"Love is a terrible thing that will make you suffer…"

So says Maria, a young Brazilian girl convinced from an early age that she will never find true love. A chance meeting in Rio takes her to Geneva, but the glittering life she hoped for is a fantasy. The reality - selling herself to survive - is a
dehumanising grind that pushes her further away from real love, towards a fascination with pure physical pleasure.

But when her emotional barriers are tested by a handsome young painter, she must choose between the dark path she is on and risking everything to find her 'inner light'. Can she move beyond the meeting of bodies to a meeting of minds or
even souls - to a place where sex itself is sacred?

This daring new novel sees Paulo Coelho at his best - challenging our prejudices, opening our minds and keeping us utterly enthralled.

PAULO COELHO is one of the the most widely read authors in the world today. Renowned for his best-loved work The Alchemist, he has sold over 47 million books worldwide and has been translated into 56 languages.