Black Ice

Britt has planned her spring break trip hiking the Teton Range for months. She has read survival guides, took classes, and devoured any information that will help her and her best friend Korbie successfully hike through the range. Everything is set to go when Calvin, Korbie's brother and Britt's ex, decides he wants to tag along. He head to the cabin early, leaving Britt and Korbie to pull up the rear. But a blizzard strikes while they are driving up and soon they are forced to abandon their car in search for shelter. When they find that shelter, everything changes. They end up stumbling upon Shaun and Mason, criminals who demand Britt get them off this mountain and out of the police's reach or there will be deadly consequences. Mason is definitely the lesser of two evils, but he is still helping hold her captive. Can she trust him to help her escape death or will she fall prey to the evil he is hiding?Britt was a character I didn't particularly like. She seems shallow and so hung up over her ex that it's not funny. The only reason she wants to hike the Tetons in the first place is because it's Calvin's favorite retreat. And from her memories, Calvin was as much of a dick while they were together as he is to her now. I don't understand that. I don't understand how girls with decent self-esteem can be with guys who are jerks. That's a bit hypocritical for me, because I had my idiot moment, but that was long ago and I was very young and stupid. Somehow that doesn't make me more forgiving of Britt. Besides that, she is dependent upon her dad and brother for everything. She expects the men in her life to swoop in and save her any time she is in trouble and that is far from what happens here. She has to save herself (for the most part), as well as save Korbie. I just wanted to scream at her to grow up.I can't go into the details of other characters without giving away spoilers, but I will say I knew who the bad guy was pretty early on. I knew exactly how that twist would play out within the first quarter of the book, so it's relatively easy to guess. I will also say I liked Jude's character, once he gets his head out of his butt. I will also say that I was never a fan of Korbie. Useless and whiny and rich, this is a girl who I'd want to punch in the face if I met in real life.So far, this isn't sounding like a four-star review, huh? Well then, let's get on to the things I liked. I loved how readable this novel was and the intensity. I'm not a huge fan of thriller novels because they usually have a lot of character death and we all know my feelings on that. Here, there are a few, but no one I lament being rid of. I also loved the one thing everyone else seems to dislike, the happy ending. After everything Britt goes through, I think she deserves that ride off into the sunset and I loved that everything worked out as well as can be expected instead of descending into the typical thriller ending of "hey, I survivied, so that's the best I can hope for, right?" type ending. Those are another big reason I don't read thrillers, I like overtly happy endings and we get that here.I do like that Britt actually trained to hike the Tetons and did just run into hoping everything would work out. She planned and packed and purchased plenty of gear to prepare herself for this adventure. She even went so far as to build herself up to being able to carry a fully loaded pack without issue.I'll admit that I didn't really read deeply into the synopsis when I requested this. I saw Becca's name and the cover and knew I'd need to read it. I really loved Hush Hush (even though I'm not as much of a fan of Crescendo or Silence and I'm terrified to read Finale) and I was interested to see what Becca did with a thriller. I think she succeeded and that this will be a raging success, as long as people realize this is completely different than Hush Hush. This is realistic thriller with dark moments and death, but with the happy ending you all secretly hope for.****Thank you to Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers for providing me with an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review****

Black Ice is a book I have been looking forward to for a very very long time. I am a huge fan of Becca Fitzpatrick’s Hush Hush series and couldn’t wait to see what she delivered next. While I didn’t love Black Ice as much as I did Hush Hush, it was still a really good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end.Britt is our main character and I love her because she grows a lot over the course of the book. She starts off very dependent on others and a bit naïve. A lot of people have called her weak, but nobody who survives what Britt survived can be considered weak in my opinion. She may not be strong in the kick butt sense, but she is smart and a survivor. When she gets into the dangerous situation she does everything she can to try and think her way out of it. Also a lot of people have said she is too dependent on the men in her life, and yes she starts out that way but I think that is really a product of her age. She is young and has a Dad and an older brother who have always doted on and protected her; she never had to learn anything else. But the minute she needs to stand on her own two feet she does and I think that is what really counts.Then there is Mason. Becca has a real knack for creating bad and dangerous boys, but creating them in a way that you can’t really resist them. Clearly Mason is dangerous, but it is also clear that there is a lot more going on than meets the eye. He is intriguing and mysterious and you really cannot help but be drawn into him. Mason was a good character.While Becca creates wonderful guys, she also has a knack for creating the worst best friends known to man. Holy moly I hated Korbie and I know it was intentional that I hate her. I recognize that. I just had to acknowledge how much I hated her. She was a horrible friend and just not really a good person. She really drove me insane. I enjoyed the book so much more once she was no longer part of the main storyline.What I really liked about Black Ice is the constant danger throughout the entire story. The characters are not safe and not just because of a murderer but also because of the conditions. I’m not going to lie. I guessed the twist very very early on, I think it was around the 10% mark where I went “yepp, that’s it” and then I got another big portion of the twist before the 50% mark. Honestly anyone who reads regularly will probably see it. Some of it is very “hey look at me, here is what you are supposed to think” and then some of it is supposed to be subtle but it’s so subtle it practically screams “I am a clue”. I don’t know if that makes sense, but I hope it does. I also want to stress that while I did guess the twist it didn’t ruin the story for me. I still enjoyed the ride. Yes I did peg the twists pretty early on, so when Britt jumped to the conclusion I was supposed to jump to (the wrong conclusion), I was frustrated. I wanted her to be smart. But then I thought about it realistically. If this were a real life situation, she came to the right conclusion, the only conclusion she could really come to based on the facts she had and she probably made the right decision based on those facts. When you are outside of it and reading the book you are looking for the twist, so if you have that knowledge and know it’s not supposed to be what it clearly is, then it is easier to find. So really I can’t fault Britt for her reaction even if I was internally screaming NOOOOOO.All in all, Black Ice was a really good read and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. It was thrilling and addictive and a definite page turner. Black Ice proved Becca Fitzpatrick is capable of more than just paranormal romance and I look forward to what she has in store for us next.

The quality is good, like I selected, however there is this hole that is there for 10 pages. It’s not on the text so I’m not that upset just confused as to what happened, it almost looks like it was melted? I also noticed the back cover is torn

The story for this book was so unique and fresh. I’ve not read anything like it, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. There were so many twists and turns and uncoverings. I didn’t know whether I was coming or going; it was fantastic.Britt and Korbie are going on a Spring Break adventure in the mountains but when they get caught in a snowstorm that wasn’t predicted they are forced to take refuge in a cabin with two strange men, Shaun and Mason. Their carefree break is about to become dire, and their lives are threatened, they will have to find it within themselves to stay strong, alive and get out of what seems like a desperate situation.I could actually see it playing out as a teen-thriller movie. The girls start off all fluffy and giggly at the beginning without a care in the world but then danger befalls them, and everything becomes more sinister.Britt was a really likeable character, but Korbie was very annoying. I know it was written this way, but I just wanted to give Britt a slap for even being friends with this complete and utter self-involved airhead! I have nothing against being a bit ditsy don’t get me wrong (my site is called Pink and Dizzy after all, as dizzy used to mean ditsy and that describes me!), but airheads can be likeable, Korbie was not. I didn’t like the change of names for one of the men, that was quite confusing, again I understood the reasons, but it was hard to get my head around.The only niggly thing about the book was there were some hard to slot together storylines and plots; there were a few times I had to think, just go with it as something wasn’t adding up. It didn’t ruin the story, but it could have flowed just that little bit better.The ending took me by surprise I just didn’t see any of it coming, I hadn’t guessed anything other than who Lauren was. The ending, again, had the perfect movie ending. I really could see this as a movie and would love to watch it!I have definitely found myself a new author, who is the same age as me (that was why this book was chosen for my reading challenge: A book written by someone the same age as you). A pleasantly refreshing read.

I hated this book initially, and after months of waiting for it's release, you can't imagine the disappointment. But then, something happened, it just hooked me, dragged me into this crazy albeit predictable world and didn't let me go. I'm going to have to tell you the good stuff first otherwise you'll probably run away from this book - I almost lobbed it out the window!The premise for this book is interesting. Two best friends, and a brotherly chaperone, decide to spend their spring break in the mountains hiking through the snow. For fun. I know, I'd have picked Hawaii too, but let's not judge. The two girls travel up the mountain alone to meet their chaperone who is also Britt's (Our main character) ex boyfriend. Along the way they run into a massive problem. The weather turns nasty, they seek shelter and stumble right into the paths of two criminals. Held as hostage, they must negotiate their way up the mountain and onto the highway to help the criminals escape or risk their lives fighting back.I really enjoyed the storyline. It had me hooked when it probably shouldn't have because I found Britt so irritating, which I'll explain soon, but the fast-paced plot kept me hooked without me realising. I thought I knew what was going on, and basically figured out the plot twist really quickly, but Fitzpatrick laced the story with enough doubt for me to question if it was really that obvious and if maybe I'd been duped by her! This kept me reading long into the night and I really loved the tension she built with short, sharp chapters and teasers along the way.I also thought the world-building was nice. Not fantastic and original, but interesting to be set in the winter wilderness. Fitzpatrick did a brilliant job of conveying the bleak, hostile nature of hiking in such adverse conditions - I really believed some of the turmoil the characters were experiencing.Sadly, there were so many things wrong with this book and I think many of you will avoid this book. Some I think were actually deliberate by the author but fell apart instead of having the intended effect. A perfect example is Britt. I didn't like Britt at all and I think the author intended for that to happen so that I'd see her grow and change over the course of the unravelling of the plot for maximum effect. Unfortunately, it was just too transparent and Britt's multiple irritating character flaws were just too much for me to forgive her when she inevitably becomes a grown up.The main problem is that Britt still loves her ex boyfriend Calvin, the chaperone, and pines after him even though he was an awful boyfriend who cheated and basically jilted her at the prom. Britt effectively plans this whole trip just so she can spend time with her rubbish ex boyfriend instead of with her best friend. I especially didn't like this childish behaviour; and I also didn't like the disloyalty she repeatedly showed to her friend with catty remarks.A later problem with the main character is that she has absolutely no common sense - I mean planning a holiday into a mountainous area where she already knows three girls have been previously murdered is insane anyway. Admittedly the author addresses that Britt has relied on people her entire life, but this does not make for a likeable character. Again, I think this was deliberate to show her character development over time but I think most readers will agree that we want feisty characters with wit not silly characters who make stupid decisions on a whim to try and make her ex-boyfriend, who clearly isn't interested, "grovel with a cherry on top".It's important to address the issue of Stockholm Syndrome here. Fitzpatrick showed that Britt recognised what this was, essentially falling for your captors, which was admirable for the main character and made me question if she actually had some grit about her. But she swiftly trusts everything these two strange men in the woods tell her and thinks they're her friends almost immediately. She also changes, throughout the plot, from being trusting to lashing out irrationally. It's not sending a great message and was confusing. Sadly, rather than tackling this, Fitzpatrick just portrays Britt "losing herself in another memory of Calvin" any time things get hairy rather than actually being an interesting character and putting up a fight.This obviously isn't a five star read. It's predictable, the characters are two-dimensional, the insta-love isn't adorable enough to be overlooked and the main character is a raging idiot. Those facts don't get any better. This should be enough to make you stop reading this review and delete this book from your To-Be-Read List. However, despite my ranting, I still kept reading and I didn't dislike the book at all, I loved the way it was told, I just didn't like Britt.It's such a shame because it's clear that Becca Fitzpatrick can write well, but I think she missed an opportunity here to tackle some really interesting issues, and instead made a bit of a pathetic main character. When the author did actually take a deeper look into some of the more internal struggles of people and the workings of a murderers mind I found her writing so impressive. Her portrayal of loss was beautiful and I think will really hit home with anyone who has ever lost someone:"They say that when you're about to die, your life flashes before your eyes. They never tell you that when you watch someone you once loved dying, hovering between this life and the next, it's twice as painful, because you're reliving two lives that travelled one road together".I do recommend this book although it is for a more forgiving reader; it's a frustrating read because of it's flaws but it has a lot of potential with some beautiful writing and a genuinely fast-paced, gripping plot. I hope that some of the issues from this book will be ironed out in "Dangerous Lies", the next in this series. Thankfully it doesn't appear to feature Britt so I'll be giving it a read.

As a massive fan of the hush hush series, I had to try this novel and was delighted to see that it was refreshingly different, while still captivating Fitzpatrick's unique writing style. She has a knack for creating incredible characters and for me, Britt was one of those. Her character changed with her experience and Jude was a character I wouldn't mind having my own of! For someone who isn't usually into a darker thriller novel, this has changed me and I can't wait for her next release. This is definitely a book that you will not only regret buying, but one that you can devour in one sitting.

Black ice is a YA thriller from the author of the hush hush series and for the most part it is an enjoyable read. The heroine is a little annoying at first but she redeemed herself as the book went on. There were lots of twists and turns though I guessed the biggest twist very early on and there were some holes in the plot. The novel however was an easy read and enjoyable enough though I prefer the hush hush series by this author and I am glad I didn't buy the book at full price.

Read her hush hush series, was very good although very teenagery. Was intrigued but this book. Again a good read. Still very teenagery. Also no twists and turns I worked everything out. Would read more of her titles, but would like her to come out of the teenagery writting. Her stories and plots are good but maybe more adult plots are needed. From the first part of the book, I thought it was going to be with a murder to open the book.