After the release of several bestsellers (The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game…), Ruth Ware returns at the beginning of 2023 with The Chalet of the Missing. A psychological thriller set in the heart of the Alps where a corporate seminar turns into a tense closed-door scenario.
The members of Pister, a music application that allows you to know who is listening to which music in real-time, gather in a chalet in the Alps to enjoy a few days of rest and discuss the future of their company. Quickly, events take a dramatic turn: a group member goes missing, and a terrible avalanche cuts the chalet off from all communication. After exploring hi-tech babysitting (The Blood Key), family intrigues (The Death of Mrs. Westaway), and friendship and betrayal (The Lying Game), Ruth Ware presents a winter closed-door scenario where all the characters have something to hide: Topher and Eva, the app’s founders, Miranda, nicknamed the tsarina, Elliot, the resident geek, Liz, the former employee, and even Erin, the chalet’s housekeeper.
It is, moreover, these two characters, Liz and Erin, who alternate in telling the story. The icy atmosphere of the chalet trapped in the snow further weighs down an already heavy atmosphere. The members of this app, with somewhat caricatured personalities, look at each other with mistrust and all try to save themselves. The elements of suspense in a closed-door scenario are present, and Ruth Ware’s writing offers a narrative that unfolds as one might expect; however, the lack of chills is somewhat felt.
