The Cabin at the End of the World
Ratings232
Average rating3.4
This book starts off well and then goes down in flames pretty quickly. It's like that car accident you can't turn away from. The ending is one of the worst I have ever seen. I've read in interviews with the author that he likes ambiguity, but this is ridiculous. There is no pay off for the reader who has invested their time in this story.
An uneven, slow-moving plot with a good premise and nothing else. Wanted to hurry up and read this before the movie version came out but regretting I did. Oh well.
i really enjoyed the themes of this book and also the characters but to me the characterization and the pacing was very clunky and this book dragged at so many moments. i also am not a huge fan of apocalyptic media and i really didn't enjoy this author's other apocalyptic book. i enjoyed this one more but i still had problems with it
this was so fucking boring and pointless and i really dont understand how is this a horror book. i was really tempted to giv this a one star but i liked the characters and the first 2 chapters and dats it. i hope the upcoming movie will be good but i doubt dat bc of the director
I liked the ending, actually found its ambiguity compelling, but the moments leading up to it felt like a slog. I'll write a fuller review later in an attempt to capture what did and didn't work for me.
[That promised update]
The basic premise of a small family in an isolated family coming under threat by a group of four strangers guided by questionable religious revelations is initially intriguing but doesn't really work in execution.
As far as good points, Tremblay's writing is solid, if a little wordy, on a sentence level. And the characters of the family (made of two gay fathers and their adopted daughter) are drawn to be likeable. I can see how their plight will emotionally engage a reader.
The religious quartet invade the cabin and tell the family that God demands they choose and kill one of their own (either of the fathers or the daughter). Should they fail, he will destroy the world.
As much as the premise may be suspenseful, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. This isn't God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son or demanding Lot find 10 righteous men or even sending himself/his son/his messiah to be crucified. Despite the horrific nature of those, they resonate with a certain logic.
What is this sacrifice of a family member supposed to prove and to whom? Is God testing the quartet? Is he testing the family? What does any of this have to do with the fate of all mankind? It's hard not to feel that God is just a novelist who's cooked up a source of tension because tension is what drives novels.
You could try cutting God out of the equation. What if the quartet is forcing this sacrifice for their own ends? There's a suggestion one of the four is a homophobe, but his motivations are quickly rendered irrelevant. We're given no indication that the other three are driven by animus or sadism or self-interest. The quartet is doing this because God told them to and God told them to because...? (See previous paragraph.)
This arbitrariness would have been forgivable in a shorter or more surreal novel, one that leaned into the parabolic nature of the story. Instead, the narrative halts frequently to give us flashbacks or recount the plots of a couple episodes of Steven Universe. This realism only serves to highlight how awkwardly constructed the central premise is.
The Cabin at the End of the World is the third book I've read by Paul Tremblay. One of the things I admire about Tremblay is his ability to write books in very different sub-genres (and even different genres) and still allow his voice and his unique style and prospective to shine through. Cabin is the most esoteric of the three of his books I've read (the other two being A Head Full of Ghosts and Survivor Song). Wen, the adopted daughter of a gay couple, is playing outside the family's rented cabin when a stranger approaches. Things quickly become very bizarre as the novel combines elements of cult and locked door horror to tell a story about the (maybe) end of the world. Like A Head Full of Ghosts this book is filled with nuance and possibility, as well as heavy allusions to Christianity. I do think Tremblay may leave more up to reader interpretation in this one, which some readers will love and others will hate. For me, I often crave resolution and clarity, but I was also able to appreciate the power of denying the fulfillment that desire, especially in the context of this particular story. I found myself thinking, this book would make a really interesting play. I don't know if Tremblay has any interest in writing a stage adaptation, but I think this would be a tense, weird, thought provoking THRILL RIDE in a 90-minutes-without-an-intermission format for live theatre. Could also be an interesting movie. At any rate, back to the novel, I rate this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. Ultimately I wanted a little bit more explanation or resolution, but I still enjoyed it overall.
Gave this another listen for book club. Originally, I had listened to this while I was recovering from something and had just thought that it was confusing because I had faded in and out. It was still a little confusing for me the second go, at least during the action scenes. The beginning was strong and Wen was well written. Although, Eric and Andrew bled together for me and at times was hard to keep them straight, less frequently this also happened with Sabrina and Adrian. I did appreciate the tension of belief: is the end coming, is it all made up, will we find out? The concept is great.
I didn't think that Redmond was O'Bannon but then again, does it matter? I did think that it was a good distraction, and in character for the accusation to be made.
I also watched the film this weekend and also felt mixed about it. Different than the book.
it started REALLY good and was a solid 5 star read until I hit the halfway mark and it drastically went downhill. I left the book with negative feelings instead of positive ones. this would do well as a movie (is there one?) but as a book..
Vanaf het begin ademende dit boek een onderhuidse spanning uit die mij geen seconde losliet. In een vrij korte tijdsspanne wist de auteur mij emotioneel betrokken te maken met de hoofdpersonages, maar liet een beetje de bal vallen bij de indringers, maar dit was waarschijnlijk bewust, gezien we meer in het hoofd van de slachtoffers zitten.
De karakteristieke dubbelzinnigheid in de plot die ik ondertussen gewoon ben van deze auteur liet mij ook nu weer doorheen het ganse verhaal raden: zijn de indringers fanatieke gekken of is er iets van aan?
Normaal ben ik geen fan van ambigue verhalen, maar hier komt de auteur er voor mij weer goed mee weg. Vooral ook het feit dat je de gebeurtenissen als een commentaar kan lezen op de huidige informatie- of desinformatie-maatschappij en wat dit teweeg zou kunnen brengen, deden me overstag gaan.
Angstaanjagend, niet in de traditionele boe-ik-ga-je-doen-verschieten-wijze, maar meer in de black-mirror-stof-tot-nadenken-wijze.
Well.....that's the last time I ever pick up a book without reading its synopsis. I know, that is my fault but so many of the booktubers I watch daily loved this book that I just decided to give it a shot and there are no words to express everything that I am feeling right now. For one, I am realizing that full on horror-suspense novels are not my thing, like at all. I like stories that build up to a very breathtaking climax and this was not that. I felt like I was being suffocated from the very beginning and it was hard to finish this book because I felt like I couldn't breath, couldn't even get a breather.
The story is about a family who gets a visit from four strangers who tell them that they must willingly sacrifice one of their own in order to stop the world from ending. If I would've read the plot I definitely would have realized that end-of-the-world novels are just not for me. As interesting in theory as this plot is, it's just too much, too fast. I think I've given two stars only once before but I really disliked the severity of the story and how fast and full on it hit, without giving so much a moment's warning. I won't even get into the unsatisfactory ending, where nothing was revealed whatsoever and we are left to ponder with our own thoughts.
Further on, the characterization was okay, not the best but not the worst. I liked them but because I had a hard time stomaching the plot, I couldn't get myself too attached to them and what happened to them in the story. It was something akin to a nightmare, in my opinion. We definitely got to see a lot into their minds and their psyches but that too felt suffocating, which I have never experienced or felt in a novel before. It was just too much, in this case I think less is more.
When looking into the writing style, it's not really any different than all the other aspects I've already discussed and talked about. The writing is all over the place and it's hard to decipher at times who said what and who did what. We also get a lot of inner dialogue but it's a little too wordy and I found myself zoning out, not being able to fully grasp the whole wordy description. I think the fact that we go between so many perspectives also doesn't help the situation, it just confuses it more. And with the chapters being so lengthy, there were times when I couldn't finish the chapter and when I would come back to the book the next day I'd be confused as to who's perspective we were on.
In conclusion, I struggled with this book like I've never struggled to get through a book before in my life. There is only one phrase I can think of to describe this novel and it would be “too much”. The plot was too much, too soon, the characters psyches were overwhelming and too wordy and the writing itself was just too all over the place. I would not recommend this book to anyone who wants a beginning, middle and an end to their novels.
The one word I'd use to explain how I felt through the majority of the books is confusion.
While I did finish it in 2 days, that's because I wanted to finally find the answers. The reasons, the motivations, the causes. I never got that.
I guess the main reason I'm disappointed is because I thought the story was going to go for this huge turn and I was finally going to receive all the answers but I didn't. You can't really understand the why, if the characters themselves don't understand the why. That itself may be the whole point, but still, this just wasn't for me. I feel bad giving it a 2 star just because I may not have understood it as much, but now I know I don't like stories being so open ended. If you want concrete answers in your books, this may not be the book for you.
I've been frustrated by how toothless Stephen King is in his dotage and by how infrequently King's son, Joe Hill, publishes new books. So I'm excited to discover a writer who is able to alternate between cold dread and heart racing intensity the way Tremblay has in both of the books by him I read recently.
So to start this off . . . I am not a fan of thrillers. They tend to fall towards a lot of action, less actual plot, and mostly unmemorable characters. And this made me nervous. But I was blown away by [b:The Last Conversation 47969237 The Last Conversation (Forward collection) Paul Tremblay https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1567229097l/47969237.SX50.jpg 72182739] and enjoyed [b:Growing Things and Other Stories 41212413 Growing Things and Other Stories Paul Tremblay https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556906952l/41212413.SY75.jpg 64888211], so I decided to give it a try anyway.And for the first little bit I was thinking, oh no, this is indeed a thriller. Do I even want to continue? I was tempted to just put it down. But I kept going.And I'm glad I did.Action was surprisingly minimal and fit perfectly with the plot. No gratuitous violence (though there is violence), everything that happened had a reason and a purpose.The characters were really good. Interesting, fleshed out, always behaved in character, even if that behavior was . . . odd.And the plot was surprisingly well thought out. As events unfurled I suspect I reacted exactly as the author intended. I was genuinely fascinated by what was going on, gasping or crying out exactly where I suspect the author wanted me to do so. And, as expected from this author, I spent the entire time wondering what was and was not real. Its not what I initially hoped it would be, but I enjoyed it. IMO a very well done story.
updated january 2023 review:
review to come after the harper collins strike ends
original oct 2019 review:
IM??????
How am I supposed to review this without spoilers????
This writing style is far from my favorite. Every single line of dialogue is the same (Eric says, Andrew says, she says). It was hard to get through and then left us on a cliff hanger.
This writing style is far from my favorite. Every single line of dialogue is the same (Eric says, Andrew says, she says). It was hard to get through and then left us on a cliff hanger.
A couple and their daughter spending time in a secluded cabin. When a stranger appears and tries to befriend the daughter. Then 3 others come and speak of the apocalypse. The book is suspenseful and has good flow throughout. I did enjoy reading this book just felt it lacking at the end.
I'm on a horror kick. Years ago I read [b:A Head Full of Ghosts 23019294 A Head Full of Ghosts Paul Tremblay https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1415678368s/23019294.jpg 42563937] and loved it. So I turn to Tremblay to scare me again and Cabin did scare me, but not in the way I was looking for. First of all, hats off to this man for managing to ratchet up the tension until I thought my head was going to explode. First he lulled me in with falling in love with this adorable little girl, and then he puts her in this nightmare of a situation. Anyhoo, I'm going to have to admit I lost patience with this about 150 pages in. I had to put it down and go read some other things. Then I picked it up and finished it and find myself left with a bunch of non-resolutions. Okay. That's okay. I'm going to wait and see if I remember this book after some time has passed. I don't remember liking [b:Disappearance at Devil's Rock 27064358 Disappearance at Devil's Rock Paul Tremblay https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1464530350s/27064358.jpg 47104908] but I remember some parts of it as if they actually happened to ME. That is the power of this man's writing.
*2.5 stars. Kind of a swing and a miss for me. Tremblay is a gifted storyteller and this book had the promise of a fantastic premise, but it just fell flat. Not enough character development to care too, too much about what occurs.
This book had a fantastic beginning and I was very drawn into the story and couldn't wait to see how it would unfold. As it progressed, however, I became less interested in what was happening and was quite disappointed with the ending. The writing was good, but the story seemed repetitive at some points.
3.5 stars.
As my first completed book of 2019, I freely admit I started it at the end of 2018 (back on 28 Dec) as a group I'm in on Goodreads is having a discussion about it over January with the author. I read this over the course of a week, although if taken without any breaks it was more like 3 days, and surprised myself how quickly I got through it. I was reading the Kindle version having grabbed it fairly cheap over Christmas.
It doesn't have traditional chapters, which confuses the Kindle reader, moreover it has larger sections broken down into smaller parts that are entitled with the character who's viewpoint the passage is in. I'm not a fan of labelling the point of view and prefer to figure it out simply from the text itself however in this case it became useful towards the end of the novel when the action ramps up.
The story follows an ordeal that besets Wen and her two fathers, Andrew and Eric, when a group of strangers appear at their remote holiday cabin asking for their help to halt the apocalypse. Violence is inevitable from the moment the sinister Leonard starts asking Wen odd questions in the front yard as she catches grasshoppers and the likelihood escalates as three more strangers appear and Wen runs in to her dads to tell them.
After forceably entering the cabin and restraining Andrew and Eric, Leonard et al tell their tale of visions and instructions that lead them all to this “special family” in the cabin with the red door and that, without them, the world will shortly end. Without spoiling any further goings on, what faces the group is a desperate struggle to grapple with damning information and inexplicable actions.
While an entertaining read, I wouldn't describe this as ‘horror' as many others have. It isn't scary or particularly disturbing; similar to ‘Head Full of Ghosts', the book looks at what is a variation on events that have almost undoubtedly happened somewhere at some time in modern history. If you find it disturbing that humans can do terrible things to each other then you may want to consider if you are too naive for Tremblay's work.
Across both ‘Head Full of Ghosts' and ‘The Cabin at the End of the World', Tremblay's prose paints a dim view of organised religion and the part it has to play in the atrocious things people do to one another. While it's primarily focused on Christianity or adjacent faiths, the impression remains that it extends to all organised monotheist religions prevalent in the world today. Whether this is a reflection of the author or simply an easy thread to pull on to add an extra dimension to his stories, I couldn't say.
Overall the prose is well written, with the exception of the let's-hyphenate-a-bunch-of-words-together tendency that crops up a few times throughout the book. If you've read ‘Head Full of Ghosts', you may remember the last minute almost twist at the end and ‘The Cabin...' has a similar mechanism in the last pages. It made me consider the similarities in composition between the two books and, while they tell two different tales, there are a fair few.
In terms of rating, I find myself perhaps a little too cynical for Tremblay's books as none of the content surprises or disturbs me as the genre classifications suggests they should. It has made me wonder if the author wrote these intending to disturb or intending merely to shine a light and point out the horrible things that occur in everyday society. While I'd definitely consider reading more of his work, I shan't expect to be scared by it.
(Review also published here: https://aspectsof.me/2019/01/06/cabin-end-world-review/)