By: Anna Collomore
Release Date: February 7, 2013
Description:
Annie Phillips is thrilled to leave her past behind and begin a shiny new life on Belvedere Island, as a nanny for the picture-perfect Cohen family. In no time at all, she falls in love with the Cohens, especially with Libby, the beautiful young matriarch of the family. Life is better than she ever imagined. She even finds romance with the boy next door.
All too soon cracks appear in Annie's seemingly perfect world. She's blamed for mistakes she doesn't remember making. Her bedroom door comes unhinged, and she feels like she's always being watched. Libby, who once felt like a big sister, is suddenly cold and unforgiving. As she struggles to keep up with the demands of her new life, Annie's fear gives way to frightening hallucinations. Is she tumbling into madness, or is something sinister at play?
The Ruining is a complex ride through first love, chilling manipulation, and the terrifying depths of insanity.
Review:
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of power the act of persuasion and manipulation has over some people. Sure there might be easier targets than others but still it doesn’t stop fascinating me. This book was pure manipulation in its highest form, it was crazy with a capitol C and I loved every minute of it. Psychological in all the right ways.
We meet Annie who has just moved out of her home in Detroit to California to be a nanny to a family she met online. That alone is enough to be shady in itself, but she wanted to get out the family looked like a very happy all American family. She was excited to finally go there and get away from her family and all the bad memories she had there. She arrived there and everything seemed to be going great, she was taking care of Zoe mostly as Libby would take care of baby Jackson. Walker, the husband was there but not really, you know the type a businessman that doesn’t want to get in the middle of anything.
As Annie was taking care of Zoe she knocked over some boxes and saw some papers she probably shouldn’t have seen, this of course angered Libby and now begins the strong manipulation. Libby would make Annie feel like she was her best friend, even like a sister. She would make suggestions to her and if she didn’t follow it she would get angry and that caused Annie to want to please her even more. Annie is obviously not a very strong person if she was manipulated so easily but still it was an interesting thing to watch, she’s quite dependant on other people.
From the very beginning of the book you knew something was off with Libby, and even if you already knew what it was it was the unfolding of the whole situation that made this book exciting. To watch the layers fall from here and there and the crazy manipulating sociopath would emerge. But Annie the ever gullible and easily manipulated still to the very end seemed to want to be in Libby’s good graces, that was annoying but again she is weak. Throughout the book she forms a relationship with her neighbor, Owen. I think it’s a healthy relationship but I also think that maybe Annie needs to learn how to be strong and independent.
Overall the book was good, again seeing something unfold that you already know is going to happen is fun because you don’t know exactly how it will happen. I really loved that Libby would call Annie Nanny and say no I’m calling you Annie, now Nanny what are you doing. Too funny! And Annie started believing her name was Nanny. What great manipulation. Check the book out if you get a chance!
Disclaimer:
I received this book from NetGalley and Razorbill, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!
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