April (golden) showers bloom (just for you) May flowers, and on International Workers' day, we're honouring the real backbone of society — this month's Gay Writes pick is All Hookers Go To Heaven, by Angel B.H.

The debut novel is a sex worker coming-of-age story that begins in small-town Nova Scotia, where purity culture and religious repression reign. After a classically devastating first queer love during an Evangelical Missionary program, Magdalena escapes into the sticky glitter of Montreal's iconic strip club, Supersexe, determined to become an "anti-virgin." What begins as a rejection of religious guilt becomes something more complicated: a life shaped by ever-evolving queerness, a determination to endure, and the Hustler’s Curse — the insatiable drive to chase money wherever it leads. Through her pursuit of a new god, across continents and clients, Mag learns what it costs to survive, and what it means to choose your own heaven.

Or, as Angel puts it, "the trials and tribulations of an ex-Christian bisexual hooker."

Set against the backdrop of historical events like SESTA/FOSTA (which not only severely affected sex workers' ability to work, but limited their access to harm reduction tools and services), the novel doesn’t flinch from the realities of sex work under capitalism — it names the villains (lol men) and mourns what’s lost, but always makes space for queer joy. It's tender, furious, and wildly alive, capturing the push and pull of a queer woman trying to live freely in a world that keeps raising the price.

iRL MEETING:

WEDNESDAY 28 MAY
730pm
Pulp Books