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Summary: An Amazing Debut for a First-Time Novelist
Review: When I finished this book, I read all the reviews on the back and didn't realize until then that the this was the author's first work. It is an extremely well-thought out plot and the main character, Amanda, is so complex. Not only is the writing fluid and sophisticated but it also keeps the book moving at a fast pace so that you want to keep turning each page to find out what happens next. It's like a well choregraphed dance that eventually ends with all questions answered.I read a lot of books and this one was definitely a completely enjoyable experience.
Rating: 
Summary: It Really Fizzled
Review: Christina Schwartz writes a very clear, evocative prose that keeps the reader oriented at all times, despite her jumps back and forth in time. And three of her characters, Amanda, Ruth, and Mattie, seem fully-realized and well-developed. She begins her story quite well, with a mystery to be solved, and there is a touch of the Gothic about her writing that only serves to intrigue. The problem is, the story really doesn't go anywhere. Schwartz never takes us to any of those fascinating mysteries we hope to have solved. Instead, her story gradually loses steam as it moves along until it finally fizzles into a very predictable and ho-hum ending. "Drowning Ruth" opens at the end of World War I and takes place in rural Wisconsin where Amanda Starkey, over-stressed from her duties as a nurse, retreats to her younger sister's farm for rest and recuperation. Mattie (the younger sister) is alone at the farm with her young daughter, Ruth, since her husband, Carl, has yet to return from the war. Mattie is by far the prettier and more outgoing sister, although Amanda may be the more practical. In any case, the sisters do love each other and both care deeply for Ruth. Right from the beginning, Schwartz makes it clear that Amanda's sanity is in question. We don't doubt this for a second, yet Amanda's narrative is one we feel we can trust, no doubt because Amanda, herself, is aware of her own shortcomings regarding her emotional stability. One would think this would make Amanda a fascinating character but it doesn't. She is simply too rigid in her outlook and too given to secrecy to let us really get to know her. Amanda's narrative is broken by narrative from Ruth, who is quite annoying with her own particular brand of baby talk. I was glad her passages were relatively short as they really grated on my nerves. Running through Amanda's and Ruth's first-person narrative is an omniscient, third-person narrative, far better than Ruth, but not nearly as good as Amanda could have been. From the very beginning of the book we know that the central mystery entails what really happened when Mattie slipped through the ice and drowned in the family's pond one cold, winter night. Here Schwartz leads her readers on a merry chase only to let them down terribly at the book's end, for what happened that night is exactly what we think happened on page one. There's no mystery. All that Gothic buildup was for nothing unless Schwartz simply likes to see her readers land with a resounding "thud." There's very little plot in "Drowning Ruth" and that would be okay if Schwartz hadn't led us to believe otherwise. Had she let us know she was going to write a story that concentrated on the relationships among the characters, we wouldn't have been expecting something she failed to deliver. Even Schwartz, herself, doesn't seem to know exactly what she wants to write about. If she wants to write about the night Mattie died, she needed to give us more plot and not make the end so predictable and boring. If she wanted to concentrate on the relationships among the characters, then she needed to flesh out the characters of Carl (Mattie's husband), and Imogene more. Much more. And she needed to let us get to know them. Really know them. And what about poor Clement Owens? His storyline could simply be discarded without making a bit of difference in the book. Schwartz is very good at evoking rural Wisconsin life. Her descriptions of Amanda cutting brilliant red stalks of rhubarb for a pie outshine anything that goes on among her characters. It is in describing the day-to-day happenings of country life that Schwartz really shines and at those times her prose becomes almost brilliant. Ultimately, however, Schwartz has to write herself out of the plot corner she's created and unfortunately, she resorts to dreaded coincidence to do so. Several characters prove to be no more than stage dressing and are summarily dispatched for no other reason than Schwartz's convenience. This might have been forgivable had the ending contained something worth waiting for, but sadly, it didn't. If Christina Schwartz chooses to write another book, I doubt that I will read it, but I do hope she polishes her own budding talent and decides to discard the cheap tricks and glitzy gimmicks. No story worth the telling needs them.
Rating: 
Summary: Loved It
Review: I have read many reviews were people have said they didnt like this book.Im glad i didnt listen.I really liked it.
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Read
Review: This book started off wonderful and kept up throughout. There is constant suspense and tension, and the ending is so wonderful. i would recommend this to anyone
Rating: 
Summary: Not the best choice of novels
Review: This book is narrated by two characters: Amanda and Ruth. The story is told from both of their perspectives and jumps back and forth from the past to the present from one paragraph to another. You'd have to be a careful reader to keep up. We ultimately decided that this would not be a best choice book, but we would recommend it to someone who likes to read something different from the norm.
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Summary: It all comes together in the end...
Review: While reading "Drowning Ruth" I got extremely frustrated with not knowing where I was, how a certain chapter pertained to the big picture. I almost gave up more than once but I sure am glad I didn't! This book turned out to be one of the best I have ever read. What a wonderful tie in at the end of the novel. Incredibly moving and expressive. I loved it!
Rating:
Summary: So much more than you're everyday read....
Review: While I am not usually one for a whole lot of sequential jumping Schwartz uses it in this novel to her advantage. She grabs you at once with the lurking thought of Amanda's dear sister Ruth's death, and plays on it like a small background tune while the story unravels. You read from different perspectives, through various present and past scenes, and you will literally picture the scene the author portrays for you. Family secrets, hushed affairs and lost siblings will twist and turn the plot at the perfect pace. Please keep in mind as you buy this book, it is not a "happy ending" feel good kind of book. ... But it is very provoking, deep, and even subtle in the story, giving your mind the chance to figure out and conclude and wonder about these amazing characters. I think I even haven't figured out all the details yet, but that's okay, this book isn't one you read and forget. It would be great for a book club, because discusions will follow with whomever you know who has read it. While this book isn't exactly on my list of favorites,( I think because the overall tone is on the depressing side,) I have no trouble recommending it to someone who likes to read good writing that is different then the usual read.
Rating:
Summary: Wasn't too bad
Review: Set in 1919, Amanda Starkey returns to her home in Milwaukee to escape the problems she encountered in WWI. One year after she returned, her younger sister Mattie mysteriously drowns one night and she is left to take care of her house, child: Ruth, and her husband; who has not yet returned form the war. This tantalizing story gives you an insight into the secrets this family holds. As the text jumps from character to character and from past to the present, we see an overview of each character and how they deal with the problems they are faced with. You won't want to put this book down until you get to the end.
Rating:
Summary: WOW
Review: Set in 1919, Amanda Starkey returns to her home in Milwakee, to escape the trouble that she faced in WWI. A year after she returns her younger sister Mattie dies and Amanda is left to take care of her house, child and husband; who has not yet returned from war. This tantalizing story captures you into the secrets this one family holds. You can't help but to read on and find out what really happened. As the text jumps from charater to characture and from the past to the present, it gives you an all- around insight into each of the charcters. This compelling mystery will have you hooked.
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Summary: Drowning Ruth on the big screen
Review: Having very movie-like qualities the novel "Drowning Ruth" seems to be more cinematic then Analytical. Despite the nature of the novel to jump forward and backward through time Christina Schwarz's ability to paint such a palpable picture of the story of a woman inuring hard times leads me to think it is possible and almost inevitable that this book will become a movie. The cinematic qualities of the novel is one of the many reasons I am able to be taken so deeply into the story and the compelling relationship between Amanda and Ruth.
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