Name: The Ruins
Rating: 3.847457627118644 (59 reviews)
ISBN: 9781400043873

Scott Smith

The Ruins follows two American couples, just out of college, enjoying a pleasant, lazy beach holiday together in Mexico as, on an impulse, they go off with newfound friends in search of one in their group—the young German, who, in pursuit of a girl, has headed for the de leg Mayan ruins, site of a fabled archaeological dig.

This is what happens from the moment when searchers —moving into wild interior—began to suspect that there is an insidious, horrific “other” among them.

The Ruins

Ryan Mateyk

This is a favourite and I can’t believe it’s taken like 12 years to reread. Super simple language and a very original evil villain leads to an incredibly tense, disturbing story. Love!

tori 👻

first read in 2018: 2 stars

second read in 2022: 4 stars

A stretched out scary premise, four white people trapped with limited supplies in a flowery hillside near Mayan ruins that they do not understand, with plant life that feed off of their emotions and bodies.

Patty Pforte

Slips into a bit of very adolescent, dramatic nonsense a couple of times—but otherwise this is taut. Even as gruesome as it gets—and fair warning, a few passages were a little difficult to get through—this was tough to put down. Wraps its tendrils around you and pulls you deeper and deeper into ruin. 

Michael Klepacki

Luke

The beginning is kind of slow but it does pick up quickly. I recommend this book if you like survival stories. I enjoyed the read and once I got into it, it was difficult to put down. The ending was a shock. I’ll be thinking about it for a while. 

Fellowes Cynthia

I read this years ago. I remember enjoying it, but it got bad reviews, or maybe it was the film version that got bad reviews. Yes, I think so.

Stephanie Cox

This one didn't really do it for me. I found the characters a little flat and one-dimensional. I plowed forward because I was hoping for some deliciously weird flora action, which there certainly was, but in the end it was about the folly and monstrousness of humanity and I just didn't care about these bits of humanity that much.


(The true monster is me)

Craving an adventure to wake them from their lethargic Mexican holiday before they return home, four friends set off in search of one of their own who has travelled to the interior to investigate an archaeological dig in the Mayan ruins.After a long journey into the jungle, the group come across a partly camouflaged trail and a captivating hillside covered with red flowers. Lured by these, the group move closer until they happen across a gun-toting Mayan horseman who orders them away. In the midst of the confrontation, one of the group steps inadvertently backwards into the flowering vine. And at that moment their world changes for ever...

The Nature of Pages

It seemed to stretch on and on until the last 200 pages. But dang, those are some good last 200 pages.

The Ruins

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