by Fiona Mozley
First published 2021
Agatha Howard has her eye on a nondescript building in London's Soho. The millionaire sees luxury condos where others see theaters, sex shops, and pubs. But first she needs to clear out the current tenants. Precious and Tabitha work and live in the brothel that occupies the building. They refuse to leave without a fight. The battle draws in Robert, once a far-right enforcer for Agatha's father. Bastian, a wealthy party boy, mourns his lost girlfriend. Jackie, a policewoman, works to protect women on London's streets. Cheryl lives homeless in the building's basement. As the property dispute escalates, these lives intersect in unexpected ways. Hidden connections surface. Buried secrets emerge. The struggle over one building becomes a larger reckoning with money, power, and what women do to survive.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, mystery, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: London, Soho
Period: 21st-century
317 pages · Kindle Edition · Algonquin Books
Content warnings: violence