The Cabin at the End of the World

I've spent much of the last week of 2018 scared out of my mind.

That's due, in part, to watching Bird Box on Netflix on New Year's Eve. Just before that, I read this book - also about the possible end of the world. Horror isn't usually my bag, but this book was well-reviewed and on my list. Little did I know I would devour it in two days and have trouble sleeping both nights it was on my bedside table.

You know what's worse? The further away I get from it, the more it scares me.

But, sometimes that's what we're after, right?

The premise of this book is what drew me in. A little girl is playing quietly in the yard of the cabin her family is staying in, deep in the remote woods of the northeastern United States. A man approaches and befriends her and you've seen enough horror movies to know something is about to go horribly wrong.

As the situation escalates, the man says to the girl that nothing that's about to happen inside the cabin is her fault.

I hesitate to say too much about what actually does happen inside that cabin. The suspense of what the group of strangers brings forth and everything that happens next is what makes this book such a fast, compelling, terrifying adventure.

But, I will tell you this: twice while reading this book, my husband walked into the room and asked what was going on. I was staring at the book - mouth agape - in utter disbelief about what was happening.

It reminded me of why I consider myself "indoorsy." This book did a lot to confirm my fears of cabins and the outdoors in general.

If you read it like I did, you'll find yourself second-guessing EVERYTHING. You'll make up your mind about what you believe, then you'll change it two pages later. It's wonderfully written, in that it takes hold of you from the get-go. It's terrifying in that it doesn't exactly tie up in a bow and leaves you wondering about the future, what's real and what sacrifices you would be willing to make if everything was on the line.