Woman not as cruel (8)
I believe the answer is:
ruthless
'cruel' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'woman not' is the wordplay.
'woman' becomes 'ruth' ().
'not' becomes 'less' (I've seen this in other clues).
'ruth'+'less'='RUTHLESS'
'as' is the link.
(Other definitions for ruthless that I've seen before include "Unmerciful" , "Hard-hearted" , "Without pity or compassion" , "Unsparing" , "Lacking pity or mercy" .)