The Guest Room

Maybe 4 and a half stars. My timing with this book wasn't great. It's about international sex-trafficking and the horrible book I just finished reading was about domestic child sex-trafficking. I would not have started this novel if I'd known what it was about. Nonetheless, it's a compelling read for several reasons. First the book begins with big trouble–two deaths are revealed on page 2–and the stakes for the male protagonist just keep getting higher. Second, one has instant sympathy for the sex slave who is at the heart of the trouble. The alternating points of view (with the protagonist's wife thrown in for good measure) keep the story humming forward. Third, it seems hyper-real. While most of us won't encounter people like this Russian sex-traffickers, it's unfortunately not a surprise that they exist, and their tactics are both believable and horrific.