This was my favorite Ruth Ware novel I’ve ever read! There were so many twists and turns, and the story had me hooked all the way until the last page. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a new mystery/thriller to read!

Do I need a break from thrillers? I think I need a break from thrillers. I keep saying this, and yet I keep going back to them. Like a few others recently, I feel like Ware is trying to do too much. Like she has all these ideas and just wants to put them all in at once.
The main storyline is told in first person from the perspective of a reluctant participant in an up and coming reality TV show. But, interspersed are radio communications that foreshadow the future and random journal entries that are from a different first person perspective.

The premise is 5 couples on an isolated island competing in different challenges. Someone inevitably gets eliminated and then the winner can decide to either stay with their current couple or change couples. Unfortunately on their second night on the island an immense hurricane-like storm rips through the island leaving the couples stranded without water, food, electricity, or a way to contact anyone on the mainland. As you would imagine this quickly devolves into a Lord of the Flies situation with one character trying to control all the others.

Although the journal entries have a purpose later, while I was reading them the first time, it was very redundant. They basically retold the events that had already happened or were about to happen. To me, the end explanation didn't justify the means. Then the story just sort of plodded along. Things happened, but not really unexpected things. It was a little repetitive in how the things happened and why. And the ending was a bit anticlimactic to me.

Still, I'm not upset I read it. It was a quick, easy read - but I wouldn't go so far to say it kept me on the edge of my seat as a thriller probably should.

I think Ruth Ware fans will enjoy this newest offering.

One Perfect Couple is harkened back to one of my favorite books OF ALL TIME, Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, (not a spoiler- this is written right in the description!) but in the end, I didn’t see any real connections other than both take place on an isolated island and people start dying off one by one.

Lyla and her boyfriend Nico have been together for nearly three years, despite having seemingly nothing at all in common. They don’t even seem to like each other all that much! Nico talks (maybe more like guilt trips) Lyla into going on a brand new reality show on a VERY remote island.

The reality show loving part of me really hoped for more of that competition and behind the scenes view before things really started getting messy, but oh well. Things DID get real messy, real quick.

I found the book to be incredibly slow, peppered with some intense action, but the part I liked the most was the addition of the journal entries. Ruth Ware never fails to create tension in her stories. She remains one of the authors I always add to my TBR when a new book is released, but I just wasn’t feeling this one completely. I think it was a great premise with some missed opportunities.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Gallery books for the opportunity to read this book in advance and share my honest review.

"One Perfect Couple" by Ruth Ware is a gripping thriller set against the intriguing backdrop of a reality TV show gone wrong. The novel follows five couples, including the protagonist Lyla and her boyfriend Nico, who participate in a reality show called "The Perfect Couple" on a remote island. What starts as a competition soon turns into a survival game when a storm cuts them off from the mainland, leaving them to face dwindling supplies, rising tensions, and a mysterious killer among them.

The setup of the reality TV show adds a unique and engaging element to the story, providing a fascinating look at the dynamics and pressures of such an environment. Ware skillfully uses this setting to explore the characters' true natures as they struggle to survive under increasingly dire circumstances. Lyla's voice is relatable and grounded, making it easy to follow the narrative and connect with her experiences.

However, the novel suffers from a degree of predictability that detracts from its overall impact. The plot, while entertaining, follows a familiar trajectory reminiscent of other thrillers and survival stories, leaving little room for surprise or innovation. Despite the engaging setup and tense atmosphere, the twists and turns feel anticipated, and the resolution lacks the shock value that Ware's fans might expect.

Additionally, the story goes off the rails in the last 30%, with developments that stretch believability and coherence. While the initial buildup and character interactions are compelling, the later sections of the book lose some of the tension and focus that make the earlier parts so engaging.

Despite these issues, "One Perfect Couple" remains an enjoyable read, particularly for fans of reality TV and survival thrillers. Ware's writing is sharp and immersive, and the unique setting adds a fresh twist to the genre. While it may not be the author's strongest work, it offers enough suspense and drama to keep readers hooked until the end.

After being a bit let down by Ware's last novel, this one is a hit in my book! One Perfect Couple is told from Lyla's POV, the female main character. She's working on post-doctoral research which isn't going well. Her relationship with her boyfriend isn't going well at the moment either. Lyla is given the opportunity to try out for a new reality TV show, The Perfect Couple, alongside her boyfriend Nico. Lyla soon finds herself on Ever After Island competing for the top cash prize and the title of The Perfect Couple. In true Ruth Ware fashion, once on the island, things begin to go awry. You're kept in the loop the entire time as to who is killing who which makes it a bit different in that aspect. There is no guesswork on the readers part which honestly takes some of the fun out of it. Survivor takes over and it's literally a fight for your life on Ever After Island.

Without knowing that Ware wrote this novel, I wouldn't have known it. It's missing her particular bit of spark. It was a fun, quick read (even at 400 pages), but for some reason Ware's more recent novels don't compare to her earlier novels. I feel that the longer they are drawn out, the more umph they lose. I still rated this one highly at 4 stars and would recommend picking it up!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Lyla is a scientist and her relationship and her job are both on the rocks. When Nico, her boyfriend, gets an offer for them to go on a reality TV show, THE PERFECT COUPLE, with a location on a remote island on the Indian Ocean, Lyla has deep reservations but agrees to go on the trip, seeing it as an adventure and a way to reconnect with her boyfriend. But things start to go wrong—very quickly. A storm, competition for dominance within the group and secrets pile up, along with contestants dropping like flies. Lyla finds herself in danger and in the unlikely position of trying to figure out what is really going on on the island.

This was an interesting premise—a version of the locked-room thriller, a mix between Lord of the Flies and Survivor. I liked it!

Writing this while my pulse returns to normal levels😮‍💨

Holy moly this book was intense. I’m not a Survivor watcher, but I have read Lord of the Flies, and I’d say this book is a combo of the two. The secluded island setting was described so vividly that I could easily picture everything, and it created the perfect backdrop for this story. The first 1/3 is a lot of building, but once the storm hits, things really pick up from there and I was glued to my book. The tensions and suspicions slowly rose, I wasn’t 100% sure who to trust, and I felt like there were a lot of imperfect characters that made things more interesting. I also really loved the short passages from after the storm that were in between chapters - these brief time jumps upped the suspense for sure.

I stayed up waaaaay past my bedtime to finish this because I NEEDED to find out how it was going to end, and it was well worth it. This is the perfect summer thriller!

Ruth Ware does it again! If you are a fan of her books, you will not be disappointed in this new one. It will keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time and you will find it hard to put this one down once you start it. Do yourself a favor and get this book!!

I usually really like this author but this one was a slow burn and not a good twist like her other books. I still enjoyed it and will recommend this author to read.I have meet her in person in St Louis, MO and that was fabulous. I do enjoy her books.

It’s always exciting when Ruth Ware puts out a new book because some have been fantastic. Lookin at you, Woman in Cabin 10. Her writing can really transport you and sit you right inside the worlds she creates. This one started fun but didn’t quite hit the stellar mark she’s done for me in previous showings.

As a diehard Survivor fan, this grabbed me with the reality TV competition aspect. The locked room, killer amongst us trope is done often but this one kept me entertained for the most part. The ending was a bit of a womp, womp but it’s a quick read so I didn’t feel too cheated. Overall, fun but not a homerun.

Thank you to NetGalley and ScoutPress for the ARC in exchange for the honest review.

Ruth Ware is always a must-read author for me, but unfortunately I was not a huge fan of One Perfect Couple. The thriller element was strong in this one - a reality show set on a desert island, a storm rolls in, and then people start dying... Lots of elements here, right? Yup, but they aren't always what they seem.

The Good
Lyla was such an interesting character, and as expected, was the character I connected with the most since she's an academic. That being said, she's a bit naive and clueless which annoyed me. The book was written at a fast pace and in addition to the normal narrative, the inclusion of diary entries added a nice twist to the developing storyline. I really enjoyed that! I was able to correctly guess some of the motivations and twists, but others came out of nowhere which was fun to see.

The Bad
Some of what made this book flop for me was that there were so many characters. I had a hard time really caring about anyone until more people started dying. (That's weird, huh?) That being said, what really brought this book down from 4 stars to 3 stars (or maybe 3.5) for me was the ending. It was abrupt and seemed a bit of a cop out. Oh well.

I think this book will be enjoyed by many who are looking for an escapist thriller. Not the best book I've read this year, but not the worst either. Definitely a fun, readable book! I'll look forward to Ruth Ware's next book. :)

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

Ruth Ware is a can't miss author for me, so I had high expectations going into this novel. The novel starts slow but builds quickly, much like The It Girl. I thoroughly enjoyed reading and will be grabbing a physical copy for my personal library!

This was a whirlwind! This one was different from your “who is the murderer?” Books. There’s the added tension of the group surviving a storm on an island and the aftermath of that storm having HUGE effects.
This one got my heart racing (I actually couldn’t read it a couple of nights because we had storms where I live!)
I found the story compelling but I also saw a few of the beats coming.

The book description says the reality tv contestants are being stalked by a killer on a deserted island. I felt like that meant they would be trying to figure out which one of them was the killer, adding to the suspense. But that wasn’t really the case since it was obvious who posed the threat from early on in the book. That aside, the story did keep me guessing what would happen next and it was a quick, action-packed read. Another twisty thriller from Ruth Ware! If you liked One by One you’re sure to love this book too!

The last two Ruth Ware titles have seemed out of the ordinary for her writing. This was just okay. Wanna be reality stars are trapped on an island and start dying. Worth the finish but wouldn't recommend it.

Lyla, a postdoc virologist, finally agrees to her boyfriend Nico’s pleas of joining the cast of a new reality TV show- One Perfect Couple- hoping to spark his acting career. They will compete against four other couples on a remote island to score a cash prize. After the first night, however, a storm hits the island and everything goes wrong, they are now cut off from civilization, unsure when they will be rescued, and they must work together to figure out how to ration and survive…. Or not.

Akin to Agatha Christie’s “And Then There Were None” this thriller is hard to put down, you want to see what unimaginable thing could happen next. Mixed in this captivating story are snippets of distress calls leaving the reader to think this could be a story of an unreliable narrator. Which I loved, I thought I had it all figured out but I was not on the right path a few times! Be sure to pick this one up- definitely a good read!

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this book. I love Ruth Ware novels.
This book started out slow but the pace picked up quickly. I enjoyed the reality TV setting including the behind the scenes aspect; the story was told mainly by two POVs, one of which were diary entries. There is SO much I want to write but cannot due to spoilers - just know it’s a great, suspenseful read!!
Loved the book reference ;-)
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Ruth ware is never a disappointment. One Perfect Couple was a great book with lots of twists. There are many characters in this book however the main character Lyla is the narrator. She keeps it easy to keep all the characters separate.

Several couples travel to a remote island to play a game show. On Valentine’s Day a big storm hits the island and forces all the contestants into survival mode. Who survives and who dies?

ONE PERFECT COUPLE is Agatha Christie meets LORD OF THE FLIES meets...dating reality TV? I'm not too familiar with the names of those shows, but you know what I mean! I really enjoyed this survival thriller set on a remote island in the Indian Ocean.

Lyla is a scientist whose wannabe actor boyfriend Nico talks her into participating in an upcoming reality show where they compete with four other pairs to be named the "perfect" couple. When they first get to the isolated island location for filming, they notice something is not quite right. Next, a terrible storm hits the island and chaos ensues. Then, it's truly a fight for survival as dead bodies turn up one by one.

There was a big cast of characters, and it took a minute to remember who's who, and who goes with whom, but ultimately they each had a unique voice. While this was an entertaining, escapist thriller, it also touched on the seriousness of bullying and domestic abuse. This was a page-turner that I flew through in record time. I also loved the little nod to THE WOMAN IN CABIN 10.

I enjoy reading all of Ruth Ware’s books. She does an excellent job of keeping the reader guessing and turning pages.

This story was setup as a reality tv show and the plan changed quickly. As the remaining cast was left on the island after a storm they try to make contact with the main island. Although the bad luck they continue to have makes it a challenge.

This is a great summer read!