Cover Crush: The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

Hello, my name is Colleen and I am a cover slut. I know, I know....you aren't supposed to judge a book by it's cover. I just can't help myself! A beautiful cover draws my eye every single time and I can't help but pick up the book it's dressing and see if the inside seems as intriguing as the outside. Sometimes it does, and sometimes a pretty cover is just a pretty cover. Either way, I love getting an eyeful!

One of my favorite bloggers, Erin at Flashlight Commentary, created a weekly blog post called Cover Crush and she and some other blogger friends are sharing their favorite covers each Thursday. You'll find my Cover Crush selection below and I'll link to everyone else's at the end of the post.

So, without further ado, my Cover Crush this week is.....

 

 

 

 

Who doesn't love a creepy cover with a spooky house at the center?! I love how desolate and foggy it seems, with our one solitary figure walking towards what you just know is going to be danger (don't you want to yell at her to run away....or is that just me?) I really enjoyed Ruth Ware's In A Dark, Dark Wood so I would have picked this one up either way, but the cover makes me want to read it RIGHT NOW!

 

Let's see what we can expect to find behind this eerie cover....

 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, and The Lying Game comes Ruth Ware’s highly anticipated fourth novel.

On a day that begins like any other, Hal receives a mysterious letter bequeathing her a substantial inheritance. She realizes very quickly that the letter was sent to the wrong person—but also that the cold-reading skills she’s honed as a tarot card reader might help her claim the money.

Soon, Hal finds herself at the funeral of the deceased…where it dawns on her that there is something very, very wrong about this strange situation and the inheritance at the center of it.

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

 

 

Don't forget to check out what covers my blogger buddies are drooling over this week (updated as they become available):


Magdalena at A Bookaholic Swede
Erin at Flashlight Commentary
Heather at The Maiden's Court
Stephanie at Layered Pages
Holly at 2 Kids and Tired



 Created by Magdalena of A Bookaholic Swede

 

 

 

 

Review: In A Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Pub. Date: April 19th, 2016
Pages: 352

Genre: Mystery/ Thriller/ Suspense/ Crime Drama

Synopsis

What should be a cozy and fun-filled weekend deep in the English countryside takes a sinister turn in Ruth Ware’s suspenseful, compulsive, and darkly twisted psychological thriller.

Sometimes the only thing to fear…is yourself.

When reclusive writer Leonora is invited to the English countryside for a weekend away, she reluctantly agrees to make the trip. But as the first night falls, revelations unfold among friends old and new, an unnerving memory shatters Leonora’s reserve, and a haunting realization creeps in: the party is not alone in the woods.

What Did I Think About the Story?

I've been on such a kick with scary/mystery/thriller sorts of stories lately, so when I saw In a Dark, Dark Wood on my shelves I thought it was the perfect time to finally read it! It's gotten a lot of attention and the synopsis makes it sound interesting, even given the somewhat vague description, so I was ready and hoping to be scared out of my wits. So, did In a Dark, Dark Wood make me lose sleep and jump at every sound? Um, no. However, it did end up being a very good psychologically twisting story about the unreliability of  memory and the lengths some people will go to in order to get exactly what they want.

I think the creepiest thing about this story is the setting. Leonora, or "Nora" as she prefers to be called, is roped into going to the hen party (a bachelorette party) for an old friend of hers that she hasn't spoken to in a decade. We know from the beginning that something bad happened that pretty much ended the relationship, but she agrees to go with a mutual friend anyways. The party is set to take place over the course of the weekend in this glass house in the middle of these isolated snow-covered woods. The descriptions of this house made me feel just as uncomfortable as the characters appear to be - which is great! - as they feel like anyone can look in on them at any time without their knowledge. It's frozen and barren outside, there's shoddy phone service so no way to call for help if they need it, and this group of mismatched friends of the bride-to-be are basically stuck in this display house for the weekend....creepy!

Another great aspect, and one that really helped fuel the thriller feeling for me, was the pacing and delivery of the story. The narrative unfolds as a slow release of information about each of the people at the hen party - both their past and present - as they "enjoy" the weekend festivities, interspersed with short chapters of Nora after the party, battered and in the hospital with only blurry memories of what happened and police officers wanting to question her regarding something horrible that has happened. It's a measured, insidious sort of dread that builds as the story progresses and one that becomes almost feverish in pitch as Nora tries to uncover what really did happened. She - and therefore the reader - isn't sure if she can believe her memories of how the weekend unfolded or, really, what she thinks is true about each of the people involved, including herself. This makes trying to decipher what actually went down so much fun.

In a Dark, Dark Wood wasn't necessarily as dark and frightening as I initially thought it would be, however it was still very enjoyable. I was even shocked to find myself laughing at some of the snark-filled jokes and statements some of the characters had a tendency to say, which helped break up some of the more dramatic or heavy moments nicely and gave more complexity to the characters. I would definitely recommend the story to anyone looking for a well paced thriller and mystery that keeps you guessing.    

What Did I Think About the Cover?

It's okay. It's not the sort of cover that would draw my eyes to it automatically, but it does fit the bleak, black night and white, snow-covered forest theme of the story quite well.


My Rating: 4.0/5.0

I bought a copy of In A Dark, Dark Wood for my own library. All opinions are mine alone. You can find more information about the book, including other reviews and where to purchase a copy, on Goodreads.