Rules of Frost: A Novel

Summary

From the author of the “deeply atmospheric, breathlessly suspenseful” (Lee Child) The Storm King, an atmospheric and claustrophobic thriller taking place in an isolated boarding school during a blizzard.

You may think you know the rules. But you don’t know the Game.

After fourteen-year-old Sam is found dead at the center of a frozen pond, his boarding school does its best to move on. But as winter break begins and only three students and two teachers remain on the remote campus, it becomes clear Sam’s death was only the first move in a dangerous game.

Jon Sayers hopes to give the three stay-behind boys a cheerful holiday. But on his first night, he wakes to the sight of a dark figure cutting through the snow of the empty campus. One of the boys? His fellow teacher? Or something else entirely?

As one disturbing incident leads to another, fear spreads, and paranoia takes hold. When an ice storm cuts them off, Jon learns the boys have been playing a secret game with enigmatic rituals and rules. With secrets of his own, Jon questions not just those around him, but the darkness within himself.

With his moves running out, Jon faces an agonizing truth—there are some games you can’t hope to win, only fight to survive.