Ruined by Paula Morris

You'll remember I really enjoyed Dark Souls by Paula Morris, so I ordered another of her books for young adults from Barnes and Nobles a few weeks ago. This is about a girl, Rebecca, who has to spend her senior year in New Orleans where she finds oppressive class-based social structures, ghosts, and a guy named Anton.

My Thoughts:

1. I enjoyed that this was set in New Orleans - I've always wanted to visit, so that was a cool effect for me.
2. I really didn't enjoy Rebecca's thoughts on the whole "class system," which they set up like Rome, with Patricians and Plebeians and everything. I mean, she's a new girl who shows up and immediately starts bashing the way of life down there...of course no one is going to like her!
3. The curse on the Bowman family was well done - very creepy, very well-written.
4. The relationship with Anton was not well handled, in my opinion. He was AWESOME and Rebecca doesn't even take advantage of the wonderful opportunity presented her. He apologizes profusely and she refuses to forgive him even though she does stuff that is so much worse and is just all around awful! 
5. The third act shocker was priceless! You find out something about Rebecca and her father. 
6. *SPOILERS AHEAD!*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* When Helena died there was nothing! Nothing! She died and Rebecca might as well have killed her and there was NO remorse! AH! I was NOT happy!
7. I could not feel sympathy for Lisette and her mother. Okay, your daughter is killed, you're angry, I get that. The woman who killed her dies and then you curse the entire family so seven girls from their family die in their teens? For something there long dead relative did? Even though the entire book is about escaping your past? What. The. Heck?! Horrible, horrible, horrible! Loses the book five points in and of itself! *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*SPOILERS OVER* 

I wanted to like this book, I really did, but I just couldn't. 
Final Score: 3.5/10
The next book I'll be reviewing is Epic Fail by Claire LaZebnik