I chose this book based on the description. I wondered whether I would like a contemporary Gothic tale, and what made it Gothic and contemporary. I will say that I had a bit of trouble getting rolling with this story. It wasn’t the story’s fault. I was resisting the pull of the intrigue of the events at the open of the book. But I finally succumbed and was not disappointed.

The author created a solid environment for the reader. The story was interesting and had a touch of glamor, a hint of reality, and the strength of a fascinating plot. A summer holiday in a beautiful, historic home, and yet the writer somehow makes us aware that things are not as nice as they seem to be. By the end we discover a picture of the atmosphere we’ve been traveling through, and it is surprising… or not? I truly enjoyed this contribution from Phoebe Wynne. I will certainly be on the lookout for more of her work. As for contemporary Gothic? I like it, and you’ll have to discover for yourself what makes it Gothic and contemporary.

A copy of The Ruins by Phoebe Wynne was provided to me by NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an honest review.

The novel opens with a dramatic scene reminiscent of Mystery! on Masterpiece Theater and I would hope that the tone would continue, but things don't move forward in the way I would have wanted. The characters are plucky and I loved watching them grow throughout the book. Also, the setting is promising, the pacing lulls so much that I almost didn't finish the book. I'm glad I did finish though, because the ending was exceedingly satisfying. While I didn't totally enjoy the book and felt it was unbalanced, I will still revisit Wynne's novels and pick them up in the store.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This book blurb states that it is a classic gothic novel, but the time frame is the present and 1985. I didn’t really get that gothic feel from the book but felt the storyline was good. The parents in this book
definitely needed to go to some parenting classes; almost all of them were abusive in some way or another towards the children or other adults. I can’t say I loved this book, but I didn’t hate it.

This may be a hard book for some to read. Its main theme is about horrible, shallow, rich parents who couldn’t care less about their token children, and children who are abused, physically, mentally, and sadly, sexually, by these disgusting, spoiled drunkards.
Now that I’ve got that out of the way, I have to admit I enjoyed the tense pace of this book. It’s written in a way that you know these parents are going to get their comeuppance, you just don't know exactly how.
Part of the story dwells on one particular summer at the chateau when friends of Ruby’s parents invite themselves and then just won’t leave. The other part, over twenty years later, dwells on a visitor to the town; a widow who displays a strong dislike for actually seeing the chateau, but is insistent on purchasing it.
My interest was piqued as these two stories unfold over time. The events of the summer were hard to read, but their basis is required for the current-day efforts of the strange visitor. Occasionally, I enjoy a book that pushes me out of my comfort zone, and this is one of those books. I thought it was well written, honest, and upfront about crimes that are swept under the rug every single day in any country.
Thanks so much to St. Martin’s Press- Minotaur for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This should have come with content warnings, so here's my warning. Pedophilia. The blurb mentions abuse, I falsely assumed the wrong kind and I want to spare anyone else that realization.

**Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC**

The context of high society behaving badly is not a new concept but the lengths to which people will go to belittle each other in the name of money is always interesting. “The Ruins” [Phoebe Wynne/St. Martins Press/336pgs] approaches the idea within the ideal of a bad summer in 1985 through the eyes of the daughter of the house: Ruby. Surrounded by the essence of would-be good manners, adults consuming too much booze with too much abandon and the ability to commit capital offenses only to be able to cover it up becomes the status quo for the entire story. The idea of people who are obvious in their disdain versus those who try to worm their way into the idea of what survival or success is is an interesting quandary but ultimately pointless (since they all lose). All these people from the seemingly well-bred arena of English life are absolutely abhorrible, especially Harley. The main part of the novel is set in 1985 but besides references to certain movies that one of the characters is watching, one could hardly tell. The different families involved go up and back to the village on the sea to the Chateau which (because of these horrible people) just seem to exacerbate their stupidity.

Ruby and the daughter of one of the other families there: Imogen are trying to interpret what is going on around but also dismissed when they indicate anything might be wrong, especially as it becomes more and more menacing. They are just told to go “clean up” and “look nice”. The metaphor of Poirot (from “Murder On The Orient Express”) as a metaphor of sorts seems to deepen the progression but the foreshadowing is fairly clear though the identity of a later character returning is not revealed until well into the book. The consequence of all the actions are to be expected with most, except one, not learning likely any lessons at all. The reveal at the end as the basis of the furor is interestingly two fold in the way it happens as to give different perspectives by those who remember it. Ironically the way the book starts off is supposedly to wrap the idea of blame in a different way as well. The reality is that everyone loses here and what could have been a carefree summer (but never could have been) is veiled in the mask of good breeding, good manners and simply appalling human beings. That said, “The Ruins” is effective in showing this with a decent amount of tension while never letting the characters off the hook save for Annie who was blissfully unaware that anything but a glorious summer was had. B

By Tim Wassberg

I really enjoyed Madame by Wynn, so when her new book was announced, with comparison to Rebecca and Atonement, I added it to my list immediately.

And while some elements of gothic horror are present, it just didn’t have the same feel to me as Rebecca or Atonement, or any of the other gothic novels I’ve read, like SMG’s Mexican Gothic even!

It was mysterious and very uncomfortable in parts, and while I happened to finish it quickly as I was invested in how it would end, it felt a bit underwhelming to me.

I did enjoy the comparisons to Greek mythology and I enjoy a revenge coming-of-age story, but I can’t help and feel like something was missing.

This was a good, but tough read. 12-year-old Ruby has spent every Summer at her family's chateau in France. For her 12th year, we meet numerous sketchy to downright abhorrent characters, most friends of Ruby's parents. Wha happens this particular Summer will leave a life-long impression on Ruby. Dark, disturbing and not for the faint-hearted, I still liked this one. The story is told through Ruby and a mystery narrator. This was an interesting way to tell a story and I thought it worked really well. The ending was a surprise. Overall, a tale of rich, nasty people and the things they get away with, or think they get away with. Just be prepared. I will be going back and reading Madam.

Thank you to #NetGalley, Phoebe Wynne and St. Martin's Press for this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

I have to put my heart back in my chest before I can write this review. This was such a heartbreaking but mesmerizing read.

Ruby has enjoyed summers in her family's chateau in France ever since she can remember. The summer she turns 12, the chateau is filled with friends old and new of her family's. This plunges Ruby into a tumultuous summer that leaves her and everyone that stays that summer changed forever.

This is my first book of Phoebe Wynne and I will absolutely be reading more of her work. The writing is beautiful and I could not stop reading. This is clearly meant for people like me who remember vividly being put in uncomfortable situations with older men that "mean no harm". Comments and forced hugs aren't harmful, right? I felt strongly for every character, whether that was disdain, love, or my hear breaking for them. Each character was written so perfectly and the way we see them through Ruby's eyes was masterful.

This book is listed as a thriller on some platforms, and while there is a thriller component that's done really well, I'd consider this contemporary fiction for the most part. There's also mystery throughout the entire book which isn't revealed until the very end. The story is through Ruby's eyes though there is a dual timeline aspect where you can see the viewpoint from a person in present day, whose identity isn't revealed until later in the book. This is another part of the writing that I thought was brilliant. It added to the mystery and propelled me forward to learn who this narrator was and their connection to the chateau.

Overall, I highly recommend this book. Definitely my favorite read of July and maybe the year.

The Ruins centers around Ruby Ashby, a twelve year old only child spending her summer at her families French Chateau. During the summer the Ashby's host many families but none are as memorable as her fathers Toby's friends. The three girls in the house are neglected and even sexualized by the fathers staying in the house.

The story shifts from 1985 to 2010 to Mrs. Cosgrove, one of the girls from that summer returns to France to try to purchase the house from that summer while recalling all the memories/feelings the chateau brings back.

The Ruins was disturbing in many ways, I didn't enjoy the sexual abuse of the girls and how truly awful each parent was. There were times when sexual comments were made while the girls mother or father was there and it was blissfully ignored which was hard to read. I feel like The Ruins main theme was the darkness the rich and famous get away with due to their wealth and status.

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martins Press for allowing me to read an advance copy and offer my honest review.

I read and enjoyed Phoebe Wynne's MADAM last year and had a few reservations about it, but not enough to dampen my interest in her latest release THE RUINS.

The Ruins is a coming of age story largely told by our protagonist, Ruby Ashby. There is a lot going on in this story with plenty of very questionable characters that make this story hard to put down or look away from–and these are some characters that are really terrible and not ones I wanted to root, but still ones I was captivated by! The plot and setting were generally interesting, but I did find that things felt somewhat stilted to me at times and didn't always flow overly well. The ending was also a bit of a shock, but I think it worked really well with the rest of the vibe and atmosphere of the story. Also, there are a lot of really difficult topics covered in this story, so please be aware of that before diving into it. Overall, this is a bit of a messy coming of age story in many different ways, but definitely one to check out if you like some messy characters!

The Ruins by Phoebe Wynne is a dark, gothic mystery which takes the reader to a mansion in France on the Côte de Azur. On the first night of vacation, there is an accident, a young person dies and the police sweep everything under the rug. As the summer continues, the adults drink, the children swim and everyone is very uncomfortable...as is the reader with what goes on in that house.

I had a difficult time getting through this novel, although I loved the author's first novel. This was dark, violent and I felt for the children who had horrible parents. Overall, although I finished the book, I can't say I enjoyed it.

Thanks to the author,St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This is another story of rich people getting away with murder, accidental or otherwise. Those people brought their kids in tow and what could have been a lovely summer, turned into anything but.
The chateau is owned by the Ashby's
and it is their friends from university visiting. The kids are pretty much left to their own devices. The adults drink all day and argue with each other. Two of the men I would have tossed as soon as they had put a hand on my daughter or the other girls there. They spoke inappropriately on more than one occassion about the girls. I was surprised about one person at the end of this book. Although when I think about it the signs were always there- just on the surface. I can't believe how blind these parents were to what was going on under their noses. I think Liv was the only one who tried to protect the girls, but even she failed.
So in all fairness, I can only give this story a 3 out of 5.
Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher for allowing me to read this book.

The Ruins, by Phoebe Wynne, is one of the most unpleasant reading experiences I have endured in a long time. Wynne can write. However, her subject matter is so dark, so disturbing that I literally wanted to vomit more than once. Many of her characters were bereft of any redeeming qualities. The only good part about this read for me was finishing the last page. Although I am breaking my own rule about spoilers, prospective readers should note this book does deal with pedaphilia and child abuse.

Nonetheless, I appreciate the opportunity to read a digital ARC and thank NetGalley and the publisher.

The ruins was definitely different. I found it very bizarre but couldn’t stop reading. Told in the past and present. Living the life of luxury in a vacation home on the French coast. This maybe a disturbing read for some due to some of the content. More like 3.5 stars for me

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have read Phoebe Wynne's work before and thoroughly enjoyed her writing, particularly her ability to construct an immersive, dark, and tense world with her words. The Ruins was no exception to this pattern, with the scenery of the French Riviera being a stunning juxtaposition against the darkness surrounding the story of the past and the present.

Unfortunately, my enjoyment of this work ends with the scenery. The graphic descriptions of assault, overtones of pedophilia, and the abhorrent behavior of nearly all the characters made this book nearly unreadable for me. I appreciate the warning at the beginning of the book but I believe more information should have ben given in the description offered by the publisher, as I would not have selected this book to read had I known the content.

I’ll say this for Phoebe Wynne: she certainly writes stories that move well and keep the reader interested, even if it’s tough to say you actually liked the book.

I did like Madam better than this, but it was…fine. The setting is good and the protagonists are certainly interesting even if the rest of the characters are awful, and not, unfortunately in a particularly interesting way.

The premise of this is pretty gross, though I didn’t feel particularly upset by it while reading. It’s a little hard to buy this as taking place in the 1980s, with the attitudes and behavior of the adult characters being hugely out of step with the times. It made the whole thing feel both anachronistic (which was fine) and inaccurately set (which wasn’t).

I also struggle with books where every adult character is essentially monstrous (by either action or complicity) in one way or another. I get that the point that Wynne needed to make to drive her plot was that these girls were on their own and needed to save themselves, but it felt a little contrived. As did the climactic scene where Ruby, shall we say, takes care of business.

I didn’t mind this, but found Madam to be more fun and far better plotted.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC copy and opportunity to preview this book!

I had previously read Wynne's book Madam over the winter and loved it- dark and gothic, but not too far off this edge. This one though took things too far. I was not a fan at all at how the adults in the story took advantage and abused these poor girls during their summer- to me that crossed a line of being appropriate to write about. In fact, I think the shock of that distracted from the overall plot of a 'coming-of-age' story that it could have been.
With that aside, the plot also moved really slow and there were a lot of characters to keep track of which was confusing. I found myself constantly going back and re-reading who was who just to keep people straight. Plot line also felt too slow for me, especially compared to Madam. There also was a lot of description into the scenery and what I would call props within the story, which I thought was leading me somewhere in the plot, but it never went anywhere and could have been cut out. Overall pretty disappointed in this book given how much I enjoyed other books by her.

This is an awesome, creepy, gothic novel that may keep you reading long into the night! It centers on the Ashby family and 12-year-old Ruby who isn't happy when their villa in France is visited by several other families with two girls, Imogen and Annie; Ruby is forced to be civil and "entertain" them rather than sit quietly and read which she is used to. There are many strange happenings that we see--mainly through her eyes and most are cringe-worthy, especially because she doesn't quite know the truth until later. Alternating in time between 1985 and 2010, the novel examines the dark side of the arrogantly wealthy as they assume they are above the law as well as friendships and secrets that can destroy anything in their paths. This one will resonate with me for awhile!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

The Ruins by Phoebe Wynne takes place in 1985 at Chateau des Setes. Some wealthy British families and their children are staying there for the summer. This is mainly a story of adolescent girls and them growing up with horrible parents and the bad thing they experience. 20 years later one of them returns and tries to buy the chateau. Someone else is investigating that long ago summer. There are many secrets and dark things to be revealed. This book was somewhat confusing at first with so many characters. I ultimately ended up enjoying the story even though it is very dark and could be triggering for some. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.