Milena, or The Most Beautiful Femur in the World

Jorge Zepeda Patterson Adrian Nathan West, translator

Restless Books Softcover $18.99 (432pp) 978-1-63206-125-6

Milena shines necessary light on an industry that is more pervasive, and powerful, than most would like to consider.

Jorge Zepeda Patterson’s Milena, or the Most Beautiful Femur in the World is a breathtakingly savage thriller set within the confines of the worldwide sex trade.

All Alka ever really wanted was more : more than her Croatian hometown, at least, that offered few options beyond marrying a working boy and growing prematurely old. But a promise of better opportunities proved to be a farce, and Alka found herself trafficked as Milena, one of the most sought-after prostitutes in Europe. Persuaded into a conspiracy against the most vicious bosses of one trafficking ring, she finds herself hidden away in Mexico, where she is briefly rescued before being forced to flee again.

Her situation comes to the attention of Tomás and Amelia, two childhood friends-cumlovers with a penchant for seeking justice. They