Finally Friday! I love a good heist novel and Elizabeth Kaufman’s Ruth Run delivers.
Ruth is a microchip designer who discovers a flaw in a chip and exploits it to steal millions from large banks. Ruth goes on the run when her scheme is discovered. She’s being chased by government agents who think she’s either a national security threat or a potential intelligence asset. When she stumbles into a possible terrorism plot, the stakes get even higher. Here’s the full summary:
Twenty-six-year-old Ruth excels at microchip design but decides to get rich the old-fashioned way: robbing banks. She becomes a cybercriminal and devotes five years to siphoning more than $250 million out of the banking system using a hacked firewall chip that she created and only she knows how to access. Then one night an alarm goes off and she realizes she’s been discovered.
Five hours later she’s on the run, chased across California and the West by a slew of government agents who see her as both a high-level national security threat and a potential intelligence asset. They’ll catch her dead or alive—whatever it takes to make sure no one else discovers what she knows. Each of these men is obsessed with the woman he’s hunting, certain he knows what makes her tick. But Ruth, always a step ahead, armed with her ironic wit and a reluctant dog, eludes their understanding; can she elude their capture, too?
I really enjoyed this thriller. Ruth is a smart and savvy morally gray main character. I was rooting for her all the way. Just when the government agents think they have her all figured out, she outmaneuvers them. The pace of the plot was like a roller coaster ride. Breakneck one minute and then a slight slow down allowing Ruth and the reader to catch a breath before ramping up again. The story is told from dual POV- Ruth and Mike, the main government agent tracking her. Mike has his own creepy agenda for Ruth beyond apprehending a criminal.
This is a really well done debut novel that delivers a contemporary take on a bank heist. It had plenty of twists to keep me on the edge of my seat. Elizabeth Kaufman has found a new fan in me and I’m looking forward to seeing what she does next.
If you were planning the perfect bank heist, what would be your number one rule?
About the Author
Elizabeth Kaufman had a career in data networking, specializing in network security products and architectures. She now lives in rural northern Colorado.
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