Ruth Ware

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THE IT GIRL by Ruth Ware

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the “claustrophobic spine-tingler” (People) One by One returns with an unputdownable mystery following a woman on the search for answers a decade after her friend’s murder.

April Clarke-Cliveden was the first person Hannah Jones met at Oxford.

Vivacious, bright, occasionally vicious, and the ultimate It girl, she quickly pulled Hannah into her dazzling orbit. Together, they developed a group of devoted and inseparable friends — Will, Hugh, Ryan, and Emily — during their first term. By the end of the second, April was dead.

Now, a decade later, Hannah and Will are expecting their first child, and the man convicted of killing April, former Oxford porter John Neville, has died in prison. Relieved to have finally put the past behind her, Hannah’s world is rocked when a young journalist comes knocking and presents new evidence that Neville may have been innocent. As Hannah reconnects with old friends and delves deeper into the mystery of April’s death, she realizes that the friends she thought she knew all have something to hide…including a murder.

“The Agatha Christie of our generation” (David Baldacci, #1 New York Times bestselling author) proves once again that she is “as ingenious and indefatigable as the Queen of Crime” (The Washington Post) with this propulsive murder mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Publication Date: July 12, 2022
Source: Review copy from Edelweiss

★★★★

Ruth Ware’s latest novel is an engrossing dark academia mystery that centers around the murder of Oxford “it” girl April Coutts-Cliveden. Hannah Jones became BFFs with the wealthy, clever, and sometimes cruel April, after they’re paired as roommates freshman year. But, before the school year ends, April is dead, and a creepy porter will be convicted of the crime based on Hannah’s eyewitness testimony.

Fast forward a decade, and Hannah is still haunted by April’s death, in part because the porter has died in prison, maintaining his innocence until the end. Then a journalist contacts her, claiming that new evidence suggests the police got the wrong guy. Hannah’s life is once again in turmoil. If it wasn’t the porter, then who killed April?

I enjoyed this slow burn whodunit that showcases Ruth Ware’s talent for weaving a twisty story. Though unique from her other books, I would say THE IT GIRL’s atmosphere is closest to THE LYING GAME (less drama though). Not exactly Gothic or thriller, but suspenseful and keeps you guessing. Lots of red herrings and possible suspects had me changing my mind often, and I was shocked when the truth was revealed! I’ll be buying a copy for my keeper shelf!

Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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ONE BY ONE by Ruth Ware


Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Release Date: September 8, 2020
Source: Review copy from Edelweiss
Rating: ★★★★½

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Turn of the Key and In a Dark Dark Wood returns with another suspenseful thriller set on a snow-covered mountain.

Getting snowed in at a beautiful, rustic mountain chalet doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world, especially when there’s a breathtaking vista, a cozy fire, and company to keep you warm. But what happens when that company is eight of your coworkers…and you can’t trust any of them?

When an off-site company retreat meant to promote mindfulness and collaboration goes utterly wrong when an avalanche hits, the corporate food chain becomes irrelevant and survival trumps togetherness. Come Monday morning, how many members short will the team be?

Ruth Ware gives a modern twist to a classic Christie-inspired mystery in her latest thriller, ONE BY ONE. Executives of a hot up and coming tech firm called Snoop head to a remote chalet high in the Alps for a company retreat. This dream getaway of skiing, great food, and breathtaking views takes a tragic turn when an avalanche hits, trapping their party in a half-buried chalet. Their situation becomes more terrifying when guests disappear or are found dead, picked off one by one. But who among them is the killer?

This was an exciting and fast-paced thriller told in the alternating POVs of two women, Erin, a chalet employee and Liz, a guest and Snoop shareholder. I really enjoyed the chilling atmosphere of the desolate mountain after the avalanche, with those left at the chalet cut off from the rest of the world without power or WiFi, and killer on the loose.

Though there were only two narrators, there was still a large cast of characters to keep track of, and I did find myself flipping back to the beginning where each person was introduced on the “About Us” page of Snoop’s website to refresh my memory. I did love how the book also began with a news report of the tragedy, and we’re left to wonder who are the dead and who survived the “house of horror” mentioned.

ONE BY ONE is another fantastic whodunit from one of my favorite suspense authors. I’m already eagerly awaiting her next!

— 𝓓𝓲𝓪𝓷𝓪

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

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What I’ve Been Reading Lately 📚

“One benefit of summer was that each day we had more light to read by.” — Jeanette Walls

Instagram 📷 | Pinterest 📌 | Goodreads 📖

📗 HOME BEFORE DARK by Riley Sager (★★★★½) | Very creepy!! I had to leave a light on to sleep for a few nights. This would be a perfect October horror thriller.

📘 SNOWFLAKES by Ruth Ware (★★★★) | The title caught my attention. I wondered if this quick 26-page short story was somehow connected to her upcoming book ONE BY ONE, but it definitely is not. It’s really not like anything I’ve read of hers before, but heck, I really liked it. Honestly while reading it, the tone gave me a Shirley Jackson vibe. Ruth Ware packed a lot into just a few pages. The subject matter is sad and distressing, yet a couple of lines put a smirky smile on my face.

🎧 TOO MUCH AND NEVER ENOUGH (★★★★★) | Many of my why and how questions were answered from an insider’s and psychologist’s perspective. Listened on audiobook & enjoyed the author’s narration of her memoir.

— 𝓓𝓲𝓪𝓷𝓪

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THE TURN OF THE KEY by Ruth Ware {Review}


Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Release Date: August 6, 2019
Source: Review copy from Edelweiss
Rating: ★★★★★

When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.

What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.

Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the unravelling events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the cameras installed around the house, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman, Jack Grant.

It was everything.

She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder. Which means someone else is.

Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, The Turn of the Key is an unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.

I absolutely loved it! THE TURN OF THE KEY is creepy, twisted, and disturbing, and totally absorbing — a modern-day The Turn of the Screw, but far more entertaining.

Rowan Caine’s new dream job as nanny for the seemingly perfect Elincourt family quickly turned into her worst nightmare. Their remote home in the Scottish Highlands called Heatherbrae House was an unusual hybrid of modern “smart” design and spooky Gothic Victorian. Inside its walls, cameras were watching, machines were listening for your next command, and Rowan was isolated with four young girls and whatever was causing the disturbances at night…

I enjoyed that this book was written in epistolary format, as desperate letters written by Rowan to a lawyer as she’s in prison awaiting trial for murder. The build up of suspense was fantastic, and the ominous atmosphere of Heatherbrae House kept me on edge. Had I been in Rowan’s situation, I would have been scared witless!

THE TURN OF THE KEY is another excellent thriller from Ruth Ware. Highly recommended to fans of eerie modern Gothics.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

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Quick Thoughts: THE LYING GAME by Ruth Ware


Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Release Date: July 25, 2017
Source: Review copy from Edelweiss
Rating: ★★★½

On a cool June morning, a woman is walking her dog in the idyllic coastal village of Salten along a tidal estuary known as the Reach. Before she can stop him, the dog charges into the water to retrieve what first appears to be a wayward stick, but to her horror, turns out to be something much more sinister…

The next morning, three women in and around London—Fatima, Thea, and Isabel—receive the text they had always hoped would NEVER come, from the fourth in their formerly inseparable clique, Kate, that says only, “I need you.”

The four girls were best friends at Salten, a second rate boarding school set near the cliffs of the English Channel. Each different in their own way, the four became inseparable and were notorious for playing the Lying Game, telling lies at every turn to both fellow boarders and faculty, with varying states of serious and flippant nature that were disturbing enough to ensure that everyone steered clear of them. The myriad and complicated rules of the game are strict: no lying to each other—ever. Bail on the lie when it becomes clear it is about to be found out. But their little game had consequences, and the girls were all expelled in their final year of school under mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of the school’s eccentric art teacher, Ambrose (who also happens to be Kate’s father).

Atmospheric, twisty, and with just the right amount of chill that will keep you wrong-footed—which has now become Ruth Ware’s signature style—The Lying Game is sure to be her next big bestseller. Another unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.

THE LYING GAME is told from the perspective of Isa Wilde, a 30-something Londoner and mother of a baby girl. Isa befriended Kate, Fatima, and Thea as a teen when they attended Salten House, a boarding school in a small coastal English town. The foursome had a “lying game” they liked to play, which of course earned them the reputation of being cruel liars. After tragedy strikes and they’re faced with a scandal at school, the girls leave Salten House and go separate ways, but the stress of what happened there will continue to haunt them. Fast forward 17 years, and the four women must return to Salten to face the lies of their past.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Ruth Ware is one of my favorite authors, but I don’t think this book had the best build up of tension. Lots of drama though! I was very curious about the mystery that the women were hiding, but I felt like the plot was a bit too slow moving. I think I would have preferred hearing other characters’ POVs instead of just staying in Isa’s head. I did love the creepy atmosphere of the setting. Kate’s home is a tumbledown mill right on the water. A solid mystery, though I was hoping for more suspense, less drama.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.