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Imagine waking up in the bed of an old, filthy truck, concussed, bound and blindfolded, disoriented and scared, only to realize that a near stranger took you from your family and friends, for reasons unknown, and that he’s taking you deep into the woods where no one will think to look for you. That is exactly what Ruthless puts us through on its very first pages, not caring how hard our hearts will beat or how scared we’ll be.

There can be no winner in the seemingly endless mind game that ensues. Everyone needs to lose something and sacrifices have to be made. Ruth is forced to face some hard truths about her life and become a different person, a better person, if she is to survive.

“I think I learned something in our first conversation. He wants to break me down, get to the core of me. My truth is his crack.�


We also jump back several times, at various intervals, to peek into the killer’s mind, see several events through his eyes and learn how he became who he is, how his mind and psyche got irreparably damaged. The scariest thing is that it’s so easy to see, to track the line of events that broke him beyond repair.

Ruth isn’t the most sympathetic of heroines. She is known as Ruthless among her peers because she always does what needs to be done. She too is the product of her circumstances, hard and unyielding because life often gave her no choice. But although we don’t agree with some of her actions, her fear and courage are palpable. Her strength easily translates into sheer determination to survive and such a huge admirable quality instantly brings her closer to us.

There is just a touch of romance as we see signs of love unrecognized and unacknowledged during our glimpses into the past. It’s enough to give us another reason to fear for Ruth and wish for another chance for her and the boy she loves.

Ruthless is one of those rare convincing YA psychological thrillers that challenge you on many different levels. It’s frightening because it can easily happen to any of us, but it also forces you to look deeper and understand both the monster and the girl who simply refuses to become his victim. Highly recommended.