One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware

 

(USA Cover)                                        (UK Cover)

Lyla is persuaded by her boyfriend Nico to take part in a reality TV series set on a tropical island. Disaster strikes the first night when a storm leaves the contestants stranded and fending for themselves.

I was very fortunate to be able to pick up a copy of  One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware on my recent holiday in Florida as it was published in May, a couple of months ahead of the UK publication date. This is the third book I've read by the author, each has been completely gripping and totally different, this means I know I'm in for shocks and surprises when I start reading.

Lyla is a research scientist, like many in her field she survives on short-term contracts. The instability of work and lack of confidence constantly prey on her mind, especially when she looks at her gorgeous boyfriend, Nico. Lyla really doesn't understand how she has been so lucky to end up with him. 

Nico is a struggling actor, looking for his big break. When he is offered the chance to take part in a reality TV series he sees it as the chance for exposure. The only problem is that the show is for couples so persuading Lyla to participate takes some doing. Lyla is filled with doubt, she's reluctant to take time off work knowing how precarious the job situation is. She's also well aware that she doesn't fit the mould of a typical reality show contestant.

The show is described as a cross between Love Island and Survivor and will feature five couples completing challenges on a tropical island. Lyla's apprehension isn't eased when she meets the other contestants onboard the yacht transporting them to the island. The other women all look like models with perfect skin, hair and nails. It's at this stage both Lyla, and the reader, realises the manipulation being used by the production team. Withholding information from contestants, altering details about individuals and manufacturing situations all come into play. Although I don't watch reality TV shows I can understand how the manipulation of the contestants keeps them unsettled and competitive. The male contestants in particular seem to have been picked to fit certain stereotypes; alpha male, joker, jock, and most importantly, villain. 

Disaster strikes the first night when the island is hit by a tropical storm. The production team onboard the yacht are heading back to a larger island to replenish supplies, leaving the contestants stranded. With only basic amenities and dwindling supplies, the contestants have to fend for themselves and hostilities quickly arise. With no way to contact anyone and explain what has happened, the contestants face rationing and begin to wonder who can be trusted. For the reader, this is compounded when we hear a new perspective offering a slightly different version of events. You begin to wonder what the truth actually is. I also started to wonder if the whole "disaster" was further manipulation by the production team, looking for the ultimate in TV.

The reader is on a knife-edge as we follow the events, wondering if anyone is going to survive when the dangers seem to go beyond running out of supplies. Is it a case of working together or is it every man for himself?

One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware will be published in the UK on 18th July 2024 in hardback, ebook and audio format.

Author Details

Ruth Ware worked as a waitress, a bookseller, a teacher of English as a foreign language, and a press officer before settling down as a full-time writer. She now lives with her family in Sussex, on the south coast of England. She is the #1 New York Times and Globe and Mail (Toronto) bestselling author of In a Dark, Dark Wood; The Woman in Cabin 10; The Lying Game; The Death of Mrs. Westaway; The Turn of the Key; One by One; The It Girl; and Zero Days. Visit her at RuthWare.com