This exotic and erotic tale starts in Paris in the 1800s, with women dancers in an adults-only tale from the start. Author Nalo Hopkinson is using an experimental style in THE SALT ROADS, so that between each brief chapter we get a chorus-like section, a page with the word Beat on it, followed by a page with the word One, then a page with Blues and so on. This can be a little surprising but after every interlude the tale resumes.

Margot, Lisette and Jeanne talk about men, money and bodily functions in between powdering their faces to make their skin paler - they have Caribbean backgrounds, but the French men like paler girls as courtesans. If they gain gifts of jewels, they can send money to their mothers. So much depends upon pleasing the men - aren't the girls going to be pleased too?

There are occasional sidelights into ancient Egypt, which don't seem to serve a purpose except to show that women in various times have faced similar issues. Anyone interested in arty experimental writing may be intrigued by this mix, though personally I could have done with more storytelling and less strong language. THE SALT ROADS won't be for everyone, and with a short content it should be easy to find out if author Nalo Hopkinson suits your taste.