On an unnamed island newly emerged from a dictatorship, single mother Lena is suspicious of Victor, a prominent young senator who champions the right to free college tuition. She had a violent encounter with him when they were student activists in college, and she suspects he may have pushed Maria P, a student introducing him at rallies, in front of the bus that killed her. Novey’s portrait of a charismatic bully who rises to power, gaining the backing of a political party through manipulation and the willing silence of others, is chilling. She tells her story through multiple forms; a diary, a play in progress, and multiple perspectives; Lena, her older activist friend Olga, Victor’s gay playwright brother Freddy, his wealthy wife Cristina, even Victor himself. A bold and timely novel.
