«Pandora's Box» by Allison Hobbs

Ambition, desperation, and redemption abound in nationally bestselling author Allison Hobbs’s unforgettable novel about a woman forced to sink to the darkest depths of morality . . . and her quest to fight her way back.

Victoria Carlton invested everything into her dream of becoming a singer—her hopes, her time, her life savings—only to fall victim to the harsh realities of the recording industry. Devastated, broke, and faced with the choice between committing herself and her young son to a world of homeless shelters or entering the seedy world of prostitution, she applies for a job at Pandora’s Box, a downtown Philadelphia brothel that bills itself as a “massage salon.” Her lifestyle quickly improves, and the gratification of instant cash replaces her willingness to find a low-paying, legitimate occupation.

One day, an unlikely customer appears at Pandora’s Box. Young, handsome, and well dressed, he is immediately drawn to Victoria. The two begin a love affair fraught with complications, leaving Victoria plagued by guilt and insecurities until a botched robbery and the murder of a coworker compel her to look beyond the fast money and reclaim her morals—and her life.