Friends Nicola and Emily are found murdered in a hot tub. There are no signs of forced entry or robbery.
D.C.I James Walker and his team are baffled, who would want the two women dead. The list of suspects grow, but alibis check out.
Another great Christmas murder from Alex Pine.

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without an Alex Pine DCI James Walker book!

Blood on the Snow sees two friends, Nicola and Emily, murdered in a hot-tub in the Lake District. DCI James Walker and his trusted team investigate.

Once again DCI James Walker and his team are working over the Christmas holidays as their investigations take them around the Lake District. The landscape and the weather are always significant in Pine’s books, with the ruggedness of the terrain and ever changing weather playing their part.

James’s wife Annie is incredibly understanding and ably holds down the fort and making their children’s Christmas as normal as possible.

The story moves along at pace. I’ve read this series of books over the years and James Walker, his team and family are very familiar to me now.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Avon Books, for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and an honest review.

Another great instalment of this series although it can very much be read as a standalone. No surprise that there has been another horrific murder in Cumbria right before Xmas! You do wonder at times how Annie puts up with having her Xmas ruined each year! Good to see all the regular characters back, so its just the ones for this book you need to get used to . Another great storyline that keeps you guessing with the twists, turns and frustration [the officers feel] while you read on until the end of the book. Highly recommended.. and if you are new to the series, go read the rest too as they are excellent reads!

My thanks to Alex and Netgalley for allowing me to read Blood on the Snow in advance of the publication date.
I look forward to reading the latest in this series every year. The addition of a main character list provides just enough information to allow the book to be read as a standalone story.
The Walker family are looking forward to a Christmas together, but the criminals don’t seem to care, leaving Annie alone to shoulder the weight of the household.
On Xmas eve, Edward and Joan Fowler have travelled to spend Xmas with their daughter, Nicola, in Kendal. Finding the house empty, Edward ventures into the garden where he finds Nicola and her friend, Emily, dead in the hot tub.
DCI Walker and the team find that both Nicola and Emily have been in relationships which have not ended well. Was this a robbery which went wrong or was one of the women the target?
As the suspect list grows, pressure is brought to bear on an exhausted Walker to make an arrest.
The press are quick to write headlines about “The Hot Tub Killer” and suggest that there is a serial killer loose in Cumbria.
There are lots of twists, turns and red herrings before the truth will be revealed.

Yet another excellent detective James Walker novel. You feel
Part of the investigation, picturing the board and digging deep into thinking mode as clues come and go. Alex Pine makes you wish away the year for the next book to be released.
A great read… no hesitation in recommending this book.

Blood On The Snow is the new Christmas crime thriller, and Book 7 of the DI James Walker series, by Alex Pine. I had only read one other book in this series last year and loved it, so I was very excited to receive an early copy of this from @netgalley. I enjoyed this one immensely, it’s a suspenseful and captivating read.

D I Walker is facing a very complex case. In the opening pages two friends, Nicola and Emily, are found in a garden hot tub stabbed to death, and with no signs of a break-in the case has the detective stumped. This is the beginning of a lengthy murder case that takes us through numerous suspects and mazes before justice can be served.

Set in Cumbria, this has short chapters and plenty of misdirection, and the plot has enough twists and turns to keep the reader fully engaged, with nifty little cliffhangers at the end of each chapter. The characters are so well written you feel a connection to them, and are authentically portrayed through natural dialogue. In particular I enjoyed reading about D I Walker’s home life, and the way his backstory was subtly woven with the narrative.

The crimes at the start of the book are the worst they can be, yet the author keeps all the threads in balance and under control, keeping everything authentic and believable.
This is another pacy, tense murder mystery that turns into a race against the clock towards the end, as the team closes in on the killer. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I think it will be a popular thriller this winter. 4.5 stars rounded up.

Many thanks to @netgalley and @avonbooksuk for the ARC.

Another amazing storyline and it always gets me into Christmas spirit early, always different plots and ideas in every book, looking forward to the next one AAA

I spent the summer thinking about this series and wondering when the ARC’s would be out for it and if I’d be lucky enough to get one. I was, and devoured it in 2 days. I love how fast paced it is, the short chapters really help. It’s so enjoyable with plenty of twists and turns, an abundance of suspects and three murders. It lived up to my hopes and I’m now going to have to be patient for the next instalment.

I do love this series but i do wish for a Christmas break for DCI James Walker and his team. Friends Nicola and Emily are looking forward to spending Christmas together, little do they realuse the bubbly in the hot tub will be the last drink they share as they're brutally murdered the night before Christmas Eve.
For DCI Walker and his colleagues they soon realise there are plenty of suspects as they delve deeply into the girls lives.
Its nice to be back with the familiar characters, to have an insight into Walker's homelife. Would be great to see behind the scenes of his colleagues in future books too. Its a fast paced police procedural novel with short chapter's that keep you reading

Thank you for my copy of this book to read and review.

This book grabbed my attention from the start and kept it right til the end.

Although part of a series, this works perfectly fine as a stand-alone. I have previously only read book number 4 and I didn’t have any issues with following the story or feel I was missing anything. I do usually read books in order though, so I am going to go back and read them from the start now.

A great detective series.

Nicola and Emily are stabbed to death in their hot tub over the Christmas holidays in Cumbria and DCI James Walker was hoping to spend his Christmas with his wife Anne and children and possibly an unexpected child on the way.
Nicola and Emily's past relationships are all very dodgy so lots of suspects and twists.
A great series but can be read alone.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC and I give my honest review

I like his crime thrillers especially as they are set at christmas.The sh9rt chapters make it a,very easy read and the storyline kept me hooked. Definitely worth a read this Christmas!

Poor DCI Walker ends up with another Christmas season investigating a murder. With very few clues to help, him and his team have their work cut out to catch the murderer. Another great book from Alex.

This is #7 in the DCI James Walker series. It can easily be read as a standalone but I highly recommend the whole series, it’s one of my favourites.

Christmas is always interrupted for DCI James Walker. This year, once again, he’s really looking forward to spending Christmas Day with his wife and two young children, but ‘the best laid plans…’ etc.

Two young women, best friends Nicola and Emily, are starting their Christmas celebrations with a glass of bubbly in Nicola’s garden hot tub. The next morning, Nicola’s parents arrive and find the house empty. Her dad then ventures into the garden, lifts the lid on the hot tub and discovers a really gruesome scene: both ladies have been brutally murdered.

James and his team start searching for anyone likely to have a grudge against either one of the friends. There are then lots of twists, turns, and red herrings.

A brilliantly written, gripping read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

Christmas isn’t Christmas without a murder, or that’s how it is for DCI James Walker and his young family. This years is a particularly gruesome one, with numerous suspects, theories and threads. I like the closeness of James’ team, and how real the investigations feel; as it would be in real life, there are a lot of tedious jobs that need doing, sometimes over and over again until that elusive clue is spotted. Another well written and researched novel, that keeps the reader hooked until the last page. Looking forward to the next in the series, but here’s hoping Santa might be a bit kinder this year.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for allowing me to read and review this book.

Another great book in this series, I have read them all and never been disappointed. always a great storyline with good characters.

I enjoy reading about DI Walker and all his team they are all good additions to the storyline and I have no hesitation in recommending this book and all the series.

The only negative point for me personally is that we have to wait another twelve months to catch up with them all again.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for yet another brilliant read.

This is another one in the Christmas Series of murders that DCI James Walker and his team have to solve. It is easy to read as a stand alone book , especially as all the characters are described at the start in case the reader is a first timer in the series. Christmas starts with the murder of 2 women in the garden hot tub with no clues as to who was responsible or why they were targetted. It is fast paced with short chapters which meant that I read it in one day as I kept on saying just one more chapter! There are so many red herrings throughout and all the possible clues all just appear to disappear.
If this is a first book to read about the christmas murders then I would recommend getting all the others as they are just as enjoyable.

I was delighted to be offered a copy of Alex Pine’s seventh book about DCI Walker and his colleagues and family. I have read 5 of his previous books and each one has been excellent. All the books are set in Cumbria around Christmas time with lots of snow. This one was no different. The book begins with two friends, Nicola and Emily about to spend Christmas together. They decide to have a celebration drink in Nicola’s hot tub to start the festivities. However someone else has other plans and the two are found stabbed to death the following morning.
The story follows the investigation by James Walker and the police to try and find the murderer. There are lots of twist and turns to keep you guessing, and another murder is uncovered. Of course the snowy weather doesn’t help them with the investigation which seems to be dragging and the Press are getting impatient. We also get involved with James’ private life, His wife Annie is waiting to find out if she is pregnant again. They already have 2 children and hadn’t planned to have any more. What decision will they make if she is pregnant again? The chapters are short and keep you wanting to read just one more chapter!
My thanks go to NetGalley , Alex Pine and Avon publishers for an arc of this exciting book.

It's Christmas again and DCI James Walker is hoping the run of Christmas murders he has had to deal with since his move to Cumbria will be broken this year. Unfortunately he's mistaken. The day before he's due for a week long holiday two young women are found brutely murdered in a hot tub. The case proves complicated and the DCI and his team miss yet another Christmas season. I don't often read 'Christmas' books but this series by Alex Pine are the exception. Although the subject matter is serious, and could put one off living in Cumbria forever, they are written in such a way that the reader knows right will out. Despite all the twists and false leads I did guess the culprit early on in this book but it didn't spoil it one iota as I had no proof, just a feeling. Roll on next Christmas and another Cumbrian murder.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.