This is one of those books that Jim got that I meant to pass on to a friend, but ended up reading to the end.

Although it's tagged as a suspense/mystery, the mystery itself is fairly pedestrian. In fact, the heart of the story isn't a mystery, but a tale of how girls in rural Thailand end up living as prostitutes, victims of the greed of those around them and their own poverty and powerlessness. I was completely caught up in all the characters, but especially in the history of Rose, once Kwan, who learned to survive by making the best of bad choices.