Midnight Dancer

by Annie Ayre

Beaty is a beautiful, sensual hostess who lives for the thrills of today and doesn’t think about tomorrow.

At the upmarket London club, Baron’s, she is adrift in a twilight world where prostitution, drugs and death are a game for anyone prepared to pay the ultimate price.

Beaty dreams of a better life for her and her 10-year-old son, Billy.

But Beaty only sees her boy at weekends. Beaty’s estranged ex-husband Jack was awarded custody of Billy because of Beaty’s job.

As a consequence, Beaty had sunk into a life of drugs. She would have died had it not been for Alex, her boyfriend at the time. Alex was unstable and Beaty had liked the danger.

But although Alex is no longer in Beaty’s life, she enjoys her job at the club and doesn’t know how else to make money.

One night Emory Cole, a technician at Baron’s, notices Beaty as if for the first time. He can’t take his eyes off her.

Beaty and Emory begin a relationship and Beaty finds herself falling for the man who will stop at nothing to take her over the edge of ecstasy.

Emory offers to take Beaty away from her life as a whore and asks her to move in with him so he can take care of her.

When Beaty sees how well her lover and son get on, she considers Emory’s offer. She wants a better future for her and Billy – could Emory provide that for her?

But soon the past catches up as ghosts from both Beaty’s and Emory’s past appear. Max, an unsavoury associate of Emory’s, whom Beaty takes an immediate dislike to, turns up looking for a favour.

And things are complicated further when Alex turns up and attempts to worm his way into their lives ...

But could these dangerous men hold the key to giving Beaty, Emory and Billy a better life?

And at what cost?

This book was previously published as Hussy by Rosemary Kingsland.

“Dazzling... an esoteric, yet sensational, novel...” – Evening Standard

“Makes the dark side intense and yet strangely beautiful... the life and times of a 'Sixties nightclub hostess (in other words, a tart) shows she is a fighter, a survivor. If she earns her living in a precarious way it's to support her young son. In the end, she finds a way to escape London gangsters and start a new life...” – Cosmopolitan

“As fizzy as the champagne ordered by the dancers for their customers in a smart yet tawdry nightclub... a sensational read.” – The Express

“The bitter-sweet lives of the hostesses who sell themselves night after night in the shabby world of London's nightlife. Erotic, dark, yet sparkling....' Daily Mail

Annie Ayre was born in the middle of a thunderstorm in the Himalayan mountain state of Kashmir, to a family of travelling actors. When she was twelve, her parents died on a frozen train during a blizzard in Russia. Nobody thought to tell Annie that she was an orphan. Forgotten for years, she remained at school until the nuns traced her paternal grandparents, writing that it was time she left school; they must claim her. Finally shipped home to Scotland, she was welcomed, but it was obvious from the crumbling ruin they lived in that the family was broke. She got work as a junior on a local newspaper and developed her early career in that field.

Genres: Amazon

180 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 17, 2016

Reviews

[J. Duck]

From the cover and blurb, I was expecting more of a 40s period piece. Aside from that, it was still a good read, though I found the ending stretching the 'suspension of disbelief' a little too much.

[Sarah]

I couldn’t figure out what time period this book took place in. I originally thought the 20’s because of the cover, but then I thought it made a reference to the 70’s.
Also, I wish everyone had died at the end. It seemed like that.’s where it was heading.

[Ruth Ellen]

Beaty and Emory have formed a relationship. But it has a lot of baggage from their past. Beaty wants to regain custody of her son lost due to her current work. She accepts money for her services. Read and see if they work out their issues.

[BEATRICE VEGAS]

Midnight Dancer is a dark and sensual romance with subtle notes of eroticism as Ayre explores the debauched, depraved and decadent lifestyle of sixties London. Beaty and Emory are the main protractors in an all too well known tale yet Ayre tells it with such seduction that it feels fresh and vivid, unique to them. Beaty loves her son Billy, who is the light of her life. Unable to cope with her poverty she naively does the only thing she could do to earn extra money to keep the home fires burning. Her “slick sham” husband knowingly turns a blind eye, happily benefiting from her work. Later when it suits him, he dumps her, using her generosity against her in the ensuing court battle. Ayre sharply contrast the double standards and cruelty of a gender discriminate world that deals harshly with a woman. Men though get away with it to this day. Life has not been kind to Emory either. Having lost his wife and only love there has not been another until, that fateful day when he notices Beaty at Barons where he is the light technician. From then on life is not the same for Emory. Totally smitten he cannot get over Beaty. Can the two leave their baggage and start anew? As Ayre weaves her tale, she delves deep into the psyche of every piece on her chessboard without condemnation. She adroitly progresses an unusual relationship building it to a climax. It oozes warmth and thoughtfulness as Ayres deals with the complex emotional issues of her protractors. Like a dancer, making all the right moves in their choreographed sequence Ayres crafts the novel to gradually unfold this human saga. She draws the reader into the plot, cleverly manipulating her characters leaving one enthralled. Their very flaws make them lovable and realistic. Their weakness hides their strength. Never sure of an HEA, Ayres keeps us guessing until the very end. One can smell it in the air, one so wants it, rooting for the protractors. This is a journey of self-discovery of a very different kind, one where life has already marked the characters changing them. Can they dig deep into the layers covering them and unearth their true selves? While not a brooding tale it is an interesting one dealing with dark forbidden matter. Ayres insight lifts very sordid lives generating an interest. There is even humour at very touching moments as she artfully transports one into their lives. The sheer pathos of their tale tugs at one's heartstrings. One even has sympathy for Alec. The story takes on a new twist when, Emory comprehends Beaty and grasps the key to dealing her sadomasochism. Surprisingly help comes from the least expected quarters. Like a well-played game of chess, everything falls into place. Though fiction, Midnight Dancer is a beacon of hope for suffering humanity. Bitter sweet yet thought provoking as Ayre looks deep into the very souls of her characters posing very relevant and painful questions about the injustices of life. Despite the gritty content Ayres, beautiful prose makes this novel effortless reading. One is mesmerised from the start almost forgetting that this is fiction. Or is it? Um… quite the enigmatic read, a realistic romance, like life itself. Ayres penmanship however lifts it to something more, giving it a touch of the profound.

[Soccergypsy]

What an unexpected story. I picked this up on a whim and had no expectations going in. This is not a book I'd gravitate toward naturally, but it certainly maintained my interest. The four words I'd use to describe this would be: tender; haunting; yearning; and melancholic.