The winter holidays finally look set to bring a white Christmas, but the beautiful snow hides horrors beneath. When a man is found cruelly tortured and murdered, the Major Crimes team is already stretched thin through illness and stunned by an internal corruption investigation.

DCI John Barton hesitantly leaves his sabbatical to take the case, immediately confronting the same dark secrets that forced him away. The dead man was a loner and the perfect target, but when there is another savage murder, Barton begins to suspect that the killer is delving into the victims' pasts for a very specific, terrifying reason. And time is running out.

As the blizzard isolates the city, Barton realises they aren't pursuing a festive fanatic; they are hunting something far worse. With the department gripped by ice and paranoia, Barton knows he is getting closer to the truth, but will he be fast enough?

Because if he isn't, not everyone will make it home for Christmas.

Praise for Ross Greenwood:

‘Ross Greenwood is at the top of his game.' O J Mullen

'Move over Rebus and Morse; a new entry has joined the list of great crime investigators in the form of Detective Inspector John Barton. A rich cast of characters and an explosive plot kept me turning the pages until the final dramatic twist.' Richard Burke

‘Master of the psychological thriller genre Ross Greenwood once again proves his talent for creating engrossing and gritty novels that draw you right in and won’t let go until you’ve reached the shocking ending.’ Caroline Vincent at Bitsaboutbooks blog

'Ross Greenwood doesn’t write clichés. What he has written here is a fast-paced, action-filled puzzle with believable characters that's spiced with a lot of humour.' Kath Middleton