Paula Morris

I am a colossal coward. I don't like to be scared. I don't like otherwordly things in my reading. They are almost never potents of anything good or happy or positive. And yet when I was offered this book with the telling subtitle of A Ghost Story, there was something about it that kept me from turning it down immediately. even more surprisingly, I eventually decided to take a chance on it. To push the boundaries not only of my preferences, but of what my psyche could take. Because when I've show more pushed myself before, I have woken in the middle of the night with raging nightmares. But somehow, this book didn't trigger the self-preservation thing with me and I took the chance.

Rebecca's father must leave for China so he sends her to New Orleans to live with an old family friend and her daughter. Rebecca is not happy about this at all. She is being ripped from all that is comfortable and familiar and thrust into life in post-Katrina New Orleans with an eccentric friend of her father and late mother? She's being sent to a snobbish all-girls' school where she certainly doesn't fit in, finding it difficult, even impossible, to make friends. So despite her aunt Claudia's admonition to stay away from Lafayette Cemetery, when she sees some of the mean girls from school and the sons of the scions of New Orleans society entering the grounds one night, she doesn't stop to consider and obey. She follows them.

Once inside the cemetery, she meets and speaks with a young girl, Lisette. Captivated by this girl, she wants to find her again and to become friends even after she realizes that Lisette is a ghost. Soon Rebecca is juggling an exploration of New Orleans and her growing investment in Lisette with the potential interest of one of the boys she'd followed on her initial foray into Lafayette Cemetery.

Through the ghost character of Lisette, Morris is able to weave a fictional history for a New Orleans family, bringing echoes of real past to life without seeming as if she is determined to get all of her background research into the novel. Setting the book to culminate with Mardi Gras helps to bring to the forefront, some of the more sinister elements of New Orleans' early history and to enhance the growing tension in the novel. Rebecca as a character is completely in the dark about all the machinations that seethe under the surface of polite society and her naivete, compassion, and generousity set her apart from the other major players in the book. She is, in essence, both main character and foil.

The narrative picks up speed towards the end and the impending menace almost comes to quickly for the story to be satisfying. Rebecca's understanding of the events that came to pass seems to be slight and even I, as the reader, re-read the last bits to make certain I didn't misinterpret what I thought had happened. So the ending was more rushed than I would have liked but the pacing change was necessary to ratch up the tension so perhaps there was no other way to end it other than in a flurry. I was surprised that I enjoyed this as much as I did and even more pleased that I didn't suffer even one nightmare. It is a YA title but certainly adults who enjoy ghost stories or stories set in New Orleans will enjoy this as well. show less

I loved this! I'm not one for over-the-top, steamy romance where there's obsession on every page. Nor was I looking for chills and thrills in this book. If you want an intriguing plot with a touch of romance and a surprise ending, this a great book for you! The characters seemed pretty real (although the teen-angsty "My home is so much better than this rotten place I've moved to" always bugs me) and I loved that the romance wasn't the center of the plot, but rather a nice side story. The show more focus is on the ghost girl, the curse, and the connection between the past and the present. show less

Rebecca is a typical high school sophomore. She is active in her school and is extremely upset and resentful when her father uproots her from her New York City home to live with a friend and her daughter in New Orleans. She doesn't understand why her father sends her to live with the woman she calls Aunt Claudia because they don't know each other well. New Orleans, especially in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, is small peanuts compared to NYC and Rebecca finds that she doesn't fit in as well show more amidst the children sent to the Temple Mead Academy by New Orleans society families. About the only thing that interests her about her surroundings is the Lafayette Cemetery. When Aunt Claudia strictly forbids her from going there, she is determined to do just that. It is there where she runs into her first friend, Lisette, who just happens to be a ghost.

I really enjoyed Ruined. Despite part of the story being predictable, I grew to care for Rebecca and Lisette. I wanted to know Lisette's story and see what Rebecca would do with it. While I think that young adults may relate better to Rebecca than I did at first, I didn't feel that this novel was directed specifically at younger readers. There was much to enjoy. I found the information about New Orleans' history and race relations, the role and place of the city's grand and established families in modern society, and the background on the city's Mardi Gras parades very interesting. Most importantly, Rebecca and Lisette are interesting characters and strong at heart. I was never scared while reading this book, but I was always entertained. I would strongly suggest Rebecca and Lisette's story to the young and the young at heart alike. show less

It's 1845 and Hene, a Maori girl, has just been sent away from her family to stay at Paihia Mission Station after her twin brother and many others from her iwi fall ill. Life with Henry and Marianne Williams is very different, Hene must wear a scratchy European dress and learn to read, write and sew. Across the water in Kororareka (now Russell), Hone Heke, who was first to sign the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, has become frustrated that it's promises haven't been kept. He has already cut down show more the flagpole several times in protest, and has now returned to cut it down again and attack Korororeka. Hene can see the smoke and fire from across the bay; the town is on fire and being looted and her friend Rangi is trapped there. Can Hene save her?

A great little story in the New Zealand Girl series that gives the reader a sense of the time and place. Included at the end of the book is a glossary and useful information pages. show less