The Ruins by Scott Smith

Ever hear of a vine with an attitude…and on steroids? Ever read a book with no chapters? Grab this book if that’s what you’d like.

Two couples (Jeff & Amy, Eric & Stacy) on vacation in Cancun meet up with Mathais and three Greek guys. When Mathais’s brother runs off to a ruin in the jungle with his new love, Mathais wants to go get him, and the two couples and one of the Greeks (Pablo) join him for a day trip. They get several warnings not to proceed, but go ahead anyway and end up in a hellish nightmare.

The author could have made the book 150-200 pages shorter and not lost anything. He goes to agonizing depths describing the physical and mental breakdown of each character. The movie made from his first book was good; let’s hope this one doesn’t make it to the silver screen.