The marketing for the new Ruth Ware thriller, One Perfect Couple, is very specific. It says: And then there were none meets the Traitors. I know neither of these, so let’s boil it down. Five couples go to an island to do some kind of budget reality TV series. Not all of them return. Some are lost to natural forces but what starts off as a group exercise in survival swiftly becomes a power battle and we begin to wonder who is going to be picked off and by whom. The result is an up-to-the-minute tale of cold revenge and a modern twist on the locked door mystery, with some observations on public toxic masculinity and abusive relationships for good measure. 

Lyla is a scientist, hopping from research contract to contract. Boyfriend Nico is glamorous and his dreams of becoming a successful ‘actor/presenter’ have been so far unsuccessful when his agent offers the couple a spot on a new reality series, located on a not-quite-finished fantasy island near Indonesia. Now a thriller of this kind normally involves all kind of ambiguities but the smoke and mirrors provided by the TV production company add an intriguing layer. 

The TV producers leave by boat, taking one of the contestants with them and then an almighty storm rips through the tiny island. Those of the contestants who survive the storm now have to fend for themselves. Fresh water and food are in short supply. Of course, the producers would have picked the islanders for their ability to squabble and make good television: the squabbles remain even though no one is sure that the hidden cameras are continuing to record anything.

What’s refreshing here is that we see things through Lyla’s narrative but there’s another voice provided by an unknown diarist. There are major discrepancies between the two accounts. The hidden cameras remind us that truth is often manufactured anyway. But the battle for survival, the straightforward ‘what’, for most of the book anyway, overshadows the ‘why’. There are moments of absolute tension, paragraphs where you want to skip ahead to find out whether yet another character is going to be buried on the sandy beach of paradise – before you go back and read the action line by action-packed line.

There are nearly 400 pages, but this is a quick read. There’s an undercurrent of malevolence but pace and energy carry you through moments where under normal circumstances you’d stop and think about which side you’re on. But in the end the choice is quite clear. There’s a peak in the action: once that’s happened things are resolved pretty quickly. The survivors are rescued, and there are text messages and discussions that explain the rest, including why truth is the final casualty of all.

I don’t know about And then there are none and The Traitors. But with its strong female characters, a focus on injustice and a high body count One Perfect Couple is ideal summer fare for those missing their usual holiday treat from Lisa Jewell. 

Thanks to Simon and Schuster for the review copy and to Anne Cater for the blog tour invitation.