In a Dark Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

by:  Ruth Ware
published by:  Scout
publish date:  July 30, 2015

Someone's getting married. Someone's getting murdered.   Nora hasn't seen Clare for ten years. Not since Nora walked out of school one day and never went back.  Until, out of the blue, an invitation to Clare’s hen do arrives. Is this a chance for Nora to finally put her past behind her?

But something goes wrong. Very wrong.

Some things can’t stay secret for ever.

This is one of the Must Read books of Summer.  I usually approach these books warily.  I'm almost always burned by them.  This one was actually very good in my opinion.

Nora, went through a bad breakup when she was 16 and now it's 10 years later.  She hasn't been in contact with most of the people she went to school with until she gets an invitation to a Hen Do, or bachelorette party for us Americans.  Out of curiosity, she decides to go, and it ends up being the worst decision she makes.  The bride is just as manipulative as Nora remembers her being.  The maid of honor is crazy.  The house they're staying at is creepy.  The situation snowballs downhill until Nora wakes up in a hospital with no memory of what has transpired.  Slowly, her memory of the events begins to unfold, but are they reliable?

This was an enjoyable book.  It was a little bit predictable at times, but overall it was a really good story and I was fully interested in the story from start to finish.  This was an excellent debut and I can't wait to read more by this author!