The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom (review)

Seventeen-year-old Gwen is faced with two choices after her diplomat father disappears: accept the fact that he was a spy and sneak away to rescue him, wherever he is, or ignore all evidence and move in with her loving aunt. It wouldn’t be a good movie-ready plot if she picked the latter, so off Gwen goes, diving with gusto into various fake identities as she prowls through Europe, seeking clues and becoming an increasingly dark person as the situation requires more of her. While it’s not much of a shock that Gwen will push through any obstacle to get her dad back, it’s still a gasp-worthy moment when she steps from assault to actual killing. Bergstrom also doesn’t shy away from examining the lasting toll this experience will have on the solemn but still hopeful teen, who is now a murderer in permanent hiding with a dad who lied to her for seventeen years. Gender issues are somewhat fraught here—for instance, Gwen’s toughening up is weirdly tied to her slimming down and becoming even more gorgeous and sexually desirable—but the heart-pounding pace will largely keep those issues from sticking, and there’s no denying that Gwen’s a hardcore heroine.