First published 2008
April works the stage at the Puma Club for Men, but tonight she has no choice but to bring her young daughter along. The child waits in the dressing room while April dances for men who pay well enough to keep them both fed. One client stands out from the rest. Bassam keeps his distance yet gets too close, speaks little yet reveals too much, and spends money like it means nothing to him. Outside in the parking lot, AJ nurses his rage after being kicked out of the club. He drinks alone in his car, his anger building with each passing hour. Three lives circle each other in the humid Florida darkness. April tries to protect what matters most. Bassam carries secrets that could destroy everything. AJ lets his fury guide him toward choices he cannot take back. By morning, none of them will be the same.
Genres: fiction, drama, mystery, crime, contemporary, thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Florida
Period: 21st-Century
535 pages · Hardcover · W. W. Norton & Company
Content warnings: addiction, child-abuse, domestic-violence, sexual-content, violence