Book Review: Ruined by Paula Morris

Ruined is what Rebecca's life feels like right now.  She is forced to move from her home in New York to New Orleans, a place that couldn't be more different from home.  Her father is on an extended business trip in China, and Rebecca must stay with her aunt, an eccentric fortune teller who isn't even a relation.  The only person she feels comfortable with is Lisette, a girl who she met in the creepy cemetery, and who also happens to be a ghost.  When Anton Grey, a popular and good-looking boy from school starts to pay attention to her, Rebecca begins to wonder just what kind of secrets this old town may hold.

Things I Liked:

The setting in New Orleans is the most intriguing part of the book, I felt.  The history and the details about the town were more interesting than the story itself.  Rebecca was dull as a character, and I enjoyed Lisette more (probably because she was mysterious).  I thought that near the end, the story picked up and became more readable, with some good twists that I didn't see coming.

Things I Didn't Like:

I thought the ending was a little too simple and complete, wrapping things up too neatly.  There should have been more backlash for what happened.  The beginning of the book was very slow and I kept wishing I was reading something else. 

Read-alikes:

Possibly like The Hollow by Jessica Verday (though I haven't read it)
Reminded me of Impossible by Nancy Werlin
Maybe a little bit like Evermore by Alison Noel

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:

s-factor: !

some

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->

some violence

Overall rating: ***

What is your favorite setting (place or time) for a story?

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