The Book:
Real Easy by Marie Rutkoski
Published January 18th 2022 by Henry Holt and Co.
Date read: January 12th 2022
The Characters:
Samantha
Georgia
Holly
Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon
The Plot (from Goodreads):
It’s 1999 and Samantha has danced for years at the Lovely Lady strip club. She’s not used to mixing work and friendship―after all, between her jealous boyfriend and his young daughter, she has enough on her plate. But the newest dancer is so clueless that Samantha feels compelled to help her learn the hustle and drama of the club: how to sweet-talk the boss, fit in with the other women, and make good money. One night, when the new girl needs a ride home, Samantha agrees to drive: a simple decision that turns deadly.
Georgia, another dancer drawn into the ensuing murder and missing person investigation, gathers information for Holly, a grieving detective determined to solve the case. Georgia just wants to help, but her involvement makes her a target. As Holly and Georgia round up their suspects, the story’s point of view shifts between dancers, detectives, children, club patrons―and the killer.
Drawing on her experience as a former dancer, Marie Rutkoski immerses us in the captivating world of the club, which comes alive with complicated people trying their best to protect themselves and those they love. Character-driven and masterfully plotted, Real Easy gets to the heart of the timeless question: How do women live their lives knowing that men can hurt them?
The Ending:
Samantha is dead. Dale, the strip club owner, was the killer. He had a secret exit behind the strip club, so he could sneak out while they thought he was up in his office. Gigi found out and went to search his office for proof–he had been hiding his trophies in his fishtank.
Dale finds Gigi searching her office. Gigi had called Holly just before she went back to the club, but Holly didn’t answer. Since Gigi had saved Holly in her phone as “Mom”, Dale didn’t realize that she had alerted the police. He put her in the basement to take care of her later, but Holly finds Gigi in time.
The Review:
Thank you to the publisher for a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
I loved this book, and then I realized it was based on the author’s real-life experiences and that just made me love it even more.
Real Easy was unlike anything else I’ve read recently. Sex workers and erotic dancers are often used as the victims in the thrillers and crime procedurals I love, but they’re rarely the main characters. I loved how Real Easy helped to humanize these women, showing them as real people just in need of some money instead of victims who life has chewed up and spit out.
The strip club angle made this thriller feel fresh. I’m always looking for an out-of-the-box thriller. I love this genre, but when I read too many the plots certainly get a little stale. Thank you to MR for bringing me out of my recent thriller rut!
I enjoyed the rapidly changing POVs, although it does take a few chapters to get a hold of the characters and who’s who. The author mentioned that she really tried to give each perspective a purpose: when the POV changes, it’s for a specific reason to advance the plot, not just to give that character some air time. She certainly achieved this, and it made the story fast-paced and captivating.
I do wish we got to know more about Samantha. I really liked her character at the beginning of the book, but she goes missing within the first few pages. The author did a good job of making the reader care about her through other perspectives, though.
I’m so glad I listened to the audio of Real Easy. The narration drew me in and made me feel like I was right in the middle of the story, and it made an afternoon of chores and laundry fly by. I was able to speed the book up a bit–my favorite way to listen–thanks to clear, annunciated narration.
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