The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
I am not normally a fan of most thriller-type novels…except Stephen King (of course!) and the ones I pick up are few and far between. But, let me just say that the hype on this one was pretty accurate. I was anxious, suspended in disbelief and completely engrossed in the story.
The story begins with a mysterious occurrence right from the start and it begins our “foggy” view of reality as well. Anyone who has ever been sleep deprived and tipsy knows that our judgement and perception of things becomes severely skewed. A person cannot function rationally on short burst of sleep and then be expected to make lucid decisions or react to life in a practical way. Lo is our “cloudy” lens for this novel and she is a great foil to the mystery occurring on the boat.
This story reminded me of an Agatha Christie novel, specifically Murder on the Orient Express. It is confined to a small space making it frustrating to understand how no other passenger knows what is happening. We are in international waters, throwing customary laws out the window. We have a plethora of motives by different passengers. We travel in luxury shrouded in suspicion. No one is who they seem to be.
I was so frustrated with a few aspects of the story but they added to my anxiety and suspense. First of all, why wasn’t the internet working? Lo was unable to email or text or call anyone! In this day and age of constant communication, that would be my biggest worry! The secret doors and passageways were so chilling. When Lo went for a massage and someone had slipped in while she was in there. That’s is frightening. Also the fact that the crew was able to access all rooms (just like in a real hotel) was worrisome. But probably the strangest was Lo’s kidnapping and imprisonment by the Woman herself!
My favorite part, and probably the most suspenseful, was when Lo escapes from the boat, barely able to get from the water to the pier. Then, arriving at the hotel and asking for help only to be betrayed by the hotel owner…then the boat comes back! That gave me chills. I really did not think that Lo would survive and I thought that everyone must be against her. It was a nail biter.
This book was such a quick read and it was so suspenseful that I think I need another thriller in the near future! Although a few little holes here and there, this book was well written, well thought out and delivered on suspense.
Were you frustrated with Lo, the main character? Why?
Were you frustrated with the other passengers? Why?
Did you think that Lo made up the story of the Woman next door?
Should her home invasion been tied to the experience on the boat? Why do you think it wasn’t?
What part got your heart racing the most?
Did you figure out who did it before it was revealed?
Did you enjoy this book? Do you enjoy the “Thriller/Suspense” genre?
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt was my reading selection for April and now will be the selection for May as well. Sometimes life gets in the way of a good book so I am going to extend this book into May so that we can all enjoy it and not have to rush through it.
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