Violet Kelly and the Jade Owl

Britton debuts with a rollicking adventure that mixes high-energy action with glimpses at the harsh realities facing the poor in 1930s Sydney, Australia. Seventeen-year-old Violet Kelly recently left the cruel orphanage where she’d lived since birth to work as an escort at Maison des Fleurs, “the best house of pleasure in Sydney.” Instantly liked by Maison’s madame, Violet becomes one of the bordello’s top earners, setting her on a path toward a life of beauty and decadence. One afternoon, however, she learns that a dangerous acquaintance from the madame’s past (whom she calls only “the ghost-man”) has strong-armed her into imprisoning a young Chinese woman named Shen, who is shackled in thick chains, with a pendant dangling from a locked manacle around her neck (the eponymous “jade owl”). According to the madame, it’s only a matter of time before the ghost-man returns to sexually assault and kill Shen. Horrified, Violet seeks the help of her colleagues and clients to break Shen free of her shackles and smuggle her out of Australia before the ghost-man returns. The cinematic plot moves at a steady clip, bolstered by confident prose and immersive period details. A sequel would be welcome. (Sept.)