A review by thexwalrus
The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay

i don't know how to rate this book, honestly.

i loved the writing style. the prose is so engaging and there's so much being said about the human element of horror. there's some excellent recurring symbolism, particularly with the color yellow, that i loved seeing as a throughline in the story. the switching perspectives, while normally jarring, felt fluid and i didn't mind them for once. and of course, i'm a sucker for defiant hope and an ambiguous ending.

that being said, as a horror or thriller... i don't know? i wanted more of the details about why the events that were unfolding were unfolding. the tension was incredible and palpable, but it felt so out-of-the-blue and almost pointless because the weird, pseudo-religious tone of the intruders wasn't explored as much as i wanted it to be. things were so ritualistic, but we never get a reason why beyond "we have to" - i think you can explore that without giving a concrete answer. more detail about the visions, even told in stuttering, rambling dialogue from the intruders, would've helped in that sense.

i get why the reviews on this are so split, and i hope with time i can figure out my rating on this, because i genuinely can't wait to read tremblay's other work, that's how much i enjoyed the writing itself.