Book Review: Perfect Ruin, by Lauren DeStefano @LaurenDeStefano

Basically, Perfect Ruin is a dystopian -- the government is all-powerful, people have lost many freedoms, everyone thinks all these rules are for their own good, etc. But, the setting makes Perfect Ruin shine. We are on an island in the air, people!

It isn't really clear how or why this hunk of earth ended up in the sky. It's called Internment, and it's big enough to have a park, industry, agriculture, schools, and shops. People are in each other's business because there's no spreading out. There are shuttle tracks that run around the edge of the island, and no one is allowed on the other side of the tracks. At the edge, there are horrible winds. But some people can't stand not knowing what is on the ground under them -- with all that space -- and they attempt to jump. Like Morgan's brother did. He survived, but he'll never be the same.

That doesn't keep Morgan from wondering about the edge. She thinks there's something wrong with herself because she can't stop thinking about what's on the ground. Infants are betrothed at birth, or before. The government restricts births; they must keep the population from growing. Morgan has an interesting betrothed, Basil, and best friend, Pen. But she's afraid for them to find out that she's obsessed with the ground. All of the characters are well-developed and we really get to know them.

A murder on Internment and then a fire changes everything. Suddenly Morgan is frightened -- she doesn't feel safe. Even when her own father is a patrolman whose job it is to keep everyone safe. Society's beliefs are strange -- but the politics and this unique world make these ideas believable. Turns out that there are a lot of things on Internment that Morgan is unaware of. But she's going to find out.

It's easy to become absorbed in this world. The characters are unique, and their differing philosophies make for interesting discussions. They all have secrets, and of course many of these secrets are going to come out.

I didn't get much tension from the ending. I always felt that everything was going to be OK. But, Perfect Ruin ends on a pretty big cliffhanger, and I will be highly anticipating the next book in the Internment Chronicles series (something like October of 2014!!).

Published by Simon & Schuster BFYR, October 1, 2013
eBook purchased
368 pages

Rating: 4/5

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