ML Philpitt, $4.99, ISBN 978-1-7774731-6-7
Contemporary Romance, 2022

Ruthless Letters is a bully-turned-lover Story, but ML Philpitt does one thing right: Elena was terrified of Ryker Ames’s hazing and taunts, but she also secretly got off from that. That explains the attraction.

Having said that, this one is a standard new adult romance, from the hero claiming that he’s done everything to “protect” the heroine and he will keep doing it, all the way to him having the obligatory nickname for the heroine as a sign of his dominance over her identity. Sadly, the nickname is Dolly. I’m not sure if the nickname is inspired by the country legend with a big chest or the sheep, but either option isn’t exactly appealing.

Anyway, he went MIA toward the end of their high school days, but the soap opera continues when Elena, now predictably enough the studious college girl, finds Ryker back in her life again.

Dolly,

Remember me? I know I still haunt your dreams. When you’re with him, you think of me—imagine it’s my hands touching you and not his. Don’t fret, because soon, your pleasure will come only from me. You’ll moan when I allow you to. Come when I allow you to. I’ve lent you out these last few years to be played with, but you’ve always been mine. And now, I’m back and coming for you.

We will be playing the game again, only this time, I’m playing to win.

Ready?

Set…

Go.

Ryker Ames.

Oh my god. Whichever serial killer that wrote that must really be lacking self respect because that is truly embarrassing to behold.

The rest of this story is just posturing for the most part. He is full of bluster, complete with the usual permanent sneer on his face and the expected jealousy at other males that even look at Elena for even a second. She keeps talking about how he scares her, ooh, but she keeps getting baited by him anyway, ooh.

It gets to a point when the usual alternating point of view chapters have me feeling that these two are just telling me the same things over and over. Everything moves at a pretty lackadaisical pace for something that claims to be dark, full of angst, and other buzzwords in this genre.

Let’s just say that I am not surprised that this one turns out to be the start of an actual series. Heaven knows, things certainly feel drawn out here just to stretch things out over a few entries into the series!

I wish I can say that the characters are interesting enough to make up for the ruthless stupefaction feel of the story, but they are cookie cutter to the max. Whether it’s the motivations, glowering, character background, et cetera, Ryker and Elena and friends all appear to be cardboard cutouts purchased by the author and cut out to be placed into a generic story line made up of common new adult tropes.

Why can’t Elena be the bully for once, and Ryker the nerd that can’t make up his mind to pee in fright or ejaculate in excitement each time the alpha female looms over him? Why can’t he have a fetish of having his face sat upon by Elena’s thicc muscular booty?

Why must it always have to the same?

I know, I know, the tropes sell, or else these authors won’t keep churning out these things like AI gone wild. Still, it’d be nice to open a story and be excited once in a while, instead of just reading a few pages and can more or less guess what I will get in the coming pages.

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