Review: Ruined by Paula Morris

" Welcome to New Orleans: City of Voodoo and Beauty. Of Hurricanes and Hauntings..."

Amazon Description.. Rebecca couldn't feel more out of place in New Orleans, where she comes to spend the year while her dad is traveling. She's staying in a creepy old house with her aunt. And at the snooty prep school, the filthy-rich girls treat Rebecca like she's invisible. Only gorgeous, unavailable Anton Grey seems to give Rebecca the time of day, but she wonders if he's got a hidden agenda. Then one night, in Lafayette Cemetery, Rebecca makes a friend. Sweet, mysterious Lisette is eager to talk to Rebecca, and to show her the nooks and crannies of the city. There's just one catch: Lisette is a ghost.

A ghost with a deep, dark secret, and a serious score to settle.

As Rebecca learns more from her ghost friend -- and as she slowly learns to trust Anton Grey -- she also uncovers startling truths about her own history. Will Rebecca be able to right the wrongs of the past, or has everything been ruined beyond repair?

My Review...

I was entranced by this book. Ms Morris has a wonderful writing style. You can tell she has a great affection for the South and New Orleans.

While I was reading Ruined I could imagine that I was in New Orleans, wondering amongst the tombs....

Murder, Lies, Betrayal, Secrets, a Young Spirit and a 150 year old Curse.... Ruined has wonderful plot twists and turns, just when you think you have it all figured out... zing.. another twist. I love a book that I don't have figured out in the first quarter of the book (even if at the time I think I do :O)

The book starts out with Rebecca being forced to move to New Orleans while her father's work takes him to China. She will be staying with her colorful "Aunt," her fathers oldest friend, a free spirited taro card reader and her daughter.The private school is far too classist for Rebecca. She just wants to do her time and go home.The town's snooty rich kids are getting away with anything they want. One night Rebecca hears them going into the Lafayette Cemetery across the street. It is locked after dark. Curious, she follows them into the forbidden cemetery where she runs into the first girl that is kind to her, Lisette. But what is this little girl doing in such a place at night.. is she .. could she be... a Ghost?? Rebecca is warned to keep away from the cemetery and the privileged teens.

What ensues is a wonderfully evocative story that I don't want to spoil for you by giving away too many details. :O)

You will get to follow along with Lisette's story of life and death and the strange routine that she had been forced to follow for over 150 years... Rebecca's journey of discovery within post Hurricane Katrina New Orleans a town with history,secrets & traditions.

Ruined is a wonderful mix of past and present... I give Ruined 5 Stars