em> is an astonishing debut novel about the anguish of lost love. Author Salvador Plascencia, a "once-in-a-generation talent" (George Saunders), weaves together the stories of a large cast of colorful characters, including: a disgruntled monk, a gang of carnation pickers, and a woman made of paper.

"Wonderful and comically inventive." --The New York Times Book Review

Federico de la Fe is a devoted husband and father, but when his lime-loving wife, Merced, abandons him, he and his daughter, Little Merced (who also loves limes), must start a new life together. They leave their home in Mexico and head for California. There they settle among a community of flower pickers, where Federico de la Fe's sadness festers, and Little Merced develops a dangerous addiction to limes.

All the while an oppressive force bears down on the town. When the identity of this mysterious oppressor is finally revealed, the story takes an unexpected turn and moves toward its magical, breathtaking end.