Review: Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano

Title: Perfect Ruin (The Internment Chronicles #1)
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Acquired Via: Around the World ARC Tours
Release Date: October 1, 2013
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Chemical Garden trilogy: On the floating city of Internment, you can be anything you dream. Unless you approach the edge.

Morgan Stockhour knows getting too close to the edge of Internment, the floating city in the clouds where she lives, can lead to madness. Even though her older brother, Lex, was a Jumper, Morgan vows never to end up like him. If she ever wonders about the ground, and why it is forbidden, she takes solace in her best friend, Pen, and in Basil, the boy she’s engaged to marry.

Then a murder, the first in a generation, rocks the city. With whispers swirling and fear on the wind, Morgan can no longer stop herself from investigating, especially once she meets Judas. Betrothed to the victim, he is the boy being blamed for the murder, but Morgan is convinced of his innocence. Secrets lay at the heart of Internment, but nothing can prepare Morgan for what she will find—or whom she will lose.

My Review

This past summer, I have been approximately 0-4 in figuring out books from their synopsis. I think I may have a terrible habit of making assumptions. An intervention may be needed. Anywho, the main thing I was expecting was a love triangle, but no need to worry - there is not one here. *dances around madly*

I think it goes without saying that Lauren DeStefano is a wordsmith and worldweaver, and she can make all the things sound pretty. Err... Read pretty. So, Perfect Ruin wasn't the first trek into DeStefano works for me, but I stopped with Wither in The Chemical Garden trilogy, despite loving it. But that's a story for another day. I liked Morgan a lot more than Rhine, and I thought the worldbuilding was easier to sink into because it wasn't as dark. (Don't think there's not darkness - there's a lot of people stuck on one little island.) I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you loved The Chemical Garden trilogy, Perfect Ruin won't disappoint.

Now the story in Perfect Ruin itself is very much a coming of age story for Morgan. Sure, there is a murder and a Jumper brother, but they're just tools that accelerate Morgan's questioning of All The Things. (She would have done so without them, I think.) Is it right that the government to determine when and to whom children are born? Should couples be betrothed from birth? What is really beyond the edge? Those are just a few things that kept coming up in the story.

The other characters in Perfect Ruin are just as interesting to read about as Morgan. She's lucky to have her best friend, Pen, and betrothed, Basil, who are so understanding and accepting of everything about her. Pen doesn't get a terrible lot of time on the pages, but she has a lot more complexities than many "best friends" in YA. Her relationship with Thomas, her betrothed, gave me the majority of my understanding of how everyone has coped with the arranged marriages for so long on Internment. She made it make sense. Oh, Morgan's brother, Lex, and his wife, Alice, are two of my favorite characters in the books. Lex is so unwilling to give up, and Alice is made of steel deep down, and they are perfect for one another. Well, that's more about the characters than the story, but I don't want to give anything away. If you have assumptions about this book, I want them to be blasted.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that Perfect Ruin is really good, and you should probably read it. Telling you anything more would ruin it for you (the ending! *faints*), and my disproved assumptions made the book what it was for me.

- 4.5/5 Stars

Buy Links
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To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received an advance copy of the book briefly for reviewing purposes through Around the World ARC Tours in exchange for an honest review. The book was likely provided to the tour by the publisher or author, which has in no way affected the outcome of my review. All opinions expressed are rambling, honest, and completely my own.