The Cabin by Natasha Preston: Book Review

The Cabin by Natasha Preston was a much anticipated read for me. I skipped seven books on my “read next” list after I loved The Cellar so much. Maybe I set the bar too high or I wasn’t in the right mood, but I really didn’t like this book. One of the things I hated the most was how it was written. It made it feel very juvenile. Before you yell at me and say “but it’s a YA novel” let me point out that I still read plenty of YA novels even at my ripe age of 27 and a half.

I feel really bad for hating on this book because I loved the other book I read by Natasha Preston. It was also YA but felt much more sophisticated than The Cabin. It makes me feel even worse to criticize it because I am an aspiring author myself and I don’t think I’m capable of better writing than this. So maybe one day Natasha Preston will honor me with a taste of my own medicine and will tell me why she hated my future novel (if I can even get it published.)

Anyway, reviews are biased and you might love this book. So call me a bitter almost-middle aged lady who hates all things related to youth.

About The Cabin by Natasha Preston

“There may only be one killer, but no one is innocent.
When Mackenzie treks to a secluded cabin in the woods with six friends, she expects a fun weekend of partying, drinking, and hookups. But when they wake to find two of their own dead and covered in blood, it’s clear there’s a killer among them.
As the police try to unravel the case, Mackenzie launches her own investigation. Before long secrets start to emerge, revealing a sinister web of sins among the original seven friends. The killer is still free. Every one of them is a suspect. And Mackenzie starts to realize that no one is innocent…”
Goodreads

What I Liked

Not much to be honest. I didn’t like the characters, the writing and the story just lacked any sort of depth. The plot wasn’t horrible and I was curious to find out who the killer was. Although I could have lived without finishing it. The only reason I did finish it was to be able to write a review. I did enjoy the twist towards the end of the book that I did not expect.

What I Didn’t Like

Most things. But my biggest complaint is still the writing. There was so much repetitiveness and predictability. Plus it felt like a teenager wrote it. It was night and day compared to The Cellar, so I have no idea why it was like this. After everything that was said, the protagonist would rephrase it or summarize it in her head. When Blake apologizes for being inconsiderate, Mackenzie literally thinks about him being inconsiderate. It was just all over-simplified, hard to take seriously or even believe.

Summary

I really didn’t like this book. I kept reading it for the purpose of writing this review but I sighed whenever I picked it up and shook my head throughout most of the read. For once, I was harsher than people on Goodreads. Perhaps that is proof that the problem is me and not the book? I have no idea what happened here but I don’t want to sugarcoat my experience. Please tell me how wrong I am in the comment section below. And by all means, give it a chance and pick up a copy on Amazon using this link.

I am definitely not giving up on Natasha Preston! I had a very similar hit and miss experience with Ruth Ware and I kept reading her books. These are some other books by Natasha Preston that you may want to check out: