INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER FROM THE AUTHOR OF IN A DARK, DARK WOOD Featured in TheSkimm An Entertainment Weekly “Summer Must List” Pick A New York Post “Summer Must-Read” Pick Included in Summer Book Guides from Bustle, Oprah.com, PureWow, and USA TODAY An instant New York Times bestseller, The Woman in Cabin 10 is a gripping psychological thriller set at sea from an … New York Times bestseller, The Woman in Cabin 10 is a gripping psychological thriller set at sea from an essential mystery writer in the tradition of Agatha Christie.
In this tightly wound, enthralling story reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s works, Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, has just been given the assignment of a lifetime: a week on a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins. The sky is clear, the waters calm, and the veneered, select guests jovial as the exclusive cruise ship, the Aurora, begins her voyage in the picturesque North Sea. At first, Lo’s stay is nothing but pleasant: the cabins are plush, the dinner parties are sparkling, and the guests are elegant. But as the week wears on, frigid winds whip the deck, gray skies fall, and Lo witnesses what she can only describe as a dark and terrifying nightmare: a woman being thrown overboard. The problem? All passengers remain accounted for–and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that something (or someone) has gone terribly, terribly wrong…
With surprising twists, spine-tingling turns, and a setting that proves as uncomfortably claustrophobic as it is eerily beautiful, Ruth Ware offers up another taut and intense read in The Woman in Cabin 10–one that will leave even the most sure-footed reader restlessly uneasy long after the last page is turned.
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I just finished reading The Woman in Cabin 10 and it was a page-turner! Very chilling, psychological, twisting suspense. The author kept me guessing. If you like suspense that’s very intense and personal, I think you’ll love this book!
This was a sit on the edge of your seat book. As I was reading it I could just “see” everything that was happening. A journalist gets an assignment on a luxury cruise and is “sure” she sees someone go overboard. All kinds of twists and turns and I really hope they make this one into a movie.
I couldn’t put this down. Excellent writing, and the story keeps you on pins and needles. Exciting! I will be looking for more books by Ruth Ware.
I loved the premise of this book – a small group of people on a boat, a mysterious woman who disappears, an unreliable narrator at the center of it all. A modernized Murder on the Orient Express that was highly enjoyable.
This book was so captivating. The title draws you in. There is so much foreshadowing, a technique that’s not used in many books anymore. This book is so good and I couldn’t put it down.
A good old-fashioned mystery dressed iin modern clothing. Ware is Agatha Christie for a new generation.
If there is any recently published novel that can be truly marketed as the next The Girl on the Train, it is The Woman in Cabin 10. A narrator whose personal issues cause her to appear unreliable, anxiety-riddled, paranoid, and even to begin questioning her own truth… One who is so preoccupied with the safety of an anonymous woman that she can’t function… One whose investigative efforts end up putting her at grave risk… hmmm, sound familiar? The similarities were distracting. Hell, even the titles are alike. After a while though, The Woman in Cabin 10 became it’s very own mystery and one that I ended up enjoying overall. The isolation, disorientation, and group dynamics involved in a sea voyage setting was my favorite thing about this book and I’m finding that developing a haunting tone via the characters’ surroundings is one of author: Ruth Ware’s many strengths.
Although I enjoyed Ms. Ware’s debut much more than this one, I still liked it and would recommend it to mystery fans. I’ve read several reviews that suspect Agatha Christie was a strong influence for The Woman in Cabin 10 and I am quite ashamed to admit I have yet to read any of Agatha Christie’s amazing work. If anyone has a recommendation for which of her titles I should start with, please let me know!!
The Woman in Cabin 10 is a riveting read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story kept me guessing almost to the end, but by that point, Ms. Ware has done her job. Telling the story with a first person point of view enhanced the closed in feeling of this contained psychological thriller murder mystery. I hope this book is given the Hollywood treatment.
The Woman in Cabin 10 is very different than I expected it to be. For some reason, I assumed it was a cabin the woods where someone was terrorized and it personally connected to the victim’s life somehow. What a nice surprise when it was not this same story! This book takes place on a cruise ship in northern Europe, and it’s about something strange happening on the vessel. Ruth Ware quickly captured my attention with this one, and I am continually happy to read through more of her books this year. Two more left to catch up!
Lo, our main character, is in a shaky relationship with a boyfriend. One night while he’s away, her place is burgled, and she’s attacked by someone who seems intent on harming her. Her boyfriend returns and helps her through it the next few days, but then he leaves for Moscow while she’s assigned to work the cruise as a reporter. When she boards, she meets someone that no one else has met… and then one night, it appears the woman is murdered. Problem though… no one else heard the noises, there is no body, and Lo has been taking anti-depressants and drinking a lot. Was this all her imagination, or has someone been gaslighting her?
There is a certain humorous tone in the book, referencing some plots from Agatha Christie in a way that make you laugh out loud. I found the plot quite mesmerizing. In a locked door scenario, we know the killer must be on board. Of course, someone could’ve snuck on or off at some point, and the manifest might be intentionally missing a name. But in addition to discovering the body, we need to find out what reasons someone might have for this mystery as well as how it could connect to Lo’s burglary. I found myself intrigued by the story but ultimately disappointed in the ending for two reasons.
Much of the intentional confusion gets in the way of the book for me. Making the main character’s POV misleading, unreliable, or potentially drug-induced only works for so long. I actually got a bit frustrated at the constant reference to her drinking and emotional state. At the same time, it made me really concerned that I couldn’t believe anything that happened. I like to be surprised, but I need some sense of ground rules. Here, all were potentially off the table, so my interest began to wane. Not enough to ditch the book — I rarely do that — but enough so I thought, eh, whatever the outcome, it’ll be hard to accept.
And that was my second concern with the book… the real mystery is quite stunning and believable, but the connections to all the other characters, the burglary, and the actual ending of who died and who escaped were too weak. I honestly don’t understand exactly who was guilty in the end, nor did we get to see what or why the murder happened. It’s told through newspaper articles and a kidnapping scene were you have to make assumptions. That said, I did enjoy the book a lot. There was suspense, chaos, strong writing, and well-crafted characters. Just not enough for me to rave about the book. I probably end up about 3.5 stars and I will continue to read the rest of Ware’s books.
One of the few mysteries I couldn’t figure out–had twists that reminded me of Agatha Christie. One of my fave psychological suspense novels.
A surprisingly intriguing read. I found myself scared out of my wits for Lo, and I was pleased to read she a lot of right things during this novel. The ending was great!
Lo Blacklock is a low-rung travel writer who has been given a dream assignment. Seeing this as her chance to finally start moving up in the ranks at the travel magazine she writes for, Lo isn’t about to let anything stand in her way of covering the maiden voyage of the luxury yacht Aurora– not even a break-in at her apartment that leaves her injured and jumpy, or relationship issues with her boyfriend who is off on his own adventures more than he is home with her.
The sheer decadence of the ship and the experience of hobnobbing with the filthy rich and famous should be enough to ease Lo’s unpleasant recent experiences. But as the cruise progresses, the ship becomes a claustrophobic and chilling setting for what appears to be a woman being thrown overboard. The nightmare Lo witnesses seems impossible but becomes increasingly probable as all of the pieces fall into place.
This was my introduction to Ruth Ware and the comparisons to Agatha Christie are well-deserved. The Woman in Cabin 10 is mystery writing at its best– a “locked room” mystery that had me wondering about Lo’s reliability as a narrator, as well as the motivations of the other characters, through all of the twists. The setting is particularly memorable and Ware does a brilliant job of moving the plot along and keeping me guessing.
Another twisted psychological thriller from Ruth Ware! Excellent read that keeps you guessing until the end.
The Woman in Cabin 10 is my first book by Ruth Ware. Though I was tempted to read her first book, the cover and summary of this novel caught my attention as a thrilling summer read aboard a luxury cruise in the North Sea.
Told in the FIRST PERSON POV, The Woman In Cabin 10 is a PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER/MURDER MYSTERY reminiscent of an Agatha Christie’s whodunit novel, but without the shrewd sleuth. Lo (Laurie) Blacklock, a claustrophobic, paranoid, insomniac journalist, who uses alcohol to self-medicate is the main character. As a journalist for Velocity, a travel magazine, she’s just received a big break she’d been looking for―an assignment aboard the Aurora, a boutique luxury cruise linear traveling around the NORWEGIAN FJORDS.
Just days before Lo embarks on her assignment, she’s burglarized, rapidly sending her into INSOMNIA and PARANOIA which dictates the rest of the story. And adding to her anxiety, she discovers her commitment-ready boyfriend, Judah, turned down an important job in New York City to be with her in London. But Lo doesn’t know what she wants, not just yet. Sleep-deprived, exhausted, and mentally unprepared to take on this assignment, Lo forges ahead determined to achieve recognition.
“I had to get myself together before I left for this trip. It was an unmissable, unrepeatable opportunity to prove myself after ten years at the coalface of boring cut-and-paste journalism.”
She embarks the Aurora, and a few hours later, tries to muster enough energy to dine with the ship’s illustrious guest. She dresses in a rental dress, makes up her face, and discovers her mascara is missing. Lo wanders to the next cabin, hoping someone has the desired eye makeup. Hmm… who borrows mascara from strangers? KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK. Lo wields a firmer knock and a young woman, seemingly agitated, opens the door. She finds a cheap mascara and tells Lo to keep it. Swiftly, she closes the door in Lo’s face. Hmmm…
Hours later, after meeting wealthy and renowned guest, Lo stumbles back to her cabin in a drunken state, hoping the alcohol puts her to sleep. At three in the morning, she’s awakened by a noise and what she thought was a scream in the next cabin.
“It was the noise of the veranda door in the next cabin sliding gently open. I held my breath, straining to hear. And then there was a splash. Not a small splash. No, this was a big splash. The kind of splash made by a body hitting water.”
After questioning security, staff, and passengers, she’s met by skeptics. No one’s seen the woman in cabin 10, but Lo has proof the woman exists―the mascara. Mysteriously the mascara disappears, and Lo becomes more determined to figure out who’s trying to conceal the woman’s existence and why? She’s considered every possible person aboard, eliminating the most unlikely to commit murder. Even the frightful message she received on a foggy bathroom mirror―STOP SEARCHING! doesn’t thwart her probing. BREATHE IN . . . ONE, TWO, THREE. BREATHE OUT . . . ONE, TWO, THREE.
“What have I done? Oh God, why had I done this, kept pushing kept refusing to shut up. I had made myself a target, by my refusal to be silenced about whar happened in that cabin. And yet . . . and yet what had happened?”
Who is the mystery woman in cabin 10? Who is the killer? Will Lo escape the ship alive? The Woman in Cabin 10 is WELL-PLOTTED, SUSPENSEFUL, with TWIST AND TURNS and enough DIZZYING ACTION from the ship’s veranda to the depths of cold water below, to a frightful escape at night with a view of the Aurora Borealis.
I did have a few issues with the storyline. The main character was a tad too gullible, stepping into the fray unthinking and unprotected. There were a few holes toward the end the author could have further elucidated. But otherwise, The Woman in Cabin 10 was a thrilling and enjoyable read.
https://edenisebillups.com/2019/07/17…
Enjoyed this one.
THE WOMAN IN CABIN 10 is a book that was selected by my book club. And while I would not have selected it myself, I’m so glad it was part of the reading lineup. I read it in one day because I couldn’t put it down. I simply HAD to figure out where the twists and turns were leading. No spoilers here—I loved the ending. Absolutely loved it! Read it for yourself. You’ll love it, too.
Great story with a super twist at the end, which is always a bonus as far as I’m concerned. Mystery and suspense on the high seas. Ruth is a great writer, and I’ll be buying more of her books.
I read this book as part of my Book Club. It’s not a book I normally would have picked up myself, but I did end up rather enjoying it. It did take me a bit to really get into it, and I spent a lot of time confused over the timeline when we’d get flashes of what was going on in Lo’s family and friends’ lives while she was on the ship. Luckily, it all came together in the end so you knew what had happened at that point. Still, a bit hard to follow during those times.
I like a mystery that I can’t predict the ending and this story certainly fit the bill. I was so confused and asking a friend who had already finished what was going on (not really wanting an answer, lol) and just eager at that point to find out what had happened and who had done it!
The ending was magnificent…the final bit with the bank was pure genius and I’m glad the author took it that direction. I think it was the perfect ending.
I went into this book hoping it would be as good as her debut novel. I’m sure many people will love it….for me it’s a “like”. The main character Lo is introduced in a scary first chapter……and her behavior becomes quite a problem from then on. Alcohol, maybe drugs, anxiety (I could see that from the incident early on) and reckless behavior. She picks a fight with her boyfriend before going on a beautiful cruise and happens to run into her first serious love Ben. The rich and famous occupy this small intimate cruise along with attitude and bad behavior. The drinking alone should have required a 2nd boat behind for all the liquor.
The plot moves slowly and is confusing as the eyewitness to a person going overboard is Lo and between drinking and etc. is a bit confused herself. The plot doesn’t take off until Lo sees proof that the person that fell or was pushed was in a photo taken on the ship. The scary part comes late as Lo and Carrie exchange information and Lo is held on the ship. Carrie is a character that I wasn’t sure if so liked her or feared her.
People rave about this book but I had trouble keeping the small cast straight and I really didn’t think it was her best work…so many other books I have reviewed are better. It’s a summer read.
2 Stars. I’m sorry but I really didn’t like this one at all. Quite predictable. I’m unsure of all the hype but it wasn’t for me.