Ice Cold: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel (Rizzoli & Isles Novels) [Hardcover]

Tess Gerritsen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 29, 2010 | Series: Rizzoli & Isles Novels

New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen’s relentless, inventive novels take readers on pulse-racing thrill rides that are as satisfying as they are heart-stopping. Now, in this edge-of-your-seat suspense novel, a mysteriously isolated town stands abandoned as a silent watcher waits.

In Wyoming for a medical conference, Boston medical examiner Maura Isles joins a group of friends on a spur-of-the-moment ski trip. But when their SUV stalls on a snow-choked mountain road, they’re stranded with no help in sight.
As night falls, the group seeks refuge from the blizzard in the remote village of Kingdom Come, where twelve eerily identical houses stand dark and abandoned. Something terrible has happened in Kingdom Come: Meals sit untouched on tables, cars are still parked in garages. The town’s previous residents seem to have vanished into thin air, but footprints in the snow betray the presence of someone who still lurks in the cold darkness—someone who is watching Maura and her friends.

Days later, Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli receives the grim news that Maura’s charred body has been found in a mountain ravine. Shocked and grieving, Jane is determined to learn what happened to her friend. The investigation plunges Jane into the twisted history of Kingdom Come, where a gruesome discovery lies buried beneath the snow. As horrifying revelations come to light, Jane closes in on an enemy both powerful and merciless—and the chilling truth about Maura’s fate.
 

Published in the UK as THE KILLING PLACE.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Unpredictable twists help propel Gerritsen's winning eighth novel featuring Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and homicide detective Jane Rizzoli (after The Keepsake). While in Wyoming late one fall for a pathologists' conference, Maura agrees to join an old college acquaintance, his 13-year-old daughter, and two friends of his on a last-minute ski trip. When an accident stalls their SUV on a remote mountain road, the fivesome take refuge in an abandoned village, Kingdom Come, the home of a religious sect led by a charismatic prophet, Jeremiah Goode. But what drove the residents from their 12 identical houses, leaving food on the table and pets behind? When the local police find what they believe to be Maura's charred body and those of her four companions, Jane; her FBI agent husband, Gabriel Dean; and Fr. Daniel Brophy travel to Wyoming to conduct their own investigation. Gerritsen supplies plenty of depth in both plot and characters. TNT launches a new TV series based on this series in July.
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From Booklist

Boston medical examiner Maura Isles is in Wyoming for a conference. Impulsively, she joins an old friend and his daughter on a ski trip. When their vehicle breaks down, they’re stranded in the eerily named Kingdom Come, a small community whose residents appear to have vanished. Then Maura vanishes. The announcement of her death shocks homicide detective Jane Rizzoli, Maura’s close friend. Investigating Kingdom Come, Rizzoli uncovers dark secrets that may explain Maura’s disappearance. Gerritsen wouldn’t be the first writer to kill off a popular series character, but is that what she’s doing here? Fans of the novels will no doubt suspect Gerritsen has a few tricks up her sleeve, and surely the upcoming television series based on the Isles-Rizzoli mysteries would seem to suggest that this is a very bad time to kill off Maura. Leaving aside this rather unnecessary subterfuge, the novel is a solid entry in the series, with a compelling mystery and some good, old-fashioned shockers. A solid choice for Gerritsen fans, but probably not the best starting point for those new to the series. --David Pitt

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1 edition (June 29, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 034551548X
• ISBN-13: 978-0345515483
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.1 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (161 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a physician as well as the New York Times-bestselling author of medical thrillers and the Jane Rizzoli crime thrillers.

Readers who are familiar with my graphic autopsy scenes and forensic details may be astonished to learn that my very first published novels were actually ... romantic suspense. So why did I leave writing romances and turn to thrillers?

It was all because of a chance dinner conversation some years ago. The man sitting beside me at a restaurant one night was an ex-cop who 'd recently been traveling in Russia. Moscow cops had told him that orphans were vanishing from the streets, and they believed the children were being kidnaped and shipped abroad as organ donors.

I was horrified by the tale. Weeks later, unable to forget those missing Russian orphans, I knew I just had to write a book about them. I wanted to bring into it all the medical and autopsy details that I'd learned from my years as a physician. The sights, the smells of the autopsy and operating rooms -- everything.

My first medical thriller, HARVEST, was released in hardcover in 1996, and it marked my debut on the NEW YORK TIMES bestseller list. It was followed by my medical thrillers LIFE SUPPORT (1997), BLOODSTREAM (1998), GRAVITY (1999).

In 2001, my books took another abrupt turn, to forensic thrillers. THE SURGEON was my first Jane Rizzoli thriller. Since then, I've written THE APPRENTICE (2002), THE SINNER (2003), BODY DOUBLE (2004), VANISH (2005 -- and an Edgar Award nominee), and THE MEPHISTO CLUB (2006).

I believe my readers want me to tell them secrets. And that's exactly what I try to do. I take them into the autopsy room, and show them what I've seen. But most of all, I hope I'm revealing what lies in the hearts of my characters. Jane Rizzoli and Dr. Maura Isles are real people to me now. I hope they're just as real to everyone who becomes acquainted with them!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

217 of 225 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Addition to a Fascinating Series, June 29, 2010

By 

Olga Bezhanova (Edwardsville, IL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ice Cold: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel (Rizzoli & Isles Novels) (Kindle Edition)

I'm a huge fan of Gerritsen's Rizzoli and Isles series, so I stayed up all night reading this book the moment it was delivered to me on my Kindle. For those who are unfamiliar with the series, I believe that a warning is in order: Gerritsen has a gritty, tough style of writing, which is pretty much unlike anybody else's I have read in the suspense/mystery genre. There are graphic descriptions of violence and surgical procedures in her books. If you are likely to be bothered by that, this might not be the series for you. If you don't have anything against this kind of writing, however, you are in for a real treat. Gerritsen is a unique author who manages to create great suspense with every new scene. She is extremely skilled at creating nuanced, complex characters whose lives the readers follow assiduously and passionately.

The fans of the Rizzoli/Isles series will not be disappointed by this book. I liked all the books in the series but in my opinion this one is the most suspenseful. The tension starts building almost from the very beginning until a sense of dread becomes nearly overwhelming. Gerritsen is great at creating an eerie environment and keeping her readers deeply invested in the story. I can honestly say that there wasn't a single boring page in the entire book.

"Ice Cold" offers us yet another fascinating journey into the lives of its unique main characters. We see Maura Isles in the grip of a personal crisis. It leads her to participate in an adventure that at first seems simply out of character but eventually turns out to be extremely dangerous. We follow Jane Rizzoli as she searches desperately for her missing friend.

There is bonus material that comes with the book, such as Rizzoli and Isles TV pilot script and "Rizzoli and Isles in their own words", a bonus chapter giving a short first-person description of the main characters.

Overall, the book was extremely enjoyable and I recommend it highly. The fans of the series will be happy to discover that they haven't waited in vain for this new book from Tess Gerritsen.

70 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "I think we've run out of time.", June 29, 2010

By 

E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ice Cold: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel (Rizzoli & Isles Novels) (Hardcover)

In Tess Gerritsen's "Ice Cold," forty-two year old medical examiner Maura Isles is heartbroken. She is in a relationship with Daniel Brophy, a Catholic priest. However, their year-long affair has not brought either of them much happiness. Daniel is reluctant to give up his calling, and Maura is frustrated with his inability to make up his mind. After spending the night together, they part. Maura flies from Boston to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to attend a medical conference. There, she meets a former classmate, pathologist Doug Comley, who is divorced and has a thirteen year-old-daughter, Grace. He asks Maura to accompany him and his friends on a trip to a cross-country ski lodge. She agrees, but soon regrets her decision. Doug loses his way in the snowy landscape, and they end up stranded. When Daniel and Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli do not hear from Maura and are unable to contact her, they fear that something is terrible has happened.

"Ice Cold" is an action-packed thrill ride with intriguing characters we care about. Maura is courageous but realistic; she knows that if she is not rescued soon, she will probably die in this frozen wilderness. Jane and her husband, Gabriel Dean, an ex-Marine and an FBI agent, are determined to find their friend, but they will face obstacles more formidable than the horrendous weather. Meanwhile, Daniel is wracked with guilt over the way he has treated the woman he loves, especially when he realizes that he may never see her again.

This is a story about survival under extreme conditions, the limits of romantic love, and the dangers of bending one's will to a charismatic cult leader. Jeremiah Goode has created a sect with hundreds of followers who slavishly adhere to his decrees, some of which are rather repellant. Maura's struggle to survive will become interconnected with the fate of Goode and his supporters. Gerritsen maintains suspense by shifting back and forth from Maura's travails to Jane and Gabriel Dean's efforts to save her. Unexpectedly, Maura discovers that she is being shadowed, but who is following her and what does he want? The conclusion, which is a humdinger, includes one or two surprising twists and turns. Gerritsen has written an absorbing, chilling, and fast-paced novel that will keep readers turning pages well into the night.

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too uneven for me, August 5, 2010

By 

J. Prather (IN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ice Cold: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel (Rizzoli & Isles Novels) (Hardcover)

I have read all of this author's Rizzoli and Isles novels and felt that while this one provided a bit of suspense and a few edge of your seat thrills, it was easily the weakest of the series. Gerritsen's writing style at the beginning of this book was a bit of a puzzle. It seemed choppy at best, and I had a hard time getting into the story. Maura didn't seem herself at all, and I was certainly not pleased with Jane's secondary role in this one. Despite all this, I soon found myself wrapped up in things, and even though I felt it was formulaic, the author was doing a nice job of setting up some real heart felt drama and tension among the characters.

So, moving along and kind of waiting for the big shoe to drop, when about 2/3 of the way in, we get a twist that changed everything, and I felt like I was starting all over again. Then we are almost to the end, and we get another completely different story that was actually pretty interesting. By this time though, I didn't want to get involved in another story that I could tell the author wasn't going to fully develop. I wound up feeling pretty frustrated. The book is so unevenly plotted it's hard to feel that intensity that is usually present in Ms. Gerritsen's novels. There were parts I think she could have really ran with, but were just treated as mere afterthoughts, and then there were some characters and plot lines that were given so much attention, to then just be dropped in a manner that was incredibly unsatisfying.

I love these characters. I didn't recognize much in Maura that was familiar from previous novels, but it was nice to see Jane and Gabriel again. We only get a brief glimpse of their life with toddler, but it was a funny one. I will be eager to see the next one in this series in the hopes that the author gets back to the level of intensity that is her norm. This one was just ho hum.