Death in the Arctic by Tom Hindle
Death in the Arctic by Tom Hindle was published in paperback on 11th September 2025. I picked it up in Sainsbury’s on the day, but it took me a while to get round to reading it. Tom Hindle also wrote Murder on Lake Garda and A Fatal Crossing, which were enjoyable, but not essential, murder mysteries.
In my opinion, Death in the Arctic is his best novel so far.
The cover suggests something from the 1920s, but Death in the Arctic is set in the present day – complete with Instagram and influencers. Ezra Day and Howard Barnes are bringing back airships as a form of travel. They believe combining sustainability with luxury is the future.
Before the Osprey opens for paying customers, it takes a maiden flight with a select group of passengers. On board are Ezra’s two schoolfriends – Devon and Jasper, along with Jasper’s partner Madison. There’s also green blogger, Mia, and aspiring travel journalist, Chloe – on her first assignment with photographer, Ben. The passengers are supported by the airship’s crew of eight.
Death in the Arctic spends a lot of time setting the scene – the excitement of the Arctic itself and the luxury of the airship. Usually I find it boring when books spend too long setting the scene, but it really works here. The whole thing feels quite magical and I painted a really vivid picture of the airship and the landscape in my mind’s eye. The story is mainly told from Chloe’s point of view, but we get the point of view of some of the other characters too.
After a beautiful first day aboard the Osprey, things start to go wrong. A passenger is found dead in their cabin. Suddenly, the airship feels like a scary place, and the passengers and crew are trapped there until they can get safely back to Norway.
Death in the Arctic is a fun page turner. While it has plenty in common with other locked room murder mysteries – from Agatha Christie to Tom Hindle’s other books and Lucy Foley’s The Guest List – the setting makes it a bit different. I absolutely loved imagining the airship and the Arctic landscape and was very impressed by the clever solution to the mystery.
If you enjoy a murder mystery, I would definitely recommend Death in the Arctic.
