The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

"But I had heard something. Something that had made me start from my sleep with my heart pounding two hundred beats per minute, and my palms wet with sweat, and the conviction that somewhere very close by, another woman was in grave trouble. I knew what it was like to be that girl---to realize, in an instant, how incredibly fragile your hold on life could be, how paper-thin the walls of security really were."
                -Lo's thoughts, from the novel

I can't remember where I spotted a synopsis of this novel but with a planned cruise approaching, it seemed a perfect fit. I checked the eBook out from the library for my Kindle. What do you call a captivating suspense novel that you can hardly put down when it is on such a device? It can't really be a page-turner, can it? Page tapper, perhaps? Whatever you call it, this was one! I give it a 5 for sheer entertainment.

British journalist Laura "Lo" Blacklock is on assignment from Velocity travel magazine. Her boss has asked her to cover the maiden voyage of the Aurora Borealis, an elite cruise ship owned by extremely wealthy and influential Lord Richard Bullmer. The luxury cruise liner is smallish compared to any we have sailed on---only 10 guest cabins---so the passenger list is limited: Lo, some fellow journalists, including ex-boyfriend, Ben Howard, Bullmer and his wife.

The book actually begins with a break-in at Lo's flat that leaves her traumatized so when she is awakened the first evening on the ship by a woman's scream and a splash sounding much like a body falling overboard, she is worried for "the woman in cabin 10" whom she had met briefly. When Lo goes to the security officer with her suspicions, he tells her cabin 10 is vacant and goes to great lengths to cast doubt on her story. As she continues to look for evidence and to question others, she receives not-so-subtle threats and finally realizes her own life is in danger. The twists and turns will keep you guessing and if you get halfway---don't plan on doing much but reading to the end!

This was the first novel I have read by this author but it won't be the last!