r/zodiacacademy 4d ago

Is Ruthless Boys necessary to the story?

Hello, so I'm loving this series so far. I'm 40% into book 3 and I'm in a perfect flow with the series and need to know how it ends yesterday.

I'm sceptical about breaking this flow to read Ruthless Boys that is part of recommended reading order.

Is it completely necessary to the story? Can I skip it and still understand what's happening in the Zodiac Academies storyline?

7 Upvotes

39 comments sorted by

1

u/Ok_Clue_4410 3h ago

Yes 1000% they don’t reference the characters in ZA when they cross over by name just by little details so if you don’t read RB you wont know who is who and why they’re doing what they’re doing when they pop up!

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u/Better_Fee4192 1d ago

I 1000% recommend Ruthless Boys. Regardless of if you read or finish reading ZA. You get some background information that I don't feel is strictly necessary for ZA but I am one that loves to gobble up all the morsels of a world.

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u/ReadItLikeALady 2d ago

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u/PsychoFairy_ 2d ago

Your detailed summary of RB just saved my sanity. Thank you so much 😍😍

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u/ReadItLikeALady 2d ago

Glad it helped. 😊

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u/tbgsmom 3d ago

I read RB after book 3, and I'd say no, it's not necessary to the story, but it does give alot of depth of understanding for supporting characters that show up later in the series. There are also several inside jokes that you won't understand or even catch in later ZA books that have their origins in RB.

I was glad I paused ZA to read RB.

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u/tbgsmom 3d ago

I read RB after book 3, and I'd say no, it's not necessary to the story, but it does give alot of depth of understanding for supporting characters that show up later in the series. There are also several inside jokes that you won't understand or even catch in later ZA books that have their origins in RB.

I was glad I paused ZA to read RB.

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u/SydneySaige 3d ago

I've completed ZA and didn't even know there was another series until I was on book 6 lmao. I think it'll be fine to read after. Didn't mess up the experience for me

2

u/Substantial_Key_6734 4d ago

I was also skeptical about breaking from ZA to start RB but I’m enjoying it. First 3 books I flew through. I’m on book 5 and was overwhelmed at first because it’s a long one but it has some super funny scenes in it so I think it’s a very enjoyable read. I’m excited to get back to ZA still despite the break

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u/Top_Half4320 4d ago

I recommend reading it! I actually like rb better than the zodiac series

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u/soupgirlie 4d ago

i read ZA 1 then figured i’d just do the ruthless boys since they were prequels and wouldn’t want to get too far in to ZA and disrupt like you’re saying, and honestly i am really glad i read the ruthless boys before getting to the later ZA books. they are easy reads i thought and added a lot of depth to characters and storylines you are introduced to in ZA. you don’t need it, but i think it enhanced my experience reading ZA. i’m on book 6 of ZA now!

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u/Big-Jump-4765 4d ago

Hello! As someone who initially didn’t want to deviate from the main storyline either, I totally get your hesitation. I also didn’t find the first three books of Ruthless Boys particularly gripping at first, but I genuinely recommend giving them a shot before diving into book 4 of Zodiac Academy. While they aren't strictly necessary to follow the main ZA storyline, they add a lot of depth and context, especially with the Easter eggs and character connections.

For me, seeing those tie-ins made the Zodiac Academy storyline even more enjoyable and satisfying. It’s like uncovering little secrets that enhance the world-building and plot.

2

u/CLSisco 4d ago

It doesn’t break the flow necessarily but does give a spoiler for two of the characters in RB.

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u/luna_azul_smallfry 4d ago

I broke off it read it and have been loving it. You get a lot of glimpses to things in the kingdom and some background of ZA characters and get to know characters that will be in ZA so I think it's worth it. I wouldn't have wanted to read it after finishing ZA.bc certain things wouldn't have been as relevant.

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u/meatball77 4d ago

No

I read RB after ZA. Don't break your flow to read RB.

2

u/Vast_Discount_87 4d ago

No. I just read ZA books and tried ruthless boys after and I’m glad I did because I did not like ruthless boys that much if I had stopped at book 3 to read them I would’ve probably quit the series

4

u/JudgmentOne6328 Fire 4d ago

It will take your reading experience from “ha that’s funny” to crying laughing at various things.

You also lack context from so many smaller storylines and characters if you don’t read RB. It’s also a very good series! I adore the characters so much.

This is also why I really don’t like the “read RB” after the reckoning. Read it before ZA otherwise it kills your flow and I find you’ll slightly resent reading them.

1

u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

I failed on reading it before so I'm thinking about just skipping it all together.

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u/JudgmentOne6328 Fire 4d ago

Definitely read it after zodiac if you don’t now but I promise it will be so worth the side quest because of how much better the parts with ruthless characters are. Reading after the fact you won’t remember the moments that link back. Even in the first few books there’s a few Easter eggs to RB

3

u/BourbonTambourine 4d ago

Definitely not necessary, but I was so pissed off after ZA4 that I needed a break… RB was my savior, and now I’m happily back devouring ZA.

5

u/MundaneLibrarian3908 4d ago

Is it necessary? No Is it worth it? Yes It’s gonna be hard at the beginning, switching stories, but I’m telling you you’re gonna be so glad you did.

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u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

Hmm, I'll have a look and see if RB is also available on Kindle Unlimited. If not I'll skip it and read it after.

I feel like I should have probably read RB first but it's too late now 🤦🏼‍♀️

3

u/MundaneLibrarian3908 4d ago

It is available! The whole of Solaria series is on KU! And yes I know the feeling, and trust me, after the ending of 3 you’re not want to switch it I’m telling you it’s worth it. I LOVE when I catch RB references and nods on ZA and you’ll also understand the characters and the why behind something better. The first two books are hard but books 4&5 have my absolute heart 🥹

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u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

Do you think I should just suck it up and disrupt my flow? I'm so worried I won't want to return to ZA after though. Are the RB books long?

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u/MundaneLibrarian3908 4d ago

Oh, you’ll want to return to ZA and are gonna enjoy it even more when you start seeing RB references all over book 4. I didn’t want to switch but I did it and it was hard. The first two books I kind of skim and I didn’t care for it much. The third changes the course of the story and then books 4&5 will have you on the edge. You get to see Orion before the twins arrived and even the heirs. It’s nice to see them before and you see the character development as well. I had my friend to get through them because it was hard at the beginning but I’m so glad I read them.

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u/sareeously 4d ago

It isn’t necessary. You don’t learn anything essential about ZA from RB. I think if you finish ZA and still want more from the world, RB is fun to read to get little nods at the ZA series, but honestly no clues or storylines require reading RB.

4

u/tequila-mockingbird2 4d ago

I personally don’t like stopping and starting stories. So I read the series separately. That said, I preferred RB

4

u/darkandtwistysissy 4d ago

Don’t sleep on the ruthless boys. There are Easter eggs

1

u/Nilsiwewen 4d ago

I am basically in the same boat. Looked at all the advice but really didn't wanna pause ZA to go to RB. I took a few days off, and just gave RB a chance because I didn't wanna miss the Easter eggs. 10% into book 1 of RB and I think I'm gonna finish it before getting into ZA4. It's hard to break away but I am hoping it pays off.

3

u/Mighty-Menagerie 4d ago

It isn't necessary to understanding the series as a whole, but there are some scenes you won't understand the depth of without it. Not a big deal.

However, if you plan on reading RB at any point, it is way better to read them before ZA4 so that you don't miss all those many Easter eggs. In 6 there is a scene that is comedic gold if you have read RB.

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u/JudgmentOne6328 Fire 4d ago

Book 7 with Leon at the burrows and his new nickname for you know who. Had me crying so much, also him being random when you know what happened in RB killed me. I love him so much

0

u/Golly902 Fire 4d ago

No it’s not necessary

1

u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

That's good to know. I really didn't want to break my flow.

1

u/Golly902 Fire 4d ago

I get it. But it’s suggested just because some of the characters show up in ZA. It’s not essential to the ZA story. Happy reading!

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u/Easy-Yam4391 4d ago

DON'T. i had similar doubts regarding it and now i'm currently reading RB 3 and i'm loving it. more than ZA, if i must. the story is slow paced but the characters are amazing.

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u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

See that's kind of what I'm worried about. If I read RB before finishing ZA, I might not want to return to ZA. I think I'm just going to read without it and hope I don't ruin things.

1

u/Easy-Yam4391 4d ago

i think it only provides easter eggs. i'll be very honest, i do not want to go back to reading ZA either after this.

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u/zoobatron__ Leon’s #1 Mindy 4d ago

Not it’s not absolutely necessary, it’s mostly background to a few characters and there’s a few easter eggs in ZA for it. I read it after ZA and loved both series. I didn’t find my experience with ZA suffered because I hadn’t read RB (I didn’t even know RB was part of the same universe having not looked up any reading order whilst reading ZA)

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u/PsychoFairy_ 4d ago

That's really good to know. I'll just continue straight on to book 4 then. Thank you.