REVIEW: Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

Sometimes danger is hard to see... until it’s too late. 

Britt Pfeiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn't prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants—but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage. 

In exchange for her life, Britt agrees to guide the men off the mountain. As they set off, Britt knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there... and in uncovering this, she may become the killer’s next target. 

But nothing is as it seems in the mountains, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally? 

BLACK ICE is New York Times bestselling author Becca Fitzpatrick’s riveting romantic thriller set against the treacherous backdrop of the mountains of Wyoming. Falling in love should never be this dangerous…

Purchase: Amazon l Barnes & Noble

My Thoughts:

This review contains spoilers. It would be almost impossible for me to get my thoughts across without delving into the story a bit, so read on at your own risk. Also there is not a whole lot of order to what I say. It was just getting thoughts out and being done with this book unfortunately. 

I think that Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush Hush series would be one of my favourite series ever. I loved it. You only have to mention the name Patch and it sends me into a self induced swoony haze. When I saw that she was releasing a new book, I was pumped with excitement. The synopsis sounded amazing. Absolutely amazing. And that cover!! I don't mind admitting that I can be swayed to read a book by the cover alone, and this one was stunning. I was all in on this one. I couldn't get it in my hands quick enough.

Unfortunately, that's where my love ends. I found Black Ice to be one of the hardest books to get through this year. It took me two weeks to read it, and almost every page was hard work. Once again, it was my complete lack of care of the characters. I couldn't relate to any of them, on any level whatsoever. They frustrated me, they made me cringe, and they made me groan. There were many, many occasions where I was ready to give up, but I had people telling me to keep reading, because it would get better and that everything would come together. So forge ahead I did.

The premise of the story was actually pretty good. A girl held captive by two criminals, and to save her life she agrees to help them navigate their way off the mountain in blizzard conditions. It sounds awesome right? Unfortunately for me, it had some pretty big holes. Firstly, Britt and Korbie head off into the mountains with their car fully stocked with an array of camping gear, supplies, warm clothes and plenty of food. Along the way a raging blizzard hits and they are forced to pull over. The snow is so bad that they aren't even fully aware if they have missed their turn off or not. So they make the decision to leave everything that they will need for their survival behind in the car and head off into the storm with not much more than the clothes on their back and no idea where they are heading. 

After stumbling through the forest they come across a cabin that is inhabited by two gorgeous males, Mason and Shaun. These are the two men who will hold them captive and force Britt to guide them off the mountain. I didn't really understand why these two grown men, who had found their way onto the mountain only hours before, needed this seventeen year old girl to help them find their way off it. Also Mason at one stage sets out to retrieve something from Britts broken down car, which is parked miles away on the road, on the mountain, and he had no trouble in finding it. Or finding his way back to the cabin. So why did they need Britt? Did I miss something? I'm confused!!

Then we have the characters. Britt and her 'best friend' Korbie annoyed me from the very beginning. I use the term best friends very loosely because for me, best friends don't treat each other the way that they do. Who keeps a book and lists each others assets and rates them? If my best friend did that there would be no way that she would be my best friend for very long. Everything that the other did seemed to irritate them no end. They bickered and constantly competed with each other over everything. I wanted to throttle both of them!! I was so glad when Korbie was left behind and they weren't together anymore.

"I tapped my cup to his, grateful to have found Shaun, because for a minute there, I'd thought I was going to have to save myself. Instead, I'd wandered into the protective care of a sexy older man.

She talks about being strong and independent, but at every turn, she wants and expects a man to come in and save her.

Something about Shaun was a little off. He was charming and friendly, but not necessarily warm or genuine. 

And then five pages later, we have this...

I wondered if his pulse was thrumming like mine. I wondered if he kept stealing glances at my lips, the way I shamelessly watched his.

She finds Shaun 'off', but he's cute, so what the heck. Cute comes first right?

I just found Britt to be incredibly immature. She went backwards and forwards between telling us of her love for her ex boyfriend, who treated her like dirt, to her wanting to make out with the guy who will be one of her kidnappers, Shaun, and then her developing feelings for her other kidnapper, Mason. She went from being in love with one guy to being in love with another in four days. She flirted with everyone even when she knew that Korbie liked them. And that was just a whole other issue. Korbie has a boyfriend but has no regard or respect for him whatsoever. She blatantly states that she can get together with Shaun because her boyfriend, who she was on her way to meet, is leaving for college soon. Not only is she a wonderful and loyal friend, but she's also a loving girlfriend. Not!! The moral standards of these two were non existent. 

Then we have the plot. This was why everyone kept telling me to keep reading. It was going to blow me away. And while it had it's moments, I guessed the way most of it was going to play out way before it happened, so there really weren't any big surprises for me. What frustrated me the most was that this book had so much potential. Unfortunately for me, it just failed to deliver on it. 

I really hate doing this but 1.5/5 Disappointing Stars. 

Paperback copy kindly provided by Simon & Schuster Australia.