6:40 to Montreal

by Eva Jurczyk

No WiFi, no distractions. No way out…

Agatha needs to get some serious work done on her new book. To help her, her husband bought her quiet time to concentrate: a train ticket for a six-hour ride from Toronto to Montreal. The time aboard sets the stage for a perfect writing retreat, with only a handful of other passengers, plenty of snacks and drinks, and beautiful views.

But Agatha has other plans for her day out… plans that are unexpectedly derailed when the train breaks down in the middle of the frigid Canadian woods, and one of Agatha's fellow passengers dies quietly in his seat. Soon, a pleasant morning in transit turns into a fight for survival against an unknown and unseen enemy. Will Agatha, or any of the passengers, make it out alive?

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Canada, Contemporary, Audiobook

352 pages, Hardcover

First published October 28, 2025

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars for a murder mystery with an ending that I found unsatisfactory. Agatha, a best selling author, is given a first class train ticket on the train from Toronto to Montreal. Her husband gives her this ticket so she can get some writing done with no distractions. But then someone on the train dies in a seat that was assigned to Agatha. The man had bullied Agatha into giving her the seat. But he dies from a venomous Australian spider bite. Agatha and the passengers realize that it was murder, but the train has stopped in the middle of a storm. The door to the other cars automatically locks when the storm knocks the power out. They anxiously await help but none comes for hours and a passenger goes into a diabetic coma.
Agatha does find out who the killer is, but her reaction was unsettling.
Thank You Poison Pen Press for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.

Pub Date Sep 23 2025

[Linzie (suspenseisthrillingme) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new Agatha Christie-esque locked room mystery novel that was also just a little bit unhinged, 6:40 to Montreal had me in the palm of its hand from the moment it all began. Riveting, fast-paced, and unguessable in the extreme, I was utterly spellbound from the moment Agatha entered the train car until the book’s last damning chapter. You see, there were multiple plot lines that interwove into one masterful story. From the thoroughly suspicious characters to the shocking surprise that took me out at the knees, I was unable to guess the twist in this one until just before it was revealed. And let me tell you, I’m always thrilled to find a book that leaves me in the dark until the last minute.

The only piece of this dynamite whodunnit that missed the mark for me was the ending. Both abrupt and somewhat off-putting due to how it concluded, Agatha’s character arc—while brilliant—left me with a bad taste in my mouth all things considered. That being said, the vast majority of the book was simply sublime. Thanks to the isolated setting—where all of the suspects were trapped in a blizzard—and the classic mystery feel, I quickly and easily found myself feeling like a fly on the wall. Immersive and well-written, it was all I could do to hold on for dear life as this bestselling author protagonist brought to life a metafiction vibe while she searched for her next killer story (wink wink).

All said and done, I was utterly in love with this book right up until the very last few pages. Perhaps it was down to my own expectations, but I truly dislike when things aren’t wrapped up with a neat, pretty, little bow. Despite this, however, I was still mostly head over heels for this deft murder mystery. With a small cast of characters and plenty of amateur sleuthing, I lost myself in the claustrophobic atmosphere and swirling winter weather with no trouble at all. So if you love a good cozy mystery that’s heavy on bodies dropping like flies, perhaps give this one a try. Just be prepared to have to suspend all disbelief before diving into this unputdownable novel. Rating of 4 stars.

SYNOPSIS:

Agatha's husband has bought her a first-class ticket on the scenic six-hour train from Toronto to Montreal as a gift―a one-day writing retreat so she can get some serious work done on her new book, a highly-anticipated follow-up to Agatha's runaway bestseller debut novel. The first-class car is the perfect place to be productive, with only a handful of other passengers, plenty of snacks and drinks, and beautiful views flying by outside the window.

But Agatha has other plans for her day out… plans that are unexpectedly derailed when the train breaks down in the middle of the frigid Canadian woods and one of Agatha's fellow passengers dies quietly in his seat. Soon, a pleasant morning in transit turns into a fight for survival against an unknown and unseen enemy. Will Agatha―or any of the passengers―make it out alive?

Thank you to Eva Jurczyk and Poisoned Pen Press for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

PUB DATE: October 28, 2025

Content warning: mention of: cancer, diabetes, infidelity, blood, mention of: murder

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC for review. To be published September 23, 2025.

3.5 stars, rounded to 4.

Writer Agatha’s (natch, and the whole thing clearly owes a nod to the original-and-still-best murder on transportation book EVAH, MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, God bless us, everyone, there shall be none greater.) husband gifts her a first class ticket from Toronto to Montreal as a one day writing retreat for her to work on her sophomore book. Break for a poll: is this a good gift? “Here, honey. Now go out and earn your keep.” I don’t know.

Anyway…it seems Agatha has secrets and so do the others sharing her first class cabin. Car. Whatever.

Then the train comes to an unexpected stop and the group, along with their car attendant, is trapped. And one of the passengers dies. Then there is more mayhem. What is happening and why?

OK, there’s one thing in the setup about which you will have to suspend so much disbelief that your brain may atrophy, because it would be sooooooo illegal for about six thousand reasons, about five thousand three hundred and two will come to mind immediately (sorry. I’m a lawyer. This is the way I think. It’s a problem, believe me.) But if you can separate out that, then you’ll get to, “well, this isn’t really what I expected.” Or maybe you did. But I found it all rather engaging and everyone is a suspect….of something, but probably not murder. So it was actually good fun, but I had to take off half a star for the great big problem. Still enjoyed it, though.

[Cindy (leavemetomybooks) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gorgeous cover and a fun premise, but this felt interminably long, and the wackadoo ending didn’t feel worth the time it took me to slog through this thing. I wish I’d followed my instincts and DNFd because this didn’t work for me AT ALL. People who enjoy a slower burn will likely enjoy this much more.

There were some funny snarky bits, but overall too much repetition and too many things that didn’t make sense (which - to be fair - could 100% be my fault bc there was definitely some skimming happening by the last 25%).

And if I never have to read the name Dorcas or the words Blundstone boots again it will be too soon.

* thanks to Poisoned Pen for the NetGalley review copy. This publishes in September 2025.

[Heathers_readss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun read! A wife/mother/author boards a train (a gift from her husband), she has a mysterious plan in motion and you can’t help but wonder the whole time what exactly her plan is.

When a snow storm brings them to abrupt stop in the middle of nowhere the passengers soon learn this is the least of their problems.

I just love a locked door murder mystery related to extreme weather conditions! I loved how each character had a distinct personality and how the character pool was limited to a small number amongst the first class portion of the train, I find it’s always the “upper class” who offer a higher level of entertainment due to their distain for ever being even slightly inconvenienced 😂

We had multiple storylines going on within the main storyline and I liked the main characters propensity for her mind to wander and take the reader on a journey within her inner Dialogue, thought process and memory flashbacks.

It was hard to pinpoint a suspect and I knew while reading that there would be lots of twists in store.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the authors previous book but I’m so glad I gave her another shot because this book had all my favourite components to an interesting and entertaining murder mystery plot.

Thank you to poisoned pen press and the author for the earc!

Publish date: September 25th

[theliterateleprechaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately, my interest and connection to this book stalled, paralleling the 6:40 train to Montreal. While the premise was intriguing, I lost what little connection I had to the main character the further the train was from the station. I believe that the ‘fluff’ pulled my attention in too many directions and I lost momentum. I also believe that my lack of connection to the characters contributed to my lack of engagement in the story. It was the clumsy twist that got me; it asked me to stretch even further and I couldn’t do it.

I liked the idea of a ‘closed train car’ murder, I appreciated that I had to keep reading to pick up clues, the Canadian setting, and the quirky passengers/employees.

I was gifted this copy by the publisher through NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

[Shantha (ShanthasBookEra) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this after seeing it was a Barnes & Noble monthly thriller pick. I listened to a spoiler free discussion with the author and another author I love. It sounded like an amazing premise. This book was nothing like that. Just wasn't good for a locked room mystery. I did not think it compared to Agatha Christie at all except for the fact they were on a train. And honestly I don't even know what happened except there was a dead body, a medical emergency, amd another passenger that had a bone to pick with the FMC. There are much better thrillers out there.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, Eva Jurczyk, and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

Always eager to tackle books by authors new to me, I gladly accepted this ARC by Eva Jurczyk. Agatha is on her way between Toronto and Montreal by train. While the rails are always a wonderful spot to come up with ideas for a novel, Agatha has other plans in Montreal. The journey is paralyses during a winter storm, forcing Agatha and the others to wait it out, without connection to the outside world. When a man dies onboard, suspicions run high and motives emerge, as well as a sickening truth as the minutes turn to hours. Eva Jurczyk entertains with this story and keeps the reader guessing.

Agatha is on a deadline to get her new book in order. While she may be a popular author, she is still stymied by writer’s block at times. Her husband has the solution when he purchases her a ticket to travel between Toronto and Montreal by train. This will surely get the juices flowing and Agatha will have a winning novel in no time.

After boarding her first-class compartment, Agatha is pleased that there are only a few other passengers, lots of coffee, and snacks to tide her over. She also has a secret of her own waiting in Montreal. However, soon after the train pulls out of Toronto, a crippling blizzard leaves it stuck in between stations, with no WiFi or other connection to the outside world for these passengers. Things get rough, particularly when the passenger seated next to her dies mysteriously. Panic engulfs everyone and the battle for survival commences.

Stuck in the snow and with little to do, theories emerge amongst the passengers and it is soon even more troublesome when medical issues arise. No one is safe, nor are they aware of who is out there, pulling the strings. What began as a chance to be creative has become a macabre writing assignment where the mystery is never-ending. Eva Jurczyk delivers a great mystery set in the middle of a Canadian winter.

Mysteries set in Canada are of great interest to me, especially when the author can capture the nuances of the entire experience. Eva Jurczyk does well to create a believable situation and keeps the reader in the middle of the mix. The narrative flow works well with this piece, mixing a great mystery with the ever-present docility with which Canadians have been branded. Each character is essential to the larger story and keeps the reader on their toes, learning about them and trying to piece their backstories together. Plot points help thicken the mystery and provides a stellar surprise or two for the reader who is seeking to decipher what is going on. I cannot wait to find more or Eva Jurczyk’s work to compare!

Kudos, Madam Jurczyk, for a story that never flew off the rails!

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having enjoyed Eva Jurczyk’s first novel, The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections with all of its quirkiness and unusual twists and turns, I was glad to receive her latest book, 6:40 to Montreal. This read was less successful for me. The opening premise is that writer Agatha has been given a business class ticket on the train to Montreal so she can devote that day to uninterrupted writing on her novel that’s going nowhere.

From the beginning we know that Agatha has a secret from her husband, Teddie, related to this day away, though details are only revealed piece by piece. As the trip begins, Agatha is bullied out of her assigned seat by an older, unpleasant man and ends up sitting across the aisle from him. There is another major complication: one of her fellow passengers is someone Agatha knows, a woman who is very angry about Agatha’s last book. With this setup, there is a suspicious death, a blizzard and the train becomes disabled in the middle of nowhere for hours.

It seems a promising start but the book is basically too much. The action at times is almost unhinged rather than controlled. Agatha slowly parcels out small details of her life throughout the novel that are integral to the plot and how it’s interpreted. Is Agatha ultimately a trustworthy narrator, even a trustworthy character? If she isn’t, what have we read? Agatha is obviously under multiple sources of stress. How is she reasoning? In the end, the plot seems to fall apart in its solution. I shook my head and said “really?!” The intention may have been zany character and plot with unusual solution. I couldn’t see it as zany, rather as unmoored.

Rating 2.5 rounded to 3*

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for an eARC of this book. The opinions are my own.

[KellyJ1028 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I loved the premise of this book and the beautiful cover, 6:40 to Montreal just wasn't for me. I had really high hopes for this one but it was too long, and the ending was way out there. 2.5 stars

Our MC is Agatha, a writer trying to get some work done on her new book on a train from Toronto to Montreal.
The train gets stuck in a snowstorm and things go downhill from there.

What I did like- the Canadian setting. I love a setting that I am familiar with, have visited before or heard of.

I really wanted to love this book but it didn’t work for me but it may work for another reader. However, that being said I would love to read something different by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisened Pen Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Pub date - 9/23/25

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5★s
6:40 To Montreal is the third novel by Polish-born Canadian author, Eva Jurczyk. While her husband, Teddy’s Christmas gift of a ticket on the 6:40 to Montreal seems like a thoughtful gesture, Agatha St John feels the pressure it represents: stop messing about and get started on her second novel. Six hours on the train from Toronto without wifi, without the distraction of internet and email, should be a welcome opportunity, shouldn’t it? And then lunch with her old friend Malee on arrival. Except Agatha has a different plan…

And Teddy hasn’t reckoned with her fellow passengers in the Business Class carriage, who don’t all seem to respect a person’s right to privacy and silence. Well-dressed he may be, but Finch Weatherby is old, arrogant and loud, and letting someone at the other end of his cell phone feel his ire at full volume. And sitting right next to her, complaining that he really should have the window seat.

Because it’s late December, Dorcas, their very experienced customer service agent, only has six passengers, and a trainee service agent, in her care. Vivien and her college student son, Rupinder, are being shown the responsibilities of sitting near the emergency exit as other passengers file in. it’s not until they are underway that Agatha spots her: the one person with whom she doesn’t want to be in such close quarters.

By the time these two do have a confrontation, on Agatha’s return from the rest room, there is already one person dead, and the body count rises by two more in the time the train has been stalled in the woods in a blizzard for eleven hours with the carriage doors locked and the power out, until the journey finally restarts.

While some of the characters show care and concern for others (sometimes to their own detriment) Agatha and her enemy Cyanne seem to ultimately be more interested in their own welfare. In fact, the more the story progresses, the less likeable several of the characters become. Is Agatha’s focus on capturing the details of scenes for a potential new novel meant to be an endearing quirk? It probably doesn’t help that she repeatedly insults an Aussie icon.

The reader needs to don their disbelief suspenders for quite a few aspects of the story, including the behaviour of several characters, but in particular, the glaring errors, by people who should know, in the treatment of a diabetic emergency. The twist, when it comes, is not entirely convincing, but does reveal an especially nasty act from an apparently benign character. The final chilling scene will have the reader wondering who is the psychopath. Jurczyk does capture her setting well, but this won’t be for everyone.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press

[suzanna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the arc!

I feel slightly bad for giving this one star. A few months ago my train from Toronto to Montreal was stalled in the snow for 6hrs near St. Zotique. I had the escape fair so i was in economy with a handful of peruvian chocolates i'd spilled by my feet, some carrot cake sarah had sent with me, and a lovely conversation with my seat mate. That was the most boring few hrs of my life and truly exasperating, but it was better than reading the haughty and largely redundant narrative in this book. sorry.

maybe I'm being harsh but reading a book about a writer talking bragging about how she knows to do xyz in a book to make it good, and then this actual writer not doing said elements and instead making a boring book was so incredibly ironic and simultaneously bothered me to no avail.

let's see. other things.
- I didn't have any pull to care about the MC's need for sex while running away from her incompetent husband, nor really cared about that relationship at all because Agatha spoke about him with such little care. also i understand the author was trying to gather mystery by doing vague storytelling until a specific "reveal" point but genuinely the whole book felt vague
AND THEN the whole "I didn't know what or why, but Dorcas was concealing something" (pg 126 on the arc if you want to fact check me) WHY are we playing around with these vague sentences this is supposedly a mystery novel !! Agatha preaching about show don't tell and then the author pulling this made me roll my eyes so hard and nearly dnf the whole book
- it pissed me off that Agatha was being all choin choin about missing her sexcapade while a boy was dying in his mother's arms
- so many of the characters were so nothing that they could literally disappear in the snow and that was enough to tie up their loose end. felt cheap!
- also can we talk about the cover?? who designed it have they ever looked up the landscape between toronto and mtl where are these mountains??? There are snowy fields and the occasional townhouse as the view on this journey. Unless you're really stretching mont royal as the mountain that it is distinctly not. el oh el

anyways i finished this because i wanted to write an accurate and informed review. all thoughts are my own but may be similarly expressed in text messages to my friends

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the sound of this.. a locked room mystery on a train in a snowstorm in Canada. Sounds like my kind of book. And that cover is gorgeous right.

Unfortunately I really struggled with this one. There was a comment early on about Australia and I read it as degrading and it went downhill from there. I didn’t like Agatha one bit Nadal, the character names were so weird. I didn’t really care what happened to them or why in the end. It was a slow urn before anything really happened and then it wasn’t very exciting.

Not all books work for everyone, this one unfortunately was a miss for me. Thanks to the publisher for the copy to read.

[Randy Money · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid, entertaining mystery/thriller. Jurczyk takes a bit of Strangers on a Train and Murder on the Orient Express, folds them in with some personal experience (she explains in the acknowledgements), then plays around with the situation she envisions. She excels at capturing the claustrophobia for passengers on a train stopped by a vicious snowstorm and trapped in the car with a dead body. Our narrator, a writer, mortally ill, trying to write one last book before she can't, isn't entirely likeable or sympathetic; as with real life people, sympathy for her weakens and strengthens like the signal from an AM radio station depending on where you are in the narrative. Same goes for the other characters, which is why the story is as believable as it is given some improbable circumstances.

[Matt Krieger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. Felt like it could have been about 100 pages shorter. Plot just kept plodding along and then the twist was just kind of meh.

[Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A business class train trip to Montreal goes horribly wrong in Eva Jurczyk’s “6:40 to Montreal” - a claustrophobic page turner that was equal parts unpredictable and unsettling.

The story follows Agatha, a surprise-hit author who is keeping secrets of her own, on an early morning train journey to Montreal that’s a gift from her husband. The train comes to a stop but the unexpected twists do not.

This would be a good read for someone looking for a page turner that doesn’t waste a ton of time on character development up front, as the story moves quickly with an interesting but not overly sympathetic protagonist. As someone who has commuted between Toronto and Montreal for work before, I also appreciated the local setting and familiarity.

There’s a healthy amount of tension, some blood, and an interesting cast of side characters, as well as a story within the story about Agatha’s own (possibly plagiarized-from-real-life?) novel.

While I would have preferred a slower burn, there was enough of a novel concept and meat on the bone to keep me reading through to an interesting ending!

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you liked “Girl on the Train,” I think you’ll really enjoy this. Agatha takes the 6:40am train from Toronto to Montréal under the guise of writing her book. As the train pushes from the station in a snowy morning, we learn there’s ulterior motives for Agatha’s reason for being on the train. She’s in a writing rut, a marriage impasse, and she’s dying. Shorty after they leave the station, the train comes to a grinding halt in the middle of nowhere with no cell service. 95% of this book takes place in one train car as the passengers and service worker, Dorcas, become very familiar with one another.

When the first death appears, all passengers begin to wonder who could’ve been the murderer and who was it really meant for? This book hooked me from the very beginning and it kept my attention the entire time. As the book went on, I kind of got the impression that Agatha may be insane, but the way the book ends, you realize she’s not the only one. She also slowly becomes an unreliable narrator as the book goes on and with the introduction of Cyanne, but i loved it.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, please note that this ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Tamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love thrillers with unreliable narrators and 6:40 To Montreal delivers exactly that! It was almost as good as Gone Girl and The Girl On The Train in that regard.

This book almost entirely takes place on a train and the main character is named Agatha, which gave me Murder On The Orient Express vibes, though I have to say the wnding was not as satisfying as Christie's.

Our main character, Agatha, is a writer struggling to get started on her second book, so her husband buys her a business class ticket on a six hour train from Toronto to Montreal, so she can take in the scenery and focus on writing her book. However, not too far into the journey, the train breaks down and we find out that a few of the business class passengers are hiding some juicy secrets, including Agatha, herself! When Agatha's obnoxious seatmate dies under unusual circumstances, everyone becomes a suspect...

I really enjoyed the majority of this book, and had theories on how it might end, but did not expect (and did not enjoy) the actual ending. It left me with several unanswered questions and felt unfinished. Nevertheless, it was a fun ride overall!

Note: I had never heard of Blundstone boots before reading this book, but they were mentioned so often, it's like they were another character in the book - I hope the author gets some sort of sponsorship from the company! ;)

Content Warnings: infidelity, gore, diabetic coma, car accident involving deer, cancer, depression

[The Honest Book Reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

A fast paced, one-day locked-room thriller on a train that embraces over-the-top moments and somehow makes it feel natural. This book paces events and reactions with skill. Shocks hit well, suspicion brews, and doubt saturates every corner of the train carriage. Even Agnes, the narrator, appears dubious at times. That use of doubt is the lifeblood of this story.

The opening moments contrast beautifully with the first body reveal. From that moment, the urgency never lets up. Characters clash, secrets bubble, and every reader suspicion ricochets. Yes, some elements are far-fetched, but the book embraces that extravagance, and it works.

The twists build toward one last, stunning reveal. A final sting that lifts the whole novel. This is proof the author knows how to craft unease and suspense. For anyone who loves closed-circle mysteries with isolation and paranoia, this is a gem.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Trisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very quick, engrossing mystery - a stopped, locked train. Who could have done it? What did everyone see?

It starts out with you knowing very little. Agatha received a present from her husband for a 1 day train ride. You lose cell reception and wifi is non-existent so it's a great opportunity for her to write and enjoy the gorgeous scenery. I loved the locked room feel, the way you couldn't trust anyone, and the each medical crisis raised the feeling of needed action and help NOW. It gave the plot a great tension, the mystery a wonderfully dangerous feel.

But what started fun and compelling quickly cooled for me. I started to put the pieces together and I wasn't loving the picture it painted. Things went off the rails and I never did quite find my groove with the story again. It was interesting and compelling to start but I wasn't feeling the conclusion.

[Colby · Rating 2 out of 5]

It started off well enough, but I think the author got a little stir crazy once she trapped her characters in that snowbound train car. Not a likable character in the bunch, they all had muddy motives and made the most insufferable decisions. The meta commentary on the process of writing a murder mystery made me cringe since I was not a fan of what the author was doing, including the final twist that was a flop and a half. Can’t really recommend unless you’re stuck on a train with no other reading material.

[Leonie · Rating 3 out of 5]

6:40 To Montreal promises to be a thrilling story in close quarters as a snowstorm forces the main character Agatha to spend more time on her train than she anticipated. What I expected to be an edge of my seat kind of feeling, unfortunately did fall a little flat for me. The characters the reader gets to meet were a little bit to off-putting and obvious for my taste, the plottwists were not entirely unanticipated for me personally and while I usually keep powering on in the ever present hope of an ending that suddenly makes me love a book with its twists and turns, this one rather manifested my opinion that this book simply was not for me.
If you as a reader don’t need to form a connection to the characters like I do, you still might enjoy this one a lot. Maybe I just read too many thrillers of this kind to not be surprised (except by the ending, which … did not help in favour of the book). Maybe I just need to like at least one person I’m reading about instead of finding them all utterly insufferable – it might be me, is what I’m trying to say.
This book is well-written in terms of grammar, choice of words and dialogue – the way chapters were structured was unfortunately not entirely to my taste and I couldn’t help but feel a little bored at times. The conflicts of some people on the carriage felt too inconsequential for me and I had the feeling of small drama blown up way out of proportions.
This book might be a great choice for people, who are still getting into this genre and don’t want to feel utterly overwhelmed by gore and horror. I think newer readers to thrillers might enjoy this one.

[Alice G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! Was very close to a 5 star for me but settled on a 4.5. I think the pacing was good and I actually really enjoyed the change in pace with the flashbacks and jumping into her published and prospective stories.

I think this book was the epitome for me of a main character not having to particularly likeable to enjoy the story. I have ready SO many books where not only have the MCs been unlikeable, but also unbelievable and infuriating. I didn’t respect all of Agatha’s choices (in fact so many of them were downright immoral), but she was real and interesting. I wanted the tiniest bit more from the supporting cast, but it didn’t detract from the plot for me.

I am not a typical highlighter, but some of the sentences and paragraphs in this book were spectacular to me.

I would happily recommend this book to anyone interested in a good closed door mystery and am looking forward to its release in September.

[Booksandchinooks (Laurie)]

I went into this one blind and I was immediately caught up in the suspense. Agatha sets out on her six hour train trip with some secrets we aren’t knowledgeable of initially. She is supposed to be working on her novel but that plan soon derails when death and mayhem ensues amongst the passengers and staff. The atmospheric writing has the characters trapped on the stationary train in the Canadian countryside amid a raging snowstorm and no wifi or outside connections. That’s all I’m going to say so I don’t give any plot points away. I enjoyed this book and the suspense and intrigue was very entertaining.

[Corey Woodcock · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a locked room mystery, an homage to Agatha Christie, and a thriller that takes place on a train to Montreal—a train that ends up stuck in a snowstorm. And there are corpses on board.

3ish stars—throughout the book it rolled at about 3.5, but the completely unhinged ending and a few other things throughout had me settle on 3.

It wasn’t a bad read though—in fact I’m shocked many reviews called this book “slow” or “too long”. It was a short book and I certainly didn’t find it to be slow. The problems u did have were with some of the characters, plot choices, and the ending. But overall, the book does work and it’s worth a look if you’re into this kind of thing. Especially if you’re an Agatha Christie or locked room mystery fan.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Read 6:40 to Montreal in one sitting—like literally skipped meals and notifications. It’s basically the VIA Rail trip from hell, but make it fun and murdery. (As someone who's spent way too much time on the actual Toronto–Montreal line, can confirm this unlocked a new fear.)

Agatha’s a bestselling author with imposter syndrome, a husband who thinks the cure to writer’s block is a scenic train ride (??), and a secret that’s slowly cooking in her carry-on. She boards the 6:40 from Toronto to Montreal with Plans™, but naturally, the universe, and a mysteriously dead passenger, derail them. What follows is a locked-room thriller that plays like Agatha Christie meets Fleabag with seasonal depression. And also Via Rail (that part was full on investigative discovery, ifykyk).

It’s claustrophobic, stylish, morally ambiguous. The people in first class are all a little unwell in very aesthetic ways. Think: pastel cashmere, emotional repression, and an overwhelming desire to go off the grid but still have oat milk.

Pros:
✅ Atmosphere: absolutely nailed the claustrophobic Canadian winter dread. Could practically hear the train creaking and feel the chill.
✅ Agatha: Loved her quiet chaos, loved the weird marriage, loved the angry woman energy.
✅ Pacing: Chapters flew by. One more chapter syndrome is real.

Cons:
> Wrapped up a bit too neatly for all the panic and chaos that led there.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Can't wait for everyone to read it come September 23, 2025.

[Victoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

~thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book~

I wanted to like this more than I did. People stuck somewhere with no help? My kind of book. I didn’t enjoy it that much and I think it’s because the characters were all unlike able. I also felt like nothing was happening for awhile. Maybe it’s one of those slow burn type of books but it didn’t hold my attention. 2/5 sorry :(

[Lata · Rating 3 out of 5]

Agatha is a novelist whose first book took off like gangbusters. She now is struggling to write her next novel, and is stuck. To help her out, her husband Teddy has bought her a round trip ticket on the Toronto to Montreal train. She's resentful, but also has her own plans for this day, including maybe getting started on that second book.

Agatha has cancer, and though she's had surgery, she's also incredibly depressed that she will not be part of their young son's life. Her depression has affected her marriage, and her outlook on herself, and her writing.

The first-class car she boards has only a few passengers, including an incredibly rude and angry man who insists on sitting next to her, talking, and having shouting conversations on his phone. Agatha is also horrified to find that a young woman who used to work for her husband, and whom she based the main character of her runaway bestseller, is also on the same car. This young woman, Cyanne Candel, has been furious, and abusive online, with Agatha for using not only the general outline of Cyanne's life for Agatha's main character, but also giving her main character Cyanne's actual name.

It's snowing when they leave Toronto, but the weather worsens, and partway to their destination, the train breaks down, scaring the passengers, one of whom is diabetic and suffering. Then, Agatha's neighbouring seatmate is found dead, and suddenly, what was supposed to be a straightforward trip turns into a tense and swiftly devolving situation, with passengers turning on each other and the customer-service agent Dorcas gradually losing control over the calm she's trying to maintain in the cabin.

Author Eva Jurczyk builds the tension from the time Agatha boards, as well as a nice sense of confusion about the veracity of people's intentions and statements.

It was hard to suss out who could be the culprit, but from the get go, I felt uncomfortable with Agatha, and her selective statements about parts of her life. There were some genuinely shocking things that happened in the train car, though I also think that the twist that explains the mystery did not work for me.

Jurczyk's claustrophobic plot and setting are interesting, though I did feel that the pacing was slow, and there were several times when I felt that the story dragged. I did like how EVERYone seemed suspicious, and the blizzard outside the stopped train certainly increased the tension of all the scenes. Agatha is a complex person, and not terribly likeable, though I felt some sympathy for her.

I did not enjoy this book as much as Jurczyk's first mystery, but I appreciated the selfishness and darkness of Agatha.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

[Aggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Implausible. I find it hard to believe the Whodunnit’s reasoning without revealing any spoilers.

[Ashdeclet Audiobook Addict · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living in Montreal, I couldn't wait to read and review this book. I mean who doesn't like reading books about where they live. Especially fiction.

This book is fast paced. And I love that! The first little bit, it was like a train pulling out of the station, it had to get its momentum started, but when it got up to speed, it really took off.

I don't often read the premise for books; I like the mystery of having no idea of what is going to happen. So I didn't know if they were going to make it to Montreal, if it was going to happen on the train, etc.... I mean we can guess right, but we don't actually know.

The book was great and moving and then about 85% of the way through, it got funky and ended. It was weird? Yeah I am confused. I want to think it could have worked if it was tweaked a little, or things were changed in the setting. But the ending felt too abrupt.

I will say this for Eva Jurczyk, I liked it a lot more than her other book That Night in the Library. I did give this 3 ⭐ because I was guessing up until 85/90% of the book of what was going to happen. And I thought the writing was pretty good, the ending just left so much to be desired.

Thank you to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced copy of this book. All my opinions are my own.