The Perfect Ruin: Chapter Sampler

By Shanora Williams

Special Extended Excerpt Sneak Peek!
 
Get ahead of the curve by being one of the first to snag a sneak peek of the newest thriller from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shanora Williams, a tale of revenge served ice cold—and a warning to be careful what you scheme for . . .
 
A brutal tragedy ended Ivy Hill’s happy family and childhood. Now in her twenties and severely troubled, she barely has a life—or much to live for. Until the day she discovers the name of the woman who destroyed her world: Lola Maxwell—the mega-wealthy socialite with a heart, Miami’s beloved “first lady” of charity. Accomplished, gorgeous, and oh-so-caring, Lola has the best of everything—and doesn’t deserve any of it. So it’s only right that Ivy take it all away . . .
 
Little by little, Ivy infiltrates Lola’s elite circle, becomes her new best friend—and plays Lola’s envious acquaintances and hangers-on against her. But seducing Lola’s handsome, devoted surgeon husband turns into a passionate dream Ivy suddenly can’t control. And soon, an insidious someone will twist Ivy’s revenge into a nightmare of deception, secrets, and betrayal that Ivy may not wake up from . . .
 
"You're going to pick a side, make no mistake. And then you won't put it down until you know the truth. A shocking, sensual thriller with sharp twists."
—Tarryn Fisher, New York Times bestselling author of The Wives

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kensington Books
• Release date: Jan 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781496736758

Shanora Williams

Shanora Williams is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than twenty-five novels, including her traditional publishing debut, The Perfect Ruin. She began self-publishing in 2012 and first landed on the New York Times bestseller list when she was only nineteen years old. She lives with her husband and three sons near Charlotte, NC.  Visit Shanora Williams online at www.ShanoraWilliams.com.  

Book preview

dearly.

Prologue

You are just a woman. A woman with hate in her heart and darkness in her soul.

You hate yourself, so you take it out on everyone else. You are scorned. Broken. Pathetic.

You will suffer at my hands.

I will ruin you . . . and you won’t even see me coming.

Chapter One

Ivy stared at the fish tank across from her, scratching at her cuticle, simmering with irritation. She’d studied all the fish in the bubbling water so many times she’d lost count, but there was a new one in the tank today.

The new fish was blood-orange with white spots. Its body was flat, its left fin ugly and stubby, just like the right fin as it rotated in the tank. The fish appeared lost—like it had no clue what the hell it was doing in the glass box. It had been snatched from the comfort of its own home. Trapped in a tank.

Ivy knew the feeling of being trapped—except she hadn’t been trapped in tanks. She’d been trapped in box-sized rooms or, worse, forced to share a box-sized room with another person around her age whom she’d never gotten along with. How it must have sucked to share a single tank with eight other fish, glugging the same water and fighting over pellets of food.

A door opened to the left and a woman with cornrows down to her shoulders, narrow, rectangular glasses on the bridge of her nose, and bright pink lipstick walked out. The woman was always dressed like a hippie. Loose blouses and pants, and god-awful sandals that Ivy used to call Bible sandals. The woman loved wearing colorful scarves around her neck, even when it was almost one hundred degrees outside. Today she was wearing a yellow and green one.

Welcome, Ivy, Dr. Harold said from the door, bringing her hands together joyously. Ivy stood up with her purse and sighed. It was the same old thing with her therapist, Dr. Marriott Harold. Big smiles and gratefulness.

Her name was Marriott to rhyme with Harriet, as Marriott had mentioned once. Marriott’s mother liked the name Harriet…so why didn’t she just name Marriot, Harriet? It never made sense to Ivy. It made her confused and she hated confusion.

Marriott was single and didn’t have much of a life outside of being a therapist. No family and not many friends. She had three cats—Whitney, Stevie, and Mikey. All three of them were named after her favorite musical artists, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson. Ivy found her life boring and irrelevant.

Nonetheless, she met Dr. Harold every single Wednesday to perform a therapy session. Dr. Harold insisted Ivy call her Marriott, stating that Dr. Harold was too formal and that they were friends who could trust each other. Ivy often wondered if Marriott meant it—that she trusted her. No one ever trusted Ivy. She was a rebel, a liar, a thief, and a con artist. She could steal from babies and not feel any remorse.

How are you today? I trust you have been resting. Marriott watched as Ivy walked past her.

Ivy walked into Marriott’s office, placed