A Splendid Ruin
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Average rating3.6
A spellbinding novel of dark family secrets and a young woman's rise and revenge set against the backdrop of the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The eve of destruction. After her mother's death, penniless May Kimble lives a lonely life until an aunt she didn't know existed summons her to San Francisco. There she's welcomed into the wealthy Sullivan family and their social circle. Initially overwhelmed by the opulence of her new life, May soon senses that dark mysteries lurk in the shadows of the Sullivan mansion. Her glamorous cousin often disappears in the night. Her aunt wanders about in a laudanum fog. And a maid keeps hinting that May is in danger. Trapped by betrayal, madness, and murder, May stands to lose everything, including her freedom, at the hands of those she trusts most. Then, on an early April morning, San Francisco comes tumbling down. Out of the smoldering ruins, May embarks on a harrowing road to reclaim what is hers. This tragic twist of fate, along with the help of an intrepid and charismatic journalist, puts vengeance within May's reach. But will she take it?
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This is a (very recently published) historical fiction that I just finished today - (a lot of the books I review I read a while ago or a few months ago...catching up on all the reviews is hard to do!) But this book made me want to take time off from reviewing old books and instead immersing myself in a new one. And I'm glad I did. It's a HF Cinderella re-telling that deals with revenge, balls, and all that. Perhaps a little cliche in the ideology, but wonderful writing and I love how the SF Earthquake was incorporated. Glad I took the time to read this.
4.5 rounded up. Each part almost felt like a different genre but this book was great and I was really really invested
This story follows naive May Kimble who leaves New York when her mother dies to be with rich relatives in San Francisco at the turn of the 20th century. The first part of the story has May being overwhelmed, and then bored, by all the glamour of society. There are a couple of big twists, so I'm not going to give much more away about the plot. May goes through a lot throughout the story, and the narrative tells me she's a changed person by the end, but I frankly didn't believe it. This book is a good example of plot driving the story, of plot happening to a character, instead of the character taking action. I found myself rather annoyed at several instances, and I can think of only a couple times where May makes a decision for herself. Still, the story intrigued me enough to want to know how everything would end. I admit I was rather let down. The end seemed to fizzle out in the third act. There was really nothing remarkable here, but it wasn't a bad read.
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