by Anne Holt
First published 2011
A train carrying passengers to northern Norway derails during a fierce blizzard at 1,222 meters elevation. The survivors take refuge in a nearby centuries-old hotel, believing they have found safety from the storm. Their relief turns to terror when a guest is discovered dead the following morning. Retired police inspector Hanne Wilhelmsen, confined to a wheelchair after a bullet damaged her spine, reluctantly agrees to investigate. She has no interest in returning to detective work, but her instincts and curiosity draw her back into familiar patterns of observation and deduction. When a second body appears, Hanne realizes a killer moves among the stranded passengers. The situation grows more complex with the presence of a mysterious guest who traveled in a private rail car and now occupies the hotel's top floor under armed guard. No one knows this person's identity, but their presence unsettles everyone. Hanne forms her own theories but keeps them private. Trapped by her disability, the relentless storm, and a murderer, she must solve the puzzle before panic consumes the survivors and more people die.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, locked-room-mystery
Setting: Norway
Period: 1222 meters elevation
336 pages · Hardcover · Scribner