Call number
FIC SMI
Collections
Genres
Publication
Knopf (2022), 224 pages
Description
"From the beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning and best-selling author: a rollicking murder mystery set in Gold Rush California, as two young prostitutes follow a trail of missing girls. Monterey, 1851. Ever since her husband was killed in a bar fight, Eliza Ripple has been working in a brothel. It seems like a better life, at least at first. The madam, Mrs. Parks, is kind, the men are (relatively) well behaved, and Eliza has attained what few women have: financial security. But when the dead bodies of young women start appearing outside of town, a darkness descends that she can't resist confronting. Side by side with her friend Jean, and inspired by her reading, especially by Edgar Allan Poe's detective, Dupin, Eliza pieces together an array of clues to try to catch the killer, all the while juggling clients who begin to seem more and more suspicious. Eliza and Jean are determined not just to survive but to find their way in a lawless town on the fringes of the Wild West-a bewitching combination of beauty and danger-as what will become the Civil War looms on the horizon. As Mrs. Parks says, 'Everyone knows that this is a dangerous business, but between you and me, being a woman is a dangerous business, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise . . . '"--… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member bfister
A young widow who has found a comfortable way of making a living in a well-run and not-too-demanding brothel in mid-19th century California, works with her friend to find out who has been killing women and getting away with murder because really, who cares? Inspired by Poe's Dupin, they rely on
I have mixed feelings about this novel. There are some aspects of it as historical fiction that I enjoyed - the setting is quite interesting, and the protagonist is often interesting company in her observations. The pace, considering the subject matter, is leisurely and ... oh, look, a butterfly.
Sometimes crime fiction has serious literary chops, and sometimes a historical mystery pays more attention to history than mystery, and that can be fine. (Consider Naomi Hirohara's Clark and Division, a decent mystery that gracefully took a backseat to the work of vividly recreating a time and place.) But somehow the parts of this novel didn't sit easily together for me, and the history itself seemed sometimes to be experienced by a twenty-first century time traveler. At any rate, I enjoyed it, somewhat, but felt overall dissatisfied, perhaps because I expected something more substantial from the author, even if it the mystery element were not front and center.
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logic and observation to crack the case.I have mixed feelings about this novel. There are some aspects of it as historical fiction that I enjoyed - the setting is quite interesting, and the protagonist is often interesting company in her observations. The pace, considering the subject matter, is leisurely and ... oh, look, a butterfly.
Sometimes crime fiction has serious literary chops, and sometimes a historical mystery pays more attention to history than mystery, and that can be fine. (Consider Naomi Hirohara's Clark and Division, a decent mystery that gracefully took a backseat to the work of vividly recreating a time and place.) But somehow the parts of this novel didn't sit easily together for me, and the history itself seemed sometimes to be experienced by a twenty-first century time traveler. At any rate, I enjoyed it, somewhat, but felt overall dissatisfied, perhaps because I expected something more substantial from the author, even if it the mystery element were not front and center.
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LibraryThing member jillrhudy
A completely unique western with prostitutes and a serial killer. Again. Here's the twist: two working girls in Gold Rush era California (one in a brothel serving only women) are the potential prey, and also the detectives! Everything about this book is solid, from the characterization, to the
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women's friendship, to the dialog, to the western setting. The depiction of brothels is also like nothing I have ever read and decidedly unsexy–all business, all sheer survival.. Besides being in my favorite westerns list along with "Lonesome Dove" and "The Sisters Brothers," this novel is one of my favorites of 2023 already and 2023 isn't even here yet. Show Less
LibraryThing member ozzer
Jane Smiley clearly loves Monterey County, California. These feelings partially redeem this otherwise disappointing novel. She paints the picture of a temperate peninsula, replete with a beautiful harbor, gently rolling hills and seemingly endless untrodden backcountry. It’s an environment
With this in mind, readers might forgive Smiley for some obvious historical blunders. Outside of Miss Kitty’s “Long Branch” in Dodge City, it is unlikely that the West saw many brothels like Mrs. Parks’ (i.e., clean, safe, and run by a protective madam who acknowledges that “being a woman is a dangerous business.”) At the time, Monterey was recently emerging from a Spanish culture; yet the novel has only one Hispanic character and he is a little too nice to be believed. The Western genre in fiction admittedly comes with many inaccuracies, but Smiley challenges it further with a feminist focus that fails to capture a realistic view of women on the frontier. Clearly, women were coerced, dismissed, ignored, and threatened in the old West. But it is unlikely that two appealing female sidekicks ever roamed the range on horseback looking for danger and adventure, as repeatedly transpired in the male version of that tired literary trope.
The plot centers on the relationship between two young prostitutes. Eliza Ripple is a naïve late teen, who takes to the profession almost casually following the violent death of her husband. This guy was not very likeable and thus not missed by anyone, including Eliza. Likewise, her backstory consists of a grim life with Christian fundamentalist parents, so she sees her new-found freedom in a Monterey brothel as a blessing. Jean MacPherson is her partner. She is a bold gender-bender who works at a women’s only brothel in town with the haunting name of “The Pearly Gates.” Smiley stretches credulity with Jean, but her worldliness and sense of adventure serve as the primary plot mover in the novel.
The two women begin the investigation of a series of unsolved prostitute murders. This Nancy Drew touch fails to drive the narrative, however. Neither the suspects nor the victims leap off the page. No one in town seems to care. The misleading clues Smiley leaves around are unconvincing. The characters’ motivations are unclear. The young women spend far too much time just roaming around, planning to meet, and chasing pointless clues. The narrative lacks suspense because the women face little risk. And the ending seems rushed. Apart from Smiley’s loving depiction of the setting and her touching feminist focus, the story lacks urgency and has too much wrong with it to be considered among her better offerings.
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characterized not only by fog, wind, and rain, but also by abundant gentle sunlight, not unlike Monet’s Provence. Moreover, she imagines all of this in abundant detail during a most interesting time. The Gold Rush is on, unrest due to the slavery question looms, and the Westward expansion of America seems inevitable. Smiley gives the reader a gritty boomtown, complete with unpaved streets with evocative names, plenty of horseflesh, banks, saloons, and especially brothels. Indeed, this was a time when Monterey was a magnet for sailors, con men, and fortune seekers, so places where they could do their “business” were essential. With this in mind, readers might forgive Smiley for some obvious historical blunders. Outside of Miss Kitty’s “Long Branch” in Dodge City, it is unlikely that the West saw many brothels like Mrs. Parks’ (i.e., clean, safe, and run by a protective madam who acknowledges that “being a woman is a dangerous business.”) At the time, Monterey was recently emerging from a Spanish culture; yet the novel has only one Hispanic character and he is a little too nice to be believed. The Western genre in fiction admittedly comes with many inaccuracies, but Smiley challenges it further with a feminist focus that fails to capture a realistic view of women on the frontier. Clearly, women were coerced, dismissed, ignored, and threatened in the old West. But it is unlikely that two appealing female sidekicks ever roamed the range on horseback looking for danger and adventure, as repeatedly transpired in the male version of that tired literary trope.
The plot centers on the relationship between two young prostitutes. Eliza Ripple is a naïve late teen, who takes to the profession almost casually following the violent death of her husband. This guy was not very likeable and thus not missed by anyone, including Eliza. Likewise, her backstory consists of a grim life with Christian fundamentalist parents, so she sees her new-found freedom in a Monterey brothel as a blessing. Jean MacPherson is her partner. She is a bold gender-bender who works at a women’s only brothel in town with the haunting name of “The Pearly Gates.” Smiley stretches credulity with Jean, but her worldliness and sense of adventure serve as the primary plot mover in the novel.
The two women begin the investigation of a series of unsolved prostitute murders. This Nancy Drew touch fails to drive the narrative, however. Neither the suspects nor the victims leap off the page. No one in town seems to care. The misleading clues Smiley leaves around are unconvincing. The characters’ motivations are unclear. The young women spend far too much time just roaming around, planning to meet, and chasing pointless clues. The narrative lacks suspense because the women face little risk. And the ending seems rushed. Apart from Smiley’s loving depiction of the setting and her touching feminist focus, the story lacks urgency and has too much wrong with it to be considered among her better offerings.
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LibraryThing member nancyadair
Between you and me, being a woman is a dangerous business, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
from A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
Eliza Ripple’s husband died and it didn’t bother her a bit. He seemed nice enough back in Kalamazoo, before he took her across the country to Monterey and
Eliza’s husband forced her to have an abortion before he was shot in the saloon, so Eliza was left alone in a strange place and needed to support herself. Luckily, Mrs. Parker had a job for her. In her brothel.
Still, Eliza was better off there than she ever was with Peter, for Mrs. Parker had a maternal bent and ran a clean and safe house. Eliza was freer than she ever was at home with her Covenanter family or with her husband who locked her up.
Eliza made friends with Jean, who worked at a different kind of business, servicing lonely women who just wanted a moment of affection. They shared an interest in books, especially the thrilling, new stories by Edgar Allan Poe. Eliza studied the detective Dupin who used logic and observation to solve mysterious deaths.
Women were disappearing from town, The police didn’t seem to care. After Eliza and Jean discover a woman’s body they commit to seeking justice for these women, observing the men who came to town, following the trails, and noting clues.
When the first of “the girls” disappeared, no one thought a thing of it.
from A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
I spend through this novel in a day.
I loved how Smiley brought in the political and social history of a divisive time in America, split over slavery, Native Americans reduced to ghosts haunting the landscape. It was a time of religious extremism. Children leaft their homes in Michigan and New York and New England for new opportunities in the West. Eliza’s customers include sailors and men trying to build ranches and farms.
The dangers of being female were multiple. Men might get themselves killed in a saloon fight, or lose their life in hazardous jobs, but women had no political power, no power in their own homes, no power over their own bodies.
I also loved how the girls’ reading the literature of the time figures into the story.
It’s a fast reading, entertaining story, with a mystery at it’s center. It’s revealing historical fiction and a feminist statement. Eliza’s descriptions of all her customers may, on the surface, seem extraneous, yet Eliza meets all kinds of men and gains a deep understanding of human nature. At the end, we are sure she is going to thrive.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
from A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
Eliza Ripple’s husband died and it didn’t bother her a bit. He seemed nice enough back in Kalamazoo, before he took her across the country to Monterey and
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exerted complete control over her. Her parents pushed her into marriage with him; he presented himself as well off, and Eliza was in love with an Irish laborer. She was eighteen to his thirty-eight but Eliza’s parents sure didn’t want her marrying a penniless Irish Catholic.Eliza’s husband forced her to have an abortion before he was shot in the saloon, so Eliza was left alone in a strange place and needed to support herself. Luckily, Mrs. Parker had a job for her. In her brothel.
Still, Eliza was better off there than she ever was with Peter, for Mrs. Parker had a maternal bent and ran a clean and safe house. Eliza was freer than she ever was at home with her Covenanter family or with her husband who locked her up.
Eliza made friends with Jean, who worked at a different kind of business, servicing lonely women who just wanted a moment of affection. They shared an interest in books, especially the thrilling, new stories by Edgar Allan Poe. Eliza studied the detective Dupin who used logic and observation to solve mysterious deaths.
Women were disappearing from town, The police didn’t seem to care. After Eliza and Jean discover a woman’s body they commit to seeking justice for these women, observing the men who came to town, following the trails, and noting clues.
When the first of “the girls” disappeared, no one thought a thing of it.
from A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
I spend through this novel in a day.
I loved how Smiley brought in the political and social history of a divisive time in America, split over slavery, Native Americans reduced to ghosts haunting the landscape. It was a time of religious extremism. Children leaft their homes in Michigan and New York and New England for new opportunities in the West. Eliza’s customers include sailors and men trying to build ranches and farms.
The dangers of being female were multiple. Men might get themselves killed in a saloon fight, or lose their life in hazardous jobs, but women had no political power, no power in their own homes, no power over their own bodies.
I also loved how the girls’ reading the literature of the time figures into the story.
It’s a fast reading, entertaining story, with a mystery at it’s center. It’s revealing historical fiction and a feminist statement. Eliza’s descriptions of all her customers may, on the surface, seem extraneous, yet Eliza meets all kinds of men and gains a deep understanding of human nature. At the end, we are sure she is going to thrive.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
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LibraryThing member andsoitgoes
I think Jane Smiley was taking a nap when she wrote this one.
LibraryThing member sleahey
In lawless Monterey CA of the 1850's, life was not easy for young widow Eliza, but she has made the best of her situation by working in a brothel run by a benevolent proprietor. Eliza hears about young prostitutes going missing, but no one else, including the sheriff, seems to care enough to find
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out their fate. With her new friend Jean, Eliza determines to follow the example of Dupin, Poe's detective, to solve the disappearances and murders, but in the process she becomes suspicious of many of her clients. This historical mystery struck me as somewhat slow-starting, but the setting and development of the character of Eliza propelled the plot forward. Show Less
LibraryThing member browner56
It is the early 1850s and the town of Monterey, California is beginning to see a steady influx of people seeking their fortune in myriad ways, whether through prospecting, ranching, or maritime activities. We meet Eliza Ripple, a young woman who has escaped her abusive marriage through the untimely
In A Dangerous Business, author Jane Smiley offers the reader a book that can be read in several ways: it can be viewed as historical fiction that recreates a time and place long in the past, it is a tender portrait of a few years in the life a woman coming to age under some trying circumstances, and it is a murder mystery told in the gentlest of manners. While the descriptions of the northern California coast circa 170 years ago were compelling, it is the mystery angle in the novel that is particularly engaging. In a clever sub-plot, Eliza, an avid reader herself, discovers the work of Edgar Allan Poe and becomes obsessed with the sleuthing abilities of C. A. Dupin, literature’s original detective, in the story “Murders in the Rue Morgue”, which involves figuring out who committed the gruesome killing of two women. So, Smiley gives us the “meta” experience of reading a story in which the main characters are informed by the actions of a character in another story that they themselves are reading!
Overall, I found this book to be interesting and enjoyable, but not without its flaws. The tale itself is nicely structured and it is certainly well written for the most part. Although the reader gets to know Eliza and Jean quite well throughout the brief story, many of the supporting characters—particularly the men who become Eliza’s clients—are underdeveloped and serve mainly as props to move the plot along. Also, the supernatural storyline involving spectral sightings was set up at some length, but then dropped altogether before the ending; this may have been intended as another nod toward the gothic themes in Poe’s work, but the payoff here never arrived. Finally, the resolution of the mystery is something of an anticlimax for its lack of surprise, thrills, or chills. Nevertheless, A Dangerous Business is a pleasant diversion and a book that I can happily recommend.
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death of her husband a few months earlier. Estranged from her overbearing parents back in Michigan, Eliza turns to prostitution as a means of survival. Despite the odds against it, she seems to thrive in that oldest of professions and makes some new friends along the way, including Jean, who works in a brothel catering to a female clientele and has the ability to see ghosts. When several of their industry colleagues are murdered, Eliza and Jean take it upon themselves to find the killer before they also become victims. How the friends go about solving the crimes constitutes the dramatic tension in the story. In A Dangerous Business, author Jane Smiley offers the reader a book that can be read in several ways: it can be viewed as historical fiction that recreates a time and place long in the past, it is a tender portrait of a few years in the life a woman coming to age under some trying circumstances, and it is a murder mystery told in the gentlest of manners. While the descriptions of the northern California coast circa 170 years ago were compelling, it is the mystery angle in the novel that is particularly engaging. In a clever sub-plot, Eliza, an avid reader herself, discovers the work of Edgar Allan Poe and becomes obsessed with the sleuthing abilities of C. A. Dupin, literature’s original detective, in the story “Murders in the Rue Morgue”, which involves figuring out who committed the gruesome killing of two women. So, Smiley gives us the “meta” experience of reading a story in which the main characters are informed by the actions of a character in another story that they themselves are reading!
Overall, I found this book to be interesting and enjoyable, but not without its flaws. The tale itself is nicely structured and it is certainly well written for the most part. Although the reader gets to know Eliza and Jean quite well throughout the brief story, many of the supporting characters—particularly the men who become Eliza’s clients—are underdeveloped and serve mainly as props to move the plot along. Also, the supernatural storyline involving spectral sightings was set up at some length, but then dropped altogether before the ending; this may have been intended as another nod toward the gothic themes in Poe’s work, but the payoff here never arrived. Finally, the resolution of the mystery is something of an anticlimax for its lack of surprise, thrills, or chills. Nevertheless, A Dangerous Business is a pleasant diversion and a book that I can happily recommend.
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LibraryThing member froxgirl
Jane Smiley writes on such varied topics and scenarios, from ancient Greenland to modern Hollywood, that it isn't surprising to find her in 1850s Monterey, CA, telling the story of Eliza, a young and impoverished widow who is forced to find work in a brothel. When other women start disappearing,
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she and friend Jean, who works in another house of prostitution for women, take their cues from the newly published Edgar Allen Poe and start investigating, as the local constabulary views the victims as discardable. Although Monterey is a fascinating setting, seemingly more liberal and open, with very few churches, it is still not safe for even married women, as the amateur detectives discover. Eliza's language is one of the joys of the novel, as she describes her mundane work in pre-feminist, down-to-earth terms, voicing her impressions of the sailors, young initiates, and businessmen who share her bed. There are a few loose threads, but the resolution to the crimes is satisfying, and Eliza will no doubt make a better life for herself. Show Less
LibraryThing member pdebolt
This novel takes place in California in the1850s where Eliza is a prostitute in a brothel run by Mrs. Parks. Eliza and her friend, Jean, are determined to find the person responsible for the murdered women they find. The title refers to Mrs. Parks' reference to life being a dangerous business for
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women. The book meanders quite a bit, and the women's discoveries of the bodies is not quite believable. I do like Jane Smiley's other books, but this one wasn't what I had hoped. The element of mystery is sorely lacking as the book progresses through many (way too many) encounters with Eliza's customers. Show Less
LibraryThing member quondame
Eliza becomes one of Mrs. Park's girls when her very much unwanted husband is shot a few months after their arrival in Monterey in the early 1850s. Not many months later a girl disappears, then another. It is when she and her lone friend Jane find a body that the two decide to learn as much as they
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can. A well put together story, well paced and taking every advantage of its setting, it's only that Eliza is, barring her bad marriage and subsequent need, remarkably lucky in her opportunities. A plus is that Eliza is a very pleasant viewpoint character to stay with through the story. Show Less
LibraryThing member Hccpsk
Monterey, California was not an easy place to be in the 1850s — and nearly impossible as a single woman. When Eliza’s husband dies, she turns to prostitution in Mrs. Parks' house as a way to fend for herself and live on her own terms. In Jane Smiley’s new short novel, A Dangerous Business,
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Eliza navigates this difficult world trying to make friends and figure out who is killing women in the town. Smiley gives readers a very interesting and well-written character, and the details about Monterey in the 1850s bring the small town alive. There is a lot of time spent describing her customers and their encounters, but it always felt very real and helped mold Eliza’s character. The book ends a bit abruptly, and I would not call it a page-turner, but readers who enjoy historical fiction and glimpses of women’s lives out west during the Gold Rush will enjoy this novel. Show Less
LibraryThing member MarthaHuntley
Excellent novel. Eliza from Kalamazoo, MI is hustled into marriage at 18 with a suitor who presents himself as respectable and well to do and quickly hustles her off to Monterey, CA. He turns out to be a brute and a hard drinker who gives Eliza no affection, love, or respect - often locking her in
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a room or the house, and mostly using her as a servant and for hard sex. Eliza mostly feels relief when he is shot in a barroom brawl. But she has to find a means to support herself. It is 1852 and opportunities for women's labor are few and far between. Mrs. Parks runs a clean brothel and invites Eliza to join her girls. Though prostitution is a dangerous business, Mrs. Parks does her best to provide her girls protection with a bouncer who is effective and also kind and respectful of the ladies who work there. But as Mrs. Parks remarks, "Being a woman is a dangerous business." Eliza settles in, enjoying her independence and making a good friend in a worker from a brothel for ladies, Jean. Then several ladies of the night start disappearing. Eliza and Jean seem to be the only people in town who care what has happened to them. Being Edgar Allen Poe fans, they take lessons from his stories in what might have happened and how to investigate these cases. Excellent story, wonderful characters, wonderful sense of place and the times. Show Less
LibraryThing member Gwendydd
This is so bad.
It tells the story of Eliza, a young woman from the Midwest who moves with her abusive husband to Monterey, California. He is murdered, so she has no choice but to work in a brothel. Several women go missing and are found murdered, and the law officials don't care, so Eliza sets out
First of all, the book makes prostitution in a gold rush town seem safe, fun, and profitable - the descriptions sound more like nightly blind dates. Smiley uses the same words over and over: brothels are always "establishments" and sex is always "doing his business" - those phrases get repeated ad nauseam.
Eliza's investigation barely counts as an investigation. She just happens to see the right combination of events and meet the right combination of people to put the pieces together, and even then she gets it wrong. The "investigation" takes many months.
Eliza has the help of a friend who is a seamstress and lesbian and apparently runs a brothel for lesbians? And no one objects to this, or to her frequent cross-dressing?
In the first part of the book, there is a lot of focus on ghosts and mediums, but that whole thread gets dropped in the second half of the book.
Despite the fact that this is a novel where multiple prostitutes are murdered, it feels like Smiley is trying to write a book where nothing bad happens: prostitutes are safe and enjoy their work and get to go on pleasant dates with their clients, lesbianism is totally understood and accepted, and everybody gets a happy ending.
It tells the story of Eliza, a young woman from the Midwest who moves with her abusive husband to Monterey, California. He is murdered, so she has no choice but to work in a brothel. Several women go missing and are found murdered, and the law officials don't care, so Eliza sets out
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to solve the murders herself, with the help of a friend.First of all, the book makes prostitution in a gold rush town seem safe, fun, and profitable - the descriptions sound more like nightly blind dates. Smiley uses the same words over and over: brothels are always "establishments" and sex is always "doing his business" - those phrases get repeated ad nauseam.
Eliza's investigation barely counts as an investigation. She just happens to see the right combination of events and meet the right combination of people to put the pieces together, and even then she gets it wrong. The "investigation" takes many months.
Eliza has the help of a friend who is a seamstress and lesbian and apparently runs a brothel for lesbians? And no one objects to this, or to her frequent cross-dressing?
In the first part of the book, there is a lot of focus on ghosts and mediums, but that whole thread gets dropped in the second half of the book.
Despite the fact that this is a novel where multiple prostitutes are murdered, it feels like Smiley is trying to write a book where nothing bad happens: prostitutes are safe and enjoy their work and get to go on pleasant dates with their clients, lesbianism is totally understood and accepted, and everybody gets a happy ending.
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LibraryThing member nivramkoorb
I have read many books by Jane Smiley and some of them such as "Moo" rank among my favorites. This book was a major disappointment. It takes place in Monterey,Ca in 1851. Eliza is a 20 year old woman whose abusive older husband was killed in a bar fight and she is left having to turn to
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prostitution to make a living. She and another prostitute discover a dead young woman and then other killings occur. The authorities do nothing so they go about trying to solve the crime. The premise seemed okay but the book was tedious and there was no real mystery. Most of the book consisted of dry descriptions of Eliza's daily life walking around town and servicing clients. Smiley made prostitution to be the best job in the world with little of no danger. Jean the other prostitute was probably a lesbian and it seems unlikely that her life was been as accepted as it was. Yes, there were some historical references to slavery and you did see how hard it was for women, but I think we knew this already. Forget this book and read "Moo" by Smiley. A very funny and creative book. Smiley has written some great books but she struck out on this one. Show Less
LibraryThing member elkiedee
In Monterey, California in 1852, Eliza Ripple is a young woman taking the chance to make a life for herself after her husband was killed in a bar fight. She takes up an offer to work for Mrs Parks, who turns out to be the owner of a brothel. However, the title is perhaps not referring to Eliza's
This is not the most grittily realistic historical novel, but I am not sure it is setting out to be. I thought it was quite an enjoyable and entertaining lightweight story in which an apparently young innocent woman uses her wits and what she has read in novels to navigate her way through the dangerous business of being a young woman in a rather lawless town, a few years after the gold rush. No easy money here, but lots of travellers and chancers, including Eliza and her new friend Jean, who works at another establishment down the road. Young women are being murdered and Eliza and Jean set out to find out why.
The murder mystery plot is insubstantial. I enjoyed the book as a lightweight adventure story. Through her career, Jane Smiley has written books which played with various genre conventions, and in this she offers an alternative take on the options for 19th century women and on historical Westerns.
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new profession - according to her new boss, it is just being a woman that is "a dangerous business". Mrs Parks turns out to be relatively benign boss, trying to combine making some money with providing better, safer working conditions than the average madam.This is not the most grittily realistic historical novel, but I am not sure it is setting out to be. I thought it was quite an enjoyable and entertaining lightweight story in which an apparently young innocent woman uses her wits and what she has read in novels to navigate her way through the dangerous business of being a young woman in a rather lawless town, a few years after the gold rush. No easy money here, but lots of travellers and chancers, including Eliza and her new friend Jean, who works at another establishment down the road. Young women are being murdered and Eliza and Jean set out to find out why.
The murder mystery plot is insubstantial. I enjoyed the book as a lightweight adventure story. Through her career, Jane Smiley has written books which played with various genre conventions, and in this she offers an alternative take on the options for 19th century women and on historical Westerns.
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LibraryThing member KallieGrace
A murder mystery set in gold rush California involving local prostitutes - and one of them is from the town where I work in the midwest. This was a little light on mystery and a little heavy on the business of prostitution, but the characters were great fun to follow, and it isn't a long book. I
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really don't know how they kept stumbling on the bodies of the murdered girls, but that sure was convenient. Show Less
LibraryThing member nx74defiant
Surprisingly light and breezy. Eliza and her friend Jane are investigating the disappearances of women in their area. There investigation is composed of reading Poe's mystery stories and wandering around town. They stumble upon two bodies. Eliza is sure that several different new men are the
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killer. Jane believes in ghosts. No one has any problems with Jane working at a brothel for women and her cross dressing. Show Less
LibraryThing member noblechicken
A promising premise for sure. Gold Rush California and a widowed prostitute, Eliza, and her friend decide to find out who is murdering women after being inspired by the works of E.A. Poe.
Should be interesting, right? Nope. Boring.
The whole novel spins in this average routine: Eliza takes in a
Bloated and tedious.
Should be interesting, right? Nope. Boring.
The whole novel spins in this average routine: Eliza takes in a
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gentlemen at the brothel, describes the event, then goes and finds a dead body with her friend in the woods. Eliza talks about mud and footprints a lot, follows some people around, takes in another gentleman at the brothel, describes prick and maybe they are a suspect. Then she eats food and walks around some more. No tension, no air of mystery, or feeling they are in danger. I feel like this could have been a short story but Smiley and her publisher wanted it blow up to fulfill some sort of contractual obligation. Bloated and tedious.
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LibraryThing member DrApple
When her husband dies in a bar fight in Monterey, Eliza turns to prostitution to support herself. She makes a friend in Jean who works in a house catering to women customers. The two women begin to investigate the murder of several women who were in the same trade that they are. The dangerous
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business in the title is not prostitution in the old west or investigating a murder, It is sinmply being a woman. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookwyrmm
A very well-written historical mystery that is more character-driven than suspense-driven.
Awards
LibraryReads (Monthly Pick — Hall of Fame — December 2022)
Pages
224
ISBN
0525520333 / 9780525520337
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