For Anton, it’s all a matter of society’s expectations that he not date anyone outside “acceptable” ranks. It’s cautious on Rebecca’s part because she has learned fairly quickly that this isn’t a city where one trusts a stranger, no matter how cute or polite he is. Skillful, too, is her development of the cautious romance that starts to unfold between Rebecca and the neighborhood hottie, Anton. What was that noise just then? Is someone there? Has the room suddenly become colder? There’s a tendency to keep looking over one’s shoulder throughout this taut and suspenseful read, especially if such reading is done on a dark and stormy night. New Zealand author Paula Morris does an exceptional job of capturing the dual ambiance of decadence and decay in The Big Easy, a region that still clings as aggressively to the traditions and social mores of an earlier century as it does to collective beliefs in the sinister power of the supernatural. Murdered by a member of one of New Orleans’ most prominent families, Lisette is destined to roam the grounds of the spooky Lafayette Cemetery until such time as a prevailing curse is lifted and can set her free. For Lisette, however, life really is over…to the tune of 150 years.

Is it any wonder, then, that when her snooty Southern belle classmates decide to ostracize her, Rebecca forms a bond with Lisette, the only girl who seems to understand what it’s like to be lonely and motherless. When she’s temporarily uprooted from the familiar digs of New York City to go stay with her kooky clairvoyant aunt and cousin in post-Katrina New Orleans, life – as she knows it – may as well be over. Here’s the review:Īs someone whose family moved a lot when I was growing up, I could easily relate to the fish-out-of-water frustrations of teen protagonist Rebecca Brown. Her review ends with a hint of mystery and it’s intrigued me enough to add Ruined to my list. Here she gives her take on a supernatural book for young adults set in one of my favorite cities: New Orleans. Author Christina Hamlett is a regular guest reviewer here at Mother Daughter Book.

Ruined by paula morris summary