Magnificent scenery, ostentatious luxury, vicious storms, and unexplained deaths in France's premier alpine ski resort set the scene for this international crime novel. Western societies have lost their moral and ethical compass. Many people seek escape in luxury, dangers and thrills, beautiful surroundings, sexual escapades, and the opportunity to flaunt conformist norms. Courchevel offers them the perfect escape on every count. But not this year. In search of soft targets, wealthy criminals and rootless terrorists roam the world freely, forming new international gangster bands that buy prestigious buildings and industries and use them to launder money. In Courchevel, international high rollers, abetted by the ruthless Russian mafia and unscrupulous politicians are conspiring to steal the cultural and physical inheritance of France. Terror is their tool.

Russian and Japanese businessmen launder massive amounts of money, and displaced American jihadi brides ply the murderous trades they learned in Syria. Only a novice Canadian security agent and a shell-shocked CNN reporter stand between them and their goals. Christmas ski vacations promise escape, but this year the pristine snow hides an astonishing plethora of sordid detritus, greed, conspiracy, and unwarranted death. Global elites ski, play and invest in the most magnificent ski resort in the world. But all is not well. Not even here.