This incisive ethnographic study of prostitution in the metropolitan city of Dalian, China, delves into the interplay of gender politics, nationalism, and power relationships that are inherent in practices of birth control, disease control, and control of women's bodies. Based on three years of extensive fieldwork, this book provides a rich account of how karaoke bar hostesses and clients handle HIV risks, how they perceive condoms, how they define and conceptualize sex, and how they make decisions about birth control and condom use during illicit sex.