This book goes well beyond the “stripper with a heart of gold” cliche to deliver a suspenseful, beautifully written story with interesting and well-drawn characters.

The story takes place primarily at the Lovely Lady strip club, home to an assortment of very interesting and multi-layered women who happen to take their clothes off for a living. I was so drawn to the very interesting, kind, and complicated character of Samantha, a beautiful stripper who is revealed to have a chromosomal abnormality. She deals with her “syndrome” (as she tells us it is called), her boyfriend’s jealousy around her job, and her deep love for her boyfriend’s child Rosie - a dream come true for her as her syndrome made it impossible to have children of her own. It has been awhile since I have been as invested in a main character as I was by Samantha, who was uniquely voiced in the book and also ably voiced and acted by the audiobook narrator.

Not a happy tale here - because someone is murdering women, and death comes to the Lovely Lady in a tragic way that really affected me. Much as I want to talk about the pivotal murder, I won’t spoil it because it was truly shocking and upsetting to me to read. With the main location of the book being a strip club with a number of unsavory patrons, there is no shortage of suspects for the murderer, who we learn has been perfecting his exceptionally creepy serial killing for awhile now.

Though we also meet Holly, the detective investigating the case, the women of the Lovely Lady are the stars of this book and I was extremely impressed by the complexity and care with which they were drawn as characters by the author, completely avoiding stripper stereotypes in favor of a cast of compelling, varied, and interesting women.

I really enjoyed being immersed in this plot and getting to know all the characters, and found Rutkoski’s writing to be more literary and thoughtful than one usually finds in this genre. Really glad to have had the chance to read this book and will definitely be reading more from this author.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this interesting and well-narrated read. 4.5 stars.

Did not finish. I like the author but decided not to finish this one. I do not like thrillers with a copy/detective pov and also did not like some of the elements in this novel to keep reading it. Thank you netgalley and publisher for this early copy!

This books works very well as both a thriller and an insightful, sympathetic novel about women who do sex work. Recommended for all libraries.

Real Easy by Marie Rutkoski is a dark, character-driven thriller that takes place in the 1999s. In this book, we have a strip club located outside of Chicago, dancers, a missing person, a serial killer, and more. It definitely caught my attention from the description and the writing was excellent, it is compelling and keeps you turning the pages.

I know this is going to be a popular book when it comes out in January.

Synopsis:

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.

This was a super fast paced thriller with great characters. This story is told by multiple people and I loved that. The setting is the Lovely Lady strip club. We see what the girls want us to see at the club and we see behind the scenes of their real lives. When 2 of the girls go missing, detectives investigate what could have happened to the girls. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and kept me guessing. I really loved the Samantha/Ruby character. I loved her relationship with Rosie her step-daughter. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this but something felt a bit lacking -- like the story concluded in too pretty a wrapped up and neat bow? I'm not sure -- I can easily see this being adapted to a movie or TV show and I would watch it. The characters were good and there was almost enough development (could have used a touch more) but I still felt something was missing when it was over. Definitely recommend if you like Law & Order.

Real Easy comes out next month on January 18, 2022 and you can purchase HERE.

She didn't know how to express the expectedness of sexual violence. It is so common that a warning might as well be stamped on the birth certificate of every newborn girl.

What a great mystery. Loved the dancer angle - I felt so connected to these characters. A slower-burn, dark mystery mixed with some police procedural. Would definitely recommend.

Real Easy
by Marie Rutkoski
Pub Date: January 18, 2022
Henry Holt

Real Easy is a compelling, character-driven thriller that, makes me want to read all of Marie Rutkoski’s books. I found this story rather slow going in some places but overall a great read! I will be recommending this title.
Thanks to Henry Holt and NetGalley for the ARC. This book is great!

5 stars

4.5 Stars

Fast paced but eloquently detailed thriller that had me hooked from beginning to end. Real Easy takes you into the gritty inner workings of a strip club in the 90's and the lives of the dancers. Suddenly, one of the top dancers goes missing, initiating desperate search to find her before it is too late. Taking you through multiple perspectives, Marie Rutkoski unravels details of the mystery in a deeply intriguing manner that keeps you wanting to read more.

At first, the multiple perspectives and shifting of chapters is a bit confusing, however once the story gets going and most characters are introduced, it seamlessly flows. I devoured this book in hours, and would certainly read another Mary Rutkoski thriller again!

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book had an interesting premise. Somebody killed two dancers from the Lovely Lady strip club. The story is told from multiple viewpoints. The reader gets the perspective of detectives, dancers, the club owner, boyfriends, family members and the killer. While that could be confusing at times, it was definitely an interesting way to read the story. This is the first book I have read that used more than two viewpoints. I liked it.

The story itself was unique, also. I can't recall a single other book I have read that centered around a strip club and the dancers. I enjoyed getting that "inside" look at how business is done in such an establishment. I liked reading about the personal lives of the dancers. They all had stage names, and some of them didn't know the others' real names. I found that interesting and wondered how often that is true in real life.

This was a slow burn. It didn't grab my attention to the point of not being able to put it down. It did make me think about it while I wasn't reading and kept me guessing on who the bad guy was. I rate 4 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC..

Real Easy is one of the best thrillers I've read in awhile. The book is centered around a Midwestern strip club and follows an ensemble of characters as dancers from the club begin to go missing or turn up murdered. I was really pleased that the dancers weren't written as stereotypes. I have worked in multiple strip clubs and I felt the author did a great job of capturing the atmosphere of what it's like to work in them. The book features many strong, intelligent women and it was a joy to get to know them. The mystery elements were exciting and kept me on my toes. Real Easy is very character driven. It was nice to read a well written thriller centered around an atmosphere I am so familiar with.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! What an amazing thriller this was! I couldn't put this one down, and was so intertwined with each of the characters. The author's writing style is amazing, and I hope to read more by her soon! This is a book to read if you are looking to get out a reading rut....so GOOD!! My only complaint was the length of the chapters....45 minute chapters.

At just over 300 pages, I thought I would speed through Real Easy by Marie Rutkoski, as I do many other novels in the thriller and mystery genre. However, I found myself slowing down throughout the book, making it last a sweet, long time. I was compelled by the storyline, the characters, and the mystery to continue reading, but I enjoyed the prose so much that I deliberately took my time.

Rutkowski is very insightful and lucid writer; I found myself annotating lines in every chapter. Her descriptions are unique-- a "sewing machine leg" to describe a man nervous in an interrogation-- and her characters are sympathetic.

The story follows the murder and abduction of two strippers at an Illinois night club. Included in the POVs are two detectives (both working through their own personal traumas), several of the strip club dancers and friends ofthe victims, and one of the victims herself. Of the main characters, one has an intersex condition, one is an immigrant from Cuba, and one is a biracial queer woman. The diversity in characters makes the book stand out in the genre, as each character is unique and compelling. Often novels with multiple perspectives struggle to differentiate the voices of each character, but Rutkoski has no such issue.

The theme of violence (specifically sexual violence) against women, and how women handle living in a world in which that threat is constantly present, is central to this novel. Though at times brutal and difficult to read, this book is realistic and timely.

I did struggle with the setting of the book, specifically the time. I didn't realize the exact year until it was mentioned more than halfway through, and I was off by almost a decade in my original assumption. The description of cellphones didn't quite tip me off to the time, but an older reader might pick this up. Another small nit-pick is the specific trauma one of the detectives experienced in her family. I thought there was too much going on in the novel already to include that specific (and truly horrendous and traumatic) manner of child death.

Other than these two (very minor) issues, I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to its release next year.

This is a police procedural meets literary thriller about the events that leading up to and following the disappearance and murder of two exotic dancers. It’s 1999 in a suburb of Chicago, and the book starts off by introducing Samantha. She is very good at keeping things separate- she is a hard worker at the club, but is totally devoted to her jealous boyfriend and his daughter. She is not one to take unnecessary risk, but the club’s newest dancer is so clueless that she feels compelled to help her learn the ropes. She’s trying to get her to learn how to get in good with their boss, the other women, and the patrons, but getting her to figure it out is going worse than expected. One night, the new girl needs a ride home, so Samantha agrees to drive: a simple decision that turns deadly.

Georgia, another dancer, gets drawn into the investigation. Is someone targeting the dancers? Is there something going on at the strip club? Or were the two women just unlucky? She gets pulled in to work as an informant for Holly, the female detective assigned to the case, which possibly puts herself in the line of danger. As Holly and Georgia try to find their suspects, the story’s point of view shifts between dancers, detectives, children, club patrons―and the killer.

I’m really impressed by this one. The publisher compares this to the writing of Gillian Flynn and Tana French- and honestly I see it. It’s a really well plotted story, and I came to care about the characters. I even cried! Which I was not expecting. The author tells the dancers stories in a really thoughtful way and paints them as full people. She subtly layers in backstories- one dancer is dealing with the loss of her mother, another was born as Intersex, there’s a bisexual romance, some have children. None of it felt exploitative or dirty- and the author is a former dancer herself, as well as a Harvard grad. I loved that unexpected dichotomy. I was never fully sure where this story was going to go and I got thrown off a few times. There is also a really great reason for the title that is explained early in the book- I dont want to spoil it, but it broke my brain. I didn't guess the killer- though when I look back, the clues were there. I did find myself confused a couple of times- there are a lot of characters here- and for that reason i don’t think this would do well on audio. There were parts of some chapters that i found myself speed reading to get past, because i wanted to get back to the action. Still, I thought this was unexpected, well-researched, and immersive. It’s got complicated characters you want to try and understand and I really liked it!

3.5 Stars

This was a unique setting for a thriller, taking place mainly in a strip club in 1999. I loved the multiple points of view, bouncing around from the dancers to the detectives to even the children in the stories. The writing was well done. The characters were extremely interesting, I would love to see a continuation of the story or at least a continuation of the series.

I subtracted a few stars based on the plot points, I won't spoil anything, but I think things could have been laid out in a different fashion to create maximum effect.

A special thank you to NetGalley, Henry Holt & Company, and Marie Rutkoski for providing me with an ARC.

This was such a fresh and unique take on the thriller genre! The story centers around the disappearance of one dancer and the death of another in a 1990’s strip club.

We get POV’s from multiple dancers and detectives on the case that offer insight into all of these FULLY fleshed out characters, which I really appreciated. The focus felt to be mostly on the characters with the compelling mystery taking second stage but linking all the story lines together.

The tone felt very melancholy and this was a good thing, it really worked here for this story!

Thank you to Netgalley, Henry Holt & Company, and the author for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first book to read by this author but I hope to read more soon! The characters and the story stay with you long after you finish it. Good, fast read. Highly recommend!!

Thank you Netgalley & Henry Holt & Co. for an eARC of Real Easy in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This book is an absolutely unique thriller, extremely well written, gritty and atmospheric. I enjoyed reading it, but I did find myself confused with the many multiple POVs. I often had to go back to figure out who someone was, or wouldn't realize it until the end of the chapter. My first read of this author's, I found it thought provoking and look forward to reading more of their work.

This was an interesting take on the murder of one stripper and the disappearance of another. We get to care about the missing woman and then we get to follow the detectives and the stories of some of the other dancers at the club. It took us into a world where woman are bought and sold in a way that felt authentic. There were moments of beautiful writing in an otherwise gritty story

Real easy is a compelling thriller from Marie Rutkoski that sheds light on male desire, feminism and safety in the early 90s. Marie is an incredible story teller, I've been a huge fan of hers since her YA trilogy and was so excited to dive into this new mystery. I was hooked reading this on the subway, during work and times when I should have put the book down. The story was fast paced and kept me hooked until the very end. The setting was new and Marie did an amazing job of seamlessly weaving characters and their stories together- this is sure to become an instant best-selling thriller!!