In this unsettling work about the alienating and at the same time liberating power of love, the monotonous existence of a book seller is rocked by the appearance of a consummate book thief who hopes to solve the enigma of her life through the stolen works. As in an obsessive dream where the limits between the rational and irrational become blurred, our main character is submerged in the mysterious circumstances surrounding Severina and the questionable relationship she sustains with her mentor, a man she introduces as her grandfather. Rodrigo Rey Rosa’s latest creation confirms his privileged place in contemporary literature. “To read him is to learn how to write and also an invitation to the sheer pleasure of letting oneself be swept away by sinister or fantastic tales.†(Roberto Bolaño)