A most unusual but equally really enjoyable read. The writing is fast and furious and it is impossible at times to put the book down :) Lila Gulliver is the Madam of a brothel on the tropical island of Verona. She is a bright business woman not only managing her staff but also looking after their welfare, and this in return creates a sense of loyalty. A young attractive lady impresses Lila, and even though Carita is blind she is employed, and very quickly proves her worth to the business. However life soon gets very complex when Carita falls in love with Ian Brohan son of judge Michael Brolan…….” a dashing, fine figure of a man, confident in the power of his physical presence”......
It would be wrong to believe that clients visiting Madam Gullivers are dictating, and demanding, being wealthy does not mean that they have a right to humiliate, use, and discard the young ladies on offer. What makes this such a brilliant book is the way the author shows the reader that in reality it is the women working for, and with, and including, Lila Gulliver who dictate the shape and direction of their lives….”Men are expected to succeed, women to fail. Every woman knows the deck is stacked. In practical terms this makes it more difficult for women to succeed, but it’s more damning for men to fail. Win or lose, defying expectations is heavy going”........
This is storytelling at its best, set in the early 1950’s it brings to life the sights and sounds of a tropical island. Lila Gulliver holds the reader in awe with her beauty, and smart business acumen looking after and guiding those girls who she feels have entrusted their lives to her. Highly recommended.

1950’s America, Mrs Gulliver runs a brothel and takes in a young visually impaired girl, Carita as an employee. Before long, Carita is a favourite and falls in love with the wrong boy, creating trouble for herself; let alone Mrs Gulliver.

The writer has a reputation for writing literary fiction and there is a lot of craft and graft here, it is after all a single prose piece of three hundred pages with no chapter breaks. However, there is allow a lot of pulp elements here: sassy dames, threatening gangsters and dialogue so arch Dashiell Hammett could run a train over it.

Above all this, is the concept of sex as a transaction - even in the best of relationships and how economic systems hold people in poverty. It’s published by Serpent’s Tail on March 7th and I thank them for a copy.

Mrs. Gulliver: A Novel by Valerie Martin is a good fit for those seeking a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant exploration of female empowerment, subversion, and agency in a patriarchal society, with a unique blend of historical and literary elements