A sensuous Frenchwoman transforms the life and world of an introverted Spanish widower for better or worse in this "moving" debut novel ( RTS, France). Across the Galician countryside, where there are just as many rain-soaked days as not, villagers face hardships armed with hope and solidarity. Tomás is a successful farmer in this small village, but he's not happy. His days are busy with work. His nights are a drunken spiral into self-pity and despair. A widower plagued with guilt, his life has been tarnished by tragedy that has pushed him into isolation and loneliness. All of that changes when he sees Suiza. Warm-hearted and sensual, Suiza lands in the village en route to visit the sea. Her innocently provocative manner disturbs the tranquility of this town. Like all the men who meet her, Tomás is immediately crazy about her. What is initially a simple carnal desire will gradually transform into love and offer the possibility of personal transformation as well. Praise for Suiza "A perfect capsule of everything I love in a novel: beauty, darkness, humor; it covers the whole range of human emotions, and lays them bare under the sun of Galicia. I shall add that it's pretty intense, so maybe not for everyone." —Jean-Baptiste Andrea "Immersive and disturbing. . . . This rough-edged anti–fairy tale is not for the faint of heart." — Publishers Weekly