Ruthless People by J.J. McAvoy REVIEW

To the outside world, they look like American Royalty, giving to charities, feeding the homeless, rebuilding the city. But behind closed doors is a constant battle for dominance between two Bosses, cultures, and hearts.

Ruthless People is a romantic crime fiction set in modern day Chicago, following the life and marriage of Melody Nicci Giovanni and Liam Callahan—rivals by blood and leaders through fear. Their marriage was arranged by their fathers in hopes to end years of bloodshed between the Irish and the Italians.

Liam, next in line to lead the Irish, believes he’s getting a simple-minded wife, one he can control, one who bends to his every need . . . the complete opposite of Melody. Bred to be a Boss, a world-class marksman, master of disguise, with no mercy and no fear. Twenty-four years later, she has achieved more than any man could even dream of, killing anyone who steps in her way. She knows exactly what type of man Liam is, and she would rather die than give up the power she has spent her whole life building. But with no other family left, she must not only learn to work with Liam, but the whole Callahan clan.

The Mafia of the past is evolving, and with rival bosses gunning for them, Melody and Liam will have to figure out how to work as one to take down those who stand in their way, all while keeping up appearances.

Power, Family, and Respect are everything.

Warning: This book contains adult language and subject matter including graphic violence and explict sex that may be disturbing for some readers. This book is not intended for readers under the age of 18

My least favourite crime trope is the "reluctant wife", this wife listens to her husbands's sins, pretends that she loves him enough to look over it, then remember ten years down the line that she is a "moral person" and can no longer live the life.

Honestly, I find it to be boring and insulting to women. Imagine my joy when I picked up this book.

Melody Giovanni is not the meek subservient wife, she is The Boss. Liam is next in line to be the head of the Irish Mob so long as he goes through with his arranged marriage to Melody. They are equals. Liam believes that Melody is just the daughter of the boss of the Italian Mafia and so assumes that she will just be a convenient participant of an arranged marriage rather than a counterpart. (Super feminist, I know)

Melody and Liam's first meeting actually had me laughing out loud, it was so ridiculous - in a good way. Liam goes into the meeting with no real knowledge of who she is, or even what she looks like. All Liam can do is hope that Melody isn't ugly. He gets his wish, but she's also not as compliant as he'd hoped. Melody wants an equal partnership in the business, and honestly she deserves it.

Like all books, this book has it's weak points but for me it's best quality, the quality that makes it a five star read is that Liam and Melody are on the same page. Even when a situation makes them both so angry they could kill the nearest person, they are the same person and it's beautiful to see. 

If Liam wants to kill someone, it's taken all of Melody's energy not to pull the trigger, and vice versa. Honestly, I kind of wanted them to adopt me.

To end this review, I will use a quote that I think really sums up this book/series for the MCs: 

"Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same." - Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights

Recommend to: fans of NA books, fans of crime books, fans of high action romances
Rating: 5 stars