I didn't choose this book, it chose me.

From her place on the crowded supermarket bookshelf Eleanor Ames, with her vampiric complexion and ethereal-blue eyes peered over her shoulder, straight at me and whispered “Buy Me!”

“I'm not buying a book Eleanor, I just popped in for some carrots”, I protested, weakly.

“I promise”, she said in her dulcet tone, “You’ll be glad that you did."

I was at the checkout before you could say ‘carrots’ (let alone buy some) but Eleanor never did deliver on that promise...

An excerpt from a USA today review featured on the back of the book reads, "If H.G Wells, Stephenie Meyer and Michael Crichton co-wrote a novel, the result would be Blood and Ice"... After reading the book I'm not entirely convinced this was a compliment (looking at it now, I'm not sure how I ever construed it as such). 

Masello is clearly a capable writer and the book is thoroughly researched. Reading about living and working amidst the eerie and alien Antarctic landscape was engrossing and the retrospectives of the Crimean War were enjoyable. The overall idea has lots of potential (I imagine a storyboard of the basic plot points might look quite exciting) but the execution was too convoluted for me. The intended thrills were anticlimactic, the romance was uninspiring and ill-fitted, the ending fell flat and the main character, Michael, was a bit of a husk; a mere plot vehicle and so impassive himself that it was difficult, as a reader, to feel anything more profound. It seemed to me that Masello didn't enjoy developing these aspects of his story; rather that he resented them bumming a lift on the back of his serious, journalistic endeavours.   

In fact, in my head the book pitch went something like this.....

I didn't entirely dislike the book but it was full of frustratingly, unrealised potential and every time immersion crept up on me I was torn away to some other place or time or character. Some 500 pages after that uncarrotful trip to Tesco I closed in on the final chapters with relief and excitement for my next read, rather than in anticipation of an enticing and satisfying ending. 

This book started off GREAT, and I loved, loved, loved it for the first 50%. Couldn't put it down! Then it started to meander and got a bit slower, and we get some manufactured drama between Robert and Minnie that felt a bit false for them, but I didn't mind.

In truth, the book could have - maybe should have - ended there. For me, the last 30% of the book dragged and dragged.  There were some sweet moments during the final chapters, so it wasn't a complete bust. I really did enjoy it, just felt the last half didn't hold my attention nearly as much as the first half.

Lost points for lack of editing as well as the fact that the story seemed to drag on a bit around the stalker subplot and the hero's secret which leads to a cliffhanger ending. That being said, I liked the story's premise enough that I want to know what happens next for Cole and Ally.

I put this in my DNF file, although technically I did finish this book. I started skimming at around 20% all the way to the end just to see how the hero/ine got to their HEA. I skipped over so much of the book that I'm sure I missed some important points along the main characters' story arc. All in all I probably read 1/2 of the book. 

The writing was long-winded and overly descriptive where I didn't feel it was necessary. There wasn't enough dialogue between the hero/ine, IMO; instead we're told 85% of the story through their inner thoughts/musings. What dialogue there was between them I felt like I was reading a 1980s bodice ripper at times; way too much purple prose for a contemporary novel. Overall, I wouldnt say that the writing was horrible and the premise was great, but it just wasn't the type of writing I enjoy.