by Paul Tremblay

Titan Books, out now

Wen is on holiday with Daddy Andrew and Daddy Eric. They’ve warned her not to talk to strangers. If only she’d listened.

The Cabin at the End of the World is the latest novel from American author Paul Tremblay (best known for A Head Full of Ghosts and Disappearance at Devil’s Rock).

This time, the author tackles the subject of home invasion – and what an invasion it is. Wen, a young Chinese girl adopted by Eric and Andrew, is playing outside the cabin her parents have rented for their holiday, catching grasshoppers in a glass jar to examine later. When a tall, strong-looking stranger, Leonard, approaches and says he must talk to her parents or they won’t be able to prevent the end of the world, her life and that of everyone around her – including Leonard and his three companions –  is about to change drastically.

The Cabin at the End of the World moves at a relentless pace, painting a vivid picture of the lunacy that Leonard and his friends bring into Wen’s family’s lives and yet allowing the reader to understand them and almost to empathise with what is clearly an impossible situation for everyone involved, not least the little girl at the centre of everything.

As with his previous novels, Tremblay draws you into the narrative and keeps you hooked throughout, painting fully rounded characters and scenes that will haunt you long after you finish reading the story. As the plot progresses, you find yourself rooting for Wen and her parents, and praying that it’s all a joke, things aren’t really going to reach what rapidly starts to look like an almost inevitable conclusion. At times the narrative is brutal, almost too hard to read, but the violence never feels gratuitous and is told with a great deal of respect, both for the characters and for the emotional roller coaster they’re going through. The author has proved he is adept at understated, emotionally resonant storytelling – with Cabin at the End of the World, his writing hits a new peak.

Verdict: A harrowing story of a brutal home invasion that will stay with you long after reading.  10/10

Marie O’Regan