by Graham Joyce
First published 2010
Jake and Zoe are skiing in the French Alps when an avalanche buries their resort. They dig themselves out and make their way back to the village, but everyone has vanished. The shops stand empty. No rescue teams arrive. When they try to hike out, they always end up back where they started. Days pass in this strange loop. Zoe begins seeing things that aren't there. Jake has vivid dreams that feel more real than waking life. They start to question what really happened on the mountain. Did anyone actually survive the avalanche? As their situation becomes more surreal, Jake and Zoe must confront what their love means when faced with an impossible reality. Joyce explores how two people hold onto each other when everything else slips away.
Genres: literary-fiction, adventure, mystery, fantasy, contemporary, psychological-thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: France, French Alps
Period: Contemporary
256 pages · Hardcover · Gollancz