The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

I got a fair amount of reading done over the holiday weekend, likely do to two big factors: hubs went camping so I had the house to myself AND I chose pretty much all thrillers.

Ruth Ware's latest was my third read of the weekend and, thankfully, it didn't break my stride or my streak of fabulous book choices!

Lo (Laura) Blacklock has been writing for Velocity magazine for ten years and has been waiting all this time for her big break. With her boss currently out of commission, it seems Lo's chance has finally come. 

The Aurora Borealis, a high-end luxury cruise ship built for just twenty passengers at a time, is making its debut voyage and Lo is to be there to represent the magazine. But just two days before she's set to leave, Lo's house is broken into. Lo doesn't want to let the incident rule her life - the invasion was bad enough, but she wasn't physically harmed - so she sets off for the trip as planned. But on her first night on board, Lo believes she witnesses a woman being thrown overboard. 

Lo of course reports the incident, believing the victim is the very girl she met in cabin 10 earlier that day. But cabin 10 is supposed to be empty. What's more, there's no evidence anyone was ever in the room and all of the passengers and crew are accounted for. The head of security placates Lo, but doesn't hide the fact that he believes she imagined the whole thing. It doesn't help when Lo's own attack and her lack of sleep in its aftermath are revealed. Now it's up to her to find out the truth, but even Lo has begun to wonder if she really saw what she thinks she saw. 

Pretty early on we know that things aren't going to go well for Lo. Each section ends with correspondence, articles, and theories about where Lo is. Apparently, just a few days into the trip Lo's work and family realize that she's not been in touch and begin to raise warnings. But we do learn that for whatever reason the wifi has been out on the ship, too.

Lo's investigation becomes more and more desperate as each day progresses, with just enough to bolster her conviction that she did indeed witness something terrible. Something she soon realizes she shouldn't have. Because as her investigation progresses, Lo begins to suspect just about everyone on board could have been part of the crime that's being covered up.

I quite enjoyed the book. I expected a twist, some big reveal, and it left me suspicious of everyone just as our main character was, with one caveat - I was, at times, suspicious of Lo! There's a bit of a The Lady Vanishes feel to The Woman in Cabin 10, which I have to say I did greatly appreciate. Mind it is just a bit - maybe an homage to rather than a strictly inspired by. Either way, The Woman in Cabin 10 is a fun thriller and one that's put Ware's In A Dark, Dark Wood on my immediate to read list now too.

Rating: 5/5