Tag Archives: Ruth Ware

August 27, 2016 · 7:17 pm

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware – a review

This was the second novel by writer Ruth Ware who I first encountered at the festival last year (so excited by her debut novel were me and the Sister we even got dressed up for photos!) so I was very pleased to get a free copy of the Woman in Cabin 10 via netgalley.

The Woman in Cabin 10 starts off with a break in at journalist Lo Blacklock’s flat. She is already quite highly strung and this understandably causes her to go into a state of paranoia and panic. In order to help get over the break in she accepts an assignment on a cruise ship. It is supposed to be ten days of pure relaxation and sightseeing. Unfortunately the first night of sailing Lo thinks she sees a woman pushed over board. Despite there not being anyone reported missing she is adamant this has really happened and won’t let it go. Due to her fragile mental state and excessive drinking no one else believes her. Interspersed with us finding out what is happening on board we also hear from her friends and colleagues who are worried that she seems to have disappeared.

Whilst this was an enjoyable read I don’t think it was quite as good as the first novel. It did unfortunately feel a little bit similar to Girl on a Train to me. However saying that, I really enjoyed Girl on a Train so that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The main problem was that I didn’t really like the main character. She was incredibly annoying, and whilst you care about the crime that may or may not have been committed a lot of the time you wanted to just tell her to leave it alone.

Yet despite that I did enjoy reading this. It was another fun fast read and at no point did I guess the outcome which kept me turning the page to find out what was happening. I like the style of novel that uses an unreliable narrator and this certainly ticked that box. The setting on a cruise ship was interesting as it gave it that locked room feel where the list of suspects is limited and you get an incredibly claustrophobic feel.

This is the second book I’ve read recently based on a cruise ship (Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard being the other one) and it is a fascinating setting. Overall I did enjoy this and will certainly be looking out for more from Ruth Ware

 

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July 25, 2015 · 7:38 pm

In a dark, dark wood by Ruth Ware – a review

As I’ve mentioned many many times, one of the most exciting things about the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival is that you not only get lots of free books, but often you are also lucky enough to get proof copies of some novels before they go on general sale. Although this isn’t always straightforward, and the fabulous people at Dead Good Books made us work for a copy of In a dark, dark wood by dressing up in feather boas with a very large hat in order to recreate a murderous hen do. In return I received a copy of the book, which was completely worth the embarrassment.
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In a dark, dark wood is Ruth Ware’s debut novel. It centres on crime writer Nora who is suddenly invited to the hen do of her child hood friend Claire despite not having seen her for 10 years. She decides to go along in the hope of putting the past behind her, but things go wrong and Nora ends up in hospital with no memory of how she got there or what happened.

This was a thoroughly good read. Whilst I don’t think it was a particularly suspenseful or dramatic book, I really enjoyed it and it was one of those books that kept me wanting to read just one more chapter before sleep. The story itself is reasonably predictable and there are few twists, yet the writing is good and it was a fun quick read. The story keeps you interested although it isn’t especially scary, however having spent the past few weeks reading altogether darker crime novels this actually felt like it was a great change of direction for me. There is a very limited number of characters which works really well and gives the story a claustrophobic air that’s adds to the tension.

In a dark, dark wood is definitely worth a read, and if you’ve ever been on a hen do and wondered why on earth we go through it, you’ll love this book.

 

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