and thoughtful writers to craft a story of generational love, of care and loss, of knowing when to let go of that to which we most want to hold on - and all within the envelope of a narrative thriller that is absolutely of our time and essential to our moving beyond where we are. It's exciting and beautiful, and inspiring and thought-provoking, all in one. Unmissable.

—— MANDA SCOTT, author of A Treachery of Spies

'From its slowburn start, Where Blood Runs Cold moves rapidly to become a white-knuckle, explosive ride with more twists and turns than a skiing black run. It takes you to the edge, to the awful 'what would I doto save my child' moment. First class.'

—— BEN KANE, author of Lionheart

Giles Kristian takes the reader into the Arctic's terrible beauty with the authenticity of a man who's been there and done that. This is a prescient, hard bitten roller-coaster of a thriller.

—— ANTHONY RICHES, author of Nemesis

I think Giles Kristian has a film deal on his hands here.

—— GERAINT JONES, author of Blood Forest

Wrap up warm! . . . this is a book which drags you in to its lethal environment.

—— SHOTS magazine

Giles Kristian . . . is a superb storyteller, one of the very finest writing today . . . [he] has demonstrated that not only can he make any period of history his own but that he can also master a new genre entirely . . . a wonderful writer whose books belong on your shelf.

—— FOR WINTER NIGHTS

What July Knew is a compelling story about growing up and grief told in the fresh and innocent voice of a child. I was gripped.

—— Jane Shemilt

Come for the 90s nostalgia and stay for the warm and unforgettable protagonist. I rooted so hard for July and will always remember her.

—— Laura Pearson

What July Knew is a winning blend of sweet, nostalgic, compelling, shocking and heartbreaking. I defy readers not to root for July as she searches for the truth about her mother

—— Gilly Macmillan

What a wonderful story. Full of vivid characters, but mostly of course, July.

—— Amanda Reynolds

Heartbreaking, joyous and deeply compelling, What July Knew is a beautifully-told tale of great loss and great hope. I loved it.

—— Rosie Walsh

The plot is full of extremely satisfying twists and turns. Koch has written other thrillers, but this is destined to be her big breakout.

—— BookBrunch

[What July Knew is] touchingly effective in conveying the oppressiveness of a childhood lived in fear

—— Sunday Times

Compelling plot, this is an emotional read

—— Heat

Fans of Joanna Cannon's The Trouble with Goats and Sheep will devour this

—— Woman & Home

Totally heartbreaking, but also uplifting, this is a real gem of a read

—— The Sun

Its twists and turns leave your blood running cold

—— Good Housekeeping

It's rare that a thriller actually lives up to that word. But here - in the jeopardy its characters are plunged into, in the story's twists and turns, and in the true star of the novel, the mountain itself - Breathless truly manages to thrill

—— James Smythe , author of I Still Dream

A truly breathtaking thriller. It had me gasping and guessing with every turn of a page. The audacity of the adventure is only matched by the brilliance of McCulloch's deft and evocative writing

—— Kim Curran , author of the Slay series

A visceral, thrill-seeker's story of one woman's struggle to conquer her fears, with murder and mayhem at 8,000m. I really loved it.

—— Rosie Andrews, author of Leviathan

A frighteningly original novel written with a deep passion for the mountains and an inquisitive mind. A brilliantly chilling read

—— Giles Kristian

Chilling . . . there really is something about the combination of a remote snowbound location and a killer hiding in plain sight that is a recipe for success

—— Crime Monthly

A blockbuster-worthy thriller

—— Sunday Express
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