|
| |
The Ruins
by Scott Smith
Smart and scary, this one's a great pick for anyone looking for entertaining fiction.
Horror books are rarely literary. In fact, in intellectual circuits they’re usually considered the equivalent of fiction junk food – tasty, but not very good for you. It’s possible that might change with the release of Scott Smith’s new book “The Ruins,” published by Knopf, Random House’s most literary imprint.
“The Ruins” tells the story of five vacationers who encounter something horrific in the Mexican jungle while in search of an archaeological dig. As the danger grows closer and closer, they struggle to make the decisions that will most aid their survival, no matter how unthinkable those decisions may be. The characters are Americans in their mid-20s who don’t really have much experience in anything other than swiping their credit cards; so their reactions to the challenges they face truly are a new and complicated moral dilemma for them. The prose is simple and efficiently descriptive with a pace that races your heart. But it’s in these moral dilemmas that the literary part of the book is drawn. Much like in Scott Smith’s first novel, the critically acclaimed “A Simple Plan,” the readers find themselves constantly asking themselves “What would I do if that were me? What would I do?”
The book’s premise has already drawn comparisons to the popular television show “Lost,” perhaps because of the “survivor in the jungle” aspect. But don’t expect any witty quips or one-liners here – Smith deftly avoids having written a screenplay in book form. The characters reactions are true to life and the on the edge-of-your-seat action unfolds in a very human, relatable way.
Title: The Ruins
Author: Scott Smith
Publisher: Knopf
Review written by: Jennifer O'Reilly
Reviewer's Rating:9
Reader's Rating: 0
Reader's Votes: 0
Talk to other readers about this story.
|
|
|
|
|
|
