Soft Core

This book felt so real I forgot it was a novel until I was halfway through. Every line of it is a perfect balance of being surreal and totally believable. Unlike anything else I’ve ever read. A total melancholic joyride through a strip club!

Totally judged a book by its cover when requesting this - and boy did it pay off. (Let's hear some commotion for the illustrator). I really liked this. It had it all; a touch of body horror, vivid use of kink without it being a smut novel and a sense of human loss. There was a well-used use of mystical realism thrown in, which made the overall plot interesting.

wowowo I absolutely loved this one!!! its like if 'New Animal' by Ella Baxter and 'The Guest' by Emma Cline had a baby - both polarizing books but I mean it as a high compliment bc those were both favs as well. I think this one might be a mixed bag though - I could see a lot of people not really jiving with it as much, but thats ok because the girlies that get it will get it....

this book was a wild ride, a lil bit of a fever dream that jumped around in time and followed our protagonist Ruth as she kinda loses her mind in present-day, following the disappearance of her ketamine-dealing ex-boyfriend. at one point I was kind of frustrated with it because it felt like it wasn't following a solid plot but once I accepted that and just went with it, I started really enjoying myself. I loved being in Ruths (or 'Baby's) mind, I loved her perceptiveness, her wit, her self-awareness, how unhinged she could be and often was. I loved the settings - the strip club, the dungeon, the drafty victorian, San Francisco at large. I loved all of the weird ass characters and how many of them ended up being quite endearing in the end. while a lot of themes were explored, I think this book examined human loneliness in such a beautiful and honest way. I really had such a fun time with this one, I didn't want it to end, though I do think it ended at just the right time.

I'm v curious to see how this is received once it's released and I hope to see people loving it as much as I did!

thanks netgalley and FSG for the arc!

Brittany Newell is a powerhouse of an author! This story takes the reader on a literary deep dive into the main character’s mind and emotions. This is the emotional ruin of a woman whose profession revolves around pleasing others, yet at the end of the day, she battles loneliness. Ruth, aka Baby, is a character who struggles with emotional priorities. Is it better to trust in love or lose faith in the whole process? Is it better to seek comfort from who/what you know or from a stranger? From reading the description of the book, one might assume that it will be a thriller or even an erotic thriller. This is not the case. This book is so thought provoking that it may leave the reader feeling as delirious as the main character. There are moments that are left up to the reader’s interpretation and may make you have to dive deep into dissecting the situation. Newell paints a vivid picture of the main character’s daily life being a sex worker and maintaining unfulfilling relationships. Ruth’s is a person that attaches themselves very strongly to people but yet these attachments are surface level and self-serving (like her relationship with Emeline for example). I love the structure of this book and the way it was written. If you want to jump into the life of someone who is struggling to attach themselves to what is real and valuable, this is the book for you. It is definitely a heartbreaking yet fun, chaotic yet structured and vivid yet blurry read.

I would like to thank Net Galley and Farrar, Straus & Giroux for this ARC. Thank you to Brittany Newell for their creative and addictive writing. I can’t wait to read more from this author.

"Soft Core" by Brittany Newell is an unusual and enchanting novel. It reads almost like a memoir, a first-person account of a young woman's time working as a stripper and later a dominatrix in San Francisco. Being a stripper is almost accidental; however, it puts her into a world of people who, for different reasons, seek understanding and acceptance. There is a melancholic sensation of loneliness in this novel that feels poetic. San Francisco has its own magic in this book, and one can almost smell the salty air of the city.

Ruth, who goes by the name "Baby" in the club and "Miss Sunday" as a dominatrix, lives in a drafty Victorian apartment with her colorful ex-boyfriend Dino, a ketamine dealer and a crossdresser, relaxing after work with their dogs, watching a movie, and eating some comfort food or occasionally a feast that Dino prepares. He is a thoughtful roommate/friend, yet he disappears without explanation one day. Ruth knows he doesn't want her to inform the police if something like that happens, but she misses him much more than expected and seems to see him everywhere. She befriends Ophelia, another woman from the club, and is fascinated, if not a bit wary, of Emeline, a beautiful dancer who seems to follow Ruth's style, almost to the point of stalking. And there are men: a mysterious "nobody" fascinated by death who emails her; Charlie, a kind of a father figure; and Simon, a regular at the club with specific, kinky requests.  Once more, sadness and loneliness permeate these men, and Ruth, a young woman with her life just beginning to take shape, seems, by comparison, very reasonable and level-headed.

It's an atmospheric book that feels shrouded in a San Francisco mist. Characters are defined, yet they possess a poetic quality. It's like watching a dance through a steamed window: it looks alluring, yet we feel detached from most people's reality. "Soft Core" is a great book!