The Pussy Detective by DuVay Knox
CLASH Books (February 2022)
180 pages; $14.95 paperback
Reviewed by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann
The Pussy Detective. A title like this elicits a response; an invite to engage right off the bat. For some, it’s off-putting because of the p-word. Others see the title and the amazing retro-inspired artwork and pull the trigger. Some people think it’s a joke or a parody.
“Wait, this book is about women who have lost their pussy and some detective helps them find it?”
That’s exactly right.
<enter hard looks of doubt, skepticism, amusement, judgment, shock, etc>
And initial reactions are fine. It’s what readers do with those knee jerk responses that I want to address. Just to set early expectations, this is not a critical review of The Pussy Detective but more of my own, personal reading experience as part of my entire journey to be a curator of quality fiction that other readers can rely on to help them navigate through new book releases.
I have learned that I approach books with a set of built-in biases that either help or hinder my ability to find books I will enjoy. Book cover design is probably the biggest influence followed by a plethora of other contributing factors like genre, synopsis, and word-of-mouth buzz. In the case of The Pussy Detective, for me, it was the publisher CLASH Books.
I’m a huge CLASH fan and I trust the owners, Leza Cantoral and Christoph Paul, to publish quality, inspired, and fresh fiction. Their mission statement reads,
To publish awesome and engaging books that transcend labels and break boundaries. We put the lit in literary.
That’s a great mission right? I’m sure every reader looks at this pledge and gets excited about all the potential for greatness.
However.
It’s transactional.
CLASH cannot publish “engaging books” without readers willing to engage.
They can’t “transcend labels” if readers use labels to qualify books.
They can’t “break boundaries” if readers fight to uphold them.
So.
The Pussy Detective by DuVay Knox is an experience waiting to be had and readers just need to show up and be willing to have that experience.
Knox is writing with his own lexicon. As an example, I have pulled a quote from an interview about this book that was published at LitReactor
Mah language is actually how I speek. Imma southern nigga and dats how we role werds. I aint neva been to koncerned bout wut literature purists say bout how u SHOOD write. I kan doo dat and have DONE dat actually and won JOBS/CONTESTS n shit. Butt dat type-a-KINGS ENGLISH writing to mee is like COOKING wit No SEASONING. And Im frum New Orleans so mah ass BETTA kno how 2 COOK/if nuthing else!! Writing is like making GUMBO. U gotta SEASON dat shit jes rite. True not errybody will like wut U cook–butt I aint afta dem doe no way.
The Pussy Detective isn’t just some bullshit. It’s not a parody or “dark erotica.” Those are labels and labels come with expectations formed from biases, preferences, and assumptions.
It absolutely doesn’t have to be anyone’s cup of tea but on the other hand, it doesn’t owe anybody anything. This is the kind of art that exists because people believe in its importance and readers can agree or disagree but reading it with an open mind is the requirement in order to communicate a valid opinion on the matter. This reader’s opinion is that I enjoyed my experience in Reverend Daddy Hoodoo’s world. I believe DuVay Knox is an important voice that deserves to be heard and I hope he gets to publish a series of Pussy Detective novels. I think Knox has a lot of stories to tell and only he can tell them so I’m glad the industry is giving him the space and the opportunity to do that because there is an audience ready to enjoy them.
