In a Dark, Dark Wood

In a Dark, Dark Wood  by Ruth Ware

Lenora Shaw lies battered and badly bruised in a hospital bed, trying desperately to remember why she's there. She hears the whispers of the police outside her door. With a racing heart, Nora clutches the sheets in her sweaty, trembling hands. They think she's committed murder.

Lenora (some call her Lee, others Nora) is a reclusive crime writer who is quite content living alone. When the email arrives inviting her to attend the hen party for Clare Cavendish, she is taken aback. It's been ten years since she's seen Clare, her former best friend. Ten years in which she's been able to exist without anyone knowing about her secret. But now she's faced with a huge decision; regretfully decline or graciously accept the opportunity to celebrate the upcoming wedding of her once dear friend. She says yes. A weekend of horror is about to begin.

Flo is the effervescent hostess who welcomes five guests into her aunt's home, known as the Glass House. A massive structure of steel and glass, the home seems to beckon anyone fearless enough to enter, if they dare. Uneasy and intimidated, Nora and friend Nina, regret their decision as soon as they walk through the front door. From the beginning, there is an eerie feeling of bad things to come in the days ahead. The strange noises in the night, mysterious footprints in the snow, unexplained ouija board predictions, and an overall unsettling fear that something catastrophic is going to happen. Each guest anxious to leave. But it's not that easy leaving the Glass House as they are all about to learn. The hours tick by, until an explosive event takes place that no one could have imagined. Putting aside grief and terror, Nora must unveil who is plotting to make her look like a calculated murderer.

British writer Ruth Ware shines in her debut novel. Like Agatha Christie, Ware gives the reader all the elements for a great mystery, told with a modern day twist. The hen party (better known here as bachelorette) is an ideal setting to bring together a motley crew of characters harboring petty past grievances. Then add a bizarre house of glass in  the remote English countryside on a snowy, dreary weekend and you have the elements for a great whodunit. Parts are predictable, but the reader will enjoy being a detective and unraveling the puzzle. The author's distinctive descriptive passages add to the overall spookiness of the book; a wise choice as Halloween approaches. You might even hear your own strange noises in the night.

Actress Reese Witherspoon plans to develop Ware's book into a movie. Much like Gone Girl and
The Girl on the Train, It will be interesting to see how another compelling story translates onto the screen.