• First police procedural has been set in the snowbound Hazelton area of northern B.C.
• Brings out the humanity of RCMP officers in its depiction of them, without idealizing or polishing off the rough edges
• A northern winter and two mismatched detectives bring out outstanding character friction and dialogue
• Author is a court reporter and longtime resident of the Hazeltons who has seen many trials in the area, including murders, and conveys a sense of its isolation and the claustrophobic feel of its criminal investigations
• Author's extensive courtroom experience also shows in the gripping psychological realism of the book's criminals

R.M. Greenaway lives in Nelson, B.C. Cold Girl is her first novel and the first in a series featuring David Leith and his team.

2017 Arthur Ellis Best First Novel Award Finalist

It's too cold to go missing in northern B.C., as a mismatched team of investigators battle the clock while the disappearances add up.

A popular rockabilly singer has vanished in the snowbound Hazeltons of northern B.C. Lead RCMP investigator David Leith and his team work through the possibilities: has she been snatched by the so-called Pickup Killer, or does the answer lie here in the community, somewhere among her reticent fans and friends?

Leith has much to contend with: rough terrain and punishing weather, motel-living and wily witnesses. The local police force is tiny but headstrong, and one young constable seems more hindrance than help - until he wanders straight into the heart of the matter.

The urgency ramps up as one missing woman becomes two, the second barely a ghost passing through. Suspects multiply, but only at the bitter end does Leith discover who is the coldest girl of all.