Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - The Ruins

Horror Summer Camp Book Club / June Pick

The Details:
Narrated by Patrick Wilson
Unabridged

I really wanted to take part in this group read so for the first time, I purchased more credits!

This was a fun read. Once we got into the meat of the horror, it had me in mind of the Day of the Triffids. I think I'd be interested in reading more plant based horror.

The body horror was quite grim (in a good way), but I didn't find that it made my stomach turn or had me feeling nauseated.

There were no distinct chapters, which made it hard to pause but helped to amplify the blurred lines of time as terror set in for the characters.

The characters themselves weren't very likeable but felt believable for the most part, though some feeling more 2D (or more caricatures of a person) than others. I think my favourites were Matthias and Pablo.

I don't think this will be a strong story that would be very memorable long term, for me, but it was fun for whilst I was listening, I'd recommend it to others and I'd be interested in giving the movie adaptation a go.

Content Warnings

cady_sass's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Okay maybe I just don’t love horror novels, and that makes me sad. I love love love, like live and die for, horror films. It could arguably be stated that they’re my whole personality. But I have yet to ever be blown away by a horror novel and this was supposed to be the one. It’s just….. meh. The characters are one dimensional and I constantly got them confused because they’re all the same person. And they’re stupid? If one of these stereotypically dumb girls acts stereotypically dumb one more time i swear to god. The ending was the best part and this book was far too long for that to be the only part I liked.

Content Warnings

readabookmofo's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

THE GOOD:
I’m typically not a fan of multiple POVs, however, I felt that Smith was able to swap between characters with zero confusion. Each POV told us something different about the character, for better or for worse. The relationship dynamics, both romantic and platonic, were pretty accurate, albeit frustrating.😂

The writing was simple yet effective, which highlighted the body horror. The simplicity of the writing allowed me to really visualize and empathize with what was going on. I loved the overall message about the stereotypical American.
-
THE BAD
The two FMC’s were useless. They were dependent on men and had zero redemption or character development. They weren’t very distinct either. There were many moments when I felt the writing screamed that it was a female character written by a man.

Smith sprinkled many context clues or hints to things that never panned out. Had they been addressed this would undoubtedly be a 5 star read. Such a missed opportunity to explore Mayan culture and the Ruins itself. The fact that Smith made all these promises through what appeared to be foreshadowing resulted in a suboptimal ending that left me wanting more.

Despite its many flaws, I still really enjoyed this book. The concept is intriguing. I found myself telling all my co-workers about the crazy scenes I read. Excited to watch the movie adaption; I have a feeling I might like it more than the book 🫢 The Ruins didn’t meet my expectations, but I would still recommend it!

Content Warnings

traa's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

kdrupp's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Loved the concept for the plot. Realized half way through that this was going to be a more character driven story than it is a mystery about what is actually going on, as the majority of the story is about how these 6 characters interact with eachother during a life or death survival situation.

Spoiler

I did like how it's never revealed what the plant is or how it got there, leaving the audience to assume it's something that's always been here, spreading its malice to whoever happens to step foot in it's home.

The main thing that dropped the rating for me is how the two female characters are written - they're written with no personality to the point that the only distinguishing factor between them is that one of them is more promiscuous. This was a huge turnoff for me.

Content Warnings

kermit_the_wrong's review

Go to review page

dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

More...