For starters, everything about this book was designed for me to like it. And I did, to a certain extent, like it enough, but in reality it was a bit of a let-down. You can stop reading there if you’d like and go about your day but I’ll briefly clarify for my true blue fans.

Snowy mountain tuberculosis sanatorium turned luxury hotel accessible only by funicular or easily blocked path? Excellent, go on.

“Enh” character development leaning towards the reality that every single man in this book deserves to be chucked off the tallest peak in the Alps for crimes of gaslighting and just generally being a jerk (which has zero to do with the plot, they’re just shitty dudes for no reason, even if the reason were to be shitty dudes)? Boooo.

Mysterious disappearances, captivating pacing and plot-driving chapter cliffhangers, fun scare scenes, a pretty solid body count? Cool.

Taking an imaginative concept and kind of dulling the shine a bit with some difficult to believe detective work and a humdrum ending? You lost me.

3/5 but I will probably read the next one in the series lol.