The Ruins
Written by Scott Smith
Narrated by Patrick Wilson
3.5/5
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About this audiobook
Eerie, terrifying, and unputdownable, The Ruins is Scott Smith's first novel since his acclaimed debut A Simple Plan earned rave reviews and stormed bestseller 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....
Scott Smith
Scott A. Smith is a fisheries biologist at the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries.
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You Can Be a Six Figure Author: he Strategy Professional Authors Use To Quit Their Jobs and Become Full-Time Writers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Certain Sound: A Primer on Open Air Preaching Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Simple Plan Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Reviews for The Ruins
1,687 ratings147 reviews
What our readers think
Readers find this title to be a suspenseful and entertaining novel, with good build-up and a wild and gruesome ride. Some reviewers enjoyed the book more than the movie adaptation, while others found it slow or unsettling. The sense of doom and the exploration of human reactions to extreme situations were praised. However, there were criticisms of weak endings, wordiness, and underdeveloped female characters. Overall, this book is recommended for its creepy and haunting atmosphere, great pacing, and captivating narration.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Really good ideas but I didint like the way it was written. 3/5
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This was good, but so, so, so, so, so gross.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A wild and unpredictable ride that’s tough to put down for long.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bleak yet suspenseful right up until the end. A wild and gruesome ride.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5This version is abridged, but doesn’t say that it is. :-(
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I really enjoyed this audiobook: the reader did a really good job at portraying the various emotions and characters in the story. I found some of the dialogs or descriptions of interactions between the characters early similar to my own with friends. My only minor complaint is that the book could have been, perhaps, a little shorter but that’s a minor issue.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Far different from the movie! And of course better then the movie
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Was wayyyyyyyyyy better than the movie by leaps and bounds. However, it was still difficult to listen to. So sad. Would definitely recommend.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The book was ok, it was creepy and you got that sense of dread. However the female characters where not very well written. They didn’t have much of a personality other than cowardly or shallow. I didn’t really like any of the characters at all
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I didn’t know this was a book. I remember watching the movie a few years back. It was interesting.
I was left with a lot of questions. Like where did it come from? Who originally found it? And what happened? Obviously we’re not meant to okie and that’s what adds to the spookiness of it all. It kind of gives off The Happening vibes (excellent movie if you haven’t seen it) in the sense that it involves the genius of plants, the complexities we honestly know nothing about when it comes to them.
The ending was good. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A very good story about survival against a evil they can't escape from. Kept me listening for hours on the edge of my seat.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The book was good but the audio book narrator seemed to give an odd and unfitting inflection to the characters’ voices.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I had watched the movie before reading the book. I didn’t realize there was a book. As usual the book is far better than the movie and I highly recommend!
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5It’s really slow for a payoff I didn’t think was great.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The classic trend of horror writing being “chiller thrillers” is something of a scarcity these days, so when news of Scott Smith’s first novel since his psychological masterpiece – A Simple Plan – reached me, I was pretty excited. There was little to indicate the plot of this title, apart from a non-descript blurb and even the publishers weren’t giving much away. To most, this would seem almost lazy, but the real reason came when I found myself totally lured in by the book – the fear factor which is derived from the slow unravelling of the tale. It centres around 6 young tourists –Amy, Mathias, Jeff, Pablo, Eric and Stacy - who venture into the Mexican jungle to investigate some ancient Mayan ruins and find one of the travellers’ lost brother who has been missing there for some time. After a long hike and some wrong turns, they arrive at a secluded hill, covered in seductive flowering vines. However, as they begin to investigate further, a group of Mayans arrives with guns and bows to warn them away, until one of the 6 accidentally steps upon one of the vines. Consequently forced up onto the hill by the Mayans, the 6 find they have to survive not only the elements, but the horror of the hill itself. This is psychological horror – a story which really got into my head and has stayed there ever since. Not knowing what is going to happen, the lengths they must go to survive and what the true terror that keeps them captive, is where the tension lies and the story focuses on the survivors individual fears and mindsets in turn, each giving a fresh perspective – the German efficiency of Mathias, the boy scout approach of Jeff, the pleading hopefulness of Amy. The slow build and the true unpleasantness which will come in the latter half of this book will not make this ideal for those with a weak disposition. For those looking to be scared, this is the stuff nightmares are made of!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I had to move my vine house plant out of my room for awhile and cut some tendrils shorter. I'm just glad my plants don't talk to be or grow faster than a fire spreads! The book kept me on the edge the whole time and now I can see how the movie compares, especially to how bad my imagination carried Smith's descriptions!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved this book! Could not put it down once I started!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book is fantastic. I’d seen the movie and thought the idea was great but didn’t love the delivery so this book was a great surprise. The pacing, characters and atmosphere tie together to make this story creepy and haunting. I loved it.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5While deeply unsettling, it lacks a good story and seems only to want the reader to
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Slow and boring. Flashbacks galore and the enemy is a plant
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5"Down the hill" used multiple times and creeps me out, even though it has nothing to do with the story. I kept thinking of the Delphi girls the whole time I listened to the second half of the novel. Other than that, really good, suspenseful novel. Worth a read!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Be prepared for a gruesome read! But I loved it.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wordy at points, but an interesting look at how people react to extreme situations. An exploration of the human mind when put to the test.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There’s this sense of doom that increases from start to finish. Unlike most four books come on it really has you wondering whether anybody is going to make it out alive.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Strong build but a weak ending. After establishing so much fear, tension, and mystery, the last fourth of the book felt rushed. Still, an entertaining listen!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Apart from the only good Indians this is quite possibly the best and one of the most meticulously paced horror novels I have ever read . I love it so much. The audiobook narrator also needs a payraise and a promotion, because he narrates the audiobook so well. he manages to capture the feeling of each character succinctly .
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Really good! Great narration. Fast paced and gruesome. Loved it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wow.It's been a long, long time since I've come across a book that's as "un-put-down-able" as this one.Four recent college grads (two couples) are partying in Cancun as a last fling kind of thing ... among the people the meet up with is a German guy, who is on vacation with his brother. The brother has met a girl, who happens to be down in Mexico on an archeological dig. Naturally, when the girl leaves Cancun for the jungle the brother goes with her.And the other German convinces the couple and a fifth guy, a Greek who doesn't speak any English, to go looking for his brother. It's supposed to be some kind of adventure.When they get to the site though, they find a mysterious Mayan village and a pretty horrible situation that I can't go into w/o including spoilers.I can say that the book is absolutely gripping. When you consider this and A Simple Plan, I'm just amazed at how good Smith is at grabbing and holding your attention.Highly recommended.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5A decent horror story line. But about 2/3's of the book could be edited out as not adding anything except length. I understand why Stephen King was able to write a good review ... it is a good story. Predictable plot and ending with no great aha moments. Kind of boring, but still creepy.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This was a very scary book but a bit unbelievable. It was a page turner with a lot of tension and hard to put down. I find Scott Smith's writing very entertaining and I would definitely check out his next book. I would recommend this book to those who like a good adventure story.