Jane Smiley's writing is so smooth, so flowing, her characters so real and intriguing and likeable, and the locations so evocative, that the book ends before one really is ready for it. This historical novel set in Monterey in the 185os, was the most unapologetic, fascinating and yes, even empowering immersion into the world of the working girl of those times, that 'dangerous business' of the title, that the murder mystery feels secondary. Which is fine. So many feminist issues explored skilfully and empathetically in this story set over 150 years ago: Eliza's choice, in capital letters, to work in a brothel, Jean's delightful preference for women (lesbianism not a word back then), the warmth and almost motherly care for the women working in her brothel that Mrs. Parks showed, and the power of friendship between women. There was even a nod to slavery and the Underground Railway. It was a refreshing change also, to see the men (and the boys brought along by their fathers) who frequented the brothel and who Eliza 'serviced' according to their sometimes strange wishes, ranged from delightful to creepy, but always with depth and needs that could often be empathized with, given those historic times and norms. This was not an anti-male story. The despicable males were those who abused their wives (a scenario Eliza had experienced for herself) and the authorities who dismissed the murders of 'whores' as not worth their time. (Enter Eliza and Jean!) This novel with so much explicit sex did not come across as explicit or at all steamy or erotic. This is very skilful writing because this is Eliza's story, and of course from her point of view the sex is a matter-of-fact tool of her business. For her, her job was to do her best to give her clients what they needed and had paid for, and when, occasionally she found her mind had wandered from its task, she even gave the client back his tip! Satisfyingly she did make a nice living from her business!

A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
Thank you to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on December 6th, 2022.

Writing: 4/5 Characters: 4/5 Plot: 3.5/5

This was an odd book, though I did enjoy it. Monterey, CA in the 1850s. Eliza Ripple’s short and unhappy marriage is brought to an abrupt halt when her husband is shot in a bar brawl. Eliza takes up the oldest profession in the world, servicing 2-3 clients per evening at a nice brothel and finds her life more enjoyable than the one she had with in the marriage her parents had arranged for her. She makes an interesting friend — a woman in a similar profession but aimed at ladies (was this a thing back then or a figment of the author’s imagination? I have no idea!). When the bodies of women — mostly prostitutes like themselves — turn up, they find local law enforcement (such as it is) uninterested, so they feel compelled to figure it out themselves.

This is more of a novel than a mystery, though obviously there is a mystery to be solved and our heroines are trying to solve it, both as a means of self-preservation and out of a sense of justice! Smiley does an excellent job of having Eliza describe her own life and her own feelings as she discovers them. Eliza is an unsophisticated person, having experienced very little in her life. She learns about geography and other places and foods from sailor clients; she reads the very few books she has access to, and her model of the world expands to encompass what she reads; she becomes observant of people — men in particular — learning what makes them tick and how to take care with assumptions. It’s quite difficult to create a character that has so little education in the ways of the world — removing everything you know in your own brain is so much more difficult than learning something new — and Smiley pulled this off well.

I have no idea how realistic the portrayal of a small town brothel is, but I liked the straightforward and utterly non-judgmental depiction. I’ve never understood why prostitution — which services a basic biological need — is so vilified even today in our society. I think we would all be much happier if prostitution were both legal and free of stigma for both the providers and the clients!

A little slow paced and with more (albeit well done) descriptions (of nature, weather, the state of the streets, facial characteristics, clothing, etc.) for my taste, I nevertheless found myself continuing to think about the life that was presented — an effective vehicle for putting myself in another person’s very different shoes.

A Dangerous Business had a main character and a setting that was unique—Monterey, California in the 1850s; a character who takes up prostitution and creates a better life than what she had with her recently murdered husband.

Yet, the writing style made Eliza seem remote. At times the sparse prose seemed stilted and plodding. This stream of consciousness narrative just didn’t connect with me.
Also, the murder mystery needed more action and suspense for my taste.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There is so much in A Dangerous Business that has the potential to be wonderful yet it falls short of the finish line. Eliza Ripple is a young widow in 1850 Monterey California. Her husband takes her from her home in Michigan to strike it rich in the gold rush where he is killed in a bar fight. Eliza was trapped in a brutal, loveless marriage and has no money, family, friends, or marketable skills. She finds employment as a prostitute with Mrs. Parks who runs a clean and prosperous business catering to men who are courteous with the ladies.
Smiley's writing is lyrical with compassion for young women struggling to survive in a rugged environment with few laws and no protection outside of the homes of women like Mrs. Parks. Eliza and a friend discover a women's body on the banks of a river, and learn that other young prostitutes are missing but the law is doing little to discover the murderer. Eliza and her friend, influenced by the writing of Poe, embark upon the mission of finding the killer themselves. This is where the story goes off the rails.
If this were a novella or short story it would be fabulous, but I felt like this was a contractual obligation. There was little research into what 1850 Monterey was like so the descriptions never resonated. The characters do a lot of walking and riding without a clear destination except to maybe stumble over another body and/or the killer. The passages of life in the brothel are too sterile and polite to be believable. The climax reminds one of the old Peggy Lee song, "Is that all there is?"
Smiley is better than this. The best thing about the novel for me was how quickly it put me to sleep.

For a book with a tough subject (prostitution) this book was a delightful treat to read, full of astute descriptions, unconventional friendships, and just the right touch of terror. Jane Smiley is an amazing writer and her gifts are obvious in this novel. This book created a transportive world to enter each day, one page at a time. Highly recommended. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I have never read a book by this author before and was pleasantly surprised by the writing. I have wanted a book set in this time period but that has female protagonists and I loved the premise of this book. It was a slow burn but I loved the characters and their relationships. I will for sure recommend this one to my customers!

Every one of Jane Smiley's books that I've read has had something a little different about it - but also some common elements - horses, people with something unusual in their background.

In this book, our protagonist is a widow who works in a brothel, an occupation she finds an improvement over her marriage. She describes her day to day life in a manner that makes it like any other job - one goes to work, takes care of business, goes home. The little details about individual customers, and about what else she does with her days, might seem a bit slow to some readers, but they round out both her character and that of the other characters.

In a way, this is a book about reading: Eliza's friend Jean convinces her to read The Murders in the Rue Morgue, and from there on Eliza tries to think like C. Auguste Dupin, observing and remembering and analyzing. This comes in handy as Eliza and Jean attempt to figure out who has been murdering prostitutes!

I found the resolution to be a bit too compressed, not exactly pat but very convenient. I would have liked to have gotten a few more words about how the characters felt about it.

I read an eARC copy of this book, provided by NetGalley, and my review is based on that. It states it is an uncorrected proof. Smiley's excellence as a writer shows through in that it seems to be complete as is, not in need of extensive copy editing or revisions.

In 1851 Monterey the story begins with Eliza who after her husband dies takes up the old profession of pleasing men for money, Though suggestive in nature of what services she performs its written in such a way that it is really not that graphic.
She becomes with another tradeswomen, Jean who 1 day discover a body washed up on the beach when she out for a carriage ride.. The story continues with connected events and makes you feel as part of the Monterey scenery from years gone by.
I enjoyed the book for several reasons as it was interesting, different and historical but the writing style was just not my cup of tea. I will still recommend this book to fans of this author with some reservations.

In 1851, the Californian coast-town of Monterey draws to it adventurers and fortune-seekers, settlers who are escaping their past and others seeking a prosperous gold-dust-blessed future. After the death of her husband in a bar brawl, Eliza resorts to the oldest profession to survive and discovers with some surprise that she is quite taken to it. Being a prostitute can be “a dangerous business”, but brothel keeper Mrs Parks protects her girls, and most of the men who visit Eliza are more considerate than her late husband ever was. Eliza strikes up a friendship with Jean, a lesbian prostitute who works in another establishment which services women. They share a love for the works of Edgar Allan Poe, particularly the adventures of his detective Dupin. It is not long before Eliza and Jean need to start applying Dupin’s skills in detection to a real-life mystery. Someone is killing young women in the area, and the authorities do not seem too interested. It is up to the two intrepid friends to discover the culprit before they become the next victims.

If it wasn’t for the dark subject matter and the spectre of domestic abuse and sexual violence which haunts this novel, I would describe Jane Smiley’s A Dangerous Business as a divertissement. Smiley crafts a relatively brief but entertaining historical novel which exploits many tropes of popular fiction, including genres popular at the time in which the story is set. The mention of Poe’s detective and horror stories not only serves as an element of the plot but also as a meta-fictional stylistic point of reference.

As one would expect from a seasoned, Pulitzer-Prize winning author, the “historical” aspect is nicely done. With her evocative descriptions and attention to detail, Smiley evokes the smells, sounds and sounds of a town in Gold Rush California. Some key scenes stand out – such as Eliza going out around the deserted streets in a storm. More than just the physical feel of the place, the novel also expresses a sense of societal change. The West is a land of opportunity but also one blighted by violence and a sense of unease on the brink of civil war.

As for the other “genre elements” garnishing the dish, A Dangerous Business combines the “Western” with the detective novel, but also adds references to Gothic and horror fiction – both Eliza and Jean repeatedly visit the cemetery, and they see or sense ghosts at various points in the story, although this intriguing supernatural strand is never really exploited.

Indeed, my chief reservation about this novel is that it promises more than it actually delivers. The “ghostly” sub-plot falls by the wayside, leading one to question why it was included in the first place, except, possibly, to further justify the references to Poe. As for the mystery itself, it mainly involves Eliza and Jean tailing clients whom Eliza thinks might be the murderer, eventually leading to a fairly underwhelming resolution. I must also admit that, by the end of the book, I was rather weary of Eliza’s encounters with the “fellows” who come to “do their business” with her. The descriptions of these visits are at once graphic and coy, sometimes to cringeworthy effect (a taste - “it had to be said that Lucas managed to present her with his prick three different times, and every time, she welcomed it...”). Don’t get me wrong: this is a book I would still recommend for a lazy summer afternoon or, better still, a wintry evening but I was expecting more.

3.5*

https://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/2022/06/a-dangerous-business-by-jane-smiley.html

Dangerous Business is about a friendship between Eliza a recent widow and Jean.. The story is set in Monterey, CA during the Gold Rush. Eliza and Jean both work as prostitutes. When several girls are found dead, Eliza and Jean decide that it is up to them to find out who is behind the killings.
Jane Smiley does an excellent job immersing the reader in the town of Monterey. Her descriptive writing will make you feel that you are walking the streets of Monterey with Eliza and Jean.

I've always enjoyed Jane Smiley's writing and "A Dangerous Business" is no exception. This is the story of Eliza Ripple who lost her husband in a fight and now has to learn how to make it on her own in 1851 California. She works at a brothel and when women in the town start getting murdered, she and her friend, Jean, decide to solve the mystery of who's hurting the women.

The characters in this story are all three dimensional and Eliza is a funny and there are a lot of interesting bits about working at a brothel, being a woman in California at the time, the gold rush, the beginnings of Civil War talks and slavery and even women who work at brothels for women.

I enjoyed the writing and this unusual story. I felt like the ending was more abrupt than I thought it would be but, for me, the mystery was secondary to this character-driven story.

with gratitude to netgalley and Knopf for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Dangerous Business is a delightful story that is set in the gold rush days in Monterey, California, which
Ch is peopled with those seeking fortune, adventure, reinvention, freedom, or escape. The two protagonists, Eliza and Jean, are prostitutes who form a friendship and work together, using tips from Poe’s masterpiece, Murders in the Rue Morgue, to investigate the murders of other young prostitutes that nobody seems to care about.
The story really evokes the feel of time and place with sailors stopping on trips to Australia or South America, young idealists looking to build great businesses, and the women doing what must be done to survive, the descriptions of the various clients and different methods Eliza used to please her customers was well written.

I could not put this story down. It has been years since I’ve read Jane Smiley. But, I think I’m ready to dive back in to her body of work. Loved A Dangerous Business! It was a quick read. Just perfect for a lazy summer day.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Yes indeed being a woman is a dangerous business.

For a book abundant in violence, this book has a quiet, peaceful core which permeates through out the chapters. Probably it's Smiley's writing style.

It’s a dangerous business being a woman. It’s a dangerous business being a prostitute. And it’s a dangerous business playing a detective. So, from the get-go, Eliza (chosen name) Ripple has her work cut out for her.
But she is young, clever and resilient and so she goes on about it as steadily and compellingly as any good protagonist would.
Inspired by Poe’s fictional detective Dupin, buoyed by her new best friend, and just plain curious, Eliza sets off to solve the recent murders of young women in the area. Monterey during the Californian Gold rush isn’t exactly the most law-abiding of places and these are not the sort of women whose disappearance would be properly investigated by the powers that be, so Eliza and her friend might be justice’s best options.
The other mystery here is why did it take me so long to read this author? She’s been around for ages, well-known, well-regarded, certainly someone I’ve heard off and yet…not until now. Maybe that’s a good thing because this book is certainly serves as a terrific introduction to a new (to me) author. It’s so very well written, Smiley obviously has the gift of natural/organic storytelling, it all just come alive: her characters, her descriptions. The novel is as transporting as you’d ever wish for in a work of historical fiction. The mystery is indeed mysterious and fun to investigate alongside Eliza and her friend. The denouement works very well too. Frontier justice sort of thing and all that.
The depiction of prostitution was…surprisingly quaint. Probably the quaintest I’ve ever encountered in fiction. It’s just a job like any other job and not at all a terrible one at that with mostly decent and reasonable people. Go figure. Certainly, a perfectly reasonable (and not even remotely exploitative) choice for a young widow without means like Eliza.
Monterey – well, it shines in golden sunshine in this book. A place as a character done right.
So all in all, a lovely novel, a terrific perfectly sized, perfectly engaging read. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

"Being a woman is a dangerous business, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise," says brothel owner Mrs. Parks. But for Eliza Ripple, being a widow seems to be less dangerous than being married, and working in a brothel has given her the financial security she never imagined. Eliza arrives in Monterey, California in 1851 with her husband who's killed in a bar fight shortly thereafter, freeing the young woman from being his servant and punching bag. There are few women in Monterey and Eliza joins Mrs.Parks' brothel, continuing to live at her boarding house and coming by in the evenings. Mrs' Parks runs a tight ship and her henchman Carlos keep the girls safe, and Eliza discovers that the likes being a prostitite. For the first time in her life she is able to make her own choices. She meets interesting people and the sex is nicer than with her dead husband. She has all day to read and explore the town that she is starting to love.

Mrs. Parks discourages the girls from becoming friends in order to keep gossip to a minimum, but Eliza makes friends with Jean, who works at a brothel for women. Jean introduces Elisa to the works of Poe, especially his early detective stories. When they find a woman dead on the beach, they apply the deduction techniques of Poe's Auguste Dupin to see if they can discover her identity and what happened to her.

Eliza is a breath of fresh air. From a suffocating religious family in Kalamazoo, she has no plans of returning and instead has decided to see what kind of life she can make on her own. Monterey is a small port and women are few, which gives them a level of appreciation they might not have otherwise. She can be curious and ask questions about where sailors have been and learn about the world. If a man is rough or falls in love with her, Mrs. Parks and Carlos will send them. away.

Where the novel falters is in the denouement, which did not convince me. There didn't seem to be enough evidence for Eliza and Jane to move on this particular suspect. It's one of those "wait . . .what??" moments. It's enough to knock off a star, but the pleasure in "A Dangerous Business" is in Jane Smiley's fluid writing and concentration on character, time, and place. There is a hint of what's to come as Eliza informs herself about slave and free states. It seems so distant, but by the end of the novel it is is front and center.

Thanks to Knopf and Netgalley for early reading of this novel.

Written in a time period before the Civil War…when women were co side red property…to be used…this story is one that reads like history and not historical fiction. It is sad…it is disturbing…it is real. The book was sent to me by. Netgalley for review.

A Dangerous Business reveals the hidden aspects of the world's oldest profession during the 1850's in California and the psychological effect it had on its employees. It also allows one to realize the lack of respect from law enforcement those employees received. As Eliza and Jean perform the defective duties toward the unsolved deaths, gradually the mysteries are revealed and justice is served.

A mixed review for this title-I didn’t love it/I didn’t hate it. I’m not a fan of the horse metaphors so I suspect that is one thing. I did enjoy the story of California pre Civil War and the theme of trying to escape one’s past. And while I read the book quickly there was something missing with regard to the plot and level of suspense.