The Ruins by: Scott Smith

Can I just say how refreshing it is to find an author who is so successful in being terrifying and disturbing that you have nightmares, and I mean wake up lurching out of your skin nightmares.
I have read Jaws, which is one of my deep terrors I might add, several Stephen King novels, Clive Barker and several miscellaneous horror novels over the years, and none of them have ever left me wide eyed clutching my blanket in the dark.
I picked up this book at a thrift store more out of a whim than anything. I had seen the movie a few dozen times when it came out in 2008 and loved it. Not that it was scary but because it was the ultimate sleepover movie and it was awesome. So when I ran across it at a used book store I was amazed that it was a book and I was intrigued but didn't buy it, it was something like eight dollars for a torn book, no thanks. So when I ran across it THE NEXT DAY at a different store for one dollar in perfect condition I bought it and started reading.
At first I was honestly a little shocked. There was no waiting for the story to begin. No boring back story you have to get through before you can get the meat of it. The second day of reading this, the group was stuck on the ruin and poor poor "Pablo" was having his legs eaten away by the accursed vine. Didn't even realize this bothered me until I was calling my oh-so-supportive-and-understanding  boyfriend, at something like 230 am, going on and on about how the flesh was hanging off my arms.
For the next three nights the same thing. Every night I was tossing and turning with these damn vines haunting my subconscious.
Glorious.
Till the end when the author is describing the exact sound you would hear as you cut off your own ear. I was literally sitting there squealing with disgust. And that my friends, is a beautiful thing.
This is one of those gems you find that is the very definition of horror. It has everything you want in a book from gut wrenching gore, to drama between the characters, and a villain (in this case a plant) that can creep into your brain and latch on for months to come.
A must read. I am most intrigued as to whether this is one of those authors who do a one hit wonder, or if he is the second kind who does nothing but outstanding books.
Opinions?