Up until that third act, Lo’s exploration of the ship and investigation into the potential murderer(s) were riveting. All other characters were little more than staged potential suspects by that point. As soon as I started to get my bearings, the story was already propelling itself into the third act.

An unassuming photographer named Cole, a couple of moguls, the head of security, Lo’s old ex, Ben…I had trouble keeping track of most of the secondary characters. Once Lo is aboard the Aurora, however, a bevy of characters are introduced in a relatively short amount of time. The story moves at a fairly brisk pace and kept me intrigued. I found myself empathizing with Lo, especially in her more intimate moments of loving and doubting her partner, Judah. She skillfully draws readers into the mind of her protagonist, a woman who has both genuine aspirations and deeply-rooted anxieties. Ruth Ware, a British author who specializes in mystery and suspense, clearly understands how to establish both acute and prolonged tension. I also liked the premise of having a narrator whose PTSD, relationship doubts, and fear of being powerless made me constantly ask myself just how reliable she could be under dire circumstances. The Woman in Cabin 10 drew my attention shortly after I read In a Dark, Dark Wood, Ruth Ware’s first published mystery thriller.

A body thrown overboard? The sounds of a struggle next door and a brief glimpse of smeared blood out on her private deck are all Lo has to go on – but will anyone believe what she thinks she saw? All seems to be going well for Lo…that is, until a splash heard in the middle of the night awakens her. Most intriguing are Richard Bulmer and his ailing wife, Anne Bulmer, whose struggle with cancer has left her largely reclusive during the voyage. Lo quickly gets swept up in the grandeur of both the ship and its colorful passengers. After a home break-in leaves her shaken, young journalist Laura “Lo” Blacklock decides to bounce back by pursuing the assignment of a lifetime: a week-long excursion aboard the Aurora, a luxury cruise ship owned by billionaire Richard Bulmer.

The woman in cabin 10 book review