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A review by sarahholliday
Hot Stew by Fiona Mozley
challenging
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
There's so much to this story, it's hard to know where to begin!
If you love books with a large cast of characters and interconnected storylines...
If you love stories that deal with gender, class, money, sex, power, and gentrification...
If you love books that are character-focused, but that move at a nice pace...
...this might be the book for you.
As a historian who has studied prostitution, I loved the nods to London's long history of sex work ("stew" was a historical term for a brothel). It was also great to see a sex worker as a main character, but whose storyline didn't revolve around her work. There's a sense throughout the story that Precious & her fellow sex workers would've been evicted regardless of their employment. Almost all of the storylines and relationships in Hot Stew can be reduced down to economic transactions, judgements about money (and who deserves it), or the decision to live outside of the traditional economy.
If there's a critique to be made, it's that Mozley glides too easily past race & racism as factors in a story about gentrification, sex work, policing, and corruption in government.
Overall, I think Hot Stew is a sharp, witty, Dickensian tale, and an enthralling portrait of London to boot.
If you love books with a large cast of characters and interconnected storylines...
If you love stories that deal with gender, class, money, sex, power, and gentrification...
If you love books that are character-focused, but that move at a nice pace...
...this might be the book for you.
As a historian who has studied prostitution, I loved the nods to London's long history of sex work ("stew" was a historical term for a brothel). It was also great to see a sex worker as a main character, but whose storyline didn't revolve around her work. There's a sense throughout the story that Precious & her fellow sex workers would've been evicted regardless of their employment. Almost all of the storylines and relationships in Hot Stew can be reduced down to economic transactions, judgements about money (and who deserves it), or the decision to live outside of the traditional economy.
If there's a critique to be made, it's that Mozley glides too easily past race & racism as factors in a story about gentrification, sex work, policing, and corruption in government.
Overall, I think Hot Stew is a sharp, witty, Dickensian tale, and an enthralling portrait of London to boot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Toxic relationship
Minor: Violence, Sexual content, and Police brutality