Blood Sugar

Ruby Simon has a secret. On the outside, she’s a happily married Yale graduate, a successful psychologist, and an animal lover. On the inside, she’s a serial killer. Of course, her victims were all detestable, maybe even dangerous; if Ruby only kills degenerates, she can’t possibly be one herself. When her husband dies, however, Ruby’s proximity to so much death is finally called into question. Will a tragic accident finally reveal her true nature? In her fiction debut, Rothchild has cleverly constructed a protagonist that is equal parts sympathetic and cold. Narrator Allyson Ryan’s impassive, almost annoyed, tone is such a stark contrast to the compelling story that it serves to unsettle listeners almost as much as the murders themselves. Through this first-person point of view, Ryan becomes Ruby herself, nonchalantly recounting her criminal past. Short chapters with cliffhanger endings enhance the suspenseful tone and shocking twists.