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A review by brennanlafaro
The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay
5.0
I should start by saying that I finished this book in 2 days. You may be thinking no big deal, I’ve done that before, but it’s generally not the way I read. At any given time I have 3-6 books going and I like to spend a little time with each during the course of the day. I think of it like sitting down to watch TGIF on a Friday night, checking in with characters I’m currently invested in, and getting a little variety(hello dated reference). Once I picked up The Cabin at End of the World, the rest of my in progress pile took a backseat until this ride had concluded.
Home invasion is an aspect of horror that scares the shit out of me. Even though it wasn’t a great movie, the Strangers stayed with me for a long time. There’s something inherently terrifying about strangers breaking into a place that is supposed to be safe and yours and creating such a power imbalance. Paul Tremblay crafts a story that presents as home invasion but quickly jumps to a whole new level. I won’t go into details because I went into this book knowing very little about the plot and I would highly recommend doing the same.
The family draws us in and makes us care about them immediately, and I dare you not to fall in love with Wen in the first chapter. The family dynamic is very 2018, but Tremblay never beats the reader over the head with it, and it does become vital to certain details as the story unfolds. Even the “villains” in Cabin are flawed, but redeemable and I could sympathize, if not agree, with some of them.
The strength of this book is that it does not let its’ readers be complacent. I’ve made my way through this and A Head Full of Ghosts now, I’ve enjoyed both immensely, and I’ve learned that Paul Tremblay is not going to wrap anything up with a bow for me and present it on a silver platter. He’s going to present questions that he has no intention of giving a definitive answer to. Throughout this story, Tremblay does an incredible job of planting seeds of doubt. Even when you’re pretty sure you know what’s going on, in the back of your mind uncertainty lingers.
This is a sublimely well-crafted horror story that pays very close attention to its’ own details. There are some very bold and brave choices. One in particular will stay with me for a long time. It is clever and expects the audience to pay attention. Lastly, it demands that you ruminate on it when it’s over. Write about it, force a friend to read it and then talk about it, but it will be there with you. If you’re down for all that, you should already be in the process of obtaining this thing.
Home invasion is an aspect of horror that scares the shit out of me. Even though it wasn’t a great movie, the Strangers stayed with me for a long time. There’s something inherently terrifying about strangers breaking into a place that is supposed to be safe and yours and creating such a power imbalance. Paul Tremblay crafts a story that presents as home invasion but quickly jumps to a whole new level. I won’t go into details because I went into this book knowing very little about the plot and I would highly recommend doing the same.
The family draws us in and makes us care about them immediately, and I dare you not to fall in love with Wen in the first chapter. The family dynamic is very 2018, but Tremblay never beats the reader over the head with it, and it does become vital to certain details as the story unfolds. Even the “villains” in Cabin are flawed, but redeemable and I could sympathize, if not agree, with some of them.
The strength of this book is that it does not let its’ readers be complacent. I’ve made my way through this and A Head Full of Ghosts now, I’ve enjoyed both immensely, and I’ve learned that Paul Tremblay is not going to wrap anything up with a bow for me and present it on a silver platter. He’s going to present questions that he has no intention of giving a definitive answer to. Throughout this story, Tremblay does an incredible job of planting seeds of doubt. Even when you’re pretty sure you know what’s going on, in the back of your mind uncertainty lingers.
This is a sublimely well-crafted horror story that pays very close attention to its’ own details. There are some very bold and brave choices. One in particular will stay with me for a long time. It is clever and expects the audience to pay attention. Lastly, it demands that you ruminate on it when it’s over. Write about it, force a friend to read it and then talk about it, but it will be there with you. If you’re down for all that, you should already be in the process of obtaining this thing.