The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

July 18th, 2016 Kimberly Review 70 Comments

18th Jul
The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
The Woman in Cabin 10
by Ruth Ware
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Source: BEA
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star

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.

MURDERMYSTERY SUSPENSE thriller well written

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware is a suspenseful murder-mystery thriller that takes place on the high sea. Fans of Agatha Christie will appreciate this well executed thriller. Fast paced with twists, turns and danger on the high seas I could not set this down.

Come aboard the Aurora for its maiden voyage as we travel the North Sea. Every cabin is plush and offers a spectacular veranda. You are among a select group of guests. Some are prospective investors in this venture and others are from the media in hopes they will write about their experience.

Enter our unreliable narrator Lo Blacklock. She is a journalist with a travel magazine, who lucked out on this dream trip and hopes it launches her career. Lo is a bit of a mess when we meet her. A few days before the voyage she awakens to find a man burglarizing her loft. The whole event has left her sleep deprived. To make matters worse she has a bit of a spat with her boyfriend and is not clear if it is over or not. She appears to have a bit of a drinking problem and doesn’t exude a lot of confidence.

Lo arrives on board frazzled but determined to have a good time and schmooze with the other guests. After a night of drinking she awakens to a noise in the next cabin and witnesses a woman being thrown overboard. Frightened and sleep-deprived Lo’s nightmare escalates when the head of security assure her all passengers are accounted and suggests she is overwrought. Lo begins to invest on her own and the game is afoot.

The Woman in Cabin 10 was highly addictive with a writing style that allows the reader to slip into the story, I devoured this almost in a single sitting. Ware did an excellent job of slowly building the suspense, offering up twists and turns. The ship’s Wi-Fi is down leaving Lo completely cut off from the outside world. When she confides in someone, she soon discovers a lie and now they are a possible suspect. When tangible evidence conveniently disappears, Lo begins to think she is losing her mind.

The mystery was well crafted as Ware kept me guessing until almost the end. The ship setting amplified the suspense offering both a closed room murder vibe and thrilling danger. From the subtle twists to the climactic heart-pounding ending and reveal, The Woman in Cabin 10 was one heck of a ride.

Excerpt of the Woman in Cabin 10

In my dream, the girl was drifting, far, far below the crashing waves and the cries of the gulls in the cold sunless depths of the North Sea. Her laughing eyes were white and bloated with salt water, her pale skin was wrinkled, her clothes ripped by jagged rocks and disintegrating into rags.

Only her long black hair remained, floating through the water like fronds of dark seaweed, tangling in shells and fishing nets, washing up on the shore in hanks like frayed rope, where it lay, limp, the roar of the crashing waves against the shingle filling my ears.

I woke, heavy with dread, and it took me a while to remember where I was, and still longer to realise that the roar in my ears was not part of the dream, but real.

The room was dark, with the same damp mist I’d felt in my dream, and as I pulled myself to sitting I felt a cool breeze on my cheek. It sounded like the noise was coming from the bathroom.

I got out of bed, shivering slightly. The door was shut, but as I walked across to it, I could hear the roar building, the pitch of my heart rising alongside. Taking my courage in both hands, I flung open the door – and a wave of hot steam rushed out and hit me in the face. Somehow – impossibly – the shower was on.

Inside, I groped my way through the dense steam to the shower stall and grappled with the controls, getting half drenched in the process, holding my hand over my face to shield myself from the near-scalding water .

At last, the shower trickled and gurgled to a halt, leaving me panting, my dripping hair plastered to my face, and I felt for the light, which would activate the extractor fan and clear some of the steam.

I hit the switch, light flooding the bathroom – and that’s when I saw it.

Written across the steamy mirror, in letters maybe six inches high, were the words STOP DIGGING

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware is an exciting thriller not to be missed this summer! Share on X
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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

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70 Responses to “The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware”

  1. Kei

    OMG that excerpt! I don’t normally read thrillers or mysteries but I’ve had a few books on my radar lately and this one has been getting so many good reviews!

  2. Amanda H

    I’m starting this book for a book club and trying to find a natural halfway point, since we are reading it over 2 meetings. Any suggestions?

      • Amanda H

        Thank you! Do you happen to know what chapter that is? I’m listening to the audiobook, but most people are reading the actual book – so it makes it tricky to plan!

        • kimbacaffeinate

          Amanda, Please forgive me. We are talking about The Woman in Cabin 10 and I told you about In A Dark, Dark Wood her other novel (fantastic on audio by the way) For the Woman in Cabin Ten around page 203/Chapter 21 is a great place to stop.

          • Amanda H

            I was wondering about that! I have read In A Dark, Dark Wood as well and it’s fantastic! Thank you for this suggestion about the stopping point, I can’t wait to dive into The Woman in Cabin 10!

  3. Lorna

    Sorry, this is late,just found this lost in my email. I really like the sound of this one, There’s a reason I don’t want to take a cruise-anything can happen and then you are stuck in the middle of the ocean! So yes this one interests me. Great Review 🙂

  4. AngelErin

    This one looks so good!! I definitely have this one on my wish list. And I love an unreliable narrator. I’m glad that you enjoyed it. 😀

  5. Vicky

    I loved Ruth’s previous book so I can’t WAIT to read this one! The unreliable narrator and the similarities to Agatha Christie are just a plus! 🙂

  6. Katiria Rodriguez

    Ohh great review! I absolutely love murder mystery and thriller books, but this one really looks and sounds absolutely amazing and right up my alley. I am most definitely going too check it out one day probably in October for the Holloween season. Thank you for your awesome post.

  7. Jennifer

    I’ve requested this one at my library on audio. I’m in the mood to step out of my usually reading genres and try something in the thriller/mystery area. I still need to listen to In a Dark, Dark Wood. School work is cutting into my fun reading.

  12. Melanie Simmons

    I so want to try this book. It has been on my want list since I heard about it. Your review just makes me want to move it even higher on my list. Great review.

  17. Kathy

    I would love to read this one because it comes so highly recommended. I’m always up for a good thriller, and I used to love Agatha Christie murder mysteries.

  20. Melissa (Books and Things)

    Oh this looks so good and I also know someone who would really like this one. I honestly haven’t read any Agatha Christie but honestly, this makes me want to read some of her work as well as this book. What are you doing to my wishlist??? 😉

  22. Leona

    You had me when you mentioned Agatha Christie. AC is one of the authors I’ve always wanted to read. Is this the sequel to In a Dark, Dark Wood?

  24. Kristin

    A one sitting mystery for the summer sounds fabulous! I hope this book does well for her! We need more well-written mysteries!! Awesome review, too 🙂

  25. ShootingStarsMag

    I’m so glad you liked this one, as I did too! I love a good mystery and I feel like this was a well crafted one. I was wondering throughout the whole book what was going on!

    -Lauren

  27. Stormi Johnson

    Heard good things about this one and I will be getting it to review on audio soon so if I like it then I will have to get her other one as you and others liked it as well. 🙂

  28. Laurel-Rain Snow

    I have been eyeing this book, and can’t wait to read it! It is probably not the kind of book to take on a cruise, though…lol.

    Thanks for sharing.

  29. Katherine

    I can’t wait to read this one! I loved her first book and love that she went with such a different setting for this one. Sounds fantastic!

  30. Nick

    I’ve heard really terrific things about this book, Kim and I’m more than eager to get to the book myself. I’m especially looking forward to that unreliable character!
    Great review, Kim!

  31. Greg

    Glad to hear this, don’t think I’ve seen a bad review yet. I have this one to read next I think, and can’t wait! I like that it takes place on a ship and that she’s an unreliable MC… looks like this one just oozes suspense.

  32. Lexxie

    I agree, Kim! This one was really, really well done, and I actually loved that Lo was so flawed. I’m glad you enjoyed TWIC10 as much as I did 🙂