BLOG TOUR REVIEW

Review for 'The Snowstorm' by Triona Walsh.

Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Triona Walsh, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous

Publication date 2nd February 2023.

This is Triona Walsh's debut novel.


I was originally drawn to this book by its intriguing and eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'An utterly gripping thriller that will have you hooked from the very first page until the final jaw-dropping, heart-racing twist. Fans of Catherine Cooper, Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware will be glued to the pages of this unmissable locked-room mystery.' I am a huge fan of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).

This novel consists of a prologue, 53 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are short to medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!

This book is based in Ireland 🇮🇪, UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture.I have actually holidayed in Ireland so am intrigued to see if I recognise places based on anywhere I visited while there.

This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonist is Cara. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.


This book is fantastically written with vivid descriptions that absolutely grip the readers attention and puts them right in the middle of it all feeling the hair raise on your arms and feeling the sweat run down your back.

This book is an interesting 'locked room' mystery set in one of my favourite places in the world... Ireland!!! I listened to this book on Audiobook and absolutely loved listening to the Irish accents which Jacqueline did a fantastic job portraying along with bringing the characters to life. A group of friends return to the remote Irish island, Inis Mór on the Aran Islands, for a reunion but when a snowstorm hits the fun turns to fear when one of the group is found dead. I found the storyline to be a slow burn although it did pick up in places. It is very well written with an interesting plot and storyline. The fact that it is based in a remote location in a snow storm gives the book a chilling and ominous atmosphere which makes it a perfect book to read on a winters day in front of a fire especially during the moments that make the hair on your arms stand on end. The storyline is filled with friendship, secrets, distrust, murder, tension, suspense and everything you could ask for in a dark and chilling psychological thriller. The suspect list is quite small so you are continuously guessing which of the small group is a killer. There were several twists throughout the book. Unfortunately I worked out a few of them but I have read hundreds of crime books so it is getting harder and harder to shock me so please don't let that put you off as I still enjoyed the book even after guessing some of the twists. I enjoyed the way the victim "spoke from the dead" helping Cara work out who the killer is. Triona's fantastic and vivid descriptions leaves you feeling the sea wind in your hair and rubbing your arms feeling the snow storm. I love how everything is wrapped up and explained at the end leaving no loose ends which I am not a fan of at all so well done Triona.

This is one of the few books that I have listened 100% on Audiobook. If I listen to a book on audiobook I usually also read the physical book between but for the second time I listened to the whole book and I was impressed! I must say a HUGE congratulations to the narrator Jacqueline Milne who did a great job bringing this story to life. I would listen to it in the car and while walking at any opportunity and Jacqueline did a fantastic job on both male and female characters voices!!! I'm not only looking forward to reading more books by Triona but also to listening to more books narrated by Jacqueline!


The characters are realistic, strong and each have their own unique personalities. I really liked Cara and enjoyed her character development throughout the book. She is a strong female who is a complete bad @$$, I wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of her but at the same time she is someone you would definitely want on your side as the love for her friends shine through. I also really liked Patrick Kelly who I felt sorry for. However, I wasn't a huge fan of the other characters who I struggled to click with. Regardless of whether you live or hate the characters they all jump out of the pages and play their parts perfectly. I am looking forward to reading more books by Triona and seeing what she comes up with next!


Overall a chilling, atmospheric psychological thriller perfect for a snowy, stormy or winters day!


Genres covered in this novel include Domestic Fiction, Suspense Thriller, Women's Psychological Fiction, Serial Killer Thrillers, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, and Psychological Fiction amongst others.


I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Catherine Cooper, Lucy Foxley, Ruth Ware, Clare Mackintosh and Alice Feeney.

341 pages.

This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle and £9.66 in paperback (at time of review) via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!

Rated 4 /5 (I enjoyed it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.

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This was an interesting one, I typically stay away from the locked room mysteries but the island concept got my attention. I listened to the audio version and the narration was great, held my interest throughout the entirety. I would definitely read more by this author!

Aran Isles, mystery, law-enforcement, language-issues, thriller, superstitiousness, superstitions, Ireland, Irish-lore, cold-case, widow, writers, film-industry, reunion, survivor's guilt, friendship, blizzards, island-life, suspense, murder-investigation, secrets, closed-circle-mystery, unputdownable, twisty, snow-season, relatives, relationships, siblings.*****

The Sergeant's husband drowned in a storm at sea ten years ago. Now she is back to the island with their friends and relatives to meet with the film people brought there to make a film about a book written by one of them. Then one of the islanders is murdered during the current blizzard that has them all stranded and without cell service. The characters are all so realistic--especially the hysterical one. Definitely a riveting read!
Narrator Jacqueline Milne was spectacular, perfect for this story with her knowledge of correct pronunciation of all words.
I requested and received a free temporary audio copy from Bookouture Audio via NetGalley. Thank you!

A different take on a locked room mystery being a 'locked island' one. I enjoyed the setting, and the storyline of a reunion of old friends. This book had all the makings of a good mystery; old friends, long held secrets, dark and stormy weather. The ending fell a little flat but overall I would reccommend the read. The narrator of the audiobook did a good job.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was twisted and all of these “friends” are messed up! They are all horrid people and are terrible which made the book interesting. The mystery in this book was great and a pager turner.

I really enjoyed this one. All the twists and turns, the new evidence coming to light, people not being who you think they are. It was captivating and intriguing!

I loved having the audiobook to read alongside the physical - I loved hearing the pronunciation of the Irish words and character names rather than just seeing them, because I guarantee you, I would have gotten most of them wrong!

My one real gripe with the book is the synopsis - it made me expect a much smaller locked-room mystery, of six friends locked inside a small cabin, with mysterious things happening. However, the real scope of the story was a group of six friends stuck on an island with approximately 700 other people, where the characters are essentially free to roam around the island, but there's just no way to return to the mainland.

From the cover, I was told that "six friends are trapped. one of them is dead. one of them is a killer." That totally took away some of the intrigue of the book, as it severely limited the suspect pool for the reader, even though the main character was looking elsewhere for suspects too.

That's not an issue with the book, but more the marketing side of it.

To reiterate, I loved the reading experience of the book, I just wish that the marketing left more room for those alternate theories to thrive better.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing both an ebook and audiobook advance copy for me to read!

Thank you Netgalley, Bookouture and Tríona Walsh for the audio ARC of this book

This book is just what I was looking for during the summer heat here in Aus. It transferred me to the winter setting and the descriptions were really vivid that I felt like I could have been there.

The plot is just perfect and the trope where someone turns up dead and a whole group of friends are all back together after lots of time apart is just so gripping.

The twists were very clever and I didn't pick the ending at all - which is saying something because I usually pick up on where things are headed.

The narrator did an amazing job at keeping me hooked the whole way.

The author wrote such a cleverly twisted plot, set in the perfect snowy setting. I would highly recommend this book for a winter read/listen or those like me who are struggling in heat and need that winter imagery!

This book just felt middle of the road. I had definitely read thrillers before with the never ending friend group troupe cliche. Unlike its predecessors (the hunting party and one by one) the snowstorm is forgettable, which usually never the case. I found the narrator was a redeeming quality, because she wasn’t annoying. Overall, I wouldn’t recommend this book unless specifically asked my opinions about it.

The Snowstorm by Triona Walsh

Six friends are gathered together back on the island of Innis Mór, Ireland, to celebrate the life and tenth anniversary of the death of Cillian: Cara, his wife, Seamus, his brother, and Maura, Socha, Ferdia, and Daithì, to complete the group of the childhood best friends. Cara doesn't arrive the first day she arrives the second day. One friend never shows up and is missing which is Maura. Cara has known Maura since they were 8 years old.

Of course there is a snowstorm that interferes with trying to solve the crime which Cara is trying to get to the bottom of it. Cara begins to learn more about the friends she has known for a long time and some of those things puts a new light on the people she thought she knew well.

Narrated by Jacqueline Milne who does a good job giving the characters their voice. This was a middle of the road read for me. I recommend this to people who like thrillers that take place in Ireland. The only fault I found some of the things was repetitive that is why it ended up being mediocre read for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for a free copy of The Snowstorm for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

A group of friends returning to the remote Irish island they once called home find a fun reunion turning into a nightmare when one of their own turns up dead. With access to the island cut off due to weather, the group must act quickly to uncover the motive behind their friend's murder.

I absolutely love a good locked room mystery and this one was no exception. Fast paced, well written with good characters and a good plot, this one was hard to put down. My only criticism is that while the landscape and weather were described well, something about it just didn't quite give me the bone-chilling feeling you get with say a Ragnar Jonasson book. Still, I absolutely loved this one and look forward to more from this author!

Unfortunately, this wasn’t my favorite read. Apologies for the name misspellings that are sure to exist here; I listened to an advance audio copy and am trying to figure out how on earth to spell any of these names. I’m torn between 2 and 3 stars, but leaning toward 3 because Cara really proves herself in the end.

The premise and setting sounded excellent. I’m a total sucker for a closed-island, snowstorm, friend-dies mystery. Especially in winter. Except from the beginning, it all went wrong for me.

Cara wasn’t particularly good at her job as a Garda. She made all kinds of assumptions from the start, even as she told Patrick she never made assumptions. It was also infuriating from the beginning that she never learned Irish, despite it being the local language. How can someone police well if they can’t speak with the locals? Throughout, nobody on the island seemed to have any respect for her. I get that islands can be closed-feeling to outsiders, but 10 years seems a bit long to be disrespectful to someone.

The other characters were just generally (and then quite specifically) unlikeable. There wasn’t background on any of them that made me feel invested in their stories, and they were all bickering and asshole-ish to everyone, including others in their group of friends. At the bitter end, you kind of find out why—but I have a hard time believing they all would have gone on with their reunion weekend as planned if they showed up IRL and three of them were being total snarkwads to each other. Circa takes offense to everything, Frodia belittles every woman in the book every time they speak, and Seamus seems to think everything is grand and he’s hot $hit because he’s been away in Hollywood. No way.

My other issue was the massive set of inconsistencies throughout the story. There’s a giant snowstorm, and power is out for the whole island…but the characters go tramping all around the island to use the WiFi, or investigate, or make phone calls, or go with Cara as she handles official business. On foot. After we learn the snow is so deep cars are buried. Sure, Jan. Also, the final action scene (no spoilers, sorry this is vague) where Frodia and Seamus handle some things? I know this is fiction. But hundreds of people showing up? Okkkkkk. I don’t think even island boat captains are crazy enough to go out in that storm.

This is one of those books that I think would be an amazing movie, but just didn’t work as written for me. I’m sure many others will love it!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was not for me, it wasn't directly bad just dull. I think its a good book for those who like slower thrillers where you can see the plot twist coming, I just don't care for those kinds of books. I also didn't really care about any of the characters wich made me not care about anything that happend.

The Snow Storm is a brilliant murder mystery and it’s the debut novel of Triona Walsh. Everything about this book was just wonderful, from the setting to the storyline. Once I started this book I just knew nothing would keep me away from it. A lot of times with books like this I know quite early on who the culprit is but loved reading this as I was suspicious of everyone . This is super debut novel and I can’t wait to read more from this author. I listened to this on audio and it was a great listen. The narrator was excellent and the narration just flowed so smoothly.

The Snow Storm

An Isolated setting and a murder my favourite type of story but this just had something missing for me it was quite slow paced in places and I did find myself glazing over a few parts. I did enjoy the narration and if I hadn't had the audio I would have struggled with some of the pronunciations so I'm glad I had the ebook and audio together. It was still an enjoyable Snowy setting read.

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture and Triona Walsh for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest Review

The Snowstorm by Triona Walsh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Bookshelves/tags: 2023, audio, contemporary, crime-mysteries, europe, ireland-irish, netgalley, read, thrillers, women-centered

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Triona Walsh for the ARC audiobook. I thought it was an intriguing story and a beautifully narrated audio that kept me engaged. At first, I gave this 3-1/5 stars (rounded to 4) and then I thought, it really deserves 4 stars, particularly due to the mood-setting, Irish author and the Irish narrator. And when I find the narrator's name, I'll add it here. So there you have it.

On New Year's Eve, 6 friends arrive in the cold winter on a windy, Irish island (an oxymoron for sure) off the coast of County Cork....brrrr. That's all I needed to set in my mind the secluded, freezing, island setting and ambiance. The friends are there to commemorate a decade's old death of one of their dear friends, Cillian. He was a brother to one and the husband to another, and loved by all. Or was he? This is a closed room (house/island) kind of Irish mystery, and it was really fun to read it with all of its interesting twists, turns, and characters.

Very early on, one of the guests, Maura, is a no-show and later discovered missing. I'm sure you'll wonder if all of the characters will get picked off one by one. I surely did (and I'm not telling). Next, the island loses electricity in the bloody snowstorm. The island is remote by nature and has never had good wifi reception and there are no boats going in or out of the harbor.

Cara, who lost her husband Cillian, the one they're celebrating, is the only garda on the small island, and the police proceedings, written by Walsh, are both interesting and exciting. I especially enjoyed the strong female lead that she was, and seeing the story progress through Cara's eyes and mind, as she begins searching for her missing/murdered BFF, Maura. I really enjoyed several of the characters and was glad Walsh developed a character like the young island man, Patrick. The novel could have been a bit shorter, but I usually feel that way about most books.

I absolutely INHALED this. The narration is absolutely top notch. The writing fantastic, and furthermore I cannot believe this is a debut! A must for your list if you love a murder mystery.

A seemingly close group of lifelong friends regroup a decade after the passing of the seventh member of their group. As they all still grieve and struggle to come to terms with their loss and the what if’s another member of the group is murdered. Cara the only one to remain on the island is also a Garda and as she persists in trying to find out who killed Maura years of secrets, lies and petty jealousies unfold. Twisty, turny perfection. #Jorecommends

The Aran Islands on the west coast of Ireland, the Atlantic Ocean. A tragedy happened to a group of friends ten years ago tearing apart their group. Ten years later, on New Year’s Eve, the six of them are united again. However one of them missing. Later, there is a body found. Snow starts to fall, a storm set in. There is no way out. Nowhere to hide, no one to call.

This book was okay but not amazing. From the description I expected the group to be locked inside the cabin/house unable to get out and knowing one of them is dead and one is a killer. However instead of a suspenseful thriller it was more of a cop drama/ investigation. Overall it had a nice atmosphere but it was a bit slow in parts, I needed a few more twists and turns to keep me fully engaged, however it did pick up at the end and I found the final reveals really interesting.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3
I really enjoyed the spine-chilling atmosphere of the blizzard, the charming setting on an island off the coast of Ireland and the fact that the (audio)book is peppered with words and whole sentences in Irish but I found the plot and the narration somewhere flat and a bit boring.

The big revelation (aka the murderer and the motive) only comes at the very end of the book but there are no other significant or shocking plot twists. I felt like the red herrings the author chose to add to the plot weren't exploited, otherwise it could've been a much more thrilling story.

The narrator has a charming voice, she speaks clearly and, even if I cannot judge her proficiency in that language, she sounded so fluent even in Irish. I just had to speed the audiobook up to 1.25 towards the end because it felt somewhat too slow.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the review copy!

“The Snowstorm” by Tríona Walsh is an absolutely incredible read. I had no idea what to expect from this thriller, but I was very amazed by it.

Six friends gather together for New Year’s Eve at an Irish island. It has been ten years since a tragedy that tore them apart. One guest never shows up. And then, a dead body is found. And there is no way out of the island, because of a huge snow storm.

This is a true ‘you never know, who you can trust’-story! You are doubting everyone.

There are so many plottwists in this book. Filled with suspense and excitement. You can not help but hold your breath several times throughout this story.

I absolutely love Cara as a character. She feels so human. She is a character with true feelings and emotions, and she acts in care for her family and friends.

The story takes place at an Irish island, and therefore the characters talk irish. This is a fun little twist as well. Do not worry, if you do not know irish, because all of the words are explained, because Cara does not understand irish either. I just like that the setting is reflected in the language.

I listened to this as an audiobook narrated by Jacqueline Milne. I just wanted to give her a shoutout as well. She is a great narrator, and she tells the story very well.

I loved this murder mystery! I am happy that I got to read it, and I would recommend every mystery- and thriller lover to read “The Snowstorm” by Tríona Walsh as well.

This is a great locked room murder mystery set on an Irish island which becomes cut off by a violent snowstorm in the run up to New Years Eve, and the island becomes cut off from the mainland.

The story, told from multiple POVs, begins quite slowly but the pace soon picks up and there were plenty of red herrings. The character of the protagonist, Cara, was very well developed and I found her really likeable, though I feel the other characters were not so well drawn. I loved the island setting and the author did a great job describing the terrible conditions due to the storm.

I am glad that I listened rather than read this book because I know I'd have had problems with the Irish names, and the sprinkling of Irish dialogue. The narrator, Jacqueline Milne, had a gorgeous voice and made this audiobook a pleasure to listen