The writer’s impressive second novel about an erotic dancer and newbie dominatrix straddles thriller and satire in its depiction of desire and longingBrittany Newell’s second novel is hard to position – is it a noirish thriller, a sex-work satire, a romance? What it is not, and here the author is clear, is a memoir. Newell is a Stanford graduate and a professional dominatrix; her life has bled into Soft Core – but, as she recently told America’s NPR, into the novel’s “sensory details” rather than the facts. This murkiness is one of the defining textures of the book, giving it an uncanny, almost ghostly feel. For a story about desire and longing, it is surprisingly spooky, full of stalkers, creeps and doubles.Ruth (or Baby or Sunday, as she sometimes calls herself) is a stripper and a newbie dominatrix working in San Francisco. She goes from her shift at the brothel to her shift at the club, weaving through a perpetually crepuscular world of private dances and all-night burger j...
Brittany Newell's second novel, *Soft Core*, blends thriller and satire in its depiction of desire and longing, focusing on Ruth, a stripper and newbie dominatrix in a "misty, bookish and debased" San Francisco. Ruth navigates her work and loneliness while dealing with a missing ex-boyfriend and various clients, all recounted with compassion. The book explores themes of sex work, identity, and the darker underbelly of the city.
