Real Easy
A Novel
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4.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Bringing to mind Gillian Flynn and Tana French but completely unique, Marie Rutkoski's Real Easy is a compulsive, tenacious, and unexpectedly hopeful thriller.
"[R]iveting...An adrenaline ride filled with grit and compassion."
—People, Book of the Week
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?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
YA and children's author Rutkoski (The Kronos Chronicles) makes her adult debut with a haunting crime novel. Victor Amador, a police detective in an unnamed state, is hoping for a quiet overtime shift when he gets a call to investigate a report of an abandoned car in a ditch. When he responds, he finds blood and, eventually, the corpse of a woman who worked at a nearby strip club. The exact cause of death isn't immediately clear, but the coroner finds date-rape drugs in the woman's system, and the figure of a crown was carved into the sole of one foot. Amador investigates, with the help of colleague Holly Meylin, who is still traumatized by her infant's accidental death due to her ex-husband's negligence. Rutkoski uses the familiar plot of a police search for a killer targeting women to paint moving portraits of desperate lives on both sides of the law. She's especially good at making the strippers more than clichés. Fans of psychologically rich thrillers will hope for more from Rutkoski.
