Becca Fitzpatrick’s Black Ice is a standalone novel. For spring break, Britt and her friend Korbie decide to go hiking in the Teton Range. Korbie’s wealthy family owns a house up in the mountains. At this time, there are also rumors about the mysterious deaths of teenage girls on that very mountain range. Just as their perfect trip is about to begin, their parents decide the two senior girls need a chaperone. They choose Korbie’s older brother Calvin, who also happens to be Britt’s ex-boyfriend. As Britt and Korbie make their way up mountain in Britt’s Jeep Wrangler, it begins to rain. The rain soon turns to snow and, before long, the two girls find themselves stranded on the mountain in the middle of a blizzard. They seek shelter in the closest cabin they can find, which also happens to be occupied by two men in their twenties. Unfortunately, the men are criminals and take the girls hostage. Britt is forced to lead these fugitives down the mountain and hope that someone will rescue her.
Britt turns out to be both an amazing and annoying protagonist. With her love-struck and emotional heart, first impressions were off to a poor start. In the face of danger, Britt becomes surprisingly intelligent and good at maneuvering around her mistakes. She is unexpectedly resilient despite growing up relying on other people. While there are many good aspects to her character, there are also many faults too. She makes a lot of stupid mistakes, jumps to conclusions much too fast, and often thinks with her heart. She also flips back and forth between two boys, which some might find very annoying. Black Ice was a surprisingly good read. While I’m not well versed on realistic fiction novels and normally pay them no mind, this thriller had me hooked from the first few chapters. The plot twisted and turned making it more enthralling. It intertwines romance with a murder mystery. Britt’s perception of events made the prime murder suspect waver between several characters. Some complaints are that the characters are not realistic. Anyone training for six months probably wouldn’t have made the mistakes Britt made and some characters seem too good or too bad to be true. The book’s plot could have been easily avoided if simple, smart decisions were made. The book also carries survival elements, as the plot of the book revolves around hiking on a mountain with limited food and gear. Some readers may or may not find interesting. Despite its faults Black Ice also carried a lesson of being strong and independent which was portrayed by Britt’s growth as a character. I give this 392 page book 4.5 stars.