Turning Tricks

Ashley Cole needs help. After nearly dying from her love for crack cocaine, she was rescued by Greg Mundy, a man who seemed to be a knight in shining armor. Some knight though; Greg turned out to be only another mistake in a long life of mistakes. At twenty-three years of age, Ashley continues to live a life of degradation and wretchedness. Hired out as Greg’s personal whore, Ashley makes a living as a prostitute, only to come back during the day where Greg may beat her, or at the very least, verbally abuse her and belittle her remaining confidence. Everything changes one day though when she picks up a romance novel. The stories Ashley reads take her away to another time and place, where she can forget about her life. Slowly, her courage and confidence return, and when she meets Andrew Nolan in a local bookstore, her love starved heart starts to flutter with the tiny wings of hope.

But it’s hard to break out from under Greg’s thumb. Ashley may have a new fledgling courage, but years of abuse not only by Greg but also by her parents have left her spirit beaten and broken. Will she take the chance Andrew is offering her? To be his love? Can her heart withstand any more failures? Riveting and emotional, this is a tale of a broken woman who comes back to life with a passionate intensity only true love could have triggered.

Turning Tricks is the story of a prostitute. There is no other way to say it, so if that’s not your cup of tea, you’ll be better off skipping this story. If on the other hand you love stories that feature tough and vulnerable heroines who don’t want to be beaten down anymore, who want a well-deserved chance at happiness, than Claire Thompson’s latest book is the story for you. Ashley may seem like a hard character to identify with at first, given her background, but you’ll come to see that she faces the same issues just about every other woman faces: low self-esteem, disliking certain body parts, and the certainty that one is not lovable. What makes Ashley shine, like many women, is that she takes back her life. Her attraction to Andrew is only a part of that though. He is a catalyst, but it is her own emotional center that finally breaks through the violence that is so much a part of her life. Readers will cheer as Ashley finally explores life, socially, emotionally, physically and sexually. A very strong D/s relationship runs throughout this story, but it is fundamental to understanding the woman Ashley is becoming.

This may be a hard story to read, because it deals with so many issues that are considered taboo, or shoved to the edge of society as something to be hidden, but Turning Tricks brings these issues to light without harping or lecturing, rather, letting Ashley’s change be the guide for the explorations of prostitution, abuse, drugs, and so much more. This is a very satisfying and truly moving story that you won’t want to put down.

Reviewed by: Sarah W