Naked Men
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- €12.99
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- €12.99
Publisher Description
The Planeta Prize–winning novel from the author of the Petra Delicado series: “A highly literate noir, a powerful tale of lives spiraling out of control” (NB magazine).
Irene’s husband has left her for a younger woman and her family business is on the verge of collapse, but the last thing she wants is to be the subject of gossip or pity. So she starts spending time with a divorcée who, in liberating herself from the bonds of marriage, has also freed herself from the clutches of the old crowd of “couple friends.”
Javier is a literature teacher who suddenly loses his job at a Catholic school. He’s not ambitious—the months go by and no work materializes. Then, almost by accident, he gets back in contact with a cocky friend from his youth who introduces him to the world of stripping and male prostitution.
Circumstance brings Irene and Javier together: he gets some extra cash and mental stimulation out of their relationship, and she finds an outlet for her frustrations. However, Irene doesn’t want to have sex with him—she just wants to see him naked, humiliated, dominated. Their relationship takes a troubling turn, but things may be even more complicated than they seem.
Alicia Giménez-Bartlett weaves a tale of economic and personal devastation, portraying the ways that life’s disappointments can bring people to do things they never would have imagined.
“Incendiary . . . This provocative dive into gender, power, and class uses diverse viewpoints to craft a powerful story and an unpredictable, memorable ending.” —Publishers Weekly
“A stark realist portrait of characters who are searching for their place in a world without redemption.” —Culturamas
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The women of Gim nez-Bartlett's incendiary Planeta Prize winning novel deploy their wealth to upend sexual dynamics amid the dislocations of Spain's collapsing economy. When Irene's husband leaves her for a younger woman, she retreats from her friends and brushes off concerns about her failing family business. She reconnects with free-spirited Genoveva, who coaxes her to join in exploits with male escorts. When prissy Irene finally agrees, she discovers the men repulse her but she enjoys the power of ordering them to undress. Genoveva introduces her to chauvinistic Iv n and his friend Javier, a mousy, recently laid-off literature tutor cajoled first into stripping and then sex work by Iv n. Irene's rejection of physical contact initially offends Javier, but he slowly erodes her resistance. Even after sex with Javier unlocks unimaginable pleasure, she remains mercurial and rebuffs his suggestions that they pursue a more conventional relationship. Gim nez-Bartlett's stinging commentary on masculine fragility (notably in Iv n's perpetual frustration and Javier's reluctance) pairs well with her exploration of feminine restraints through Genoveva's surprising propriety and Irene's shackling attachment to her deceased father. This provocative dive into gender, power, and class uses diverse viewpoints to craft a powerful story and an unpredictable, memorable ending.
