Out of the Easy
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray comes a captivating historical thriller about a teenage girl desperate to escape the secrets of her past in 1950s New Orleans.
“A satisfying novel, bringing to life the midcentury French Quarter… Sepetys writes with rawness and palpable emotional unease.”—New York Times Book Review (Editor’s Choice)
It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer. She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street.
Caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld, Josie is soon lured deeper into a high-profile murder investigation in search of the truth. But with dangling temptation at every turn, will she ever be able to escape her mother’s mistakes and pursue the life that was meant for her? With compelling characters, a standout setting, and an unforgettable storyline, Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.
“A satisfying novel, bringing to life the midcentury French Quarter… Sepetys writes with rawness and palpable emotional unease.”—New York Times Book Review (Editor’s Choice)
It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer. She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street.
Caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld, Josie is soon lured deeper into a high-profile murder investigation in search of the truth. But with dangling temptation at every turn, will she ever be able to escape her mother’s mistakes and pursue the life that was meant for her? With compelling characters, a standout setting, and an unforgettable storyline, Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.
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Community Reviews
In my English class, we're currently studying King Lear. Our professor broke down the four components of a Shakespearean tragedy. Act 1 is the plots and action, Act 2 is when the consequences start barreling towards the characters at breakneck speed, Act 3 is the false hope that things will get better, and Act 4 is the final fall. This book could've very well followed that pattern, and at 3/4ths of the way through, I was thoroughly convinced that would be the case. I was prepared to accept a sad ending, but I was proven wrong.
Josie's footsteps were shaping to fit her mother's. I felt so saddened. Hope for college was dashed, her mother skipped town again with that chuddish Cincinnati, and the mob was going to feed her to the gators. Mr. Lockwell truly seemed like the only path forward, but then here comes the gun! She stood her ground, even when it felt like it would've ruined her.
Community is a major theme throughout this book, and Willie came through. It seemed like it would obviously happen from the start, but we're stuck in Josie's head the whole time. We felt her anxiety and felt ourselves nodding along to all those reasonable doubts. It really speaks to the magic of NOLA. It's chaotic, it's undesirable, and the underbelly often comes up ugly. That doesn't erase the silver linings that tie together a beautiful picture at the end of the day, no matter how crooked.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read, and I look forward to reading more of Sepetys' works in the future
It is 1950's in New Orleans and the French Quarter is full of secrets. Josie is the daughter of a prostitute, Louise, and works in a bookshop and also cleans the brothel each morning turning over left behind items to the madame, Willie. Josie wants more for herself; she dreams of going to an elite college on the east coast but when a murder happens in the quarter on NYE, she becomes entangled in a police investigation and her loyalty to her mother, Willie, and her own conscience. This book is full of colorful characters, vivid descriptions, secrets and lies and the reminder that we can shape our own destiny.
4.5 stars! This is my first Ruta Sepetys book, and I'm a fan! I love well-researched historical fiction with great characters and a storyline that keeps me reading, ignoring all other distractions. I picked this one up to read on a trip to New Orleans, and it was the perfect read to enhance my trip! I loved that Josie was brave. She didn't depend on others, taking charge of her own situation despite how badly the odds were stacked against her. This is definitely a novel that should be a movie. I want to see these characters come to life!
Loved these characters. Slight mystery woven throughout but not the focus. I loved how she presented these people and their lives.
I really enjoyed this one and appreciate how Sepetys handled the ending. It was unexpected but stayed true to each character.
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