The Wolf Den

I kept putting off reading The Wolf Den because I knew the heavy subject matter was going to destroy me inside, and I was right. I will need 3-5 business days to recover from the emotional turmoil in this story.

Young Greek woman Amara is sold as a slave by her mother and forced into sex work in a brothel called The Wolf Den in Roman-era Pompeii (not on volcano day) and is desperate to escape to freedom. This story is extremely emotional and harrowing – trigger warnings for sexual violence, physical violence, emotional abuse, and murder.

Amara and her enslaved colleagues deal with physical violence daily from their clients and from their owner, Felix, and the reader is always aware of the constant threat of violence. I really appreciated that, even though we know about all the violence and abuse that is going on, most of the time it is alluded to rather than described in detail, so nothing feels gratuitous or salacious.

In between all the drudgery and violence, the camaraderie between Amara and her colleagues is hopeful and heartening and I really enjoyed their interactions. There are close friendships, catty spats, and petty rivalries and it all feels realistic and familiar. They also all lean on each other to get through their unpleasant experiences in the brothel. Amara is especially close to Dido, originally from Carthage, and the meat of the plot starts when the two of them are hired to entertain at a fancy party, rather than their usual work inside the brothel. This puts them on a path to earn more money and meet more powerful men who might be able to further their careers and better their lives in the future.

The ending is neither happy nor sad. It's very satisfying and feels realistic to the story. I thought it was a perfect ending to a tumultuous book. I absolutely want to read more Elodie Harper now. Highly recommend!