Book Review: Ruby Falls by Deborah Goodrich Royce

 GOODREADS SUMMARY:

On a brilliantly sunny July day, six-year-old Ruby is abandoned by her father in the suffocating dark of a Tennessee cave. Twenty years later, transformed into soap opera star Eleanor Russell, she is fired under dubious circumstances. Fleeing to Europe, she marries a glamorous stranger named Orlando Montague and keeps her past closely hidden.

Together, Eleanor and Orlando start afresh in LA. Setting up house in a storybook cottage in the Hollywood Hills, Eleanor is cast in a dream role—the lead in a remake of Rebecca. As she immerses herself in that eerie gothic tale, Orlando’s personality changes, ghosts of her past re-emerge, and Eleanor fears she is not the only person in her marriage with a secret.

In this thrilling and twisty homage to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, the story ricochets through the streets of Los Angeles, a dangerous marriage to an exotic stranger, and the mind of a young woman whose past may not release her

TEE'S THOUGHTS

Whoa....this book was wild. I went into Ruby Falls basically blind. I needed something to listen to while I did some sewing for a show I have coming up. Honestly, the cover sold me. I think it is beautiful. The second sale came with the word gothic... I love gothic literature, mysteries, music, whatever comes with the word LOL.

The main character is Ruby/Eleanor who was abandoned by her father at the age of six at a tourist site called Ruby Falls ( apparently this is a real place in Tennessee ), obviously, this has an effect on her growing up and into her adult years. 

She is an actress on a soap opera, gets fired, and heads out to Europe, meeting the dashing European Orlando. They have a whirlwind romance and get married shortly after. They move to Hollywood Hills so Eleanor ( she changes her name so no one will connect her to the much-publicized story of her youth ) can resume her acting career and Orlando can open an antique shop. 

Shortly after finding the house of her dreams ( a little storybook cottage ), she lands a lead role in a strange remake of Rebecca, where she immerses herself in the role. Sounds like she has the perfect life right? Hold up...not so fast... ( can tell you no more...sorry )

The characters in the book are all compelling and well-written. I felt for Eleanor, she had a lot to overcome from her tragic youth, however, she is a very unreliable narrator. Orlando is a bit strange. She has a neighbor who lives across the street, she is a quirky psychic who knows more than she should, and is probably my favorite character in the book. At times she really unnerves Eleanor.

As the story moves along, it becomes more and more strange. I actually listened to this on audio and the narrator Stephanie Willis did a great job of building the suspense with her voice projection and reading. At one point I even sped up the speed so I could get to the ending faster and find out what the heck was going on. Honestly, I had no idea where this book was going.

Ruby Falls was a bit haunting and even eerie at times. It kept e entertained, and seemed to go by quickly. It also kept me guessing what was going on until the jaw-dropping ending.

If you like gothic mysteries or a decent thriller, try Ruby Falls.