“What’s in a Name After All?”

When Eleanor Ruby Russell is six years old, she is abandoned by her father at Ruby Falls. Clearly traumatized, she attempts to move on with her life. Twenty years later, she is transformed into a beloved soap opera star. When she is fired from her job under strange circumstances, she flees to Europe. It is there that she is swept up in a quick romance with a man named Orlando Montague. They marry six weeks later and move to Hollywood, where she is cast in a new movie based on Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. When Orlando’s personality abruptly changes and he is not who she thought he was, Eleanor begins to question her own secrets as well.

Whoa! Ruby Falls is one whip smart, messed up, clever, quirky thriller. This book can best be described as National Treasure meets Rebecca. What, you say? That’s ridiculous? Preposterous? Yep, but somehow it actually works. Ladies, hold on to your wigs, Ruby/Eleanor is a force to be reckoned with! This leading lady is a brilliantly written unreliable narrator. I have to admit that I had literally no idea what was going on or how this story was going to end. It is an extremely fast paced thriller that keeps you guessing up until the final page. I was absolutely glued to the pages of this book, furiously trying to figure it out. There are multiple of layers of truth to unravel through so many paths of misdirection. This book is a unique read that kept me on my toes and completely engaged. Deborah Goodrich Royce is a new author to me, but one I will definitely be adding to my auto-request!

4.5/5 stars

This book took me on a whirlwind ride of the protagonist's muddled thoughts and ramblings. The book was confusing and left me with so many questions, but I am assuming that was the author's intent. If you enjoy being inside the mind of someone who is paranoid, disconnected from reality and spiraling out of control than give this one a go! I honestly couldn't put it down, but am still not sure how I feel about it all.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exhange for an honest review.
I read "Finding Mrs. Ford" by Deborah Goodrich Royce in 2019 & I loved it so when I saw that her newest book, "Ruby Falls" was available to review, I had to request a copy.
This book was a well written, fast paced ride on the crazy train.
Just when I thought I had it all figured out, the author would throw me another curveball.
The ending was quite unexpected but still satisfying.
I can't wait to read what she writes next.

I received this book for free from the publisher & the author via NetGalley in return for a honest review.

Where do I start? I loved this book, I loved the twists and the turns that happened throughout it and honestly guessed some of the ending, but not the whole of it. This is hard to come by when you have read so many of this genre.

Ellie is a actress who was left in a cave at 6 years old by her dad. Who she never sees again! There is real emotion and realness to this character through out.

Orlando was very well written and I feel like he needs to come with some sort of trigger warning as there is some emotional abuse during his parts. He was so well written that it took me back to my own experiences.

I would highly recommend this book if you are looking for something that is a thriller/psychological/lightly paranormal it was definitely worth the read.

Thank you to the author, Post Hill Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The beautiful cover, the pretty title and the intriguing premise got my interest - but unfortunately this psychological thriller doesn't deliver. Haunted by her father abandoning her in a cave as a child, the newly wed young actress starts working on a movie that is a remake of "Rebecca". It becomes apparent little by little that she is not mentally stable, and her new husband seems intent on helping that along by gaslighting her. The story starts out well, and a sense of eeriness comes up, but for long stretches the story meanders on without much direction. The big twist was not a surprise, when it was finally revealed, and on the whole I found the story an unsatisfying read.

A completely mind-bending, full speed ahead suspense that will leave you saying “what the f— just happened” as the last line creeps up on you.

SYNOPSIS
Eleanor (Ruby) Russell is a delicate and damaged soap actress who is trying to restart her life and career in LA with her new whirlwind British husband. When she lands a starring role in a “Rebecca” remake, her past starts to stir up again and nothing is what it seems in her life and relationship.

THOUGHTS
But seriously. What the heck happened here??

I’ll start with the good. The tie in of a “Rebecca” remake movie was nice and creepy and heightened the darkness lurking. And the 100% uncomfortable and unsettled feeling the author gives you for the entire book was impressive. Ellie/Ruby was frustrating but written smartly once you reach the end and look back.

Now. I’m a huge fan of twists but this book confused the heck out of me. The bulk of the book had me feeling super frustrated at the flippancy and naivety of the female lead and the jumping between events felt jarring. I KNEW that this weird lightness meant something was going on but I certainly didn’t guess what was coming. And while the twist was excitingly blindsiding, I felt like it was presented with not much backbone. A lot was left for us to just figure out or assume on our own. And the end just rears up out of nowhere, leaving you hanging.

All in all, a great read if you’re in the mood to be blindsided and have your hair stand on end, but lacking in a smartly tied together plot.

I was attracted to the book because the synopsis seemed interesting and the cover was gorgeous!
. The narrative is very twisty and unreliable, and the question of what happened to Eleanor's father is what ultimately kept me reading. I was disappointed in the ending though because it seemed to wrap up fairly quickly with some details left open.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

Good read, just what I needed to get out of a mediocre reading slump. Paying a "thrilling and twisty homage to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca", this book kept my interest and kept me reading - ending with a perfect twist.

4.25☆

The story begins with Ruby being left by her Dad at a famous waterfall, one minute he was there the next he wasn't. The next chapter sees Ruby and her new husband on honeymoon. She has rushed into this marriage and hardly knows her husband. She finds that they are both keeping secrets from each other.
This book did not grab my attention, I found that I sped read through sections.
Many thanks to Netgalley and publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own

I had high hopes for this book but, sadly, I just couldn't get in to it. I found it difficult to connect with the characters and struggled to finish it.

3.5

This is a clever premise intertwined with old-school thriller cliques. It's atmospheric, and gothic-like and mysterious. It kept me entertained as I wasn't quite sure what to think or believe as I read the book.

As a young child on one of our first road trips to Florida my family and I visited, "Ruby Falls" in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I really don't remember much about the place but recall some "darkness." That location is what first caught my eye about this book.

Six year old Ruby Eleanor Russell goes on a trip with her father to Ruby Falls. While underneath and in the caves her father lets go of her hand. She is left there in darkness all by herself with just the tour group. Years later Ruby now a pretty famous soap opera actress goes by the name Eleanor Russell. She marries Orlando Monatague (if that is not a soap opera name I don't know what is!) The marriage is quick and she's still plagued by fears and terror from the day her father abandoned her. Next is some interesting story telling about Eleanor's marriage. All may not be what it seems.

For the most part this book was an enjoyment and written very well. There was some repetition and I think too much focus was spent on Eleanor's cat. I think the ending took it down a notch for me. I wanted something more original for the big reveal.

I'd like to kindly thank NetGalley and Post Hill Press for granting me access to this Advance Reader Copy.

p.s. The cover artwork is amazing.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆, 𝑹𝒖𝒃𝒚 𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔. 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒊𝒕. 𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒘.

Summer of 1968: Ruby Falls in Lookout Mountain, Tennessee is the last time six-year-old Eleanor Ruby Russell’s father is seen, before she is swallowed up in the dark of the tourist attraction, left mute and alone with the horror of abonnement. In the wake of the possible crime she becomes famous for a while and a part of the unsolved mystery of her daddy’s disappearance. What she remembers haunts her, but memories are fragmented, confusing to the mind of a child. How could he let go of her hand? Did he? Could something nefarious have happened to him? People don’t just vanish without leaving a trail, do they? Is her name a clue? To be abandoned in a place sharing the same name, what was her father’s intention? Trapped in Tennessee with a long line of questions, she and her mother are left at the scene of the ‘crime’ attempting to explain the impossible.

Ruby grows up trapped by the past, a child who is greatly changed by the incident. After all the options in uncovering what happened to her father are exhausted by the local police, she and her mother return to Michigan where soon Ruby decides to put an end to the torment her name inspires. She discards it with the return of her voice, becoming Eleanor and as if learning a new role, opens her heart to her future career as a soap opera actress. There is strength in disappearing into a new you. Current day, 1987 she is on her honeymoon in Rome with her new husband, Anglo-Chinese Englishman, Orlando Montague. Orlando is an antiques dealer, just like her father was and their love, a whirlwind romance of six weeks. Once they settle into their new beautiful home in Hollywood Hills, Rebecca’s career is on the rise as she takes on the leading role in Rebecca. Soon, her own life begins to mirror Daphne du Maurier’s tale, making her question where fantasy ends and reality begins. She wonders how well she knows Orlando, as he begins to behave oddly, arguing with her one moment, dismissing her feelings the next, and then unsettling her by making her look and feel demented. There is the strange old lady next door, Dottie, who seems to know impossible things. There is an air of mystery about her that doesn’t sit well. Eleanor and Orlando know little about each other, each has their own secrets they aren’t sharing but could his be a danger to her? As she goes down the rabbit hole the discoveries she makes will cause her to question her entire universe, every truth and fiction she has swallowed and what has been born from it all.

As her dreamy new life unravels, so too does her mind. Why is she keeping the trauma of her past from her beloved? Could Orlando be unfaithful? Is he really out to get her, or is she still trying to come to grasp with the disappearance of her father? It’s a labyrinth of lies, but who is the biggest deceiver?

It was a decent storyline and not what I imagined at all. I actually think the truth, yes you get it, of what happened to her father is perfect, makes so much sense. I wish the end didn’t rush upon us so quickly, but it was a good ending. My one issue is the way she and Orlando interacted. Their voices played in my head like a classic movie. You know, that stilted, unnatural, controlled “old-timey” voice. I wonder if that was the intention though, with her state of mind, with being in Hollywood. Hmmm. A decent read.

Publication Date: July 28, 2021

Post Hill Press

3,5 stars

Ruby Falls is an amazing thrilling book and I definitely recommend this if you love psychological thrillers!

Thank you NetGalley and Post Hill Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy. I really looked forward to this book and it delivered!

After finishing this book I was a little confused by my feelings toward it. Before I could write a review I had to let it sank in. I loved it and at the same time I was not really wowed by it. And even now while writing the review I am still torn between these feelings.

This review I will divid into a part about everything that I loved about this book and a part where I talk about everything I didn't love.

What I loved about this book
The writing style was really enjoyable and easy to read. It’s very open and the pace of the story is high. There are a lot of conversations which makes the story progress in a fast pace. But this also makes it really easy to read.
The tension in this book is amazingly written. It’s start of slowly and reaches it climax at the end of the book. The tension is very well build and you can almost feel it while reading the book. From the beginning of the book you know something is off. And this feeling keeps growing while you continue reading. It’s very well done and it made continue reading.
The book is written in the I-perspective and you only follow the POV of Ruby. This makes you really feel her emotions and her fears. What I mostly loved about this was the way you where taken through her thoughts in her mind. This made you look on things differently and also confused at some moments of what was happening.
The twist at the end was worth reading this whole book. It was so unexpected and it completely changed the whole story. This kind of also made me confused about my feelings of the story. Because the whole story shifted so much.
But still the twist was so well written and the tension of the book was so high before it happened, that it left me on the edge of my seat.

What I didn’t love about this book
I personally had to problems with this book. The first one was the way Ruby talked, responded, made decisions and acted. It felt unnatural, childish, spoiled and overreacting. I know some things you can explain by the twist at the end. But that still made me annoyed by this through the biggest part of the book. I was definitely and still am conflicted by this. Because I know a lot of things where explained by the twist, but it still happened through the biggest part of the book, which made me like that part less.
The second problem I had with this book was that the biggest chuck of the book the chapters feel more like scenes happening in the story. One chapter she is going to her job and the next chapter she is back home. The chapters where all very short so you did not spend a lot of time in that moment. You kind of sifted very fast to something else. I would have preferred if some scene where longer. So you got to know the characters better and some situations. Now everything just flew by very fast and you could not really enjoy the moment you are reading because it changes to something else really fast.

In the end I really enjoyed reading this book and I actually would love to reread this some time. Because it was very thrilling and I feel that there where a lot of clues in the book that pointed to the twist. That I missed but now thinking back I would love to try and find them while reading it again.

I totally fell into the trap of picking this one up in the evening. Once I got into it, I had to stay up to finish it, there was no question about it. I want you to know right away that, I've heard of this is being considered a tribute to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, so if there are any fans of that book, you might like this one.

Eleanor Ruby Russell was six years old when her father left her inside a cave named Ruby Falls and disappeared out of her life, forever. She grew up to become an actress, got married and is living in a dream Hollywood cottage with her amazing husband. But then things start happening that start to form cracks in Ruby's perfect little world, which turns out not to be as perfect, naturally.

It started off slow, showing Eleanor and her husband on their honeymoon, shopping for a new house in Hollywood. Everything is just peachy keen. But then, little moments start to feel forced, or weird, or totally inexplicable. And then the author just keeps adding to it, and building and adding extra layers, to the point where I felt like I was caught in a huge whirlwind of what the hell is going on.

The second half is an absolute WILD RIDE. I was hooked. I couldn't put this book down, because I felt that if I did, the end would somehow escape the book and I would never know what happens next. Haha, I might have gone a bit paranoid there myself (influenced of the book).

I loved how the author included references to the classics works in literature, throughout the entire story. Those were definitely neat little bits that you just recognize in the book, and you feel like you've accomplished a mission of some sort.

Eerie and exciting, this story will have you feeling scared for(of?) Eleanor, confused by the events (past and current), paranoid because you don't even know what's real or not anymore. In the last third, things got so intense, you don't even know what to believe in you just keep following the events to see where this ride takes you. You get swept up in this haze of delusions and fear, to the point where you don't even know whether you or the characters are hallucinating.

The end left me questioning a lot of things. Though it offers a solution to some answers, I still felt like I didn't get all the answers I wanted. But to tell you the truth, I don't mind it. In a story where paranoia and fear and confusion dominates, I don't expect everything to black and white. I expect to be left guessing and coming up with my own theories for certain events or situations. That's part of the charm!

Anyone who enjoyed Rebecca (as previously mentioned), The Day of the Locust by Nathanel West, The Tenant by Roland Topor will definitely enjoy this one.

This was a super fast read-I read it all in one sitting and it left me with questions. I need to go read other review lol
Ruby was abandoned by her father at Ruby Falls when she was six and she never knew why and it changed her immensely and forever. Then we fast forward to her as an adult, working as an actress and having a whirlwind romance and getting married to a man she barely knows. As they progress in their days together, she starts to learn more about her husband and that’s not necessarily a good thing. And it prompts her to have flashbacks/memories of when her father left her. But is Ruby remembering correctly or making things up?
I liked that each chapter was named after a classic thriller-that added a fun element to the story.
The ending kinda left me flat but overall it’s worth the read-only took a few hours.
Thanks to Post Hill Press and Netgalley for this Arc in exchange for my review.

Unfortunately, this yarn was not my cup of tea. First off, I never grew to care for Ruby (Eleanor) at all, I found her completely ditzy, maybe that is how the author wanted us to think of her, but it didn’t seem to work for me. I did appreciate her love for animals, that was her most endearing trait.
Then I also kept waiting for the story to turn into that bang of a book, psychological thriller, complete stunner, it didn’t happen. A couple of the things that bothered me the most, the repeating of the actions they were taking, never got that creepy feeling I had expected and the most, was the ending. I had to read the ending twice because it was so far out there and it absolutely blew apart any logic or believability you had tried to construe in the entire story. This book may be great for some, just not me.
I do want to thank Post Hill Press along with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC. Coming in with 3 stars.

Soap opera star Eleanor Russell has been fired under shady circumstances. Uncertain of her future in acting, she flees to Europe where she meets and marries handsome stranger Orlando Montague within weeks.
Everything is coming together: they’ve purchased a gorgeous cottage nestled in the Hollywood Hills and Eleanor has been cast as the lead in a remake of Rebecca.

But Eleanor’s future begins to look uncertain as her husband seems to change overnight and his behavior becomes suspicious. Worse, Eleanor has a secret she’s keeping from him: she was abandoned at Ruby Falls by her father when she was only six. He left her in the cave, his car was found in the parking lot, and not of a trace of him was ever found.
This traumatic event has left a lasting mark on her life and the ripple effects continue as she begins to lose her grasp on reality.

This book left me guessing! I couldn’t determine if Eleanor was an unreliable narrator, mentally ill, or if her spiral was simply because Orlando appeared to be the king of gaslighting.
The stranger the story became and the more skewed Eleanor’s perspective seemed, I was racing to learn the truth about what happened to her father and her husband’s true intentions.
While Ruby Falls was highly entertaining, the ending required a suspension of disbelief that I didn’t care for and created an underwhelming/disappointing ending for me.
Thanks to Post Hill Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Ruby Falls is scheduled for release on May 4, 2021.

Ruby Falls by Deborah Goodrich Royce

This psychological thriller tossed me around like a ragdoll. Ruby/Eleanor was abandoned by her father while on a dark cave tour, when she was six years old. This event, tied up in secrets only she and her dad know, haunt her in ways that might not be evident to others. 

We pick up with twenty- six year old Eleanor, now an actress and newly married to someone she has just met. Due to something she did, she's been fired from a New York soap opera and now has settled with her new husband in a cottage in Hollywood Hills. Before long Eleanor has the lead in a horrific remake of the movie Rebecca. As Eleanor tells us her thoughts and story, the title of each chapter is taken from scary classic thrillers. 

I can't say much more without giving Eleanor away. It's hard to know if Eleanor is an unreliable narrator, a compulsive liar, mentally ill, or a mixture of all those things because it's clear that her story/memories don't add up. Is she surrounded by a wicked, cheating, husband and strange neighbors or is she the problem? What happened to her dad all those years ago, where did he go, and why did he abandon Eleanor and her mom. 

I was on board with this story at first but as I began to trust Eleanor less and less, I mostly worried about something bad happening to her cat, Bel. Because, nevermind anyone else around Eleanor, it was her that worried and bothered me the most. At the end we find out what is going on and I can't say I was very happy with the answer. 

Thank you to Post Hill Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

Unfortunately, this was not the book for me. I came very close to not finishing multiple times but I did push through. There were some aspects of this book I did find intriguing but it wasn't enough for me to like it. There was so many references to Rebecca that I wished I was reading that instead.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

This was a very quick read for me, one sitting. Not only because it is a fairly short book but an absorbing one too. I liked the way it introduces various gothic elements - menacing visions, female paranoia, a slight supernatural edge - without them ever taking over.

My one criticism (and, hence, the dropping of half a star) is the incredibly clichéd final reveal. That aside, this is an absorbing homage to the classic du Maurier Rebecca. If you like domestic thrillers with a gothic edge this is likely to be a good choice. Deborah Goodrich Royce writes eloquently yet in an unobtrusive way and I was soon gripped by this book and reluctant to put it down.