TOUGH GIRL

In Zaiss’ thriller, a traumatic night from their teenage years brings two ex-friends back together under suspicious circumstances.

Teenagers Skye McClendon and Jessie Arzate meet at BrighterDay, a women’s shelter in Kansas City where their mothers are living. In Jessie’s case, staying at the shelter was an ultimatum given to her drug-addicted mom by a judge: “Stay off the streets and stay clean, or you’re going to jail, and your daughter will be remanded back to the state’s foster care system.” When her mother disappears one day, Jessie knows she has to find her before something bad happens. Skye, hearing her plans, blackmails Jessie into letting her come along, and the two end up in a bloody, violent situation neither of them could have ever prepared for. Traumatized by that night, Skye grows up to become an ER doctor, while Jessie lives a rough life on the streets. Sixteen years after the incident, they run into each other again, but what Skye believes to be a coincidence is actually a detailed scheme put into place. As it turns out, Jessie has been coerced by the FBI to track down Skye to see what she knows about her fiance laundering money for a Russian mobster. The FBI wants answers, and Jessie, blaming Skye for ruining her life all those years ago, wants revenge and is determined to get it however she can. Narrated by both girls, this gripping drama masterfully switches between present and past, filling in the details about what happened that night when they were teens (it would spoil too much to give away the incident—it’s a critical moment in the plot that anchors this compulsively readable story). With twists around every turn, the novel never feels like it drags or meanders—this is a fast and engaging ride.

A classic thriller, fun all the way through.