Naked Truth by Rachel Francis

Rachel Francis' latest book Naked Truth will no doubt shock some people.

Others will tut-tut over the content, and some will refuse to read it. I found it utterly fascinating.

The former prostitute's first book, Laid Bare, was an open and honest account of her years working as a prostitute.

In Naked Truth Francis introduces readers to some of New Zealand's famous and not so famous personalities in the sex industry.

She interviews people such as Steve Crow, the man behind Boobs on Bikes, and Storm, the owner of the first legal transsexual brothel in New Zealand.

Francis says she had positive feedback from her first book.

"I just put it out there and exposed myself, so to speak, I was brutally honest," she says.

"I gave people an insight about what it was like to work in the sex industry. I didn't glorify it. The book is based on fact."

In Naked Truth Francis talks with people about how and why they got involved in the sex industry. Some of the tales are very funny and some sad, some shocking, but all are intriguing. It's not often you get a glimpse into a part of society that has always been regarded, by myself, anyway, as secret and seedy.

Francis lifts the lid on those secrets and tells readers exactly what goes on behind closed doors.

"Some people think that sex workers are forced into the industry for all sorts of reasons, mainly money, of course.

"What I wanted to get across is that people choose to be in it. They enjoy what they do," she says.

Francis says she is not a fly-by-nighter when it comes to writing.

"I am now the author of two books. I'm like a dog with a bone when I get an idea, I don't give up."

Naked Truth

By Rachel Francis

Penguin, $35