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Sleepers in the Snow
Not yet published
Expected 6 Oct 26Out on the moor, in the snow, a house stands beneath a pylon.
It is a house full of memories, and full of old things. And, in the dark, when the pylon sings in the wind, it is a house full of ghosts and fading memories . . .
The house, Kirkhill, has a new occupant - just moved in, fresh from a bitter divorce and looking for a fresh start. The moor is the perfect place for isolated, beautiful in the changing seasons, peaceful, and with just enough of the previous owners belongings that it's a perfectly self-contained and cosy home.
Only as the nights start to draw in, and the weather takes a turn, so does the house. The cosy isolation becomes menacing, animals begin acting strangely, and it seems someone could be watching the house . . . and the diaries of the previous owners begin to reveal a terrible tragedy which befell Kirkhill - one which its new occupant may be unable to escape . . .
***
A beautiful, gripping read for fans of Pirenese and The Winter Ghosts, this is a superb and moving ghost story for a frosty day.
It is a house full of memories, and full of old things. And, in the dark, when the pylon sings in the wind, it is a house full of ghosts and fading memories . . .
The house, Kirkhill, has a new occupant - just moved in, fresh from a bitter divorce and looking for a fresh start. The moor is the perfect place for isolated, beautiful in the changing seasons, peaceful, and with just enough of the previous owners belongings that it's a perfectly self-contained and cosy home.
Only as the nights start to draw in, and the weather takes a turn, so does the house. The cosy isolation becomes menacing, animals begin acting strangely, and it seems someone could be watching the house . . . and the diaries of the previous owners begin to reveal a terrible tragedy which befell Kirkhill - one which its new occupant may be unable to escape . . .
***
A beautiful, gripping read for fans of Pirenese and The Winter Ghosts, this is a superb and moving ghost story for a frosty day.
272 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication October 6, 2026
About the author
Joanne Harris
123 books6,418 followersJoanne Harris is also known as Joanne M. Harris
Joanne Harris is an Anglo-French author, whose books include fourteen novels, two cookbooks and many short stories. Her work is extremely diverse, covering aspects of magic realism, suspense, historical fiction, mythology and fantasy. She has also written a DR WHO novella for the BBC, has scripted guest episodes for the game ZOMBIES, RUN!, and is currently engaged in a number of musical theatre projects as well as developing an original drama for television.
In 2000, her 1999 novel CHOCOLAT was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and in 2022 was awarded an OBE by the Queen.
Her hobbies are listed in Who's Who as 'mooching, lounging, strutting, strumming, priest-baiting and quiet subversion'. She also spends too much time on Twitter; plays flute and bass guitar in a band first formed when she was 16; and works from a shed in her garden at her home in Yorkshire.
Joanne Harris is an Anglo-French author, whose books include fourteen novels, two cookbooks and many short stories. Her work is extremely diverse, covering aspects of magic realism, suspense, historical fiction, mythology and fantasy. She has also written a DR WHO novella for the BBC, has scripted guest episodes for the game ZOMBIES, RUN!, and is currently engaged in a number of musical theatre projects as well as developing an original drama for television.
In 2000, her 1999 novel CHOCOLAT was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and in 2022 was awarded an OBE by the Queen.
Her hobbies are listed in Who's Who as 'mooching, lounging, strutting, strumming, priest-baiting and quiet subversion'. She also spends too much time on Twitter; plays flute and bass guitar in a band first formed when she was 16; and works from a shed in her garden at her home in Yorkshire.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
'Sleepers In The Snow' is a haunting of a whole other kind, swirling with uncertainty and pushing readers to question everything. It's rich and evocative yet cloying; wrapping your brain up in tangled knots as you read. Impossible things happen, folklore reigns at times, and memory is key. Everything is layered and intertwined; reading 'Sleepers In The Snow' is almost like trying to make half a dozen copies of the same jigsaw puzzle at once - pieces slot into place then jumble, everything you need to figure the story out is there but it's all mixed up. Layers of memory, and the past, twist together, creating a haunting that is truly one of a kind.
Whether you're into the horror genre or not 'Sleepers In The Snow' is somewhat of a must read in my eyes. It's undeniably one of those magnificent horror stories that has a point buried beneath. Thematically the subject that it covers, and how poignantly it's depicted within these pages, makes it a title that is crying out to be read. It brings a real life horror vividly to life. Yet I don't want to go into specifics as unravelling the mysteries within for yourself greatly adds to the unsettling experience.
There's no denying that 'Sleepers In The Snow' is a story that feels weird at times. Things happen that don't fully make sense. It's definitely a read that will leave your brain spinning throughout, trying to puzzle out some of its anomalies. This very factor adds both to the atmospheric chills of the read and the overall thematic impact as a whole. If it feels weird it's worth it in the end; trust me on that one.
As the blurb suggests memory is key to this tale too. There's the memories of the setting; the house beneath the pylon and the surrounding moors and their myths. There's the memories of the previous occupants, dotted throughout in the form of the diaries they left behind. There's the lead's own memories and those of he encounters, as they share what they know of the lead's new mysterious home.
It's also worth noting that the lead of the novel remains unnamed throughout. You know how he came to be at his new home and what he's leaving behind that makes such a remote location tempting. Yet, like the history of his new home and the strange impossibilities that happen there the novel's lead himself is steeped in mystery.
There's so much more that I could say about 'Sleepers In The Snow' - it's definitely a book club kind of read that is crying out to be discussed upon finishing - but I'm trying to keep things somewhat vague to avoid giving too much away. This is definitely a twisty and unsettling novel that you need to unravel for yourself. It's a haunting that works on numerous levels and the cloying experience is key to it all. It's unsettling, disturbing and upon finishing you'll likely still find yourself worrying away at a few small details. But that in itself also feels key. This novel is such a unique, yet vital, experience. It's a haunting of it's own unique kind that manages to chill, and move, you as a reader. It's awe inspiring what the author has done; combining an unnatural haunting and whispers of folklore with a real life horror in a wholly compelling manner. Needless to say I'll definitely be picking up whatever Joanne Harris pens next.
Whether you're into the horror genre or not 'Sleepers In The Snow' is somewhat of a must read in my eyes. It's undeniably one of those magnificent horror stories that has a point buried beneath. Thematically the subject that it covers, and how poignantly it's depicted within these pages, makes it a title that is crying out to be read. It brings a real life horror vividly to life. Yet I don't want to go into specifics as unravelling the mysteries within for yourself greatly adds to the unsettling experience.
There's no denying that 'Sleepers In The Snow' is a story that feels weird at times. Things happen that don't fully make sense. It's definitely a read that will leave your brain spinning throughout, trying to puzzle out some of its anomalies. This very factor adds both to the atmospheric chills of the read and the overall thematic impact as a whole. If it feels weird it's worth it in the end; trust me on that one.
As the blurb suggests memory is key to this tale too. There's the memories of the setting; the house beneath the pylon and the surrounding moors and their myths. There's the memories of the previous occupants, dotted throughout in the form of the diaries they left behind. There's the lead's own memories and those of he encounters, as they share what they know of the lead's new mysterious home.
It's also worth noting that the lead of the novel remains unnamed throughout. You know how he came to be at his new home and what he's leaving behind that makes such a remote location tempting. Yet, like the history of his new home and the strange impossibilities that happen there the novel's lead himself is steeped in mystery.
There's so much more that I could say about 'Sleepers In The Snow' - it's definitely a book club kind of read that is crying out to be discussed upon finishing - but I'm trying to keep things somewhat vague to avoid giving too much away. This is definitely a twisty and unsettling novel that you need to unravel for yourself. It's a haunting that works on numerous levels and the cloying experience is key to it all. It's unsettling, disturbing and upon finishing you'll likely still find yourself worrying away at a few small details. But that in itself also feels key. This novel is such a unique, yet vital, experience. It's a haunting of it's own unique kind that manages to chill, and move, you as a reader. It's awe inspiring what the author has done; combining an unnatural haunting and whispers of folklore with a real life horror in a wholly compelling manner. Needless to say I'll definitely be picking up whatever Joanne Harris pens next.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Review to follow for www.sffworld.com.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Joanne Harris trades her usual warmth for the biting cold of the moors. Kirkhill is a house that functions as a memory trap: filled with the debris of previous lives, it slowly infects its new owner. The story moves from a post-divorce fresh start to a claustrophobic psychological downward spiral. It manages to avoid the tired tropes of the haunted house genre by anchoring the horror in the weight of aging and forgotten history.
The pacing is deliberate, allowing the isolation of the moor to settle into the marrow of the prose. Harris captures the shift from cozy to menacing with a subtle, unnerving efficiency. She uses the diary entries of past residents as a framing device, a structural choice that effectively layers the past over the present without stalling the central mystery.
The human element remains strong, focusing on the vulnerability of someone attempting to redefine their identity in total solitude. It is a quiet, haunting study of how our spaces possess us long after we leave. Harris demonstrates that the real ghosts are rarely supernatural; they are simply the things we refuse to leave behind.
For those who appreciate atmospheric, psychological horror, avoid if you require jump scares or a breakneck, action-heavy plot.
The pacing is deliberate, allowing the isolation of the moor to settle into the marrow of the prose. Harris captures the shift from cozy to menacing with a subtle, unnerving efficiency. She uses the diary entries of past residents as a framing device, a structural choice that effectively layers the past over the present without stalling the central mystery.
The human element remains strong, focusing on the vulnerability of someone attempting to redefine their identity in total solitude. It is a quiet, haunting study of how our spaces possess us long after we leave. Harris demonstrates that the real ghosts are rarely supernatural; they are simply the things we refuse to leave behind.
For those who appreciate atmospheric, psychological horror, avoid if you require jump scares or a breakneck, action-heavy plot.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
When the unnamed narrator moves into a remote cabin sight unseen, he's looking forward to some alone time after a bad divorce. Set atop a windswept moor with nothing but an electric pylon for miles, he is happy to throw his phone into the woods and isolate himself.
At first, the cabin is perfect. Never mind the fact that the wardrobe is filled with men's clothes that just happen to fit him. And that terrible voices are resonating from the buzzing of the electrical pylon. He discovers the previous owners' inscrutable journals, but they create more confusion than clarity.
A constant stream of small, destabilizing occurrences in the ghostly house starts to take on a sinister meaning. No one in town will talk about the people who lived and died there before. The poor narrator alternates between cycles of clear logic and terror until he no longer knows what's real.
Sleepers in the Snow is the kind of story that makes you question reality, in the best possible way. Joanne Harris nails the sense of creepiness and dread, showcasing her magnificent range (she also wrote Chocolat!). As soon as I was done I wanted to read it again.
Thank you to Megan Beattie Communications and Pegasus for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.fogfiction.com or on Instagram @fogfiction.
At first, the cabin is perfect. Never mind the fact that the wardrobe is filled with men's clothes that just happen to fit him. And that terrible voices are resonating from the buzzing of the electrical pylon. He discovers the previous owners' inscrutable journals, but they create more confusion than clarity.
A constant stream of small, destabilizing occurrences in the ghostly house starts to take on a sinister meaning. No one in town will talk about the people who lived and died there before. The poor narrator alternates between cycles of clear logic and terror until he no longer knows what's real.
Sleepers in the Snow is the kind of story that makes you question reality, in the best possible way. Joanne Harris nails the sense of creepiness and dread, showcasing her magnificent range (she also wrote Chocolat!). As soon as I was done I wanted to read it again.
Thank you to Megan Beattie Communications and Pegasus for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.fogfiction.com or on Instagram @fogfiction.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Creepy and weird. What is reality? Who is the main character? We never really know. Or do we? I would have never considered an electrical pylon as something that could haunt nightmares but it certainly does in this book. Harris does a good job personifying the pylon and the terror the man feels living alone in his house on the moor. It's a unique storyline, albeit a bit confusing, but I suppose that was the author's point. This book was creepy enough that I didn't want to read it at night. I thought it was well written, but just very odd and not my usual style of novel.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
I kept hoping for a big reveal and it just didn't grab me
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
3.5⭐️ review to come
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews