One by One

CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 2
Atmosphere: 4
Writing: 3
Plot: 2
Intrigue: 1
Logic: 3
Enjoyment: 3

This was such a massive disappointment. I was so bored reading this. There were too many characters that were not fleshed out enough and there was way too much focus on the tech company. The only interesting part of this book for me ending up being the premise and even that fell flat with how much everything was dragged out for this book. I am very hesitant to pick up any other Ruth Ware books after reading this. I may finally read The Turn of the Key because so many love it, but this book does not make me want to read any other books by her.

Omg, that was sooooo good!!! If I could have read this book in one go, I totally would have! As it is it took me 2 days, which isn't bad to be fair!

It had me hooked from the first page and I enjoyed trying to figure out who dunnit! It was really well written and I personally felt myself sharing the characters fear, anxiety and I could really the picture the isolated scenery (talking of which I hope I never find myself isolated in a place like that! That is scary especially with a murderer on the loose!)

I got a chance to read this book through NetGalley, so thank you to them for accepting my request to read it and of course, thank you to Ruth for creating such a thrilling book!

If you like a good thriller, then I highly recommend this to you!

Surviving an avalanche and then facing a murderer! That leaves a dangerous feeling hovering over the whole book. A few secrets and several suspicious people didn't trick me though. I figured out who it was pretty early on, but it was interesting to see how the murderer kept going and trying to get away. I liked the extra layer of Erin's history as well. It added depth and poignancy to the story and the actions of the characters. This is more like I wanted to The Maid to be.

Important Note: If you're reading this on ebook, make sure your ereader doesn't skip straight to the news story. It it does (like mine did), go back! The book actually starts by introducing the cast of characters in a fun way, and trust me, you will want all the help you can get to keep the characters straight at the beginning.

Now, onto the review.

*3.5 stars.

I read this book in a single day.

I didn't mean to. I sat down to read a chapter or two, but I just couldn't stop. The thing about Ruth Ware is that her books are just so dang readable. There are definitely a few quibbles I could see people having about this book. It doesn't feel at all like a thriller until quite a ways in. Until then, it's just some drama about business, which, let's be honest, is not the most thrilling topic. But somehow, she held my attention until things actually started to happen.

The other possible complaint is that the killer is obvious. Like, really obvious. But the thing is, Ware can still build some really amazing tension. In fact, I would go so far as to say that she made the killer obvious on purpose, in order to build a different type of tension. Rather than “whodunnit” it's “but-WHY-and-who-will-figure-it-out-and-when-and-will-it-be-enough” kind of tension. Ware really utilized the setting and the characters in a way that unfolded in a way that was slow and creepy and strangely addictive. I couldn't stop reading.

Was it a perfect book? No. In my opinion, it didn't feel polished in places; I know Ware is capable of better. And for the love of god, who puts “ffs” in their character's internal monologue?? That was extremely jarring and pulled me right out of the story. I wouldn't expect that from a beginner writer's first draft, much less a published book. But I digress.

Nevertheless, it was a solid, entertaining thriller. I think the key to enjoying it is the expectations. Don't go in for a whodunnit. Don't go in expecting “And Then There Were None” (like I did) or a million twists and turns. Just go in ready to enjoy the story and the chilling (heh, get it?) atmosphere.

Also, I totally want Snoop to be real.

Very promising theme and setup, however, it suffered from an identity crisis. I love a good isolation trope and one set at a chalet? Sign me up. However, from the get-go, this book did not know what it was. A murder mystery? a thriller? In the end, it was a hodge-podge of both genres which made for a very messy and linear plot. It started out great with a slew of characters being introduced, but by limiting the chapters to a few POV's, we get caricatures of a few characters and once the major arc begins, the reader quickly understands who is the probable victim and quite frankly the murderer. From there, the plot was extremely linear which changed the landscape to a more thriller/suspense vibe. By the 75% mark, the murder is essentially solved and it just leads to unnecessary pages of wrapping things up. Sorry if this review isn't as coherent, but in summary, my major gripes were:

- Not staying true to one genre
- Lack of more POV's
- Very linear plot

Not to end on a sour note, I did like the way the author used the technology industry as a theme. Not many murder mysteries (at least I've read) in recent times have used it, so it was a pleasant surprise.

cant decide a 3 or 3.5?Second book I am reading by [a:Ruth Ware 9013543 Ruth Ware https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1562697198p2/9013543.jpg] and I like this better than the first one I read by her which was [b:The Lying Game 43103862 The Lying Game Ruth Ware https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png 52694768] .The book was really fun to read I loved;-The isolated setting - The various descriptions of how it is to be a host in a chalet - The snowy descriptions -The descriptions of snoop etc.The book would have been an easy 5 star if it weren't for the fact that I guessed the killer from the first few pages itself!! That was so disappointing coz it was so easy to guess the killer:(I felt like the ending was soo flat coz the buildup was amazingg! it was so easy for me to guess the killer coz the chapters alternated between Erin's pov and Liz's pov so I felt that it was pretty obvious that one of them was the killer. I really liked Erin and Danny and so glad that they both got a happy ending:) I have heard that [a:Ruth Ware 9013543 Ruth Ware https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1562697198p2/9013543.jpg]'s other book [b:The Turn of the Key 57478619 The Turn of the Key Ruth Ware https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1639305573l/57478619.SY75.jpg 62793178] is amazing so cant wait to read that!!

This was a reread (or re-listen). I wasn't too impressed with this when I listened to it the first time. I'm glad I listened again. I think before, I zoned out at some parts. But this time, I paid more attention.

I got it more haha.

This book still isn't one of Ruth Ware's best, but still worth a read.

Plus, I was in the mood for a murder mystery at a ski resort. I will get into that in a separate post.

More psychothriller than mystery: the question isn't so much who as why; and, I suppose how, in the sense of, how did they expect to get away with it. It kept me entertained enough on a cold drizzly morning, but I'm unlikely to remember much about it in a month.

The real burning mystery is: why did I read this? Someone recommended it to me, months ago, and I placed it on hold at the library – but without logging my usual side notes. Whodunnit? And why?

I had such mixed emotions going into this book because I have heard very differing opinions from people who have read this book before me. At first I wasn't even sure if I should pick it up but the cover really just sold it for me, yes I am a sucker for a beautiful book cover. Thankfully, I was not disappointed, on the contrary, I loved EVERY single second of this beautifully written and orchestrated book! It reminded me of Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and even though I read that book back in school, I remember absolutely loving it. I haven't read a closed off “who-dunn-it” in a really long time and this book reminded me of how much I love these kinds of thrillers. There is no way around it, this is my favorite Ruth Ware book and even though I've had mixed emotions about her books in the past, this book has restored my faith in her ability to write an outstanding thriller. I will be picking up all the other books she has written without any hesitation.

To start of, this novel is about a group of co-workers and ex co-workers who escape for the weekend to an expensive ski resort in a beautiful mountainous location and then, after an avalanche closes them inside of the resort, people start getting killed and various things start coming to light. I have read two of Ruth Ware's other novels and I have never seen a plot as intricate and complex as I saw in this book. It's fast paced and thrilling and even though I couldn't stop reading it for the life of me, I was also really anxious and stressing, afraid of what was going to happen. There was not a moment when I was bored reading this book, if anything I had to drag myself away because it was really late and I needed to go to sleep. If I didn't have two kids and a household to take care of, I would have, without a doubt, finished this book in one sitting. That's how good it really was.

Next, the characterization is the best I have ever encountered from Ruth Ware's books yet. In the other books, even though the characters were good, they weren't exceptional. However, in this novel she really delivers on that front. Because the book is written from the perspectives of two people who are at the resort when everything goes down, we really get a deep look into their psyches and what makes them tick and what ultimately drives them to be the person that they are. It was fascinating because every character, even the ones who's perspectives we didn't get to read from gave us a look into their own souls, either through their own actions or just how the two main characters saw and perceived them. I could see positives and also flaws in each character and it made me care about what happened to them all the more.

Thirdly, the writing is flawless, as I have always found with Ruth Ware's books. It flows smoothly and helps get through the book even faster, if that's at all possible considering I read this book in a few days with a lot of other responsibilities on my plate. I love that her writing really gets to the point and doesn't phrase things in odd ways to expand the book and make it longer. I feel like in thrillers especially, that is the wrong style of writing, at least I haven't found one thrillers with that kind of writing that I liked. Also, the writing really just painted all the action scenes beautifully and really made me see the story and things as they were happening, almost as though I was watching it on a screen.

In conclusion, I can say that I am beyond grateful that I brought this book, even if it was really mainly for the beautiful cover. It delivered an amazing story to me, full of twists and turns and things revealed that I never could have even imagined. I would recommend this novel to anyone who loves fast-paced and “makes-your-heart-beat-faster” kind of thrillers because I don't think you will be disappointed. I wasn't sure how I felt about Ruth Ware's books before this one but now I can say with certainty that she is one of my favorite thriller writers of all time. This book will forever be a favorite of mine! Highly recommend!