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by Scott Smith
The Ruins follows two American couples, just out of college, enjoying a pleasant, lazy beach holiday together in Mexico as, on an impulse, they go off with newfound friends in search of one of their group - the young German, who, in pursuit of a girl, has headed for the remote Mayan ruins, site of a fabled archaeological dig.
"The eerie atmosphere and compelling plot should appeal to fans of hit TV series Lost" - Publishers Weekly.
"A compelling set-up and provocative premise, but ... succumbs to a plodding pace" - Kirkus Reviews.
"… there's a more timeless fable at work here, one that prompts thoughts of Heart of Darkness. Courageous in its pessimism and its embrace of horror, Smith's powerful tale, like Conrad's masterpiece, cautions against such reassuring conceits as civilization, conscience, morality, superiority -- and yes, good and evil. Hidden somewhere in the vines of The Ruins, like those of the Congo, beats the heart of an impenetrable darkness." - The Washington Post.
"The Ruins is superior horror literature, but it does not entirely overcome the pile-driving limitations of the genre; it might have been more effective as a short story. But its relentless bleakness — it is almost clinically bloody — played out at novel length is also what sets it apart from other books of this kind. It leaves you with the sense that the skeleton beneath your skin is closer to the surface than you think." - New York Times.
This information about The Ruins was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Scott Smith was educated at Dartmouth College and Columbia University. He lives in New York City.
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