In A Dark, Dark Wood
Ruth Ware
Scout Press, 2015
308 Pages, paperback
Trigger Warnings: murder/violence, alcohol/drug use
About the Author: Ruth Ware began writing psychological crime with her debut novel, In a Dark, Dark Wood. She is a UK native, but her books are popular worldwide. In a Dark, Dark Wood was a New York Times and a Sunday Times bestseller. Since 2015, she has written three other successful novels.
“People don’t change,” Nina said bitterly. “They just get more punctilious about hiding their true selves.”
Ruth Ware opens her novel with a familiar fairy tale, “In a dark, dark wood there was a dark, dark house…” This chilling tale sets the scene for a gripping novel. The main character, Nora, is the narrator of the story, but readers quickly learn she is not telling the whole truth. Nora is attending her friend’s “hen party” (which is what Americans would call a bachelorette party), when things go haywire. What follows is a series of ups and downs, and then the big event. Nobody knows who is telling the truth or why things are being covered up. This is a classic “Whodunit?” tale with a major plot twist.
Ware’s debut novel is chilling until the very end. How can a fun bachelorette party turn out so awful? This novel does not follow the stereotypes of its category. It leaves you reflecting on your own life and wondering, who can you trust?
PRR Writer, Katelyn Wildman
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