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I-5: A Novel of Crime, Transport, and Sex
This bleak and brutal novel follows Anya along her journey north from Los Angeles to Oakland on the I-5 interstate that bisects the Central Valley of California. A victim of deep deception; Anya was lied to, and is now kept under lock and key, used by her employer to service men, and indebted for the privilege.” In exchange, she lives in the United States and fantasizes about a future of freedom. A powerful account of sex trafficking, this stirring tale reveals one victim’s pain and her attempt to escape it.
- GenresCrime
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
2 people are currently reading
71 people want to read
About the author
Summer Brenner
28 books9 followersSummer Brenner was raised in Atlanta, Georgia. She moved north, east, and eventually west, taking up residence in Berkeley where she has been a long-time resident.
Her writing has appeared in dozens of anthologies and literary magazines. Performances of her work include "The Flood," a poem for four voices at Links Hall, Chicago; The Missing Lover, a one-act play, with readings directed by Peter Glazer; and the poetry and musical extravaganza, Arundo (with Summer Brenner, Andy Dinsmoor, Bob Ernst, Hal Hughes, and GP Skratz). She has given scores of readings in the United States, France, and Japan. Grant awards include the California Arts Council, the Creative Work Fund, and in partnership with Community Works, The Christensen Fund and Lesher Foundation.
Currently, she works on literacy projects in Richmond, California. She is author of more than ten books of poetry and fiction.
Anthologies include:
American Poetry Since 1970: Up Late; American Poets Say Good-Bye to the 20th Century; Cradle and All; Deep Down: New Sensual Writing by Women; The Erotic Impulse; Rising Tides: 20th Century Women Poets; The Stiffest of the Corpse; The Unmade Bed; Wreckage of Reason: Anthology of XXperimental Women Writers Writing in the 21st Century, et al.
Her writing has appeared in dozens of anthologies and literary magazines. Performances of her work include "The Flood," a poem for four voices at Links Hall, Chicago; The Missing Lover, a one-act play, with readings directed by Peter Glazer; and the poetry and musical extravaganza, Arundo (with Summer Brenner, Andy Dinsmoor, Bob Ernst, Hal Hughes, and GP Skratz). She has given scores of readings in the United States, France, and Japan. Grant awards include the California Arts Council, the Creative Work Fund, and in partnership with Community Works, The Christensen Fund and Lesher Foundation.
Currently, she works on literacy projects in Richmond, California. She is author of more than ten books of poetry and fiction.
Anthologies include:
American Poetry Since 1970: Up Late; American Poets Say Good-Bye to the 20th Century; Cradle and All; Deep Down: New Sensual Writing by Women; The Erotic Impulse; Rising Tides: 20th Century Women Poets; The Stiffest of the Corpse; The Unmade Bed; Wreckage of Reason: Anthology of XXperimental Women Writers Writing in the 21st Century, et al.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 13, 2018
This was my first encounter with the work of Summer Brenner. I took an interest when I happened upon this title as it involved crime and sex, two of my favourite story themes. It also involves sex trafficking, an area I did some work in in my final months in the police back in the day, so I always like to read about vice matters.
The level of insight which Brenner achieves in her work here must surely have come from some direct interviewing of girls caught up in the revolting and cruel world of sexual slavery. The characterization of the lead girl, Anya, is as absolutely compelling as it is tragic. And the insight into other personalities in the cast is equally perceptive, not that you're likely to have much empathy for most of the others.
My only reservation reading this was the present tense narrative, a writing style that I always find somewhat annoying, but that's just my personal taste. Here, it certainly didn't detract a jot from what was a riveting read with twists and turns aplenty. As always, no spoilers in my reviews, but you won't see the ending before it hits you.
But aside from the solid, tight plot, which keeps you entertained, for me it was the poignancy of the characters, especially Anya, and the clear understanding of the psychologies in the sexual slavery world, that made this a truly memorable read.
Cheers,
ABP
The level of insight which Brenner achieves in her work here must surely have come from some direct interviewing of girls caught up in the revolting and cruel world of sexual slavery. The characterization of the lead girl, Anya, is as absolutely compelling as it is tragic. And the insight into other personalities in the cast is equally perceptive, not that you're likely to have much empathy for most of the others.
My only reservation reading this was the present tense narrative, a writing style that I always find somewhat annoying, but that's just my personal taste. Here, it certainly didn't detract a jot from what was a riveting read with twists and turns aplenty. As always, no spoilers in my reviews, but you won't see the ending before it hits you.
But aside from the solid, tight plot, which keeps you entertained, for me it was the poignancy of the characters, especially Anya, and the clear understanding of the psychologies in the sexual slavery world, that made this a truly memorable read.
Cheers,
ABP
December 23, 2009
Of course I know and love Summer, but would recommend this to anyone who likes their fiction well-written, dark, uncompromising, thrilling...and a welcome book from the perspective of the woman, noir gets away with a bit too much I think, when it comes to the femme fatal.
May 23, 2010
Anyone ever wonder what its like to be a sex slave? Me too. Unfortunately, after reading I-5 I still didn't too much of an impression. Not too much.
This story follows Anya down the I-5 freeway on her way to Oakland. She is basically a sex slave from Russia who is working off a "debt" to Mr. Kupkin. Her escorts are Russian's Marty and Pedro. On their way to Oakland they run into a bit of trouble and we meet some other sex slaves and get a little insight into what it might be like to live under such conditions.
Though Anya is more than a sex slave. She is a type of trainer as well. In order to stay on the good side of those running this salacious business she helps speak with the younger girls--though she is young herself--about how to pay their debt and go free and keep their sanity.
This novel is written well enough. It actually gets a bit bogged down by its style. There are some gems, as far as lines go but you always want more of it. And it seems as though there is something missing, which is sex. It seems weird to say this but for this type of novel I wanted more sex. And a lot more of the emotion that comes with it. Things are talked about, as far as this goes but I could have been taken deeper into this world.
Towards the end you get the impression that it is going to be an anti-climactic novel. Then some things happen and you start to think, I'm taking it all back, this is going to be great...and then it kind of fades into something poignant but doesn't quite hit the spot. It made sense but after reading some novels, simply making sense is not enough. This is one of those novels where I wanted solid closure, something unrelenting.
You do feel for Anya, and wonder if you look hard enough if you'll see her around in the real world. Very real, this character was but when it comes down to it, man, this novel was missing something. I get the impression it lacked a bit of grit, regardless of its soul.
This story follows Anya down the I-5 freeway on her way to Oakland. She is basically a sex slave from Russia who is working off a "debt" to Mr. Kupkin. Her escorts are Russian's Marty and Pedro. On their way to Oakland they run into a bit of trouble and we meet some other sex slaves and get a little insight into what it might be like to live under such conditions.
Though Anya is more than a sex slave. She is a type of trainer as well. In order to stay on the good side of those running this salacious business she helps speak with the younger girls--though she is young herself--about how to pay their debt and go free and keep their sanity.
This novel is written well enough. It actually gets a bit bogged down by its style. There are some gems, as far as lines go but you always want more of it. And it seems as though there is something missing, which is sex. It seems weird to say this but for this type of novel I wanted more sex. And a lot more of the emotion that comes with it. Things are talked about, as far as this goes but I could have been taken deeper into this world.
Towards the end you get the impression that it is going to be an anti-climactic novel. Then some things happen and you start to think, I'm taking it all back, this is going to be great...and then it kind of fades into something poignant but doesn't quite hit the spot. It made sense but after reading some novels, simply making sense is not enough. This is one of those novels where I wanted solid closure, something unrelenting.
You do feel for Anya, and wonder if you look hard enough if you'll see her around in the real world. Very real, this character was but when it comes down to it, man, this novel was missing something. I get the impression it lacked a bit of grit, regardless of its soul.
August 13, 2011
I5 forces the reader into a world of sex trafficking and explores the inner sanctum of a truly grotesque industry. Summer Brenner does a great job in setting a mood filled with depression while still maintaining a slither of hope. Anya, a vet at 23 has spent the last 4 years working for Mr. Kupkin, performing to his every whim and desire to ensure a happy and returning clientele. Due to her early success as establishing a client base and general acceptance of her situation, Kupkin provides Anya small glimpses of the more humane in extra day breaks, food, and additional roles within the agency - notably to mentor the more difficult newcomers. It is this work which leads Anya and her manager Marty down I5 towards Oakland to assist in breaking in new girl Tuzla, a fiery 17y/old not yet accustomed to brutal life she is destined lead. This is a story as much about survival and hope as it is about exploitation and crime. Fascinating and unrelenting from beginning to end, I5 will haunt me for many a time to come - 5 stars.
September 3, 2012
I-5 is the thread that riddles this noir tale, of Anya, a Russian woman trapped in sexual slavery and prostitution, and somehow surviving with that slavic acceptance. It's too edgy, too terrible to be anything but real. How does Brenner know these things? What danger did she encounter to write this work? I wish Brenner had more than one book of this genre in her.
The reviews, quotes and blurbs on this beautifully printed work by Oakland's PM Press are nothing less than stunning: "real and nasty as road rage", "this book bleeds truth- after you finish it, the blood will be on your hands", and Pushkin's quote that opens the work is horrifying
California just passed legislation to acknowledge and work against human trafficking. Good job, California.
--Ashland Mystery
The reviews, quotes and blurbs on this beautifully printed work by Oakland's PM Press are nothing less than stunning: "real and nasty as road rage", "this book bleeds truth- after you finish it, the blood will be on your hands", and Pushkin's quote that opens the work is horrifying
All eyes on her; probioscis twisted,
Hoof, whisker, bushy-crested tail,
Horn, blood-red tongue, all lash and flail,
And arms unfleshed and bony-fisted
All point and rampantly entwine
With one gerat roar: She's mine! She's mine!"
California just passed legislation to acknowledge and work against human trafficking. Good job, California.
--Ashland Mystery
November 1, 2009
A novel of crime, transport, and sex, I-5 tells the bleak and brutal story of Anya and her journey north from Los Angeles to Oakland on the interstate that bisects the Central Valley of California.
Anya is the victim of a deep deception. Someone has lied to her; and because of this lie, she is kept under lock and key, used by her employer to service men, and indebted for the privilege. In exchange, she lives in the United States and fantasizes on a future American freedom. Or as she remarks to a friend, "Would she rather be fucking a dog...or living like a dog?" In Anya’s world, it’s a reasonable question.
Much of I-5 transpires on the eponymous interstate. Anya travels with her “manager” and driver from Los Angeles to Oakland. It’s a macabre journey: a drop at Denny’s, a bad patch of fog, a visit to a “correctional facility,” a rendezvous with an organ grinder, and a dramatic entry across Oakland’s city limits.
Anya is the victim of a deep deception. Someone has lied to her; and because of this lie, she is kept under lock and key, used by her employer to service men, and indebted for the privilege. In exchange, she lives in the United States and fantasizes on a future American freedom. Or as she remarks to a friend, "Would she rather be fucking a dog...or living like a dog?" In Anya’s world, it’s a reasonable question.
Much of I-5 transpires on the eponymous interstate. Anya travels with her “manager” and driver from Los Angeles to Oakland. It’s a macabre journey: a drop at Denny’s, a bad patch of fog, a visit to a “correctional facility,” a rendezvous with an organ grinder, and a dramatic entry across Oakland’s city limits.
April 1, 2012
Strange book. The sections that focus on human trafficking and forced prostitution through Anya's eyes are powerful and suggest considerable research. The loose plot (Anya is being transported from LA to Oakland on the I-5 for reasons to be revealed) could have allowed for much more in the same vein but instead much of the middle of the novel gets bogged down in a series of implausible, action-driven events. In a novel this short (186 pages) it would make sense to focus closely on a small number of characters but Anya often gets lost in the shuffle and most of the other characters come and go without making much of an impression.
August 19, 2011
This was a disturbing look into the sex trafficking trade as seen by Anya, the main character in the book. It is so sad to think that this takes place every single day in our world. I think anyone who peddles people should pay a very severe penalty.
January 17, 2010
An entertaining and realistic depiction of the underground sex trade along the I-5 corridor. Check out the rest of PM Press' Switchblade fiction series
November 10, 2019
I've arranged my takeaway thoughts into a haiku (best as I could, this was a tricky one):
"Like with sleeping limbs,
When salvation arrives, it
Shocks nerves that've gone numb."
"Like with sleeping limbs,
When salvation arrives, it
Shocks nerves that've gone numb."
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews