In a Dark, Dark Wood
By Ruth Ware
Rating 4/5
Genres: Murder mystery, suspense, thriller, 2021-read, reviewed
I am not an avid reader of murder mysteries but while reading this I wondered why there are a plethora of 3-4 star ratings instead of 5. This book is as good as any and I thought it felt like Agatha Christie meets Sylvia Plath as the plot goes back and forth in establishing what actually happened along with who committed the murder. Its awesome,fast paced, totally engrossing and very visceral in all emotions and feelings the narrator feels. But I was able to figure out who the killer was well before the end and once the revelation is made in the narrative,following the how and why and what became a bit tedious. I skimmed over the last 15 pages or so quickly in a bid to write it off. Overall it's a very decent and despite knowing the outcome, I was intrigued to read on.
A young woman, Leonora shaw, writer by profession, is admitted to a hospital for having been in a car accident. She is covered in lot of blood, scars, bruises all over her body and is kept in a shocked, senseless state while nurses and doctors treat her. She occasionally regains consciousness and notices police officer sitting outside her hospital room and hears the words 'murder' 'homicide' which trigger a trip down the memory lane. She recollects a event filled weekend before the accident. She and five other friends of hers meet at a glass cabin in a dark wood to celebrate the hen do party of their friend Clare. Leonora hasn't spoken to Clare in over ten years and when she stopped talking to her last, she also split with her boy friend James. She hasn't gotten over James in all this time and she suffers pain and shock when Clare reveals that her groom is James. Flo is a friend to Clare who is hysterical and very emotionally volatile. She is the organizer of the events and takes them through different fun and spooky events to commemorate the weekend celebration. I thought of all the characters in the story, Flo is the most powerfully and vividly pictured. She mixes vulnerability with intense emotional attachment and dependence on Clare and also a penchant for flowing off the grid at the slightest trigger. On the night before they leave the cabin, they sense some intruder coming into the house at night and Leonors thinks Flo fires off a shot gun they find at the house. It was supposed to be unloaded and filled with blanks but a man gets shot. I was able to figure out who that is before its revealed - its James who comes to the cabin in the dark. Why did he come there? Who shot him ? How credible is Leonora's memory? The plot after the shot rings are unfolded while Leonora is interrogated by the police woman in the hospital. How much what she recollects is collaborated by others? Evidence is manipulated to point fingers at Leonora but why and what motive did the killer have to do it?
Other than the fact that the story felt a bit prolonging towards the end, its a pretty good read. I was on the edge of my seat for the most part of the book. The suspense scenes are predictable though.
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