An Unwanted Guest
CBC Books | | Posted: June 26, 2018 8:48 PM | Last Updated: December 6, 2018
Shari Lapena
It's winter in the Catskills and the weather outside is frightful, but Mitchell's Inn is so delightful! The cozy lodge nestled deep in the woods is perfect for a relaxing — maybe even romantic — weekend away. The Inn boasts spacious old rooms with huge wood-burning fireplaces, a well-stocked wine cellar and opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or just curling up with a book and someone you love.
So when the weather takes a turn for the worse and a blizzard cuts off the electricity — and all contact with the outside world — the guests settle in for the long haul. The power's down but they've got candles, blankets and firewood — a genuine rustic experience!
Soon, though, a body turns up — surely an accident. When a second body appears, they start to panic. Then they find a third body.
Within the snowed-in paradise, something — or someone — is picking off the guests one by one. They can't leave, and with no cell service, there's no prospect of getting the police in until the weather loosens its icy grip.
The weekend getaway has turned deadly. For some couples, it's their first time away. For others, it will be their last. And there's nothing they can do about it but huddle in and hope they can survive the storm. (From Penguin Random House Canada)
From the book
Morning comes slowly, the sun obscured by thick cloud. Overnight, the falling snow, so peaceful, has turned to sleet, coating everything in brittle ice, making the landscape even more dangerous to navigate. It seems everything is about to snap. Inside the inn, there's a distinct chill in the air.
Lauren rises early, freezing, even with the warmth of Ian pressed up beside her. Her neck is stiff. She gets out of bed, shivering, and hurries to put warm clothes on, wondering why it's so damn cold. She slips on jeans, a T‑shirt, a heavy sweater, warm socks. They hadn't closed the drapes before they went to bed, and now she glances out the front window to the landscape below. Everything is covered in sparkling ice. It's beautiful, as if the world is coated in diamonds. The branches of the huge tree in the front yard are bent, weighted down with ice. She sees where one of them has broken off; there's a large, pale gash where it has been ripped from the trunk. The heavy limb lies broken in three separate pieces on the ground below.
From An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena ©2018. Published by Doubleday Canada.