Considering this book was about an alien invasion and life-changing events, the writing was emotionless, making it hard to connect with and care for the characters. I also felt the time-line didn't work in terms of the way boats were adapted to carry huge numbers of people etc. Completely unrealistic and at that point I started to disconnect from the story. Not really for me, I'm afraid.

Like others I have mixed feeling about this novel. Great concept and the first third was great, if a little far fetched, the last part was quite unreadable at times. Odd but worth a try if you enjoy science fiction

It has been a long time since Tom Rob Smith last published a novel but this one definitely makes up for the wait. Thoroughly enjoyable, engaging and propulsively written, I flew through it.

The blurb for "Cold People" made it impossible to resist requesting it on NetGalley. I wish I had been stronger. The concept is brilliant, the writing is okay, the characters just feel wrong, and the story itself feels like huge chunks have been cut. I was left with far more questions than answers. Either the editor(s) did a hatchet job, or this was written entirely with a movie in mind. Hugely disappointing.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

I was extremely intrigued by the description of this book and I couldn’t wait to start reading. I absolutely flew through the first few chapters. Tom Smith has a way of developing characters so quickly that you feel like you know them after only a few pages. He has a very immersive writing style which I loved. The first part is about humanities mad dash to Antarctica which I loved. But then it jumped forward. I was disappointed by this as I really wanted to experience the building of a new civilisation. Instead I was given snippets and the end result. I did enjoy this book but it didn’t turn out the way I expected.

I’m picky when choosing science fiction novels to read, I try to avoid scenarios I simply can’t envisage and for me this includes alien beings, particularly those with superpowers. So why pick this one, which tells of the invasion of Earth by aliens so powerful that they are able to force humans to scurry away from their homes to the only space they’re allowed to occupy – Antarctica, the most inhospitable place on the planet! Well, my reasons are twofold: firstly, I have previous with Tom Rob Smith, having much admired his novel Child 44; secondly, I have a bit of a thing for apocalyptic novels and this one looked like it would certainly tick that box.

I’m not going to delve into the details of the plot except to say that for me it comprises four elements:

The event: sudden and uncompromising; a statement is made and a timeframe is given.

The People: we’re introduced to a select few whose adventures we’ll follow, notably an American family on holiday in Lisbon, a boy the family meet there and an Israeli soldier (of course we’ll meet others as the story progresses) .

The Journey: chaotic and often heartbreaking.

Arrival and Survival: those who successfully reach their destination have to find a way to live in this virtually uninhabitable place.

I don’t like cold places, so the whole thing gave me the shivers (quite literally at times). But the story is very well told and as a result I quickly became invested in the fate of the key players, though curious as to how this tale would retain my interest for the many pages remaining – I hoped it wasn’t going to become a grim battle of attrition with nothing more interesting to impart. I needn’t have worried, there’s a lot more depth here than the elements I’ve described would suggest. Foremost amongst them is an underlying discourse suggesting that humans might well have been deserving of their fate and, whether this is accepted or not, what could they do to overcome a challenge which presents a real threat to the very future of Homo sapiens on this planet.

It would be easy to pick a few holes in the narrative, but I found that I really enjoyed the story and found some of the science (there’s quite a bit here) and particularly the intrinsic moral debates really interesting and thought provoking. It’s most definitely a piece that I believe will continue to prick my conscience and cause me to re-evaluate how I live my life, the good things and the bad.

I’m not quite sure what to say about this book. I’m a fan of Tom Rob Smith after reading ‘Child 44’ which I thoroughly enjoyed but I can’t be as wholehearted in my praise for ‘Cold People’. The writing is excellent and carries the reader along at a good pace, but I found the concept of banishment to Antarctica difficult to believe. Those who made it safely to the Earth’s coldest continent want to ensure the future of the human race and set about a series of outrageous genetic manipulations which for me are just too far fetched.

I found this a too difficult sci fi tale as after the initial premise of an alien invasion forcing a rapid evacuation of the human race to Antarctica it became a treatise on eugenics. The actual storyline seemed to disappear so unusually for me I gave up which is why only two stars for the first half of the story. Disappointed.

I am not sure what I was expecting from this book, but what I got was a brilliant, believable story of a possible life on earth.
The characters were well established and well developed.
The story started like 'an ordinary day in life' and then man got to pay for his poor guardianship of the earth in a way I would not have dreamt of.
Brilliant Characters, Brilliant storyline, well researched, easily readable fantastic story.
Well done!
Thanks to the author and to the publisher for an advanced copy for honest review.

An interesting take on an alien invasion story, made even more interesting in that the story mostly ignores the aliens.

So much thought has been put into this by the author, but perhaps inevitably I did have lots of questions and I felt the last quarter of the book did a disservice to the first three.

Thank you Simon & Schuster for my review copy.

I was so excited to read this book and it did not disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed it and cannot recommend it enough.

I haven't actually finished this but I think that at halfway through I've got a fair idea of whether I like it or not, and unfortunately I don't.
The premise basically is that aliens arrive one day and tell humans they all have to move to Antarctica or be exterminated. Not everyone makes it, but some so, and then they're faced with the problem of continued survival. So far so good, but then the story took an unexpected turn into genetic engineering and creation of a new species of 'cold-adapted humans'. I hadn't really felt any attachment to the characters up to this point but this is where I really lost interest.
Sorry, not one for me, so i won't be reviewing it on the blog.

Wow - just wow!
I'm a massive fan of Tom Rob Smith's books, so was excited to receive an ARC of Cold People. Slightly trepidatious too, in case it wasn't as good as previous books
I needn't have worried, I was hooked from the start, sitting up into the night reading it, then waking up in the morning thinking about it.
Life as we know it on Planet Earth is about to change, when all human beings are ordered to travel to Antartica within 7 days, or face a certain death.
We follow a family on their desperate journey and through their, and all humankind's, attempts to make this inhospitable continent habitable.
Fast forward and the humans have been tampering with nature in their aim to create a new race, the Cold People, who are able to easily survive and so tackle things humans can't do. The intention being the survival of the human race. What will happen when the Cold People are allowed their freedom?
This is a challenging, disturbing read, do not miss it.

Planet Earth has been invaded and left with one ultimatum.
All of humanity has 30 days to get to Antarctica. This frozen wasteland will be the only place on earth that mankind will be allowed to survive on.
We follow the journey of a few people who make it on time. We see how they adapt to the harsh realities of life in the most extreme conditions and how they soon realise that they will have to change their whole approach to life if the human race is to survive.
Tom Rob Smith has written a quite superb story with intriguing and heartfelt characters that go through every emotion possible. The author’s writing is first class and the story is extraordinary with its ingenious plot. This novel is a truly remarkable achievement.

I am a huge fan of Tom Rob Smith, based on his previous Child 44 series, so went into this novel already onboard. I didn't even read the full blurb in my haste to grab this book, so excited for a new novel from this talented writer.

Cold People didn't disappoint. It gets points for style with a fresh dystopian story of a mass migration of people to Antarctica following unforeseen events. A real rollercoaster of a journey as we follow a number of people on this, seemingly, impossible trek to the bottom of the Earth. It illustrates beautifully the duelling sides of human nature under stress and feels authentic as we, the reader, undertake this heroic feat alongside.

The scope of world-building as the novel progresses from journey to Antarctic settlement is astounding. The creativity of thinking that went into a technologically deprived existence stands out. What comes of the technology they do have to hand was inspired. This is a novel that captivated me and proves, oddly, that like the cockroach, people can thrive just about anywhere. But, it is the next step that transforms this story and takes it in a wholly unexpected direction. It may have gone a fair bit sci fi but that felt right for this narrative and the people struggling to survive in such a hostile environment.

All in all, Cold People is a novel I wouldn't hesitate to recommend. It is original and thought-provoking. It's an adventure story that will take the reader on a journey he/she will not expect.

Cold People by Tom Rob Smith

Following a mysterious and apocalyptic alien invasion, the Human Race is banished to Antarctica in a mass Exodus. Those not going will be destroyed. Once there, humans must learn to live in the hostile icy environment but also to consider how they may evolve and adapt as a species, to ensure future survival. Could this evolution be accelerated by genetic technology? What are the ethics of this?

This book fits in with the Global anxiety regarding human existence ,brought about by Global Warming, the Pandemic and War. It is a compelling story; a pacy thriller. It also provokes thought about what is actually important in life when the normal, everyday is at risk. #ColdPeople #TomRobSmith

A chilling, literally, account of what would happen if the surviving population of an alien invasion were banished to Antarctica and expected to somehow make a community in this most inhospitable of places. Liza and Atto, who become quite central in the story meet in Lisbon during a hot summer. Two completely different people who live far apart and have totally different lives but a chemistry instantly links them. Suddenly an alien invasion informs the whole world they have just 30 days to get to Antartica in order to
have any chance of survival. A massive exodus begins and at this
point I was totally hooked. I loved the
almost impossible journey, the insurmountable obstacles that prevented any type of a life akin to the one they were used to and the enormous challenges that faced the very existence of humanity. As time went on and we moved into a more science fiction element to the story, my interest waned slightly but I found the morality questions raised interesting. A potentially terrifying scenario that has the reader questioning who is actually right. However, although the seemingly unfinished ending left a lot to be desired, I wonder if there will be a sequel as I feel it was left to the imagination of the reader to assume the outcome. The initial alien invasion was never really explored and I can only assume it was meant as a lesson to the humans of this planet. I think this would be great for a book club as the discussions would be endless. A very interesting original concept that explored morality, emotions and endurance I recommend this book but would have preferred a more complete finish.

Cold People is a completely different direction from anything Tom Rob Smith has written before. Its so hard to categorise this book; its part Apocolyptic thriller, part sci fi, a dash of coming of age, a sprinkle of romance, and even ever so slightly a horror novel.

The book centres around an alien invasion (which I feel is so well done. We’re not told why they come, or even what they are, they just act as a plot point) in which the human race are given 30 days to get to Antarctica, otherwise they are wiped out. What fallows is the story of how they get there, and then what happens 20 years later. The story involves numerous characters from around the world who make it to Antarctica.

I feel like reviewing the plot too closely will ruin the journey the book takes you. Id urge anyone to read it, whatever your tastes. A remarkable read.

If you're a fan of science fiction, science and horror you need to read this book. The story begins with a chance meeting between Lisa and Atto where they immediately feel a strong attraction even though they've never met before. Before long, panic, chaos and loss occur on a massive scale when earth is invaded and the world's population have a very short window of time to relocate. Their destination is one of the world's most inhospitable areas.... Antarctica.

Will Lisa and Atto survive the extreme conditions with thir families and how will humankind adapt to the new conditions. This is a chilling tale of what could happen in a similar situation and how man can use their knowledge for both good and evil.

An ultimate tale of mankind's struggle to survive.

Cold people by Tom Rob Smith

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC ebook for an unbiased review.

This was a premise, whilst not overly unique (aliens take over, humans fight to survive) the way it all panned out felt fresh and cleverly fashioned into a story.
Despite being sci-fi, this was character driven rather than inundating readers with jargon and overly complex technology aspects. There is some scientific stuff that goes on, including the rather unsettling moral questions it brings, and that was a really solid part of the story.

It is well written, great descriptions that really brought the atmosphere to life.

Unfortunately it also, for me at least, fell down somewhat by not having the depth of characters I had hoped for. Particularly as it is so character driven. I often felt wanting to know just that little more than was given.

On that premise I vyied between 3 or 4 stars. Ultimately it sort of fits in at 3.5 stars for me, but not enough to show it as 4 stars. So 3 stars is shown, but I'd add that 0.5 as well.

Some might well come away having enjoyed it far more. Its just for me, it felt a little too unfinished with characters. The rest though was great.

3.5/5 stars 🌟