Ruth Ware

Ruth Ware was born in 1977 and grew up in Lewes. She studied English at Manchester University, where she developed a fascination with Old English and Middle English texts.

Before her writing career, Ware worked as a waitress, a bookseller and a publicist. She also spent time in Paris, teaching English as a foreign language.

Ware now lives near Brighton.

Before embarking on her writing career as Ruth Ware, Warburton wrote five young-adult fantasy novels, all of which were published by Hodder's Children Books.

• A Witch Alone (2013) 978-1444904710
• A Witch in Winter (2013) 978-1444904697
• A Witch in Love (2013) 978-1444904703
• Witch Finder (2014) 978-1444914467
• Witch Hunt (2014) 978-1444914481

In her crime books, Ware's writing style is often compared to that of Agatha Christie.{{Cite news|url=http://happyeverafter.usatoday.com/2016/07/11/vilma-gonzalez-recommended-read-the-woman-in-cabin-10-ruth-ware/|title=Love in Suspense recommended read: 'The Woman in Cabin 10' by Ruth Ware|date=2016-07-11|work=Happy Ever After|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en-US}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/07/books/review/inside-the-list.html|title=Inside the List|last=Cowles|first=Gregory|date=2016-07-27|work=The New York Times|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} Ware has said that some aspects of her writing are directly inspired by Christie.{{Cite news|url=https://www.deadgoodbooks.co.uk/ruth-ware-agatha-christie/|title=Ruth Ware on Agatha Christie - Dead Good|date=2016-08-29|work=Dead Good|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en-GB}} Ware's protagonists are usually ordinary women who find themselves in dangerous situations involving a crime. The first two of Ware's novels feature a murder mystery with a group of people trapped, or otherwise restricted from immediately escaping the dangerous environment. Christie was famously known for utilizing this plot device, in novels such as Murder on the Orient Express.{{Cite book|title=Murder on the Orient Express: A Hercule Poirot Mystery|last=Christie|first=Agatha|date=2017-10-31|publisher=William Morrow|isbn=9780062693662|edition=Reprint|language=English}} Ware and Christie both choose settings and situations that foster the sense of dread that propels their characters to paranoia and often they react violently as a result. These environments create a sense of isolation for the events to unfold in.{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2015/08/10/431136362/english-bachelorette-party-is-the-perfect-setting-for-a-crime-novel|title='Scream' Meets Agatha Christie In 'A Dark, Dark Wood'|work=NPR.org|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en}} Ware's settings play a key role in drawing in the reader and are as essential and integral to her story as the characters.

Ware has written nine psychological thrillers, {{as of|2024|lc=y}}:

• In a Dark, Dark Wood (2015) is about a woman who attends a bachelorette party (hen do) of a childhood friend whom she hasn't heard from in years. The party takes place in an isolated glass house in the woods and takes a turn for the worse. By the end of the weekend someone is dead and everyone is a suspect."In a Dark, Dark Wood." Penguin Books, https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1099571/in-a-dark-dark-wood/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."In a Dark, Dark Wood Setting." Book Rags, www.bookrags.com/studyguide-in-a-dark-dark-wood/settings.html#gsc.tab=0. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.Ruth Ware, www.ruthware.com/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.Zimmerman, Jean. [https://www.npr.org/2015/08/18/432582306/dark-dark-doings-in-a-slick-debut-thriller {{"'}}Dark, Dark' Doings In A Slick Debut Thriller"], NPR Books. Accessed 8 November 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23346377-in-a-dark-dark-wood|title=In a Dark, Dark Wood|website=www.goodreads.com|access-date=2017-11-20}}
• The Woman in Cabin 10 (2016) is about Laura "Lo" Blacklock, a travel journalist who goes on the maiden voyage of the Aurora Borealis, a luxury cruise ship, for an assignment in the Norwegian fjords. Lo is on the trip to further her career, but everything changes when she witnesses what she believes to be a woman being thrown overboard, yet all the passengers remain accounted for and no one believes her.Gonzalez, Vilma. "Love in Suspense recommended read: 'The Woman in Cabin 10' by Ruth Ware." Happy Ever After - USA Today, happyeverafter.usatoday.com/2016/07/11/vilma-gonzalez-recommended-read-the-woman-in-cabin-10-ruth-ware/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.Ruth Ware, www.ruthware.com/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware." Book of the Month, https://www.bookofthemonth.com/best-books-of-the-year/the-woman-in-cabin-10-138. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."The Woman in Cabin 10." Simon & Schuster, www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Woman-in-Cabin-10/RuthWare/9781501132933. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28187230-the-woman-in-cabin-10?from_search=true|title=The Woman in Cabin 10|website=www.goodreads.com|access-date=2017-11-20}}
• The Lying Game (2017) revolves around four girls named Kate Atagon, Fatima Chaudhry (née Qureshy), Thea West, and Isa Wilde who attend a private boarding school called Salten House. At the school, they form a bond from a game of telling lies. The poor actions of the girls' boarding school days resurface years later when they receive a mysterious text from Kate asking them to return to the mill where they hung out as teenagers.Ruth Ware, www.ruthware.com/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."Summary and reviews of The Lying Game." Book Browse, https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/12531/the-lying-game. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."The Lying Game | Book by Ruth Ware." Simon & Schuster, www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Lying-Game/Ruth-Ware/9781501156007. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32895291-the-lying-game?from_search=true|title=The Lying Game|website=www.goodreads.com|access-date=2017-11-20}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/01/books/review/ruth-ware-the-lying-game-guilt-suspense.html|title=Suspense Fiction That Mines the Terrain of Female Guilt|last=Aikman|first=Becky|date=2017-09-01|work=The New York Times|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}
• The Death of Mrs Westaway (2018) is about Hal, a young tarot card reader, who receives a mysterious and large inheritance. When Hal attends the funeral of the deceased it becomes clear that she was not the intended recipient of the inheritance and that she has become involved in a dangerous mystery.{{Cite web|url=http://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Ruth-Ware/505261076|title=Ruth Ware|website=Simon & Schuster|language=en|access-date=2017-11-26}}
• The Turn of the Key (2019) is about a nanny and four children, written as if updating Henry James's The Turn of the Screw in a 21st-century setting.{{Cite web|url=https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/the-turn-of-the-key/|title=Book Marks reviews of The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware|website=Book Marks|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-09}}
• One by One (2020) revolves around the directors and shareholders of a hot new technology company on a corporate retreat at an exclusive ski resort to decide the future of the company. Tensions run high approaching a possible billion-dollar buyout as an avalanche cuts the chalet off from help, and one board member goes missing.{{Cite web|last=Ware|first=Ruth|title=One by One|url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1115041/one-by-one/9781787300415.html|access-date=2020-09-17|website=www.penguin.co.uk|language=en}}
• The It Girl (2022) is about a woman, Hannah de Chastaigne, whose college roommate was murdered while the two attended Oxford University. Ten years later, Hannah discovers that her testimony in court may have resulted in the wrong person being convicted of the crime.{{Cite web|url=https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-it-girl-ruth-ware/1140360543;jsessionid=0B1950B3E66554A64392F85C38A5D5DA.prodny_store01-atgap03?ean=9781668009246|website=Barnes & Noble|title=The It Girl|BN Exclusive }}
• Zero Days (2023) is about a husband-and-wife duo who use their combined computer hacking and breaking-and-entering skills to penetration test high-security facilities, and then the wife finds her husband murdered.{{cite news |last1=Nolan |first1=Tom |title=Mysteries: Ruth Ware’s ‘Zero Days’ |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/mysteries-ruth-wares-zero-days-c497da85 |access-date=20 June 2023 |work=Wall Street Journal |date=16 June 2023}}
• One Perfect Couple (2024) is about a couple who are cast on a reality show with 4 other couples in a tropical island paradise. An overnight storm leaves them cut off from the mainland without their phones or anyway to contact the boat or crew that brought them. Tensions run high and contestants start to die and they realize they are trapped on an island with a murderer on the loose.{{Cite web|url=https://www.simonandschuster.ca/books/One-Perfect-Couple/Ruth-Ware/9781668032299 |website=Simon and Schuster |title=One Perfect Couple |date=July 16, 2024}}

Several of Ware's books have been optioned for screen.

• In a Dark, Dark Wood (2015): New Line Cinema has acquired film rights. Reese Witherspoon's Pacific Standard is attached to produce.{{Cite news|url=https://ew.com/article/2015/09/29/reese-witherspoon-dark-dark-wood-movie/|title=Reese Witherspoon is developing an 'In A Dark, Dark Wood' adaptation|work=EW.com|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en}}
• The Woman in Cabin 10 (2016): A Netflix adaptation directed by Simon Stone and written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, with Keira Knightley leading the cast was reported in May 2024.{{cite web|first=Rob|last=London|date=15 May 2024|url= https://collider.com/keira-knightley-cast-woman-in-cabin-10/|title= Keira Knightley Is ‘The Woman in Cabin 10’ in Netflix’s New Thriller Adaptation|website=Collider|accessdate=15 May 2024}}
• The Lying Game (2017): Entertainment One has acquired television rights to The Lying Game.{{Cite news|url=https://deadline.com/2017/08/ruth-ware-the-lying-game-picked-up-by-the-gotham-group-1202149738/|title=Ruth Ware's 'The Lying Game' Picked Up By The Gotham Group|last=Busch|first=Anita|date=2017-08-16|work=Deadline|access-date=2017-11-20|language=en-US}}
• Zero Days (2023): Universal International Studios has acquired the rights for series development.{{cite news |last1=Andreeva |first1=Nellie |title=Ruth Ware’s Novel ‘Zero Days’ Acquired By Universal International Studios For Series Development |url=https://deadline.com/2023/06/ruth-ware-novel-zero-days-acquired-universal-international-studios-series-development-1235409687/ |access-date=20 June 2023 |work=Deadline |date=6 June 2023}}

Ware's novels have won or been nominated for a number of awards and end-of-year lists:

• In a Dark, Dark Wood (2015)
• A BEA Buzz Panel selection
• An NPR best book of 2015
• RT Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Suspense Novel
• The Woman in Cabin 10 (2016)
• Nominated for the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Mystery & Thriller
• 2016 Book of the Year Finalist selected by Book of the MonthRuth Ware, www.ruthware.com/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware." Book of the Month, https://www.bookofthemonth.com/best-books-of-the-year/the-woman-in-cabin-10-138. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017."The Woman in Cabin 10." Simon & Schuster, www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Woman-in-Cabin-10/RuthWare/9781501132933. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.
• The Death of Mrs. Westaway (2018)
• Nominated for the 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Mystery & Thriller
• Nominated for the 2019 Audie Awards Best Thriller or Suspense
• The Turn of the Key (2019)
• Nominated for the 2019 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Mystery & Thriller
• One by One (2020)
• Shortlisted for the 2021 Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award at the Crime Writers' Association Awards{{cite web| url=https://thecwa.co.uk/news/dagger-shortlists-announced|title=Dagger shortlists announced| publisher=Crime Writers Association |date=May 20, 2021|access-date=June 26, 2021}}
• Nominated for the 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Mystery & Thriller
• The It Girl (2022)
• Nominated for the 2022 Goodreads Choice Awards Best Mystery & Thriller
• Nominated for 2023 Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award
• Zero Days (2023)
• Nominated for the 2024 Ned Kelly Awards Best International Crime Novel

Reviews of Ruth Ware's psychological crime thrillers have been generally positive. The Independent named In A Dark, Dark Wood as "this year's hottest crime novel"."In a Dark, Dark Wood." Penguin Books, https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1099571/in-a-dark-dark-wood/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.Ruth Ware, www.ruthware.com/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017. The Guardian praised In A Dark, Dark Wood's "excellent characterisation" and called the book's ending "mesmerising".{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/22/the-best-recent-crime-fiction-novels-review-roundup|title=The best recent crime novels – review roundup|last=Wilson|first=Laura|date=2015-08-22|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-03-14}} The Independent described The Lying Game as "gripping enough to be devoured in a single sitting," in a four-star review.{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-lying-game-ruth-ware-book-review-a7801096.html|title=The Lying Game by Ruth Ware, book review: A plausible mystery|date=2017-06-21|work=The Independent|access-date=2018-03-14|language=en-GB}} In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews{{'}} writer said "cancel your plans for the weekend when you sit down with this book, because you won’t want to move until it’s over."{{Cite book|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ruth-ware/the-lying-game/|title=THE LYING GAME by Ruth Ware {{!}} Kirkus Reviews|language=en-us}}

{{reflist}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ware, Ruth}}

Category:British crime writers

Category:1977 births

Category:Living people

Category:Alumni of the University of Manchester

Category:People from Lewes

Category:British women crime writers

Category:21st-century British novelists

Category:21st-century British women writers

Category:British women novelists

Category:English crime fiction writers

Category:Pseudonymous women writers

Category:21st-century pseudonymous writers