In the shadow of Mont Blanc lies Saint-Clément, a timeless
Alpine village hiding chilling secrets beneath its snow-covered
charm. For seven summers, history professor Étienne Mercier
has visited this haven to escape the pressures of academia and
delve into Alpine folklore. But in the summer of 1984, his
retreat takes a darker turn.
When Étienne stumbles upon an 18th-century journal hidden in
a crumbling estate, he uncovers haunting accounts of
mysterious disappearances and cryptic warnings about "the
mountain keepers." As he delves deeper into the journal's
chilling details, he begins to notice eerie parallels between the
past and the present, including a sinister forty-year cycle of
vanishings—one that aligns ominously with the current year.
With the reluctant help of Hélène Rousseau, Saint-Clément’s
enigmatic archivist, and under the wary gaze of the village’s
powerful mayor, Étienne pieces together a web of folklore,
forbidden rituals, and ancient guardianship. But his discoveries
come at a cost. The more he learns, the more the village
closes ranks, and the deeper he is drawn into its shadowy
traditions.
As winter creeps in, isolating Saint-Clément beneath heavy
snow, Étienne realizes he has become part of the cycle he’s
trying to unravel. With the lives of innocents—and his
own—hanging in the balance, Étienne must confront an
impossible choice: expose the truth and risk unleashing an
ancient force, or accept a dark legacy that has kept the village
safe for centuries.
Atmospheric, suspenseful, and unnervingly human, The Gilded
Winter is a gripping tale of sacrifice, love, and the chilling cost
of secrets buried in the heart of the mountains.