Ruination - Paperback
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Ruination by Katie Jean Shinkle
Ruination is a dystopian literary horror novel that explores a nightmarish world where the human body becomes a site of both terror and transformation. Katie Jean Shinkle crafts a disturbing vision where girls are sent to eradication centers for sprouting flowers, mushrooms, and forsythia bushes from their skin—a premise that blends body horror with surreal, prophetic storytelling.
This paperback novel features Shinkle's distinctive prose style: tender yet bold, sharp yet haunting. The narrative follows terrorist sisters navigating a world of infestation and prophets, where biological transformation becomes both curse and rebellion. The experimental fiction approach creates an unsettling atmosphere that lingers long after the final page.
About This Edition
Published by Spuyten Duyvil in July 2018, this edition showcases Shinkle's evolution as a writer of dark fiction. The novel demonstrates why she has become recognized in literary horror circles, with work appearing in Washington Square Review, Ninth Letter, Booth, and New South.
What Readers and Critics Say
Scott McClanahan, author of The Sarah Book and The Incantations of Daniel Johnston, praises Ruination: "Katie Jean Shinkle is our new master writer of the nightmare. In Ruination she has created a classic world of infestation and prophets and terrorist sisters. It's a world where girls are sent to eradication centers for sprouting flowers and mushrooms and forsythia bushes from their skin. The prose is tender and bold and sharp. If you were to carve the initials of this book on your knee, you would have to spell one word: amazing."
Katie Jean Shinkle is the author of three full-length books and four chapbooks, most recently There Are So Many Things That Beg You For Love (damaged goods press, 2017) and The Arson People (Civil Coping Mechanisms, 2015). Other work can be found in or is forthcoming from New South, Washington Square Review, Ninth Letter, Booth, and elsewhere. She is an Assistant Professor of English at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio.
Perfect For Readers Who Enjoy
Ruination appeals to readers seeking experimental horror fiction that challenges conventional narrative structures. The novel fits within the weird fiction tradition while pushing boundaries of body horror and dystopian literature. Fans of surreal, literary approaches to horror will find Shinkle's imaginative world-building and distinctive voice compelling.
Contributor(s)
Author
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Ruination by Katie Jean Shinkle
Ruination is a dystopian literary horror novel that explores a nightmarish world where the human body becomes a site of both terror and transformation. Katie Jean Shinkle crafts a disturbing vision where girls are sent to eradication centers for sprouting flowers, mushrooms, and forsythia bushes from their skin—a premise that blends body horror with surreal, prophetic storytelling.
This paperback novel features Shinkle's distinctive prose style: tender yet bold, sharp yet haunting. The narrative follows terrorist sisters navigating a world of infestation and prophets, where biological transformation becomes both curse and rebellion. The experimental fiction approach creates an unsettling atmosphere that lingers long after the final page.
About This Edition
Published by Spuyten Duyvil in July 2018, this edition showcases Shinkle's evolution as a writer of dark fiction. The novel demonstrates why she has become recognized in literary horror circles, with work appearing in Washington Square Review, Ninth Letter, Booth, and New South.
What Readers and Critics Say
Scott McClanahan, author of The Sarah Book and The Incantations of Daniel Johnston, praises Ruination: "Katie Jean Shinkle is our new master writer of the nightmare. In Ruination she has created a classic world of infestation and prophets and terrorist sisters. It's a world where girls are sent to eradication centers for sprouting flowers and mushrooms and forsythia bushes from their skin. The prose is tender and bold and sharp. If you were to carve the initials of this book on your knee, you would have to spell one word: amazing."
Katie Jean Shinkle is the author of three full-length books and four chapbooks, most recently There Are So Many Things That Beg You For Love (damaged goods press, 2017) and The Arson People (Civil Coping Mechanisms, 2015). Other work can be found in or is forthcoming from New South, Washington Square Review, Ninth Letter, Booth, and elsewhere. She is an Assistant Professor of English at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio.
Perfect For Readers Who Enjoy
Ruination appeals to readers seeking experimental horror fiction that challenges conventional narrative structures. The novel fits within the weird fiction tradition while pushing boundaries of body horror and dystopian literature. Fans of surreal, literary approaches to horror will find Shinkle's imaginative world-building and distinctive voice compelling.
Contributor(s)
Author