Men, myself included, sometimes wonder why women often refer to them as “dogs,” those who are only interested in sex. Well, you need look no further that the character of Lou Scarlechek in Patrick C. Crowell’s novel Hostile Environment to see where a large part of the equation comes from.

Largely about sexual harassment on the corporate level, and the chauvinistic, womanizing and unethical exploits of Scarlechek, Hostile Environment paints a believable picture of the gender-based power struggles that no doubt go on in the boardrooms of corporate America.

This is largely because the author is a former lawyer himself, who served as a senior attorney for Walt Disney World and knows a great deal about his subject. It’s this real world experience that gives the book such credibility and also explains why the book's backdrop is the Western World theme park in Orlando, Florida.

The story gains its real steam after Scarlechek’s power-hungry character rapes one of his employees, DeeDee Lane, and attempts to seduce Adel Blair, the beautiful and headstrong attorney who is lured into Scarlechek’s web, only to put up the fight of her life, when she is hired to defend his peers in a case of -- you guessed it — sexual harassment.

Without giving away too much of the plot, I’ll say that the character development in Hostile Environment is rich throughout and the descriptions of Adel Blair’s inner turmoils are exceptionally well written. There is a real insight into both sides of sexual harassment throughout a book that is as educational as it is enjoyable to read.

The fact that the novel is written by someone who was actually part of the corporate world rather than an author who is just a passive observer is the book's real strength. The short, concise chapters also make the it a light, easy read and help offset the book's sole flaw of occasionally getting bogged down in corporate terminology that is at times confusing if you don’t own a gold watch or stock options.

I have never been a fan of these kinds of books but I can say that I really enjoyed Hostile Environment for what it is - a good, solid story of the gender inequities that are still all too prevalent in society.