A boring slow read, that I stopped reading at 60%. The main characters are on the right of history (slavery/war) even though that wouldn't make any sense. Eliza and Jean's friendship is the best part of the book but I still found them annoying. The plot's convenient romance that never goes anywhere and is dripping in red flags is super clique.

After Eliza has a rough start to her adult life she starts working at a brothel. As she’s working she starts hearing stories about missing girls. Through her adventures she befriends Jean and they start investigating the deaths to try to catch the killer.

The story was easy to listen to and kept my interest but I felt it was very grey. Maybe it was the mood the author was trying to convey but I found the book a bit depressing.
If you don’t mind that and reading about the brothel business it’s a good little mystery.

A copy of this audiobook was provided to me from RB Media and NetGalley to review.

This is a delightful novel, which is unusual for a murder mystery. It offers a mystery, an homage to Edgar Allen Poe, and talking animals. Really, what else could you want?

Oh dear. This audiobook was quite disappointing. I absolutely adored this author's book A Thousand Acres. I was super excited to read her latest.

Unfortunately, I found the pacing incredibly slow, to the point of tuning out and missing significant chunks. This left me lost and confused as to what was going on. The mystery was completely lost in the narrative. Had there been some interesting prose about the 19th century lifestyle, that may have possibly saved it for me. However, all I took away from this story was a couple of uninteresting characters and their dull lives.

The narrator may have played a role in my boredom. Her monotone rendition wasn't the best I've heard.

Sadly not an audiobook that worked for me despite great efforts to stay engaged and get into the story. It sounded like a plot I would really enjoy but just wasn't executed to my tastes.

Thank you Netgalley for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I was given a NetGalley widget for this one a year ago and I just got around to reading it and dangit it was so good. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have consumed this wildly relevant fictional tale, which felt not at all fictional, more like historical fiction, due to the times. The cover initially was what drew me in, but I'm so thankful to have stuck with it because the outcome was magical. I always love listening to audiobooks and when they sweep me off my feet, I'm just utterly captivated! I always really enjoy multi-cultural thrillers, for I embark on a journey through a land unknown to me, while still getting spooked.

I enjoyed listening to this on audio. I liked the friendships between the women as well as the lack of meanness between them. I thought the mystery element was fun too

I am going to DNF at 47 percent. It isn’t interesting. The mystery is pretty dull. I just am getting annoyed, so I have to move along.

Jane Smiley is a brilliant writer, and I doubt she could write a bad novel. I was excited when I was gifted by Netgalley and RB BMedia an advance copy of the ebook and audiobook of her latest novel, A Dangerous Business, which is about women supporting themselves through prostitution in the early days of the Wild West. The main character, Eliza Ripple, is married to an abusive man, and the life of prostitution she takes up when he's killed in a bar fight seems like an easier road for her than her married life had been.

I enjoyed the casual way the lifestyle is explained, that the women don't see themselves as victims, that they are able to talk about their tricks with grace and humor and support one another and have a good employer-employee relationship between the madams and the girls. I feel like most stories I have read about sex workers include more drama and shame; it was refreshing that these women just see what they do as a job, that they take sick time when they need it and look out for one another in and out of their workplace. The strength of the female friendships was also a delight, with no cattiness or undercutting.

The mystery of the novel hangs on a serial killer who has been targeting prostitutes in the small Western town and Eliza's efforts with a friend of hers to figure out who the killer is. The last third of the novel seems to become surprisingly unrealistic, both in the chances Eliza and her friend take to look for the murderer, and in what they uncover, and in how they handle it. I can't say more without spoiling the novel, but let's just say that after feeling the whole first half of the novel was well written and realistic, the last part was shocking in how far off the rails it seemed to veer. Still, the beginning is good enough that I would still recommend the novel overall, as this is a historical period about which I have never read a good book.

2/5 Stars

While I found some aspects of this story to be engaging, the overall story lacked the necessary drive to keep me thoroughly engaged. This isn't a long novel, but it felt too long, anyway. This is also a bit of a personal preference, but it also bothered me the way that characters kept saying "A Dangerous Business." It felt far too on the nose for my liking.

This was my first Smiley book, and while I enjoyed her writing enough to give her another try, I wish that my first experience had been a more pleasant one.

Format: audiobook ~ Narrator: Therese Plummer
Content: 3 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

Set in 1850 in Monterey. Two young prostitutes, Eliza and Jean, are trying to solve the mystery of missing girls. It read like a cozy mystery, but with too many details concerning the dead bodies.

Not quite my style of historical fiction, and I could comment on some flaws and details I didn’t like in the story, but overall I enjoyed it, anyway.

Thanks to Recorded Books for the ALC and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.

The writing and narration in this audiobook were spectacular. The vocabulary seemed to be appropriate for the time period, and I was really transported to 1850's Monterey. Eliza and Jean were such strong characters, and while the story itself was a very slow build, the characters were descriptive and interesting. I really enjoyed the ending!

Well, this was disappointing. I love historical fiction, and this was a setting I don't often find. I have like Smiley's previous works, and based on the blurb, I was looking forward to a story with strong women and a positive friendship. The mystery premise was also enticing. Sadly, none of these expectations were met - except the setting.
Overall, this was just ... boring. The murders were mundane - women's bodies are found, then buried. The police don't do anything (as far as we know) so the women decide to investigate. All that seems to entail is infrequently talking about the murders and having moments of wondering "is it him" for each woman Eliza knows. And, occasionally riding off somewhere outside of town. There's a lot of talk about eating breakfast at a local place. I'm not sure why so much time is spent discussing what each person eats on a daily basis.
Also, I'm an expert at suspending belief - I read a book with an absolute belief in what is written on a page, and withhold all analysis and judgement. But this book pushed even me past that limit. The women are prostitutes, yet they seem to work in pristine, grand establishments, with pleasant customers and kindly bosses - and they enjoy their work. And one works in "an establishment for ladies pleasure."? Really? In Monterey in the 1850's. Really?
The ending seems a bit abrupt and is mostly unsatisfying. A week later, I don't even remember what happened.
I liked the voice narrator, she infused what little life was in the story.

Listened to the audiobook.

I received a free Advanced Reading Copy via NetGalley in exchange for a complete and honest review.

One of the best books I've read in a long while. I love the amount of research that went into this book.

An interesting story and premise, I’m glad I gave it a listen. Thank you, NetGalley for the advanced copy.

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
This story had great potential. I was really intrigued by the synopsis and was eager to dive in. Really enjoyed the start as it nicely set the scene for Eliza. However, after that there wasn’t much grabbing my attention. There were too many side stories that diverted from the main plot that the main plot felt like a side story too. I did like the heroic ways of Eliza and Jean to find the killers, but it didn’t put me on the edge of the seat. Overal I think there was quite a bit of potential not used and it fell a bit flat for me. Could also be that the narrator, as I listened to the audio, just wasn’t convincing me.
⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Long chapters
Strong Female lead
Lawless Wild West
Unique story

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘺, 1851. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘙𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘭. 𝘐𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘮, 𝘔𝘳𝘴. 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘴, 𝘪𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘦 (𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺) 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦: 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯, 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘚𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘦𝘢𝘯, 𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴.

𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘷𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵—𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳—𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘞𝘢𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘰𝘯.

I loved Jane Smiley’s A Thousand Acres and The Age of Grief—gorgeous literary meditations on family disintegration.


I also love a good mystery, so I’m happy for the chance to have listened to this audio version of A Dangerous Business. I’m not sure all the pieces slotted together for me; perhaps this would have worked more if it didn’t follow a whodunnit plot trajectory and instead focused on the literary talents of this author, but it was a fine listen, one that kept me engaged.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was not what I expected, to be honest. It was good though! I really appreciated the fact that she found friendship and, really, found herself over the course of the book. Plus, the ending, though unexpected, made me happy.

🌀Synopsis
When Eliza’s husband was killed she started working at a brothel. She meets her best friend Jean around that same time. When other women from brothels start to turn up dead, these two get hooked in and start their own investigation.
Being so close to those impacted helps them see things that other law enforcement can’t. Plus, it becomes an effort to survive too. Their jobs and lives are at risk with every customer they see.
When they finally put some pieces together they get a plan in place to trick the killer and catch him. The girls use their friendship to help each other grow and make plans for the future, too.

I won’t give a summary because lots of other people have done that what I will say is this book was OK but what totally threw me off of liking and enjoying the book was when they said Jean was a prostitute that pleasured women in that they both loved Edgar Allan Poe and based theirinvestigation on detective Perrault. I love history and historical fiction and I am so surprised that no one mentioned that there’s no way Jean could’ve made money servicing women win for one thing Wild western towns had few women in the women they did have either prostitutes or wives but wives were hard lived and no one had time to go be serviced by a prostitute servicing women that just seems ridiculous and crazy to me. Moving on though I thought the book was short on mystery in for as long as the mystery was Drawn out and the ending was quite abrupt. I was surprised to see the author was a Pulitzer Prize winner i’m sure this has more to do with me because I notice I will read a book and think to myself there is no way that happened or just plain ridiculous and out of the box and then I go and see people loved the book so this is just A rare unpopular opinion from someone who I guess expect too much from a writer. I received this book from NetGalley and publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

A quick read and listen that is interesting but stilted at times.
In 1850s Monterey, California, Liza is left a widow after her abusive husband is killed in a bar fight. She turns to the only thing she knows that will support her- prostitution. She later befriends Jean, a cross-dressing woman who also works at a brothel but one which services women instead, and they become fast friends. They have much in common, including their love of Edgar Allen Poe. When local prostitutes begin to turn up dead and law enforcement unsurprisingly doesn’t seem to care the ladies begin sleuthing on their own.
Jane Smiley, Pulitzer Prize winner for A Thousand Acres, is known for drawing from classic literature for inspiration. Poe’s Murder on the Rue Morgue comes into play here and is used by Liza and Jean as their instruction manual to solve the murders.
While Smiley’s keen grasp of language is obvious and shows particularly in her descriptions of horses and the countryside, Liza’s matter-of-fact descriptions of her sex acts were unnerving to me and I found myself skimming over them and skipping ahead in the audio. There are only so many times you can hear the word “prick” and I’m not a prude by any means. It just reads oddly.
The murder mystery plot moved so slowly I found myself getting bored. However, I did love how engaged I was in the historical aspect of the plot. There were so many interesting things going on: Liza’s travels from Kalamazoo to Monterey, the Gold Rush, prostitution (for both male and female clients), and the beginning of civil war/end of slavery/Underground Railroad.
Therese Plummer was amazing!! Loved her narration!
It wasn’t the best of Jane Smiley’s work but I will say it was definitely an adventurous experience. 3.5 stars rounded up.
Thanks to NetGalley, Knopf Publishing, and RB Media Recorded Books for the early review copies!

Being a woman is a dangerous business, according to one of the characters of Jane Smiley’s latest novel “A Dangerous Business”. The character, Mrs Parks, is the madam of a brothel and as such should perhaps more rightly have said being one of her girls is a dangerous business.

Eliza Ripple, the protagonist, is one such girl who's come to Monterey to escape an ill-judged marriage and the aftermath of her husband’s shooting. She takes up the most lucrative trade on offer, working for Mrs Parks. It's a surprisingly genteel establishment for the place and times, those few drunken sailors and others who get out of hand are rapidly dealt with by the madam’s bouncer.

All is not well, nevertheless, as Eliza discovers when bodies of mysteriously murdered girls begin to come to light. In the absence of police action, she and her friend (another prostitute) take it upon themselves to investigate.

Set in Monterey, California at the time of the 1851 Gold Rush, the story is light-hearted and entertaining, in some ways a picturesque mash-up of the Wild West (albeit a feminised version), August Dupin and Irma La Douce. Its treatment of what goes on behind the bordello's bedroom doors is whimsical, rather than salacious or lurid, with the business portrayed as a straightforward transaction - a service provided in return for money, much as those of washing, or cleaning or waitressing. Sex is rendered as impartially as a walk in the hills.

Fans of historical fiction and murder mysteries alike will enjoy this surprising but engaging new offering from one of America’s most prolific and popular novelists.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for providing me with an advance review copy of the book.