WINNER OF THE MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD Jenny Milchman’s Cover of Snow is a remarkable debut, a gripping tale of suspense in the tradition of Gillian Flynn, Chris Bohjalian, and Nancy Pickard. Waking up one wintry morning in her old farmhouse nestled in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, Nora Hamilton instantly knows that something is wrong. When her fog of sleep clears, she finds her world is suddenly, irretrievably shattered: Her husband, Brendan, has committed suicide. The first few hours following Nora’s devastating discovery pass for her in a blur of numbness and disbelief. Then, a disturbing awareness slowly settles in: Brendan left no note and gave no indication that he was contemplating taking his own life. Why would a rock-solid police officer with unwavering affection for his wife, job, and quaint hometown suddenly choose to end it all? Having spent a lifetime avoiding hard truths, Nora must now start facing them. Unraveling her late husband’s final days, Nora searches for an explanation—but finds a bewildering resistance from Brendan’s best friend and partner, his fellow police officers, and his brittle mother. It quickly becomes clear to Nora that she is asking questions no one wants to answer. For beneath the soft cover of snow lies a powerful conspiracy that will stop at nothing to keep its presence unknown . . . and its darkest secrets hidden. Praise for Cover of Snow “Well-defined characters take us on an emotional roller-coaster ride through the darkest night, with blinding twists and occasionally fatal turns. This is a richly woven story that not only looks at the devastating effects of suicide but also examines life in a small town and explores the complexity of marriage. Fans of Nancy Pickard, Margaret Maron, and C. J. Box will be delighted to find this new author.”—Booklist (starred review) “Milchman reveals an intimate knowledge of the psychology of grief, along with a painterly gift for converting frozen feelings into scenes of a forbidding winter landscape.”—The New York Times “Milchman makes [readers] feel the chill right down to their bones and casts a particularly effective mood in this stylish thriller.”—Kirkus Reviews “Milchman tackles small-town angst where evil can simmer under the surface with a breathless energy and a feel for realistic characters.”—The Seattle Times “The plot unfolds at an excellent clip . . . ultimately rushing headlong to a series of startling revelations.”—San Francisco Journal of Books “Milchman expertly conveys Nora’s grief in a way that will warm hearts even in the dead of a Wedeskyull winter.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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"This is the first novel written by this author and I enjoyed it so much I read it in one sitting. It has a lot of suspense and scary events in it. The characters are very well developed and I really enjoyed "meeting" them. The things that the reader may expect to happen, or discover, may not be what really happens. This lady has a great career ahead of her in thriller writing!"
— Valerie (5 out of 5 stars)
“Milchman makes [readers] feel the chill right down to their bones and casts a particularly effective mood in this stylish thriller.”
— Kirkus Reviews" Read this in one sitting, though it wasn't one that had to be read straight through. My favorite of the suspense novels I've read recently. This one didn't have me on the edge of my chair nor was I bored with extraneous details that detracted from the plot. As should be with this genre, it was very plot driven and didn't disappoint. "
— MamaDoodle, 1/18/2014" I wanted to like this book but it left me flat. "
— Joan, 1/14/2014" Creepy, not in a supernatural way, but filled with creepy small town characters. The cold weather is almost as terrifying (to me) as the creepy people. It seemed rather sparse, word-wise, compared to the descriptive Neville that I just finished, but I did enjoy it. "
— Glennie, 12/26/2013" A really interesting idea but poorly executed. The characters were not sympathetic and totally one dimensional. The relationships were as well. In all of Nora's grief I didn't for one second feel the loss of her husband. Overuse of all the cliches of murder mysteries. Just blah. "
— Jen, 12/15/2013" This book took a long time to get going for me, and even then it was sort of an okay, I can keep reading or put it down. I never really got invested in any of the characters. "
— J.D., 12/15/2013" The promotion for this book was much better than the actual novel. The characters were either not well developed or unrealistic. The tempo and timing of this book was off. I am puzzled? How did this work get into print? "
— Rose, 11/11/2013" Five stars because this is the author's debut novel. And, it had a happy ending! "
— Gretchen, 11/10/2013" 2.5...Convoluted and bizarre (like so many things). "
— Alison, 10/1/2013" It was ok. The ending was very vague and lacking. "
— Annie, 10/1/2013" Coming soon 1-15-13. It was a fantastic read. Would highly recommend this debut novel to everyone!!! "
— Jessica, 7/1/2013" Couldn't put this one down!! "
— Ginny, 6/1/2013" Good plot, maybe too much snow. brrr. "
— Leslie, 4/24/2013" I did finish this book, but found it somewhat confusing. The premise was interesting but it didn't do anything for me. I think she will do better with her second book. "
— Sue, 3/21/2013" I finally finished this book after checking it out twice. The plot was good, I didn't really guess anything. Unfortunately, the read was a somewhat disjointed, moving from one thing to the next without a good bridge. I did love the setting, snow, snow and more snow!! "
— Lois, 2/18/2013Jenny Milchman is an award-winning, critically acclaimed novelist whose debut novel, Cover of Snow, won the Mary Higgins Clark Award for best suspense novel of 2013, and her followup novels, Ruin Falls and As Night Falls, were both Indie Next picks. She is vice president of author programming for International Thriller Writers, a member of the Sisters in Crime speakers bureau, and the founder and organizer of Take Your Child to a Bookstore Day, which is celebrated in all fifty states.
Cassandra Campbell has won multiple Audie Awards, Earphones Awards, and the prestigious Odyssey Award for narration. She was been named a “Best Voice” by AudioFile magazine and in 2018 was inducted in Audible’s inaugural Narrator Hall of Fame.