INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “A claustrophobic spine-tingler.” –People “Not only do Ware’s novels wink at [Agatha] Christie in a saucy way, but Ware herself is turning out to be as ingenious and indefatigable as the Queen of Crime.” –The Washington Post The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Turn of the Key and In a Dark, Dark Wood returns with another suspenseful thriller set on … Times bestselling author of The Turn of the Key and In a Dark, Dark Wood returns with another suspenseful thriller set on a snow-covered mountain.
Getting snowed in at a luxurious, rustic ski chalet high in the French Alps doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world. Especially when there’s a breathtaking vista, a full-service chef and housekeeper, a cozy fire to keep you warm, and others to keep you company. Unless that company happens to be eight coworkers…each with something to gain, something to lose, and something to hide.
When the cofounder of Snoop, a trendy London-based tech start-up, organizes a weeklong trip for the team in the French Alps, it starts out as a corporate retreat like any other: PowerPoint presentations and strategy sessions broken up by mandatory bonding on the slopes. But as soon as one shareholder upends the agenda by pushing a lucrative but contentious buyout offer, tensions simmer and loyalties are tested. The storm brewing inside the chalet is no match for the one outside, however, and a devastating avalanche leaves the group cut off from all access to the outside world. Even worse, one Snooper hadn’t made it back from the slopes when the avalanche hit.
As each hour passes without any sign of rescue, panic mounts, the chalet grows colder, and the group dwindles further…one by one.
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Great atmospheric read
Claustrophic. Isolated. Terrified. Covid lockdown? No.
It’s another kind of attack by nature — an avalanche at a posh Swiss ski resort — and Ruth Ware’s homage to Agatha Christie. I love being in the hands of a confident writer and letting him/her whisk me along with surprises, shocks and thrills. Highly recommended.
As a huge Ruth Ware fan to begin with the premise for “One by One” intrigued me. It reminded me of my favorite of Agatha Christie’s books, “And Then There Were None”.
Set in a remote chalet in the Alps, a startup tech team arrives for a week of mixing business and pleasure. But things go terribly wrong. Twists and turns keep you biting your nails right up until the end.
My favorite of Ruth Ware’s books so far, I highly recommend, “One by One”.
I read all Ruth Ware’s books — this one kept me on the edge of my seat. A perfect cold weather read!
“One By One” by Ruth Ware is a twisted revisit to a classic Agatha Christie tale. Employees of cutting edge music app “Snoop” gather for company retreat and business convocation in a rustic ski vacation cabin. Readers know immediately that things will not end well, and in fact, the book starts with a report from the BBC News website news indicating an avalanche, four dead, and two hospitalized. As readers go back five days, questions are waiting to be answered. Who died? Was it murder?
Ware drops readers into a quagmire of double dealing, corporate misdeeds, personal grievances, and revenge. The narrative unfolds in first person accounts from Liz, former Snoop employee, and Erin, management company employee and chalet host for the week. These two differing vantage points allow readers to view the same events from very different perspectives. Readers hear what Liz and Erin say to others, what others say to them, and what they say to themselves. They talk to themselves a lot. This happy little retreat is happy no more as information from the past comes to light, and the future of the company looks increasingly dire. And then there is the snow.
“One By One” is an avalanche of disloyalty, riddles, retribution, and snow. And, like a snowball rolling down hill, it quickly gains momentum until a final, horrible crash. I received a review copy of “One By One” from Ruth Ware, Gallery, and Scout Press. It kept me turning the pages until the shocking, twisted end. It was deceptive, compelling, and a true tribute to the master of surprise, Agatha Christie.
The story reminds of Agatha Christie’s “And Then There Were None.” One by one, the guests at a ski resort are murdered. The plot is fast-paced and creepy. If you are a reader of murder mysteries, the murderer becomes apparent half-way through the story. But it is fun the way the author creates a cat and mouse scenarios.
Ruth Ware is a master story teller that grips you in her novels through her signature atmospheric thriller, locked room mystery in a closed circle setting.
There is nothing more horrifying than the feeling of being isolated, only to be picked off one by one while stranded, in a luxurious chalet in the French Alps no less. No matter how luxurious, the suffocating feeling when trapped in close proximities not knowing who the culprit is while slowly losing basic necessities like water, electricity, wifi and phone access is more than terrifying. This book had me in palpitations especially with the Jason Bourne type of chase scenes down the French Alps.
The story was told in the point of views of two women – Erin one of the two chalet employees responsible for the guests and housekeeping and Liz, the socially awkward minor shareholder invited to the company retreat.
The characters were so distinct and I loved that they were introduced right away in the beginning so cleverly as an “About Us” profile from the company page. I thought that was brilliant!
If you are a thriller fan, this is a must read. This was highly enjoyable and I highly recommend!
“One by One” is my first Ruth Ware book, but it certainly won’t be my last! Reminiscent of my favorite Agatha Christie classic, “One by One” is the type of riveting whodunnit that I love to get lost in. While the bare bones of this mystery is built upon a tried-and-true premise, Ruth Ware delivers a fresh, updated version with her own unique twist. And I happily devoured every single word. Set against the backdrop of a French mountain chalet, “One by One” is a roller coaster ride for sure–one that will have you clinging to the edge of your seat!!
Ruth Ware gives readers a good diversionary read at a time when it’s most welcome! One by One is a mystery, crime-thriller set in a resort in the French Alps where a tech company goes for a corporate retreat. What is meant to be a relaxing vacation and chance to reconnect with co-workers swiftly goes awry in the worst possible ways.
Bad weather is forecasted, so the team decides to take a morning ski run instead of following the original meetings first, ski in the afternoon plan. When they return to the resort, they discover a member of the team is missing. Heavy snow begins to fall, and an avalance hits the area, blocking off all access to the resort. Communication to the outside world is random at best and almost impossible. The team, along with resort staffers Danny (cook) and Erin (hostess), is now in survival mode.
There are several agendas at play among the team, and we quickly learn that no one is sure who can be trusted. When members of the group start dying, they realize there is a murderer among them. Can they identify the correct person and stop them before more are lost? Who will survive? When will help arrive?
I give this 3.5 stars rounded to 4 stars. This is a fast-paced read which will keep readers engaged. Yes there are some questionable things, like why a resort would only have two staff members, but I was easily able to put them aside to enjoy the pure escapism of the read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Scout Press for allowing me to read a copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
My first book from this author. I really like it, it reminds me of Agatha Christie’s books
Not sure I would say wonder Characters but watching them blend together is interesting and seeing who gets out.
Really kept my attention. Great suspense
My first Ruth Ware novel. She’s my fiancé’s favorite author. I enjoyed this one. A corporate retreat filled with charismatic, horribly, psychotic characters with an extremely dramatic backdrop. Probably the most cursing I’ve read in a book. So many “F” bombs. The only true example for the modern locked room mystery.
I love a good murder mystery book. The only thing with this book is it went back and forth between 2 characters, which to me gave away the murderer earlier than I would have liked. This book could have been a lot more mysterious had it been from more perspectives. Most of the time I assumed it was Liz with only the one chapter of Erin’s past making me question her for a little. Also, having each chapter state their snoop ID and followers was a bit overboard and quite frankly annoying. I did enjoy the murder mystery part of it and didn’t suspect the ending with the video and all that jazz. Overall 2 to 2.5 stars.
The co-owners and executives of Snoop, a social media music app, are attending a corporate retreat at a resort in the French Alps. Their administrative assistants and a former employee have also been invited. They arrive in the middle of a raging snowstorm and the resort isn’t easy to reach, its elevation so high and isolated they have to travel by funicular railway for the final stretch. On the surface, it all looks like the typical corporate offsite. But, there’s much more at stake as the two co-owners aren’t in agreement about the direction of the company. She wants to accept an extremely lucrative offer that’s on the table; he wants to take it public and they’re both lobbying hard to have the executives who own shares pick a side. Things take a turn when they’re trapped by a monster avalanche and one by one, people start dying.
I’m back in another story where the setting is in extreme winter weather but at least the venue is luxurious and beautiful this time. The Snoop folks are hosted by two representatives of the chalet and they’re just as much at risk as everyone else. It’s a motley assembly of personalities and I like how the Snoop app was used as an integral part of the mystery. I paid careful attention to the clues and deduced the culprit very early on, having an “aha” moment because I assembled a couple of details that were illuminating. It changed how I consumed the story, surprisingly making me even more attentive to confirm my hypotheses.
One of the author’s trademark elements is a locked room mystery. There’s something very Christie-ish about her stories, nicely meshing character and plot driven narratives. You have to pay attention to the small stuff that seems like extraneous information but are much more substantive. I love the style and this time I have to admit feeling a bit smug about having solved they mystery so early. It was still exciting and I enjoyed the contrast between the two characters who provided the narratives. Imogen Church is so skilled in her audio performance that I honestly thought there were multiple narrators. She’s just that good and she provided excellent character distinctions. I always knew who was talking. I very much enjoyed this story, even with its slower build and my early solve.
(Thanks to Simon & Schuster Audio for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)
Looking for that great relax at the beach with some entertaining who some it? This is it!! Great characters with diverse personalities, lots of action and suspense galore! FUN read.
So much tech detail
This was my first Ruth Ware book, and before I was even 1/4 of the way through, I went ahead and ordered three more of her works. She’s fantastic. One By One is chock full of tension, backstabbing, and excitement all wrapped in a cold, grim atmosphere. I loved every minute of it, and it’s been a long time since I enjoyed a mystery this much.
It’s funny to me how many authors are taking up Agatha Christie’s mantle. This one by Ruth Ware is fashioned after “Ten Little Indians,” renamed “And Then There Were None.”
Easy to read but unfortunately predictable