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A review by scizzors
Small Deaths by Rijula Das
4.0
This book is like nothing I've ever read before.
Intimate and striking, this novel follows several characters as they react to the death of a sex worker. Using switching pov chapters to depict the way in which the world around the Blue Lotus brothel reacts to the horrific crime. We are shown how corruption festers within the police force and the sex industry, exploration coming from both bad actors and people who the main characters trust to protect them.
This is a beautifully sympathetic portrayal of sex workers and their struggles. Arguing strongly that they deserve the same safety as any other type of work and showcasing how criminalisation, demonisation and a lack of safety precautions is a death sentence rather than a saving grace for the industry.
This novel is an unflinching portrayal of the horrors and injustice that sex workers face when their work is kept to the dark sides of society. If you are at all interested in the intricacies of the sex industry debate this novel is essential reading.
(Trigger warnings for this novel include: sex trafficking, abuse, childhood sexual abuse, rape, misogyny, gaslighting, coercion, and police misconduct/brutality.)
Intimate and striking, this novel follows several characters as they react to the death of a sex worker. Using switching pov chapters to depict the way in which the world around the Blue Lotus brothel reacts to the horrific crime. We are shown how corruption festers within the police force and the sex industry, exploration coming from both bad actors and people who the main characters trust to protect them.
This is a beautifully sympathetic portrayal of sex workers and their struggles. Arguing strongly that they deserve the same safety as any other type of work and showcasing how criminalisation, demonisation and a lack of safety precautions is a death sentence rather than a saving grace for the industry.
This novel is an unflinching portrayal of the horrors and injustice that sex workers face when their work is kept to the dark sides of society. If you are at all interested in the intricacies of the sex industry debate this novel is essential reading.
(Trigger warnings for this novel include: sex trafficking, abuse, childhood sexual abuse, rape, misogyny, gaslighting, coercion, and police misconduct/brutality.)