Ruta Pawlak is one of the most successful contract killers Pier-Upon-Pier City has ever seen. Convicted of five murders that landed her multiple life sentences, her kill count allegedly sits between fifteen and two hundred people. Some were just for practice, others for revenge, and others she executed for money to keep her potentially world-record setting reading collection going.
For the first time, a biographer sits down with the legendary killer to hear her story in her own words. Get the details on her relationship with her depraved bosses and her eclectic arsenal of murder weapons from ice magic to poison to even the sun itself. From her impoverished upbringing to her introduction to the Syndicates to her bizarre affair with fellow killer Frieda Masters to Ruta’s eventual downfall, this account goes beyond headlines and court proceedings, weaving a story of love, family, survival, and murder.
"My warped sense of morality embarrasses me."
Ladz's Ice Upon a Pier is a sparse novella chronicling the life of a sapphic contract killer with ice powers. The narration jumps from past to present as she recounts her first kills, her romance with a fellow assassin, and how she eventually ended up in prison. She's unapologetic in her stories, with a caustic tone that works well, and ends up being very sympathetic, given her backstory and her self-imposed rules.
The worldbuilding is truly minimal, but this is a nice palate cleanser, a story with a noir feel and an Interview with the Vampire vibe. Coincidentally, vampires do exist in this world where crime syndicates make war on one another, and one makes an appearance. One gets the feeling that a sequel could be in the works, but the story is perfectly self-contained.
Ice Upon a Pier is a compact novella.
✨ 3.5 stars
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