A Cold Season

Jan 03, 2012 Mark rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror

The debut novel from Alison Littlewood, this follows Cass and her son Ben as they try to make a new life for themselves - following the disappearance of husband and dad Pete in Afghanistan - in her childhood village of Darnshaw. But things have changed since she was last there and people don’t warm to her - apart from stand-in headmaster, Theo Remick. Littlewood begins the story small, with mundane detail that highlights the ordinariness of both the characters and the situation, gradually buildi...more

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Sep 02, 2012 Annette Gisby rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, psychological-thriller

After losing her husband in Afghanistan, Cass moves with her son Ben to Darnshaw, a village she lived in for a short time as a child. She has mixed memories of the place; her father had been the vicar for a while and Cass feels she's lost him to the church and God. But the village is not how she remembered it. Most of the locals are unfriendly, except for the charismatic replacement headmaster. Foxdene Mill, an old mill converted into flats is to be their new home, but Cass and Ben are the only...more After losing her husband in Afghanistan, Cass moves with her son Ben to Darnshaw, a village she lived in for a short time as a child. She has mixed memories of the place; her father had been the vicar for a while and Cass feels she's lost him to the church and God. But the village is not how she remembered it. Most of the locals are unfriendly, except for the charismatic replacement headmaster. Foxdene Mill, an old mill converted into flats is to be their new home, but Cass and Ben are the only occupants except for rats or mice that are scratching in the walls. The place is half-finished, but there is no sign of the builders. As soon as they arrive, Cass starts having strange dreams and Ben turns into someone she doesn't recognise at all. He becomes sullen and violent with her, not all like the child she knows. When the snow falls shortly after their move, Cass and Ben are effectively trapped in the village. There are no phones, no email, no post, no way to contact anyone else and very little food in the local shop. Cass and Ben are on their own.

This book was wonderful from start to finish. The style of writing is quite simple and everyday, but it draws you in and keeps you reading well into the night. There's a flow to the words, despite their simplicity. Cass is the narrator for the whole book, which might have meant that you feel you've missed out on other parts, but you don't. It reminds me of some of the earlier Stephen King's, where strange things happen to ordinary people.

The snow and the village are almost characters in themselves and there is a deep sense of claustrophobia as you read about how they can't get out of the village and no help can get in.

Cass and Ben seem quite ordinary and the book starts off with mundane things, such as their move and settling in, but it isn't long before the strange things start happening. Why are most of the other villagers so unfriendly to Cass, but welcome Ben with open arms? Cass wonders if she is going mad and imaging things, so the reader wonders as well. Is she a reliable narrator? We never really find out, which leaves the reader guessing too. There is a small twist at the end, which I didn't guess, and it leaves it open for a sequel one day perhaps, but it does have an end and doesn't leave you hanging. I got to grips with most of the characters, but we never find out Ben's age. We just know he's a child at primary school. But is he five or ten? That would make a difference to how I envisioned him.

There are some tones reminiscent of things like The Wicker Man, but as they say there is nothing new under the sun. A writer may take a universal theme and make it their own. In the end, it's not just down to the story, but the delivery of it. And in that delivery, Ms. Littlwood has created a gem. I'll certainly look out for more of her work in future.
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Aug 12, 2012 Annalise Hulse rated it 2 of 5 stars

Cass is building a new life for herself and her young son Ben after the death of her soldier husband Pete, returning to the village where she lived as a child. But their idyllic new home is not what she expected: the other flats are all empty, there's strange graffiti on the walls, and the villagers are a bit odd. And when an unexpectedly heavy snowstorm maroons the village, things get even harder. Ben is changing, he's surly and aggressive and Cass's only confidant is the smooth, charming Theod...more Cass is building a new life for herself and her young son Ben after the death of her soldier husband Pete, returning to the village where she lived as a child. But their idyllic new home is not what she expected: the other flats are all empty, there's strange graffiti on the walls, and the villagers are a bit odd. And when an unexpectedly heavy snowstorm maroons the village, things get even harder. Ben is changing, he's surly and aggressive and Cass's only confidant is the smooth, charming Theodore Remick, the stand-in headmaster. Not everyone approves of Cass's growing closeness to Mr Remick, and it soon becomes obvious he's not all he appears to be either. If she is to protect her beloved son, Cass is going to have to fight back. Cass realises this is not the first time her family have been targeted by Theodore Remick. But this time, the stakes are immeasurably higher...

(GOODREADS)

I read this book in just over three hours. Not because I was so enthralled I couldn't put it down, but because I just wanted to get to the end. Don't get me wrong, this book wasn't horrifically bad - if it had been I just wouldn't have bothered finishing it. It was just that, from roughly Chapter 3 onwards, it was just very very obvious what was going to happen and I spent the rest of the time getting through it as quickly as I could to see if I was right or not. I was. They say that there is no such thing as an original story any more (and to a degree, that is kind of true) but this book took it to the extreme. Everything about it has been done a hundred times before. From the second Cass (the central and very undeveloped character) drove her young son across the misty moors it was very clear where this book was going. I wanted to be surprised, I really did,but I wasn't. In fact, I think I've seen the movie about 5 times too (Wickerman, Children of the Corn, at least two old Hammer House episodes,The League of Gentlemen)
What can I say? It's fairly inoffensive and will pass a couple of hours if you want to switch your brain off, but if your'e looking for chills and suspense, this book doesn't deliver. And the ending is daft as well as predictable. (less)

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Jun 06, 2012 Anthony rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book started slow, but not in a drag to read sort of way, more an easing into the world author Alison Littlewood was creating for us. And what a world. A northern English village cut off from society during a terrible snow storm. With no communication to the outside world and only strangers surrounding protagonist Cass, we already felt boxed in.

Then came the changes. Her son becoming withdrawn and abusive to her after making friends with a local boy. A domineering fellow school mum, a love...more

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Jan 23, 2013 Mary Gilligan-Nolan rated it 2 of 5 stars

I didn't know what to expect from this book, as the blog on the back of the book and the short preview I had on it, did not reveal whether it had a supernatural slant or not, but it looked interesting enough to pick up and give it a go. It started off as a very promising read, Cass and her young son, Ben, move to s small village Cass lived in as a child for a time, to start a new life, after Cass's husband has been lost and presumed dead in Afghanistan. Incidentally, Ben's age is never revealed,...more I didn't know what to expect from this book, as the blog on the back of the book and the short preview I had on it, did not reveal whether it had a supernatural slant or not, but it looked interesting enough to pick up and give it a go. It started off as a very promising read, Cass and her young son, Ben, move to s small village Cass lived in as a child for a time, to start a new life, after Cass's husband has been lost and presumed dead in Afghanistan. Incidentally, Ben's age is never revealed, so it was difficult to get a real feel for his character. On the day they arrive, Ben is unsettled and unhappy and immediately takes a dislike to the first villager they encounter, Sally. Cass has rented a new apartment at an old Mill redevelopment and finds she is the only tenant there. The villagers are not friendly, with the exception of an elderly man called Bert, and a mother Cass meets at the school called Lucy. There is also a new headmaster at the school called Mr. Remnick, standing in for the headmistress Cass expected to meet and it turns out that Sally is a teaching assistant at the school. Almost upon their arrival, heavy snows arrive in the village, cutting them off from their nearest neighbours, phone lines are down, there is no internet or mobile reception and the only shop in the village, has run out of food. Ben also starts behaving completely out of character and turns into a surly, abusive and zombie-like kid, in the space of a few days. Cass puts this down to the move and the fact he is missing his father. Then, things get weird, to say the least. Now, this started out as a promising story as I said, but I then started to wonder why Cass was not move concerned with the sudden and disturbing transformation in her son and why she did not get the hell out of dodge sooner than she tried to. At the very least, to seek medical advise for him. Plus, she had been given some heavy hints by Bert, which she ignored and the people were down-right strange and yet, she kept fobbing things off. Towards the end of the book, things just got very confusing. I felt it was not very well written, it jumped so quickly from one thing to another, that I thought I'd skipped a page and had to double check a few times, but for a reason I can't quite explain, I just did not get the point of the "Baddie", or understand what he was, or what he was all about. Maybe it was just me, but I just lost complete interest towards the end and just wanted to get it over and done with. I felt it was a complete let down, a good start that fell flat on it's face. For that reason, I have given it two stars, not a good mark from me and not a book I would recommend as a go ahead and read to my book-loving friends.(less)

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Jan 29, 2012 Matthew S. Dent rated it 4 of 5 stars

It seldom seems that a horror novel, a proper horror novel, gets any real mainstream attention. The inclusion of A Cold Season on the Richard and Judy Book Club list made me wonder a little. But Alison Littlewood’s writing has featured frequently in Black Static, and I know that she’s a gifted writer.

A Cold Season is merely confirmation of this.

The plot surrounds Cass and her son Ben, who move to the remote Yorkshire village where she grew up after the death of her husband in Afghanistan. The pl...more It seldom seems that a horror novel, a proper horror novel, gets any real mainstream attention. The inclusion of A Cold Season on the Richard and Judy Book Club list made me wonder a little. But Alison Littlewood’s writing has featured frequently in Black Static, and I know that she’s a gifted writer.

A Cold Season is merely confirmation of this.

The plot surrounds Cass and her son Ben, who move to the remote Yorkshire village where she grew up after the death of her husband in Afghanistan. The plan is to make a fresh start, but it all starts to shift away from Cass when snow seals off the village, and the strangeness of the locals starts to infect Ben.

This is a classic outsider horror. From the beginning it maintains a subtly creepy atmosphere of isolation, of not being part of the group, with the history, the geography and the community of Darnshaw blending into a single entity. There’s a subtle wrongness from the very start in all of the residents, which sets the reader on edge throughout.

And that’s what won it for me. From the start, I couldn’t tell you where the story was going. There was a growing sense of tension as the snow set in and as Cass became increasingly alone, but there was no real indication of where it was going. As it happened, the climax came out of left field, taking me by surprise but still fitting the story.

On a purely selfish note, I’m very glad that this novel was so good. With the wide attention it’s received, especially the aforementioned Richard and Judy Book Club, I’m hopeful that it will give the new wave of British horror exposure to a more mainstream audience. This can only be good for encouraging more publishers to embrace the genre.

Because Littlewood’s début novel is pure horror. It splits open the darkness inside the everyday, and examines it for our entertainment. At its core is parental relationships: Cass’ fears of losing Ben to whatever darkness is at the heart of Darnshaw; the broken and confused shards of her relationship with her father; and the ongoing hurt and confusion of a little boy whose daddy isn’t coming home again.

A Cold Season featuring no vampires, no werewolves, and no fairies. A Cold Season is a creeping, chilling, lingering horror story. And it’s rather excellent.(less)

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Jan 05, 2013 Sue1958 rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was so unlike any book I have read. I always play pretty safe with my reading material.

Someone I know was offering this book for sale on a forum, I bought it as the write up sounded good and on Amazon and good reads it came recommended.

I have to say I wasn't disappointed. The storyline unravelled as I read, it was very good, but reminded me of a film I once watched. I knew this novel hadn't been made into a film though. Jogged my memory on something similar I am sure.

The only drawback was,...more

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May 18, 2012 Janet rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

I really enjoyed this book. It's very dark and spooky. Cass takes her son to live in the village of Darnshaw where she grew up to make a new start. Her husband is a soldier in Afghanistan who is missing presumed dead. Cass moves into a converted old mill and quickly realises that she is the only tennant and the snow has begun to fall.... Very quickly Darnshaw is cut off by the snow, surrounded by hills and Saddleworth moor Cass is without any communication with the outside world. Very soon after...more

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Jan 20, 2012 Lindsay (Little Reader Library) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

Cass has received the devastating news that her army husband Pete has been lost in Afghanistan. Crushed, she moves with her son Ben to the village of Darnshaw, where she spent some of her youth, to make a fresh start. The isolated nature of the location, reached via Saddleworth Moor, is conveyed very early on in the novel, as Cass is driving towards their new home and the landscape becomes a blur, disorientating, as heavy fog sets in. Already there is an element of tension, and as Cass starts to...more Cass has received the devastating news that her army husband Pete has been lost in Afghanistan. Crushed, she moves with her son Ben to the village of Darnshaw, where she spent some of her youth, to make a fresh start. The isolated nature of the location, reached via Saddleworth Moor, is conveyed very early on in the novel, as Cass is driving towards their new home and the landscape becomes a blur, disorientating, as heavy fog sets in. Already there is an element of tension, and as Cass starts to feel unsettled, so does the reader.

Their new home is to be the renovated Foxdene Mill. Upon arrival it becomes clear that they are the first new inhabitants there; the rest of the complex appears to be unoccupied, with some of it unfinished. As the severe winter weather worsens, so Cass’ feeling of isolation in Darnshaw intensifies. Phone lines don’t work anymore, no post is coming in or out, and any communications outside of the village are seemingly impossible. Ben is able to attend his new school though, and there Cass meets some other mothers and the new headteacher, Theo Remick. Strange, unnerving events being to occur, and Cass tries to rationalise these, and puts it all down to them being new, to Ben being uprooted, but she sees shocking changes in her son and his behaviour. To go much further into the story may be to reveal plot that is best discovered by readers for themselves.

This is a tense, nervy horror story with some weird goings-on. It’s outside the genres of fiction I usually read and beyond my comfort zone but I really wanted to read this one. The isolation, the weird and eerie atmosphere, and the tension, is all built effectively, and the growing fear and uncertainty within Cass is conveyed very well. I was on edge whilst reading parts of this novel, and I didn’t want to read it in the dark! There are some grim discoveries and the isolated village and its’ inhabitants hold many dark secrets. A lot of the tension is the thought and suggestion of what may happen, or what you imagine might be the case; it’s achieved nicely in this author’s first novel. The reader needs to be able to suspend disbelief at some of the goings on, and at times I wanted to make Cass act differently, faster somehow. I was compelled to finish it. 3.5/5
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Mar 05, 2012 Fivegoblogging rated it 2 of 5 stars

Ah, Richard and Judy. How I love thee. I take your Book Club recommendations and devour them, safe in the knowledge that you know I don't have much time to choose books or even read these days (apart from toddler board books anyway). I trust you. And I want to read all of your books, ideally on an extended holiday, on a beach or by a pool, with a large G&T at my side and a bottle of factor 20. *snaps fingers* *wakes up*

So thank you WHSmith who answered my begging plea to join their review te...more Ah, Richard and Judy. How I love thee. I take your Book Club recommendations and devour them, safe in the knowledge that you know I don't have much time to choose books or even read these days (apart from toddler board books anyway). I trust you. And I want to read all of your books, ideally on an extended holiday, on a beach or by a pool, with a large G&T at my side and a bottle of factor 20. *snaps fingers* *wakes up*

So thank you WHSmith who answered my begging plea to join their review team for Spring's Book Club selection. It was a lucky dip kind of affair where I eagerly awaited a book shaped parcel to deposit itself on my mat. And sure enough "A Cold Season" by Alison Littlewood did just that.

In essence, this is the story of a mother who has retreated to a remote village that was once her childhood home, to try to build a cocoon of safety around herself and her son after the loss of her husband in Afghanistan. Her need for the familiar and also desire to run away from her most recent life, seem to be in direct contradiction and cause the reader to challenge her decision, that and the frequent references to her unhappy relationship with her father, a vicar. As the strap line on the cover warns, it will not be plain sailing.

In fact if you've even managed to turn the first page before realising that her decision to retreat is probably a bad idea, you are clearly not reading the same book that I was. She moves into an old mill that has been newly converted into flats but she has yet to see any neighbours, her son keeps getting a haunted look in is eyes, other parents at the school seem less than normal and there's an old man with an ancient dog who warns her of ill winds. Oh yes, and then it snows a lot, so when she does realise that she may have made a bad move, there are no phones or open roads. Three guesses how this is going to turn out!

This book is an easy read given that it is a psychological thriller but I did expect more from the plot than I got. The cult undercurrent that ran through the story could have been developed more to give more thrills and unexpected twists but the potential remained unfulfilled in my opinion. The characters were uncomplicated and predictable, and were a bit short of redeeming features to be honest. It is a rare day when I don't recommend a book but today is Leap Day so there you go.

Out of five I would give it two. Sorry Richard and Judy but this one wouldn't even cut the mustard on a beach, after several G&Ts.
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Feb 11, 2012 Nikki rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller, mystery

This would have got 5* from me had the ending not been a bit ridiculous. This book is great for the first 4/5 and then bam! we are in sillyville....very annoying but still 4*'s as I really enjoyed the atmosphere created in the rest of the book.

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Apr 27, 2012 Sonja rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

Dieses Buch war Teil des in England sehr beliebten "Richard's and Judy's BookClub" und ich hatte in deren Podcast nur Gutes darüber gehört. Ich war also neugierig genug, um es auf meinen Kindle zu laden. Doch ich stolperte bereits über den Anfang, den ich einfach nicht verstanden habe. Ich schob es auf ein sprachliches Problem und las weiter. Es entwickelte sich wirklich spannend und sehr, sehr gruselig, auch wenn eigentlich nicht viel geschah und auch der rote Faden fast völlig fehlte. Aber so...more

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Dec 19, 2012 Helen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Cass and her son, Ben, move to the isolated village of Darnshaw for a new start after the death of her soldier husband. Its isolation is increased by heavy snowfall which cuts the village off from the rest of civilisation. She soon comes to realise that all is not as it seems (shades of 'The Wicker Man') and becomes desperate to leave especially for the sake of Ben who, since he started at the village primary school, is becoming increasingly malevolent. I enjoyed 'A Cold Season'. It definitely k...more

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Mar 19, 2012 Debbie Bennett rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Disappointing. This was a Richard & Judy choice and I'd heard good things about it, but I just didn't get this story at all. "Soft" horror, horror-lite, dark fantasy, general fiction? This book didn't know quite what it wanted to be and consequently lacked any real depth for me.

It started off well, if cliched. Fog, woman and child making a new start in life, little village that may not be Quite What It Seems - all a little unsubtle but tropes of the genre and if done well, can set the scene...more

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Feb 22, 2012 Sara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Terrifying book! Not the sort of thing I usually read, but the cover didn't imply that it would be quite as scary as it was. Not really one to read in bed at night when your hubby works away all week - but I did nonetheless. The story was gripping almost until the end, so I had to stick with it to find out what happened, depite being scared out of my wits.
I have to say I did find the ending a little disappointing - everything seemed to resolve itself just a little too quickly, and without wishin...more

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Feb 27, 2012 Desolation Culture rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A Cold Season is the first full length novel from Alison Littlewood whose short fiction has featured in a number of genre magazines such as the award winning, Black Static. This novel was also chosen by the Richard and Judy Book Club, a rarity for a supernatural horror novel.

I can see why too, this is a very engrossing story. Littlewood wastes no time in drawing the reader into a well crafted atmosphere of menace. From the opening chapter where lead protagonist, Cass, drives into the village of...more A Cold Season is the first full length novel from Alison Littlewood whose short fiction has featured in a number of genre magazines such as the award winning, Black Static. This novel was also chosen by the Richard and Judy Book Club, a rarity for a supernatural horror novel.

I can see why too, this is a very engrossing story. Littlewood wastes no time in drawing the reader into a well crafted atmosphere of menace. From the opening chapter where lead protagonist, Cass, drives into the village of Darnshaw through moorland shrouded in fog and picks up an apparently stranded stranger, there is a pervasive sense of threat and paranoia. And something a little bit retro too. This tale of the picture postcard English Village hiding a sinister secret has touches of the Wicker Man, as well as some of the religious overtones of notable seventies horror movies, like The Omen or Rosemary's Baby.

There is, however, a fine line between retro and cliché, and there were times when I thought this novel strayed a little close to the mark on that front. The brilliantly helpful and charmingly seductive (for which read - obviously evil) school teacher, and the equation of paganism with devilry, for example. But overall, the combination of well pitched tension and compulsive narrative, mostly alleviated what gripes I had in this area. Some of that tension was achieved by the general uselessness of the main character, which frustrated me at times. I really wanted her to make a decision and stick with it, to trust her instinct, and I was constantly frustrated by her ineffectual meandering. It seemed to me that every time, even the sanest, most rational person would think, hang on a minute, there's something clearly a bit wrong here in this village, she managed to convince herself otherwise. I should say though, that I found this an enjoyable frustration, and a lead character who always does the right thing would be pretty dull. Also, a lot of the time she was just trying to do the best for her son, Ben, the other primary character in the story.

The relationship between Cass and Ben really forms the pivot of the story, and it is this relationship that lifts the novel out of the ordinary in terms of supernatural thrillers of this type. It is this aspect of the story that I also think is the most original. I did not expect when I initially began reading this book, that Ben himself would be a threat to Cass, as soon becomes apparent. Due to the trauma the family has recently experienced, it is difficult at times to know whether Ben is grieving for his lost father or being manipulated by supernatural forces, and this uncertainty is handled with real flair.

It is often said, and I've mentioned this before, that in horror - owing to the genre's Gothic heritage - the setting is as much a character as any other. Here, Littlewood has done a splendid job with the elements of Gothic tradition. In Darnshaw, it often seems as is the topography itself is conspiring against Cass, and the ensemble of village antagonists arrayed against her seem to draw their strength from the very soil. The looming menace of the village church, where Cass's father once led services, adds further to these Gothic touches.

Overall, I enjoyed A Cold Season. It is not without its faults: the ending resolves a little too quickly and appears weak comparative to the main body of the novel, and some of the character types and themes are a little familiar. Despite these flaws, A Cold Season kept me hooked with its atmospheric portrayal of enforced isolation, hysteria and paranoia. The engaging central drama of a mother's desperate desire to protect her child, while caught in a tug of war with both their past and malign forces in the present - and with that child himself also seemingly intent on bringing harm to them both - has resulted in Littlewood producing a tense, atmospheric, and at times very creepy debút novel.(less)

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Mar 09, 2012 Martin Belcher rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012

Cass is a woman trying to get her life into order after the loss of her Soldier husband, Pete. In an attempt to regain some normality she rents a new flat in a converted mill building in her home village of Darnshaw. She moves in with her young son Ben and continues her work of web designer remotely with her clients online.
Darnshaw is a very remote village located on Saddleworth Moor in the North of England, its occupants are not as welcoming as Cass imagined they would be and the feeling of rem...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Rebecca tedder rated it 4 of 5 stars

Not too sure on the details on the the back (I've been reading alot of Swedish crime of late) as it sounded rather bland yet I thought I would give it a go still.

This book, thankfully, was not what I was expecting at all. There is something about this book that is just compelling and wants you to carry on reading. I love the fact the chapters are rather short - it makes it that little bit harder to put down.

I really enjoyed the suspense and mystery behind this book and got through it very quick....more

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Jul 12, 2012 Dawn rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

Book club book.

It started out well, and was actually quite good for the main part (mildly creepy etc, although I did question the believability of Cass' actions at times), but I got a bit confused towards the end. Not confused as in I couldn't follow it - but confused because previous events seemed to contradict the outcome (mainly Cass' actions and attitude). It seemed a bit contrived, maybe so that there can be a sequel? The ending (and the lead up to it) was also a tad cliched (or maybe just...more

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Jun 03, 2012 Michelle rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked this book up mainly because of the setting - I grew up in a village on the edge of moorland, not too far from Saddleworth itself. There was a lot of promise in the premise but that seemed to be squandered, lost in a sea of cliches. It's rather like transplanting The Wickerman to the Pennines. I hoped the whispers of witchcraft, devil worship and child sacrifice at the beginning were going to be misdirection, leading into something (hopefully) more original. Sadly, it just makes it very...more I picked this book up mainly because of the setting - I grew up in a village on the edge of moorland, not too far from Saddleworth itself. There was a lot of promise in the premise but that seemed to be squandered, lost in a sea of cliches. It's rather like transplanting The Wickerman to the Pennines. I hoped the whispers of witchcraft, devil worship and child sacrifice at the beginning were going to be misdirection, leading into something (hopefully) more original. Sadly, it just makes it very easy for the reader to figure out what is happening far ahead of the protagonist, Cass.

Despite this I still found there were a lot of questions left unanswered (what the hell were the creepy dolls?) and some scenes in retrospect appear to have been added purely for creepiness but don't make much sense when considering the reveal (in particular, one scene with a lot of rats).

The writing is solid, if not incredible, but not much actually happened. Cass spent an awful lot of time walking around the village or in the flat, pondering what was going on, and while this was probably meant to increase the feeling of isolation and build the suspense, it just slowed everything down.

Also, a couple of nitpicks I had: First, that a little village like this seemed to have so many shops, but only one church and no mention of a pub. If the village is big enough to have its own primary school, it would have one or two pubs, but the shops would likely be relegated to one general convenience store place, possibly combined with a post office. I know this because all the villages around the one I grew up in gradually lost their shops and their post offices. People have cars, they'll go to the nearest supermarket, or get a home delivery.

Secondly, who on earth decides to go walking off over moorland in winter? Moors in wet weather are basically peat bogs, which act like quicksand if given the chance. Any paths over the moor would be completely covered by the snow. And yet we had characters talking like it was no big thing.

It's a shame because I had such high hopes.

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Jan 19, 2012 Alison rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone not of a nervous disposition!

Recommended to Alison by: My 11 year old daughter!

Shelves: fiction, fantasy

This was a strange book in many ways - the screen on my Kindle froze when we were away at the weekend and having read the other book I had with me I had to buy another! My daughter was drawn to this by the description on the cover - How far will one mother go to save her son?. and so I bought it.
This is the author's first novel and the notes told me she writes in the fantasy genre which is not one I tend to favour... HOwever, this was a good, "unputdownable" read which I finished in 2 days and w...more

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Feb 12, 2012 Maggie White rated it 5 of 5 stars

What a page turner this book turned out to be. Reading the back I was interested and knew I would enjoy it. However what I wasn't ready for was the horror/dark fantasy undertones which I would normally stay well c;lear of. However I lovewd this book. The story of a woman moving back to her chlildhood village after the loss of her Army husband. She is trying to make a new life for her son and herself in a village she thought he would be safe in. A must read!!!!

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May 06, 2012 Fiona rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Loved this book....spooky, supernatural and horror at it's best ! The author sets the scenes so well, you just know that going to Darnshaw is a bad move, the description of the fog on the moors and the car giving problems was just the start. Captain's behaviour when he meets Ben and those lifeless eyes that abound throughout the village had the hair standing on the back of my neck. I really hope she writes a sequel to this.

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May 04, 2013 Jayne Thorold rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this first novel from Alison Littlewood. I found it easy to get into and Cass the main character was understandable and likeable, the story fast paced enough for me to keep turning the page, long after I should have put it down and gone to sleep. I'm very rarely creeped out by a book, but this one had moments that was defiantly spine tingling.
My only one gripe, and the reason I haven't given it 5 stars, is that some things weren't explained,and some only explained much later...more

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Feb 22, 2012 Simon Gosden rated it 4 of 5 stars

A dark and compelling supernatural chiller set in the Southern Pennines. Cass is a war widow and the renovated mill in the little village of Darnshaw seems a perfect place to escape to with her young son, Ben. Their arrival, in the depth of winter, is strange but as the village is cut off, far stranger things are in the air......

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Jul 21, 2012 Bev rated it 1 of 5 stars

If ever there was a feeble take on a Hammer House of Horror/American Werewolf in London then this is it.(As in the Slaughtered Lamb).

The story is supposedly set in Yorkshire but the descriptions are terribly over the top. Too much fog, too much snow and so on. The local accents as spoken by some of the locals are just dreadful. I should know as I am a Yorkshire person born and bred!

The plot is basic and the writing dull. The lead female character probably does not have kids because she doesn't u...more

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May 08, 2013 Nicola rated it 2 of 5 stars

Letztlich leider doch ziemlich vorhersehbar und mir persönlich zu wenig gruselig, obwohl's einige Stellen echt hergegeben hätten. Die Protagonistin nervte mich am Ende nur noch (ich hätte sie teilweise am liebsten durchgeschüttelt). Alles in allem zwar kein kompletter Reinfall, aber nah dran.

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Sep 20, 2012 Cat Freckleton rated it 1 of 5 stars

This book verges on the ridiculous! I can't believe it's on Richard and Judy's book club list!!! The main character of Cass was utterly unbelievable. Her reactions and decisions were completely preposterous and the ending with her father and dead/missing husband turning up was nothing short of a joke!! I just could not take this book seriously.

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Mar 02, 2012 Sue rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ok so I wanted to know what happened - but was it worth it? Parts were quite scary but parts were like any horror movie - eyes, blood. The symbol on the library book should have told me not to bother - wish I hadn't - but that's not to say bits were quite good (hence 3*) but it could have been so much more.

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May 07, 2012 Donna rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 0-stars, should-not-have-bothered

Well i am glad i can tick this one off the list. I am afraid i felt it was a "nothing" story. It never quite got its point across, by the end i was glad to finish but was just waiting for something to happen it was setting itself up for an exocism but it never happened either.

would i recommend it... i am afraid to say no i would not.

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title link	preview: A Cold Season
avg rating	preview: A Cold Season Goodreads rating: 2.92 (198 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12992408-a-cold-season?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1329666368l/12992408.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12992408-a-cold-season?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]A Cold Season by Alison Littlewood[/url]

A Cold Season (Library Hardback)

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