Fallen Women

Fallen Women is a fantastic fiction novel about women's view of prostitution in the early west. It is extremely well written. I don't think it can actually be called historical fiction, although it's halfway there.

I don't have time to write a brief summary, so here's what Amazon.com says:

"It is the spring of 1885 and wealthy New York socialite Beret Osmundsen has been estranged from her younger sister, Lillie, for a year when she gets word from her aunt and uncle that Lillie has died suddenly in Denver.  What they do not tell her is that Lillie had become a prostitute and was brutally murdered in the brothel where she had been living.  When Beret discovers the sordid truth of Lillie’s death, she makes her way to Denver, determined to find her sister’s murderer.  Detective Mick McCauley may not want her involved in the case, but Beret is determined, and the investigation soon takes her from the dangerous, seedy underworld of Denver’s tenderloin to the highest levels of Denver society.  Along the way, Beret not only learns the depths of Lillie’s depravity, but also exposes the sinister side of Gilded Age ambition in the process."

Basically, the novel is a fast paced, thriller of sorts that gives a different perspective of prostitution and what life might have been like for desolate women (either financially or socially) in the late 19th century. I highly recommend this book to those who like prior eras, women's studies, or psychological thrillers.