6:40 to Montreal by Eva Jurczyk

Book Blurb
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?

My Review

I’d like to thank Poison Pen Press for sending me a copy of this book in return for my honest review. What drew me to 6:40 to Montreal was that the whole book, or near enough, was set on a train carriage with only seven people on board. When one of them dies, the other six are both suspects and potential victims.

The claustrophobic train carriage made for a brilliant thriller setting. Add to this the fact that the train got stuck in the snow and you have a situation of fear, anger and suspicion . It was a hotbed of mistrust, with passengers clashing and finger pointing in blame and deflection. Add to this that the WiFi wasn’t working, there was no intercom between the train carriages or the driver and no way of contacting the outside world for help. There was a definite feeling of isolation, both for the carriage and those inside as alliances couldn’t be trusted. As I was reading I could feel the tension and fear of the passengers building, rumbling among them.

Eva Jurczyk’s characters are fascinating, all with interesting reasons for going to Montreal. Agatha, the main character is an author trying to follow up on the success of her first book. Struggling with a plot line she hopes to find inspiration on the journey to Montreal, although she does have a secret assignation planned. Finch is an older man who annoys Agatha with his loud phone calls and attitude. Cyanne, an old friend of Agatha who feels exploited as she was the inspiration for her bestseller; is it a coincidence or is Cyanne there for a reason. Then there is Jeff who has sneaked on to the business class carriage and Vivian and Rupindar, mother and son. Finally there is the wonderful Dorcas, the hostess of the carriage who try’s to keep everyone calm and upbeat. She was my favourite character, she was bubbly, always smiling even when under pressure and never losing her cool.

I found the 6:40 to Montreal to be a brilliant thriller. I loved theclaustrophobia of the setting, seeing the characters slowly unravel, become paranoid and become suspicious of each other. Eva Jurcyzk builds the tension slowly, drawing you in, increasing the the paranoia of the travellers that builds like a pressure cooker until it is finally released in a breathtaking and unexpected conclusion. An immersove thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed.