I wanted to love this one, I really did! Unfortunately, I was pretty disappointed.

This book was a slow burn type of suspense for me, just enough to keep me reading until the end. It was really predictable. It was not bad, but it was definitely not had I expected going in to it. It fell flat for me, and left me wanting more.

3.5 rounded to 4 Stars!

Ivy Hill’s parents were killed when she was young and she was raised in foster homes. She had a very tough life and was a difficult teenager, often landing herself in trouble. The book opens with her as an adult, visiting a counsellor to work through her feelings. When she is ready to be discharged, she is given the name of the person who destroyed her world. She devises a plot to infiltrate Lola Maxwell's life and ruin everything for her, even better, she wants to take over her life and it seems like she might just get what she wants.

The Perfect Ruin is an entertaining story. There were parts that were a bit slow for me, so there were times I loved this story, and times it was just okay. It's a multiple POVs storytelling with wonderful narration by Chante Ellison and Nola Vance. I felt for Ivy and all she had gone through, but she crossed the line a few times. For her, it was all about revenge. Lola was a character that I liked one minute, and detested the next. She is rich, pampered, adored and at times, MEAN. She treated her household manager terribly and it cost her a lot.

This is one of those books that is over the top, so you need to suspend belief, but if you can do that, it is an interesting story. I was waiting for that moment when my jaw would be on the floor and I would hold my stomach because of the absolute shock of it all and sadly I never got that. A lot of things felt rushed and glossed over to me and I needed to root for SOMEONE. If you love a fast pace revenge story, then this one might be for you.

When I found out Shanora was branching out into a new genre I couldn't wait to see what she would come up with. Obviously I won't spoil the plot this is a storyline that is best experienced slowly chapter by chapter as secrets and betrayals are revealed. Sometimes an author makes it easy to fall for certain characters but what about the ones who are unredeemable what keeps a reader interested to the end of the book. For me in this case it was the writing the way the story arcs twist and merge together the flawed characters that pull you one way then the other. The only reason I didn't give this five stars was the first part of the story dragged a little and we don't find out the reason for Ivy seeking revenge until quite late in the book and I didn't understand the reasoning behind waiting.

It wasn't anything too special. I was impressed with all of the twists and turns but the big reveal was kind of annoying and undermined the whole story for me. This is my seventh Shanora Williams book and I appreciate that she's branching out into other genres but I think I'll be sticking with her romances.

I was provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was my very first Shanora Williams book and my goodness, it was SO good! The story kept me guessing and it was very engaging. I love a good thriller and this one was perfection! Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book gave me Verity-esque vibes! (Verity by Colleen Hoover) The lies, deception, sneakiness, and scandal were all thrilling!

As the plot twist came about, I was surprised, but not completely shocked. However, I couldn’t put the book down at that point. I had to know how it was going to continue to unravel.

The ending felt a little rushed and untied, but it’s apparent it wasn’t supposed to be wrapped up with a bow. Definitely makes you wonder what’s going to happen next …. 🤔

The Perfect Ruin takes you on a revenge plot that will make you question the integrity of every single character that you come across. How far will you go for revenge?

Ivy had her entire world turn upside down as a teenager and now as an adult, she still hasn't recovered. Going to therapy and working as a functioning adult has helped but there is still a void that needs to be filled and what better way to do that than to hunt the person who’s caused you so much pain that you're willing to do ANYTHING to get it.


I know that this is a debut mystery thriller from popular romance author Shanora Williams and I couldn't wait to see what she was going to do in a different lane. I liked that we were given this kind of crazy feel to it and you wanted to see just how far these characters were going to take it. Were they redeemable? What were their real intentions? I had these questions swirling around in my head and as much as I adore this author, I wanted MORE from this story.

I was waiting for that moment when my jaw would be on the floor and I would hold my stomach because of the absolute shock of it all and sadly I never got that. A lot of things felt rushed and glossed over to me and I needed to root for SOMEONE. If you love a fast pace revenge story, then this one might be for you.

"The Perfect Ruin" was far more than I expected. Actually, that's not fair. I had big expectations and Williams delivered. From page 1, I was hooked. The story is full of twists and turns, shocking moments and characters that kept me on the edge of my seat. I gave it 3 stars but I was able to see the ending coming a bit sooner than I normally like to.

Twisty thrillers are my jam during the summer so this one hit the spot. Perfect for fans of The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Wife Between Us.⁣

Thank you to Netgalley & Kensington Books for the opportunity to review this book!

⭐⭐⭐ -- Started off so well

Right from the start, this was turning into a 5 star read for me. I loved the writing. It was well paced. The plot was engaging. I LOVED Ivy. Then the twist happened, and I was 🙄...seriously? However, I continued on, hoping the author would throw another twist in and bring it back to its former awesomeness. Alas, that didn't happen. Instead, we get an ending that is either a cliffhanger, or an annoying attempt to mysteriously leave the story open ended. Neither of which I was impressed with...sigh. So yeah, what started off so very promising ended up tanking by the end. 🤷🏻‍♀️

**ARC Via NetGalley**

Lies and deceptions make this book something that you don’t want to miss out on. There’s no way you can stop reading until you find out what happens. Awesome.

not my favorite book i’ve ever read. it was a little bit all over the place, the thriller aspect to it just seemed like a normal piece of the story line, and the obviousness of the characters issues was hard to get over.

3.5⭐

I had a lot of fun with the concept, and it's definitely an entertaining read. It reminded me a bit of You, and there's a great amount of revenge and manipulation. There isn't really anything else I can say about it without spoilers, so this is going to be short one.

Content notes - rape, abuse, miscarriages

3.5/5

3.5/5

There was a lot to like about this one but somehow I found myself a little bored? I can’t put my finger on exactly why either. I think maybe it’s because you know Ivy is out for revenge but the reason as to why isn’t revealed until around 60 percent of the book. I don’t think it needed to be kept a secret for so long, instead of keeping the suspense it just annoyed me. I did like how wild and messy this was and I love an unhinged narrator. I would definitely read more from the author too.

This is a review of the audiobook, narrated by Chante Ellison and Nola Vance.
This was an intriguing opening, a tale of revenge between Ivy and the woman believed to have ruined her life, Lola Maxwell.
Firstly, the plot was fairly gripping, but at times I was so frustrated by the lack of clues as to why Lola did indeed ruin Ivy's life, but on balance I think this was meant to add to the intrigue and mystery, and it made the read more suspenseful as I had to know what Lola had done.
The characters were on the whole, strong, but I'll be honest. I was a fair way into the audiobook before I realised there were two narrators! Their voices sounded far too similar to me, and I don't think one had enough of a role in the story in the early stages for me to care about her.

I liked the writing style of this book. It was Ivy writing a letter to her therapist. The plot was entertaining and fast-paced. I'd recommend it for people who like You by Caroline Kepnes.

I wanted to like this book, I enjoy Shanora Williams' romance novels, but this one was a miss for me. I honestly wish I had not finished it, as unfortunately I'm now left admitting The Perfect Ruin was the perfect mess. There are no characters to root for, the twists near the end completely change the story, and the writing was just bad. It was choppy, and even worse, the main characters background and reasoning relies heavily on mental illness in a way that feels cheap.

The Perfect Ruin could be a great read if you can get past the improbability of it all and suspend your disbelief, but the writing really take away from that too.

Oh wow I’m still struggling to find the words to write some sort of review and as I’m still stumped I’m just gonna have to give it a go. Although this author has written other books this is her debut thriller and it is absolutely brilliant.

Ivy Hill has had a traumatic life. She leads a lonely life living day to day. When she finds out the name of the person, Lola, who destroyed her life she vows revenge. Nothing goes as plan when she gets embroiled in Lola and her husbands life.

Wow I absolutely devoured this story. When I thought the story was going one day a twist would be thrown at me and had me even more gripped.

I am really hoping this author writes more in this genre as this was epic.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this summery thriller, but I did like it! Set mainly in Miami, the story mostly comes from Ivy's point of view as she enacts her plan to extract revenge on Lola Maxwell. Ivy blames Lola for ruining her entire life and with great deliberation she sets out to get closer to Lola and then to bring about Lola's own perfect ruin. Because Ivy is so focused on her revenge, she isn't always very sympathetic - not that Lola is all that likable either... truly, none of the characters are really worth rooting for. I will say that the plot really takes some crazy and unexpected turns which makes this a more fun read in the end, though the characters really don't ever become more likable. I did appreciate the diversity, though.

It's an entertaining summer read and the Florida and rather fancy setting gives this one a vacation vibe. I think this would be a great beach/plane ride/backyard read for this summer! And I would definitely read more from Williams in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Perfect Ruin.

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would.

The Perfect Ruin is an ideal, juicy beach read. I knew I liked it when I was casting the movie version in my head as I read. Also, I'm biased; I love revenge stories.

Ivy Hill is out for revenge. After the tragic death of her parents, her only goal is to ruin the life of the woman who ruined her life. It will take time and patience but Ivy has waited most of her life for this moment, and she's not about to waste it.

Generally, I dislike multiple POVs in a story because it can get confusing but it worked here.

I liked Ivy; I sympathized and understood her need for revenge and I loved her inner monologues.

Lola was a great character to dislike; like many public personalities; she's two faced; one face she shows to the public and a private face where she demeans and treats her staff horribly.

Some of the antics are over the top, but that's why the book is so fun to read.

The twist is great; I really enjoyed how Georgia flips the switch, and loved how she is disappointed that Ivy did the one thing a woman should never do; fall in love with a cad.

I look forward to reading the author's next book.