The Ruins

By: Scott Smith

Narrated by: Patrick Wilson

Length: 14 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Eerie, terrifying, and unputdownable, The Ruins is Scott Smith's first novel since his acclaimed debut A Simple Plan earned rave reviews and stormed best seller lists.

The Ruins follows two American couples enjoying a pleasant, lazy beach holiday together in Mexico. 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 archeological dig.

This is what happens from the moment the searchers, moving into the wild interior, begin to suspect that there is an insidious, horrific "other" among them.

©2006 Scott Smith. All rights reserved (P)2006 Simon & Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"A stunning horror thriller." (Publishers Weekly
"The book of the summer....Smith intends to scare the bejabbers out of you, and succeeds." (Stephen King)
"If you love ABC's Lost and the novels of King and Thomas Harris, you'll love this book." (USA Today)

Not super, but OK

I have to admit that I was hanging on every word for a while. You will catch on to everything that's happening a few chapters before the characters do...didn't seem realistic but still a good listen.

Entertaining and Unsettling

I couldn't put this down and I lost a couple of nights' sleep. Yes, there were some parts that annoyed me but I enjoyed it enough to recommend it to my spouse, who read it (and enjoyed it) in hard copy.

Very good listen.....

Maybe it's just me but I found this book fascinating. It grabbed me from the beginning to the end. I don't really find it like the TV series LOST (which is why I bought it) but it was a story where the characters were well defined and engaging. Their troubles and the way they deal with them made me wonder how I would handle the situation. Great book!

Fairly good

The story is just only ok. My favorite part was what happened to the characters since they were all so unlikable. Just think naive, upper middle class, college students who have never had a bad thing happen in their life.

Bleak cosmic horror by way of plants. B+

what happens when a plant develops enough sentience and deviousness to knock humans down the food chain? Read and find out of he secrets of flaura turned apex predator.

Patrick Wilson can narrate any story

Easy to listen to and easy to get a mental image of the story. I have listened to this story twice already

Better than Peter Straub

I read this story after reading Ghost Story by Peter Straub. In comparison, this is much faster pace with a more linear story which I liked much more.

One of the big issues people face in a monster novel is the inability to communicate. Is the monster deliberately violent? Or does it just want to be left alone? Is there a way to peacefully relocate/negotiate? The author adds this element to the story by using Mayans as the initial antagonist. The protagonists go to a hill where their friend went missing along with some archaeologists. The Mayans repeatedly make hand gestures to persuade the main characters to turn back, which (naturally) are ignored. Once Amy goes too far onto the hill, the Mayans keep them at arrow-point and won't let them leave. (Anyone else think of the scene from A Bronx Tale?) The protagonists can't communicate with them since they don't speak the same language, so the protagonists have no idea what's going on. Why should they turn back? Why can't they leave?

At first, the protagonists are just concerned finding food and water to last until help arrives. Soon they hear a cell phone and excitedly try to pursue it as a means to get help. They follow the sound to a deep shaft and find rope to help them down. Everything is going their way, right? Pretty soon they run into obstacles when they realize the rope isn't stable, then the rope isn't long enough. Jeff creates a warning sign to put in front of the hill to stop other americans from entering. To his surprise, he finds another sign already buried underneath vines, and his sign is soon buried too. When they aren't bitten by mosquitoes and can't find any birds, they start to realize something else is going on.

One of the tropes I really like is the "town with a secret". You go somewhere which looks normal at first, then slowly realize things aren't right. I liked the subtle clues the author uses and the escalating sense of panic. The creepy cell phone noise, the lack of wildlife, and the language barrier all contribute to the mood the reader feels. <spoiler>Eric was slowly eaten alive by the plants, which is a nice change from a fast get-eaten death I was expecting.</spoiler> I enjoyed the darker ending. <spoiler>The last survivor tries to show her soon-to-be dead body at the entrance to warn away others, but the vines grab her as she's dying and move her away.</spoiler>

There were a few things I didn't care for, though. The characters each fit their own stereotypical role, which the characters themselves alluded to. The author tried adding a few scenes to grow on their back story, but I felt it was too half-done. Either do it better or get rid of it, IMO. <spoiler>One of the deaths was a lame accident, which could have been done better. I didn't like how Jeff was shot by the mayans since it felt out of character for the healthy survivor/adventurer.</spoiler> When it comes to nature with a secret, I think of Life of Pi. <spoiler>In life of Pi, the protagonist learns the island is eating people and has to leave.</spoiler> I think extending the amount of time on the hill would have improved the story. After just a few days, they wouldn't have felt the same dread as if they were stuck for weeks.

very grim, very good

The narration is a little lackluster. like some desperate situations came off as minor problems. The story is very bleak, but that's what I came here for. it's an unflinching look into what happens to friends and strangers when all hope is lost.

I appreciated the way they gave attention to how excruciating the absence of our everyday conveniences would be, and the fact that they focused on how minor mistakes can become dire situations very quickly.

some relatively nasty body horror stuff so if that gets under your skin (lol) maybe pass this one up.

Still liked it

I read this book when I was about 15. I remember reading it one weekend all the way through. And I liked it, how raw it was. No happy ending, even bought the movie they made based off the book. But after losing it, I’m glad I was able to have it read to me. Makes it seem like you’re really there with the characters.

Entertaining but depressing ending.

Overall it's a good book although it's very sad and gruesome. Audio was great though.