I read Ruth Ware's last book “The Turn of the Key” when it was a Waterstones Book of the Month with no prior knowledge or experience with Ware's books - I'm so glad I did because I thoroughly enjoyed it! I find thrillers tricky, it's rare for me to find ones that I find both convincing and exciting and often times the suspension of disbelief involved is too much for me. This is why I like Ware's books – the scenarios and characters are realistic, but the creep factor is still there without anything seeming cartoonish or overly outlandish. One by One follows the tried and true formula of “group of mostly unpleasant people trapped in house start being picked off” and you can tell Ware had a lot of fun writing it. A corporate ski trip goes awry when an avalanche traps the developers of a multi-million dollar music app named “Snoop” in their lodge with no means of contacting the outside world. Quickly they notice that one of their number is missing and thus the game of cat-and-mouse begins. I really enjoyed the dual perspective that Ware used, as we follow the action from both Liz – a “Snoop” ex-staff member reluctantly dragged along with the trip – and Erin, one of two staff at the lodge unwittingly plunged into a life and death struggle against both the elements and the murderous intent of one of the “Snoopers”. This is a fun, fast-paced and deliciously dark thriller, perfect for reading on a cold night under a blanket. I think Ware paces her books fantastically, as the mounting unease is palpable without feeling dragged out, and the inevitable explosion of action is perfectly executed and never feels overly dramatic or silly. Overall, I highly recommend this for any thriller fan, as it utilises lots of beloved tropes whilst still being an original and entertaining read! Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a review copy.

Snoop. The new music app that allows you to listen into someone else's music, in real time, while they are, while staying completely anonymous. The founding members and directors are joined by the rest of the staff members for a corporate get away at an exclusive ski lodge. The reason - to discuss a multi million pound buy out that will make or break some of the staff involved. As things get more tense one of the group is killed in a tragic skiing accident, or is she? As the body count rises and with the guests and staff snowed in the lodge due to an avalanche, just who can be trusted and what secrets are they hiding? I have to admit I found this very confusing at first. There are A LOT of characters and after reading the first few chapters I found I had to go back and start again. Once I got used to who was who it turned out to be an interesting read and a real page turner. Although I did guess who "who did it" it didn't stop me reading to find out how it ended.

A group of shareholders go on a skiing trip to a remote chalet in France. The purpose of the trip is to come to an agreement about an upcoming deal that could see some of the shareholders making a considerable amount of money. On the second day of the trip relationships start to fray and the shareholders start to die… one by one. Leaving chalet housekeeper Erin and chef Danny suspicious of them all.  Ooooh YES YES YES! I really enjoyed this one. Very cleverly written from lots of characters points of view and full of twist and turns. I love a good who done it and this is definitely one of those.  I LOVED the location that this book was set in. There was a constant element of danger throughout just because of the snowy backdrop and I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through. I also really enjoyed the premise of the app Snoop which was the product that these shareholders owned. The idea that you could listen in to another persons music was very clever and gave the whole book a bit of a creepy stalker vibe. I would say once the killer was revealed the last quarter of the book dragged a tiny bit but the ending was explosive and dramatic and I was very satisfied with how it all came together. Overall another excellent book from Ruth Ware. I will be back for some more of her books when Ive made a dent in the TBR!  Gifted ecopy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Ruth Ware continues her writing of solidly written, entertaining, and well plotted novels with a murder mystery set in a ski resort that has been snow bound due to a major storm. Erin and Danny work for a company that leases rooms at these resorts to people interested in spending a few days both on the ski slopes as well as having the luxury of a well run hotel at their disposal. Danny is the chef and the person preparing the meals for the guests with Erin acting both as the hostess and the maid for them. We learn early on that Erin has a background that includes a major personal crisis. As the story opens a group from a tech company named "Snoop" which has successfully developed a product that can follow anybody electronically without their knowledge and allow them to be spied upon has booked the resort for a few days. They are in the process of possibly receiving a buy out by another company which will mean fortunes for the current stockholders: all of whom are at the meeting. There are two of the guests that are opposed to the buy out feeling that once their product is released to the public the stock they own will be worth more than any purchase by another company. Since the group is at a ski resort it is decided that they will go out and do a downhill run on their first day there. There are a few good skiers among them coupled with others with lesser skills. Unfortunately tragedy strikes immediately. One of the group with lesser ability does not return to the resort with the others. Using their own product the determination is made that that woman's phone is buried under tons of snow and that she must have been killed. The police are called but cannot come immediately due to the imminent arrival of a major snow storm. That storm hits and causes the resort to become isolated with no possibility of either leaving nor having anyone come to them. In the vein of Agatha Christie's classic "And than there were none" people begin dying bringing terror to the group afraid of being next on whatever list is being used to decide who is to be killed. The story is told via a series of first person narratives and we clearly follow the plot until a good who done it reaches it's inevitable end. The use of a ski resort being snowed in provides an interesting twist to Ms Ware's tale of murder and is another landmark on her reputation as a skilled author.

This year seems to be the year where alot of thrillers with a twist have moved from suburbia to the Swiss Alps, the ideal location for murder, crime, and angst driven by isolation. One by One is set in high end holiday chalet in the Swiss Alps, Erin is the chalet girl and Danny is the chef. Their guests for the week are a group Scoop, a highly popular music app, they've come to ski and talk business. Their first morning on the slopes is marred by tragedy, when one of the group goes missing, and worse is yet to happen in the form of a huge avalanche. Can things get any worse??? The narrative is told through the characters, you also realise early on that the characters are not the most likeable group, some of whom have things to hide. It's a really easy, entertaining read, I guessed the killer immediately but it didn't spoil the read, I wanted to see the plot twists taking place.