Josie Moraine is the daughter of a brothel prostitute living in 1950's New Orleans. She works in a bookshop whilst dreaming of escaping The Big Easy and would love to go to college, if only she could get accepted and afford it, but girls like her don't find it that easy to break free from their social situation. When one of her more charming customers is murdered on New Years Eve it sets Josie on a path that threatens to suck her further into New Orleans' underworld.
This book managed that rare thing where it took me by surprise! I had assumed that it wouldn't be that tense or exciting but I found it really difficult to put down. Sepetys writing style really draws the reader in and the short length of the chapters means you find it really easy to keep turning the pages, frequently saying to yourself "just one more chapter before bed." The pacing of the novel is quick but not so much that it rushes through the plot making you feel like you're missing details. You can never be sure what is lurking around the corner! Sepetys creates distinctive characters and weaves them into a vivid world threaded with realism. Right and wrong become slightly blurred as the characters operate in a darker world than most of us are accustomed to and so has slightly different rules. Josie is trying to straddle both this darker world and the high society one that she aspires to, creating a slight moral dilemma that she manages to deal with well and without flinching. Sepetys also creates some very strong female characters which is not something I would initially have expected from a piece of writing set in this time period when men are often presented in history as being much more dominant.
'Out of the Easy' contains all of those elements that help to make a great novel: great characters, a realistic world, love, mystery, betrayal and danger. Each one is crafted very well. It's definitely one I'd recommend reading although it isn't suitable for younger readers. There aren't any explicit sex scenes, swearing or extreme violence but the theme is much more adult as it talks about brothels and prostitution as well as death, illness and the mafia.
I give it 8/10 :)
Title: Out of the Easy
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Publisher: Puffin
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