A story of love, adventure, and politics—and two lives changed forever by Mexico and the monarch butterfly

Samantha and George are about to launch into a sabbatical year in the quaint Mexican town of Oaxaca. For Samantha, their journey to this historic town is about fulfilling a lifelong dream; for George, it is an unsettling step into the unknown. As the couple embark on their adventure, a monarch butterfly begins its arduous migration south from the United States to Mexico . . . It is a challenging journey—a flight that requires remarkable endurance and a will to survive. Beneath Oaxaca’s picturesque and serene veneer—the 16th-century architecture, the nearby ruins—it is a town shaken to the core by political unrest. As the monarch butterfly makes its challenging journey south, political events threaten to change the town forever. What’s more, personal events look like they will alter the paths of Samantha and George for good. Ruins masterfully captures the shadows and light of a troubled country steeped in history and culture, weaving together personal, political and natural dramas into a thrilling portrait of life south of the Rio Grande.