Dangerous journey

Canadian author K.A. Tucker, a bestseller who has previously focused on writing wildly popular works of new adult romance, has now unleashed her talents on the romantic thriller world.

The result is not going to disappoint any of the fans she already has and is certain to attract many more.

“He Will Be My Ruin” tells the story of 28-year-old CEO and philanthropist Maggie Sparkes, who arrives in New York City with a broken heart after a childhood friend’s death by apparent suicide.

While cleaning out Celine’s apartment, which is cluttered with the antiques her friend has collected over a lifetime, Maggie discovers an old lock box full of secrets no one was ever supposed to discover — or were they?

Maggie comes away with important, and frightening, questions about the man Celine was in love with.

This is a man she kept secret from everyone, even her best friend. But why? From beyond the grave come these haunting words, scrawled on the back of an illicit photograph: “This man was once my salvation. Now he will be my ruin.”

As alarmed as she is by what she thinks she has found, Maggie knows she must find out the truth about what happened to her friend.

But as she embarks on an exhilarating, dangerous path — joined by an endearing cast of characters, including nosy elderly neighbour Ruby and sexy superintendent Grady — she sets events into motion that mean a coldblooded killer will soon know exactly who she is and will likely not show mercy when he finds her.

Tucker is adept at spinning stories with unexpected twists and turns, but this is her most complex narrative to date. It’s a book that will keep you up all night — with the lights on and the door locked, of course — until you reach the shocking, perfect conclusion.

But it’s also a book with an important Tucker trademark: a strong, independent female lead who is not afraid to take charge, who is not perfect — which is why she feels so real — and who is rewriting the rules about what makes books like this work so well.

Tucker is a pro at delivering hot romance, but here she combines it with heart-pounding suspense.

The results are terrifyingly good.