Review Detail

It’s always rewarding, when I have massive expectations for a book and they’re met. I wish it happened more often, but with me it’s something of a rarity. However, I’ve been intensely interested in The Ruining ever since I first read the jacket blurb, and, looking back, I rather wish I’d purchased this instead of waiting for it from the library (I read a review that made my question if it was a worthy investment.) Though it had a very rough few chapters toward the end, overall, The Ruining is an intense and seriously creepy psychological thriller. It isn’t a perfect read by any means, but I think this was so worth the wait.

It’s obvious from about the second chapter that Annie, the protagonist, is not a reliable narrator. I have a huge thing for unstable, mentally questionable narration, so being inside Annie’s head was a dream come true. As soon as she enters the Cohen household, Annie latches on to Libby Cohen. Her love (read: obsession) with Libby borders on unhealthy, and when Libby’s behavior becomes erratic and capricious, the reader is left wondering what exactly is going on. Is Libby psycho? Is Annie crazy? Is this a dream?

The intense and constant struggle between Annie and Libby was so well-played by Anna Collomore. Tension practically leapt off the page at me, so much so that I was a bit uncomfortable reading this at times, just because Annie’s situation was so strange and mysterious. The Ruining is a dark, atmospheric novel that really highlights Annie’s mental issues and confusion. I could not believe how well done all of that was.

Like most mainstream YA, The Ruining does feature a romance, between Annie and the Cohen’s next-door neighbor, Owen. (Actually, if we’re being technical, this book is new adult, seeing that Annie is a college student doing college things like attending frat parties and moving out on her own.) I wasn’t quite sold on Annie and Owen’s relationship, though I don’t think it was badly done. Rather, I felt that it was unnecessary to the plot. Owen does play a fairly important role toward the end, but his place could have been taken by any other character. Romance shouldn’t have been the main focus of the book, but in some places I think it was.

My major complaint with this book has to do with the end. I won’t spoil it, but basically, Annie has to go from being crazy to being sane, and the bridge between those two mental states felt very vague and lacking in detail. I have no complaints about where Annie actually ended up, but the journey to that point felt underdeveloped and, in some ways, incredible. That isn’t a very large complaint, though.

Altogether, The Ruining is an excellent book. Anna Collomore did an great job in crafting a psychological thriller, albeit one with a less than stellar denouement. I loved the atmosphere and tone of the novel, the main character’s instability, and the slow spiral into seeming insanity. I’m very impressed with this book overall.