The book begins with a shocking scene of a boy burying a girl and the book then flips to the present day and a prison. Wren Reynolds who is a probation officer is visiting a new client Rob. Rob needs to visit the people who were affected by his crimes and make amends for what he did. This includes friends of Paige, managers of the home and victims of their crimes. This is a new scheme and not a popular one.

In the before story it tells of how Rob and Luke are brothers, Luke has been put into care after his mother is sectioned. Rob is desperately trying to get Luke to live with him when he turns 18. Paige is also in the same care home as Luke and Luke is besotted with her and wants to protect her.Paige appears to be involved in something and Luke tries to find out what it is, he thinks she maybe being abused.

I liked the setting of the book as I live in the South West and there were landmarks in Bristol and Bath that I recognised. I quickly got into this book and I enjoyed the fast pace of the story and with the two timelines, there is an underlying feeling of something being very wrong with the system that the young people are in.

It is a sad tale of the care system and the children who are put in it to be safe and it will keep you engrossed until the end as Wren tries to uncover what happened all those years ago and what happened to Paige. It is also apparent that Wren also has issues that she has hidden and she will bend the rules to find out the truth about Paige.

This is a dark read that makes you question the very people who are supposed to protect these young people but also the scars that are left behind for the ones who survive. It has a really great twist that I definitely did not see coming and you will be desperate to find out the truth about what happened to Paige too.

Set over two timelines, the past and the present. Here in the present, Wren is a probation officer working on a rehab program for newly released offenders. She’s helping Rob, who had committed a robbery with Paige. Rob was caught and convicted and Paige disappeared. 

As the story jumps to the past, you learn more about Rob, Paige and Rob’s brother, Luke. It deals with some dark moments as you hear of their backgrounds.

Wren begins to look into Paige’s disappearance…

This is a compelling psychological thriller with family drama at its heart. It’s dark, twisty and a thoroughly engrossing read.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an eARC of A Ruined Girl. This is my honest and unbiased review

Lock Me In, the debut novel by Kate Simants was one of my favourite books last year and so I was thrilled when I got a review copy of A Ruined Girl. To begin with I didn’t think I was going to enjoy it as much as Lock Me In (which has a fabulous premise!) as the storyline was very different but gradually this book became a gripping addiction for me and I found myself completely immersed in its cleverly crafted characters and their lives.

There is a very sad, but unfortunately all too realistic, background to A Ruined Girl. The care system contributed greatly towards what happens to Paige, a young girl who goes missing after she commits a burglary. This child has been moved around the system and is desperate for love and attention after being removed from her abusive home. But what happened to her? Her partner in crime from the burglary has recently been released from jail and Wren Reynolds is in charge of his rehabilitation which involves talking to the victims of his crime. But with a heavily pregnant partner and secrets of her own to maintain, can Wren remain true to herself and keep her own family safe from harm?

I found Wren to be a complex character, one I wasn’t sure whether or not I liked to begin with as something felt “off” with her. As with any good protagonist, work seemed to come before her personal life and I just wanted to scream at her at times! But as the threads of the plot started to come together I found myself cheering her on to do the right thing for the young girl that no one seemed to care had gone missing. There’s some distressing themes under the spotlight here but Kate Simants handled them with sensitivity whilst never shirking away from the horror of the storyline.

A Ruined Girl was a twisty and unexpectedly emotional read that kept me guessing until the very end. I loved it!

Such a beautifully written book. I was spellbound by the author's writing-style, which drew me into this dark plot from the first page.

There was no way I was going to miss Kate Simants’ novel A Ruined Girl. Just reading the title gave me goosebumps. So when the blog tour invite came up, I ran, jumped, and grabbed my place on it! Call it gut feeling, but I knew I would enjoy the book.

Was I right?

Do you even need to ask???

Viper Books have quickly become one of my favorite publishers. If you are not following them, do it now.

Now on the book… I went in innocent and sweet; absolutely blind as I had not read the blurb. I find that doing this helps me dive into a story without putting pressure on the story. This time, I was rewarded with an absolutely gorgeous reading time. There are thrillers, and thrillers. A Ruined Girl gives it all – the brain food, the questions, the thrill, the chills. Kate Simants sparkles emotions on every pages. The result is a breathtaking, perfectly wrought tale of intertwined lives heavy with pain and the numbness of grey childhoods.

I have to say it: this prologue is top-notch. You’re plunged in the dark of the night and of hearts with a man, a boy, and a body. No names, no details, but neither are needed to reel you in and hook you. The enthralling writing is enough! I was mesmerized by what I was reading. Kate Simants cast a spell on me!

What’s next?

Wren Reynolds was a probation officer and is now part of a team with a new challenge – rehabilitate offenders through a carefully-laid plan. It allows them to get the ‘you’re out of jail’ card sooner but they have to visit those affected by their crimes and apologize… How do you deal with overflowing prisons? You send some guys home! The author really captured the bureaucracy ensnaring the prisons issue. Tight funds, too few workers, not enough hours in the day, the scrutiny from the population and politicians. I felt the frustration! Wren’s first case is Rob. Two years ago, Rob and another teenager, Paige, broke into Paige’s counsellor’s house. Rob was arrested but Paige was never seen again.

Why? What? How? If Wren’s job description doesn’t include answers to those questions, she is still determined to get them. I immediately felt how personally Wren was taking this case, but I couldn’t figure out her motive.

Slowly, to the rhythm of Before and Now chapters, we are invited into the lives of Rob, his brother Luke, Paige, and all the people involved around Paige’s disappearance. I felt I was running a marathon for answers. The past was catching up with the present, threatening it, and the present was hurling forward in a desperate attempt to escape the scars of the years…

Kate Simants masters the laws of dealing with difficult subjects while maintaining a high tension and strong characterization. She doesn’t use child abuse, drugs, and other atrocities faced by children in care, on top of those feelings of being aloof, apart, forgotten. She delicately and painfully knitted a web around simple needs – warmth, a family, protection, atonement from mistakes.

Wren is a fantastic character. Her partner Suzy is heavily pregnant, and part of the police force. I felt she was the safe line saving Wren from herself. Indeed, Wren goes above and beyond to understand what happened to Paige, putting her life with Suzy, and her job, at risk.

A Ruined Girl is an outstanding read – dealing with some very dark pearls allowed to shine through the author’s excellent writing. A true thriller with that little X-factor that makes it different and unforgettable!

I was really intrigued by the description of this book and I’m pleased to say it totally impressed me. The story follows two narratives, Wren is a probation officer who is dealing with the recently released inmate Rob who was convicted of robbery which he committed alongside Paige, a young girl who grew up in the care system. Paige hasn’t been seen since the robbery. The other narrative jumps back and follows Luke, Rob’s younger brother who lived in the children’s home with Paige in the lead up to the robbery and Paige’s disappearance. We eventually find out how all the pieces of this puzzle fit and how the characters are all connected.

I found A Ruined Girl completely gripping. From the first page I was hooked and wanted to know the truth about what happened to Paige. It is really quite a sad read at times. It gets to the heart of how it feels to grow up in care and how these children often feel they are doomed or even ruined from the beginning and cannot get out of the cycle of being unwanted they are stuck in. My heart broke for both Paige and Luke especially. Luke is an angry boy and a damaged one but he has a overwhelming love for Paige. His obsession with her sometimes leans into possessiveness which is obviously problematic and perhaps even dangerous but the author manages to make Luke feel so real that it is hard not to have some degree of empathy for him. Paige is also such a vulnerable character and it is devastating the way she is used and treated in such a horrendous manner by people who should be protecting her. There is a lot of darkness in this story but it’s not the sort of book you finish feeling depressed. There is a measure of hope to be found in A Ruined Girl which demonstrates strength against adversity and shows that there are also genuinely good people in the world. This is a fantastic, brilliantly written book which gets more and more tense as you barrel towards the heart-stopping climax. The characters are all continuously compelling and memorable. I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys an addictive and thought provoking read. I’ll definitely be looking out for the next book by Kate Simants!

After reading Lock Me I could not wait to tuck in to the latest offering from this author. A gripping psychological drama I could not put down. Sat on the edge of my seat, constantly holding my breath and tapping my kindle like a demented wood pecker. Packed with tension and suspense and more twists and turns than a twisty corkscrew. LOVED IT!!!!!
Thanks to Serpents Tail/Profile Books and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

Former undercover investigative journalist and award-winning author Kate Simants returns with her second thrilling crime novel, which won the 2019 Bath Novel Award under its earlier title The Knocks. It follows Bristol probation officer Wren Reynolds as she trials an early-release scheme which sees offenders meet their victims in an attempt to atone for their actions. Rob Ashworth has served 28 months for the burglary he committed with teenager Paige Garrett, who hasn’t been seen since that night. Wren is convinced that Rob knows what happened to Paige, who lived in the same children’s home as Rob's troubled brother, Luke. And Wren has a personal reason for her obsession with the missing girl: a secret she has to keep from her partner, heavily pregnant police officer Suzy. Putting more than her professional reputation on the line, Wren scrapes away the layers of deceit that prevented Paige’s disappearance is solved. But will she work out who can be trusted before her family is torn apart?

This is a compulsive and addictive thriller with a sophisticated almost literary style of writing and some explosive twists. They say to write what you know and Ms Simants has spent time undercover exposing children's homes and their dark deeds and those experiences very much inspired this book. Despite being fictional there is likely a chunk of it that is authentic and true to the often devastating underbelly of the care system. It also addresses the matter of life after prison and poses the question as to whether you truly can redeem yourself after a terrible misdeed you committed as a youngster. There is mystery and intrigue galore as the story unravels revealing long-held secret and lies and the twists, turns and misdirection through implanted red herrings all combine to make this a solid, captivating and superbly executed police procedural. It is a book with heart and emotion highlighting the horrific exploitation experienced by girls in care which often goes completely unnoticed as though society has just cast them asunder.

All in all, this is an exciting, nuanced and perfectly poised read and one I highly recommend. Many thanks to Viper for an ARC.

I read many books, mostly crime fiction, but The Ruined Girl was the first that I have read that concerns a children’s home and the probation services. I was both fascinated and heartbroken. It was a crime novel that really pulled on the heartstrings.

There are two narrators, Wren in the ‘now’ and Luke in ‘before’. It switches back and forth repeatedly and each worked perfectly. But it was Luke who I wanted to read about more. His story portrayed the frustration and hurt he felt perfectly. the loyalty he felt towards his mother, brother and Paige had me reading in silence, unable to put the book down. It was the type of narrative that made me think about the type of society we live in during the times I couldn’t read. How many children are there in this country who experience what the ones in this novel did. And how do they cope with adult life when they are left on their own. 

There are plenty of twists, some I saw, many I didn’t but this novel wasn’t about the eventual outcome for me. Instead it was the determination of the younger characters to do the right thing, even if it wasn’t necessarily the better way. Rob wanting to protect Luke, Luke wanting to protect Paige.

It is a long time since I have felt touched by so many. Not just Luke, Rob and Paige. But also the minor characters, some who were determined to put their childhood behind them and those who couldn’t. 

A Ruined Girl was the perfect book for me, it made me thing about other events outside of strange world we currently live in.

This is a great thriller with a lot packed in to the story. 
The book begins with a body of a girl being buried but the reader is not told who it is or who is burying her. 
We then move on to Wren who is a probation officer and is taking part in a new programme to rehabilitate offenders. 
She’s working with Rob who was convicted of breaking into a property and stealing, and he was the last person to see Paige alive. 
Wren is keen to find out what happened to Paige so works closely with Rob. 
Part of the programme is to apologise to those he’s hurt by his crime so Wren goes with him to speak to these people. 
She also uses this as an opportunity to find out about Paige. 
Wren’s partner is about to have a baby but she’s feeling distracted by this case until Suzy and the baby’s lives are in danger. 
This is a complex crime thriller but I really enjoyed it. 
The final few chapters were great and hold a few surprises. 
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Brilliant. This is a story with lots of unexpected twists and turns. It is a compelling read with a lot of suspense. There is a lot to the story and in some ways I was sad to get to the end as I wanted to keep reading.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Wren Reynolds is a probation officer tasked with helping new release, Rob Ashworth, make amends for his crime and facilitate his rehabilitation. Two years ago, Rob and another teenager, Paige, broke in and terrorised the school counsellor and his wife. No one has been able to figure out why they did it or why Paige hasn't been seen since.  Rob is focused on finding his younger brother, Luke, whilst Wren has her own reasons for taking the job. 

The book takes place in alternating sections between the present and the past, with the past being from Luke's point of view. It's well written and it was intriguing that characters which the reader starts off having sympathy for, reveal themselves to be not quite what they seemed at the beginning, but the identity of the main 'villain' is pretty obvious. Some aspects of the book were rather far fetched and I didn't really like the story line to be honest. 

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Serpent's Tail/Profile Books/Viper, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Wren is a probation officer and is working a new rehabilitation programme called CAP.  For an offender to be released early, they have to agree to go to everybody affected by their crime and apologise. 

Rob Ashworth has been picked to take part in the programme and has to apologise for the robbery he committed with Paige.  Paige has not been seen since the burglary and is assumed to be dead.  Wren wants to find out what happened to Paige and believes Rob knows more.  

The chapters alternate between now and the past, it is in the past where we also meet Rob’s younger brother, Luke.  

This story had me hooked from the start, the author sucked me in with all the characters from the present and past. 
It is a well written psychological thriller and sensitively handles regarding issues in the children’s care home system.  I hope to read more from this author in the future.

My thanks to NetGalley and Viper Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is Kate Simant's second novel and it focuses on Wren Reynolds, probation officer who is tasked with the rehabilitation of Rob , who 2 years ago broke into a school counsellor's house with Paige. Paige was never seen again after this night and Wren's focus is not just on the rehabilitation of Rob but to discover what happened to Paige.
This is a gripping and well written page turner with a twist that I did not anticipate. Wren is a compelling protagonist and I felt that the portrayal of young people in care and those charged with their care was powerful and moving. 
However, I do feel that too much happened in the final part of the novel and that the author tried to fit in too many twists towards the end. Despite this, I would recommend this novel and look forward to the author's next book. 
3.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC.

This was a really. Interesting story and I absolutely loved the premise. However, I found it rather slow. Although it did pick up. Fascinating and gripping at times

This book is told in the present and past. The present story is about Wren who is a probation officer. She is working in a new rehabilitation program called CAP.  The CAP program is when a offender get released from pirson they go to see anyone who was affected from the crime and the offender has to apologise. Rob is getting out of prison and has to do the rehabilitation program. Rob was in prison for committing a robbery with Paige at counsellor James Yardley’s house. To this day Paige hasn’t has not been seen since the robbery.  The past takes us back to to Luke who is Rob’s younger brother and lives in a care home with Paige. 

This book is gripping from the start to the end. The story alternates between Wren in the future and Luke in the past.

I kept changing mind who was the bad guys were in the book. Once everything is revealed you will be shocked.

The book does deal with difficult topics but the author does handle this with the upmost sensitivity. 

The author weaves a plot that ties all the characters together in the book whether it’s in the past or present in the book and you on edge of seat through the book. 

A book filled with dark secrets, tension and array of characters. 

I received a ARC from Netgalley and Serpent's Tail / Profile Books for an objection review.

3.5/5

This was a solid young adult thriller. I won't lie, I wasn't very enticed to read the first 60/70%, when I was reading it I was enjoying it, but when I'd put it down, there wasn't much enticing me to pick it back up. However, the final third is what brought this book up for me. 

We follow Wren, a probation officer, who has to help Rob integrate back into society after he spent 3 years in prison for aggravated burglary, interspliced with Luke's story, Rob's younger brother, leading up to the burglary. 
I think the main reason I struggled to find the motivation to continue was the characters, especially Wren. She is a typical thriller protagonist who puts her work above all else, including her 8 month pregnant partner. While this is explained in the finale, I think it still made Wren quite unlikable, as for me family should come above everything else. I did like Luke, and felt bad for him, especially as he's just a kid who ended up in a bad situation because of circumstances he couldn't control. 

I definitely think this was a solid read, but I can't imagine it is one that will stick with me for long after reading it.

Past and present go well in this book its gritty and tense good thriller would recommend thanks for netgalley for the chance to read this

This review will go live at the link below on 10 August:
Hi and welcome to my review of A Ruined Girl!

After Lock Me In and Kate Simants short story in Afraid of the Light, I didn’t think twice about requesting A Ruined Girl on NetGalley. Still I found I was unprepared for what was to come…

Prologue
Trees. Night. Drizzle. A spade hitting the earth, again and again. A boy. A man. A girl. A pit.

Before
Luke is a teenager living in a children’s home. His mum has been institutionalised and he and his older brother Rob are at a loss. Through Luke’s eyes we get a glimpse of the care system, the people who work tirelessly and the ones who take advantage. Luke broke my heart as he struggles to make his mum happy, to make something of himself, to protect the girl he loves, Paige, who lives in the same home. But Luke is just a teenager and he can only do so much. The night everything comes to a head, Rob and Paige break into the house of her school counsellor. Rob is arrested, Paige is never seen again.

Now
Rob is out on probation and probation officer Wren Reynolds is in charge of Rob’s rehabilitation. Within the scope of the Community Atonement Programme, they visit victims and acquaintances, so Rob can atone for his past mistakes. But there is more to it than that. They both have an agenda. And they might not even be the only ones who have an agenda. As Wren becomes more and more obsessed with finding out what happened to Paige, she puts her own life on hold and in doing so, her own relationship in jeopardy.

Alternating between before and now, A Ruined Girl gripped me and didn’t let me go to the point where I was thinking about it when I wasn’t reading. Nothing seemed to make sense. Who were there on that fateful night in the prologue? What was the point of the burglary? Where is Luke now? What is Rob hiding? Why is Wren so obsessed? So many questions and Ms Simants made me wait an awfully long time for the answers! Some secrets I saw unravel and I realised before their reveal, others had me gasping when they came to light.

In the race to the finale, I fully grasped how much I cared about these characters, my heart was in my throat the entire time, and the highly satisfying conclusion had me in bits. All the suspense and all the feels, what a brilliant book, highly recommended!

A Ruined Girl is out in eBook and hardcover on 27 August. You can pre-order here.

Huge thanks to Viper Books and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

This is a slow burning thriller but a very, very easy read and it didn’t take me long to get through it at all. Following a really interesting and mysterious prologue, there are 2 timelines to follow, the past from the POV of Luke (a young boy in a care home) and the present from the POV of Wren (a probation officer),

I honestly couldn’t get along with the characters, the plot kept me engaged but I just didn’t like them. I found Wren annoying and unprofessional, as with any crime thriller, the character prioritises their work over family but she was just not a good person in my opinion.
I also found Luke to me a nightmare and despite his good intentions, I didn’t like him one bit.

The plot was really engaging, kept me on my toes despite the speed. I did guess a key point very early on but there was a lot more that I didn’t guess but which in my opinion, were more minor in the storyline.

So all things considered this was a pretty good book BUT I did guess a major plot line and that’s subsequently dragged my rating down. I don’t like to be able to guess a plot line, I want it to be so woven into the story that I can’t figure it out and all my guesses are wrong. Likewise, I really like character driven novels so when I can’t connect with them, it’s harder to enjoy it.

I did think that it wrapped up really nicely and definitely enjoyed it, well worth a read and hopefully, not as easily figured out as it was for me!

Thank you to Serpents Tail/Viper Books and NetGalley for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!