Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Ruined: A Novel - Paula Morris

Ruined: A Novel is a ghost story, set in New Orleans, about Rebecca - a girl who has to stay with her father's friend while he is in China for a few months. I read Ruined: A Novel to get in the mood for Halloween. This book was quite enjoyable. It was a relaxing - not too creepy - ghost story. It was also packed with New Orleans facts, without being too "teachy" (you know what I'm talking about Dan Brown readers).

Morris paints a fabulous picture of not only the look and feel of New Orleans, but also the history behind the old money parties and lifestyle. Rebecca is a complete outsider in her school as well as in the town. She doesn't have any real friends until one day, while walking in a cemetery, she stumbles across a girl about her age who is a ghost.

The story, of course, had its twists and turns, and once a new plot was started it was fairly easy to see where it would lead. However, this did not stop me from quickly turning those pages to confirm my suspicions.

I really enjoyed this story as a mild Halloween read to get me in the mood for the season. It was fun to step into a world I have heard a lot about. New Orleans is a fascinating place to set a ghost story. It is rich in history, with the class issues and various religious beliefs to go with it, and Morris touched on all of these things.

1 comment:

SpiritPhoenix said...

Sounds like a fun light read for the holiday. I'll have to check if my library has it.