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The Ruins #4

The Ruins Book 4

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Escape at what cost?

Trapped in a new horror, the survivors struggle to regain their freedom. Is there life outside, and will any of them live to see it?

334 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 19, 2018

347 people are currently reading
128 people want to read

About the author

T.W. Piperbrook

111 books393 followers
T.W. Piperbrook lives in Connecticut with his wife and son. He is the author of the CONTAMINATION series, the OUTAGE series, and co-author of THE LAST SURVIVORS, as well as the author of THE RUINS. In his former lives, he has worked as as a claims adjuster, a touring musician, and a business systems analyst for a Fortune 500 company.

Now he spends his days fighting zombies, battling werewolves, and roaming Ancient cities.

For NEW RELEASE ALERTS AND A FREE STORY, sign up for the author's mailing list at: http://eepurl.com/qy_SH

LIKE him on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/twpiperbrook

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5 stars
373 (59%)
4 stars
191 (30%)
3 stars
52 (8%)
2 stars
10 (1%)
1 star
4 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
Profile Image for Todd Oliver.
697 reviews10 followers
December 27, 2018
Bray, Kirby, and William are still trapped in New City under the control of the Gifted. The Gifted are trying to make William one of their own but secretly he hates them and is planning to escape and free his friends who are being forced to work as slaves. Meanwhile, Kirby and Bray and planning a revolt with a group of other slaves who call themselves the shadow people. They would have to take out the guards and the plagued ones before they could even reach the tower to kill the Gifted and rescue William.

I am truly sad to see this series end. The first series, The Last Survivors, and this series, The Ruins, have been one of the best post-apocalyptic series I've listened to. I've been a fan since book one! Seeing the series end is like saying goodbye to a friend. I'm glad that Tyler Piperbrook left the ending open to the possibility of something more in the future. I'm looking forward to his future books. If they're as good as this, I'll love it! Sean Runnette has done an amazing job with both series. I'm glad the author kept this great talent throughout both series!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Alex.
34 reviews
February 3, 2018
Hate to write this, but found the last part of 'The Ruins' a major disappointment. I've realised the interest had been fading since the start of these sequels to a much better (IMHO of course) series. The previous titles had me hooked by the impressive world-building, intrigued by clues as to the genesis of the plague, and sympathising with characters forced to deal with horrific situations and unpalatable options.

For some reason, 'The Ruins' just fell flat: descriptions were poor, the setting this time was boring, dialogue seemed stilted (why the constant dis-use of contractions for example: would people really keep saying "I will.." instead of "I'll"? Gives the impression the author was being paid per word).

Maybe it was because the mysteries were all gone and there wasn't much left to explore really.

Still going to follow Piperbrook as am a fan overall!
Profile Image for Stan Bobbitt.
27 reviews
December 17, 2020
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The Ruins was ruined for me by the death of Bray.
After traveling and suffering with them throughout the entire series, I think it would have been a much more complete ending if he had been allowed to ride off into the proverbial sunset along with Kirby and William.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Kevin O'Donovan.
41 reviews4 followers
May 26, 2020
Mild spoiler at the bottom (second point below) if you haven’t read book three.

Bit disappointing on the whole. I felt it was an interesting idea that wasn’t used as well as it could be. I read the series to the end though, so not dreadful. A couple of things that annoyed me though, one for the whole series, and one for the last two books:

1) why does everyone in this future speak without using contractions? Reading conversations felt very unnatural, and kept jarring me out of the text

2) the gifted just felt like pantomime villains. We know from the original series that surviving the infection as they do, and living so long, doesn’t turn you into a sociopath, yet these guys don’t have one redeeming feature. Not even a shadow of a doubt crosses one of their minds. The last two books would have been a lot better if they’d been more three dimensional
Profile Image for Julie Powell.
Author 72 books324 followers
February 4, 2019
This is an excellent final book in the series, a character-led story of hope, loss, fear, guilt, adventure and love.

It sees the result of a destroyed world where the survivors try to build a future without cruelty, slavery or pain. There were some fascinating concepts about the spore - humans into mutants or the Gifted. It saw corruption, power, arrogance and greed continue to ruin any attempt to make things better. It was brutal and yet there was also human perseverance for good, too.

Overall, this was a well-written, fast-paced and thought-provoking read with an amazing sense of place and characters that were intriguing and believable - thus making it a compelling tale.

Highly recommended.
Profile Image for jacqueline.
5 reviews
February 19, 2018
ENTHRALLING

Character driven and action packed this book had me at the first word. The culmination of The Ruins and The Last Survivor series T.W. Piperbrook, a natural storyteller, nows instinctively what keeps a reader turning page after page. I laughed, I cried and grew to adore the main protagonists William, Bray and Kirby as they follow their hearts and their hopes for a piece of happiness in an uncertain and dangerous world. I pray that Piperbrook decides to revisit these characters at some future date!
139 reviews3 followers
May 22, 2019
Brilliantly penned page turner

Just returned from a cruise in the Adriatic and these set of books saved my sanity. It rained for 5 of the seven days there. If I hadn’t had them to read, I would have been driven mad. They entertained me so much that I think I was the only passenger that had a brilliant holiday. I never got fed up or bored with reading them. Was just sad when I turned the last page. Gone maybe! But never forgotten.
Profile Image for Mrs Pauline L Slane.
45 reviews1 follower
March 5, 2019
Book 4 The Ruins

Have just finished reading the four books in The Ruins series. A really enjoyable storyline with characters that capture the imagination and make you want to get to know them better. Really sad that their story is finished - or is it!!!! Highly recommended....




13 reviews1 follower
April 21, 2019
Great character development. I cared what happened to them.

Another of THE.W.'s series where I grew to care about the leading characters and what happened to them. There were a couple of spots where the book got a little bit slow, but fortunately it was not very often or for very long.
115 reviews2 followers
May 3, 2019
Fascinating series

The only thing I can do without is the recap of each book in the beginning of each new book. Had I known such a recap existed, I might have just read the last book. But, seriously, the author/authors did a wonderful job giving us characters we’d be pleased to call friends.
28 reviews
August 6, 2019
What an odyssey! 10 books later and I still want more! I came to this serie late but it allowed me to read them all in sequence! What a trip! I do hope, after following these characters through so much and learning about and from them, that we'll catch up later in their adventures.
Well written and enough details to make the stories captivating. Thank you for hours of entertainment!
Profile Image for Dixie Dylla.
82 reviews13 followers
May 23, 2025
This was a great series. I would highly recommend to those of you that enjoy dystopian stories. This series is very different… set over 300 years in the future, and zero zombies! But start with The Last Survivors series since that series takes place just in the weeks and months before, and work your way through. Happy reading.
A solid 4 stars!
Profile Image for Andrea Andrews.
19 reviews9 followers
August 19, 2025
This was a great end to a great series! It was sad that Bray died in the end, but it almost had to happen I think. I would love to hear more about Kirby and William’s adventures.

This started with The Last Survivors and I’m glad I made it through both series. They could both stand alone but really needed both to get the entire background and feel like the story had completed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Christine E Butler.
74 reviews4 followers
January 21, 2018
I just can't

I can't write a review. I loved the book,read it in about 7 hours. But I can't write a review. It'll give to much away. I can't tell you my reaction, but I think you should read it.
171 reviews1 follower
January 22, 2018
Loved this series

This series has been one of my favorites. Bray, William, and Kirby had quite a story to follow. I would certainly like to see another series come from where this one leaves off after the Author gets a break that he so deserves.
Profile Image for Ryan.
12 reviews
January 24, 2018
Great ending

A solid ending to what was a great series of books. I didn't want this to end because it meant an end to a saga I had devoted so much time to but it was worth it. The entire story from start to finish was great and I'm sure I will revisit it again someday.
2 reviews2 followers
January 25, 2018
Loved it

Really enjoyed reading all ten books in this series and before. I’ve really connected with the characters and shed tears, felt their joys and fears also. Can’t wait for what’s next :))
Profile Image for Donna.
378 reviews4 followers
January 26, 2018
Loved it!

What a fantastic but bittersweet ending to this series and these wonderful characters. I've loved all these books but this one especially. So sad to finish it but happy with how it was ended, which often isn't the case! Thanks for a great series of books.
Profile Image for Katy.
10 reviews
February 20, 2018
So sad it's come to an end

What a collection of books from the very beginning I was hooked! A fabulous read that kept me coming back each time. Was so happy when the ruins series came along and wasnt disappointed. Would recommend to everyone
7 reviews
March 5, 2019
Great conclusion

I really enjoyed this series. Bray was my favorite character, he was greedy and callous in the beginning of the series. The author took a good route with his character growth. I enjoyed trying to figure out what the ancient relics were supposed to be.
Profile Image for Christine Bishop.
524 reviews
June 2, 2019
Well done Tyler Piperbrook!!

Well this is a bittersweet ending. I have traveled with William, Bray, and Kirby for the last 10 books. I’m sad to see them go maybe Tyler will write another story arch but for now I’ll believe that they found their peaceful place to live.
543 reviews2 followers
June 22, 2019
Five stars

This was the best book in the series in my opinion. The overall rating for this series has to be 5 stars. Quite an enjoyable journey with the characters . I hope the author will return to this series in the future with a follow up book.
3 reviews
July 16, 2019
Good reads

The books were really good a bit sad at the end but it realistic.
The only gripe I have is that the first book was quite long and free but the rest are very short and each book goes up in price.
Profile Image for Kathy D Dodge.
288 reviews1 follower
August 3, 2019
A must read series

Everything I would like to say I can't without it being a spoiler! Even though I was able to read this series for free I just had to buy them for my kindle. This is one series I will read again.
27 reviews1 follower
August 19, 2019
Loved it!

I read the entire series while recovering from surgery. What a great story! I hope that one day the author will continue William’s story. Looking forward to more from this author.
31 reviews1 follower
November 19, 2019
Awesome series!!

I devoured this series right after wrapping up the Survivors series. Wow oh wow. I don't want to spoil the ending... but it is bittersweet and does not disappoint! Well done.
970 reviews2 followers
December 8, 2019
Excellent

This was an action packed and emotional finale to the Ruins series. I cried often, especially toward the end... I like the epilogue, possibly something more in the future eh?!!!
288 reviews2 followers
April 25, 2020
Sad to see it end

Ups and downs hope and despair definitely not the ending I expected but a good ending just the same slaves and gifted plain old humans and the plagued maybe they can all live together after all
7 reviews
September 21, 2020
Skipped over 80%

Once I started reading I realized I didn't want to read all the minutia and skipped to the last few chapters. Sick of this series glad it's over = too bad Bray was killed off, bad move.
13 reviews
April 11, 2021
Great series

The full series was a great storyline, characters were well developed and believable. Most importantly it was very entertaining. The best compliment I can give it is, I hated to see it end.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews

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