After I heard first-time author Ruth Ware’s interview on NPR, I knew In A Dark, Dark Wood was a novel I needed to read. Thrillers are, admittedly, possibly my favorite genre and Ware’s description of her story – comparing it to Agatha Christie novels, Sherlock Holmes and a touch of Scream – made it seem like a good fit for me.
Ware follows her protagonist, Nora, to a small bachelorette party (or “hen” party, as the British call it – the novel is set in England), hosted in an appropriately creepy glass house out in the woods just outside of Newcastle. Nora hasn’t talked to the bride, her former best friend, in a decade and is puzzled by her invitation. But as the weekend progresses, the truth slowly begins to unravel, taking the reader – and Nora – through unpredictable twists and turns.
My biggest complaint about thrillers as a genre is the predictability. And while I thought the result of Ware’s debut novel could’ve been a little more dynamic, packed a bit more punch, I will say there wasn’t necessarily a moment I felt I had the ending worked out. Just when you think you have solved the puzzle, the next page throws the reader off course.
There’s a touch of unnecessary repetitiveness as Nora works out the mystery. There are undoubtedly some clichés. As the reader, there are moments of annoyance when you realize major plot points could’ve been resolved with a bit of communication between the characters. But overall, fans of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train will most likely find In A Dark, Dark Wood an enjoyable and fast read.
