The Town That Drowned
Ruby is the main character of this novel and the story is told entirely from her point of view. She is a 14‑year-old girl. Near the beginning of the book she has a vision of some of the townspeople swimming around her and one person happens to be someone she had never seen before. Ruby gets bullied at school (mainly by June Crouse) as a result of this incident. To make things worse, she has a unique brother who is seen as a freak by others. She receives suspicion after the townspeople learn that her house would be saved from being flooded (Later on, it is revealed that Ruby had to move anyway since the water went further than expected). Her best friend and cousin is Sarah Carson who was always there for Ruby. However, in that year, Sarah moved to another town and leaving Ruby to face her troubles on her own. Later on in the story Ruby falls in love with Troy Rutherford, who happens to be her first love.
Ruby Romaine
Ruby's brand of cigarette choice is Pall Mall. She began smoking as early as seven years old. She has what many would describe as an alcohol problem, but Ruby would never admit to this. She sometimes refers to her alcohol as "medication", or a purifier. She is not one to refrain from taking medication for her artificial hip, (which was put in backwards), with beer. She is keen on not missing Happy Hour at Smog Cutters, which she frequently drives to in her blue Buick. She enjoys champagne music and wine tasting. Ruby is known to call into The Family Spending Channel, a home shopping network, when she's had "a few too many."