Tough City, Tougher Woman by Richard E. Riegel

Linda Avery, a cigarette girl at the Club Festival in contemporary Portland, Oregon, plies her wares in the rough and tumble atmosphere of the bar, where customers range from passively tipsy to aggressively drunk. She handles the rough trade with aplomb and a measure of street smarts. Her conflict develops from the unwanted advances of liquor distributor and womanizer Dieter Gunnar "Tail Gunner" Swernbernin. Linda resolves to teach Tail Gunner a lesson. She arranges with a prostitute for Tail Gunner to be handcuffed to a bed during a sexual exploit, with Linda nearby ready to mete out justice. Instead, a candle sets the room's curtains on fire, and Linda is forced to make a decision: Does she let Tail Gunner live or die? Is revenge sweet, or does she take the higher road? Her story combines sociological, psychological and philosophical analysis through observations of and by the various characters, including an in-depth, up close examination of the issue of domestic violence. A...