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Raul, an Argentinian painter has just caught the eye of the city´s most infamous critic James who has just been struck by writer´s block. Young and beautiful Lucy from small-town Idaho will become first Raul´s lover and then James´s. This electrifying debut captures the energy and spontaneity of the 1980s NY downtown scene - it´s a celebration of the power of art and a love letter to New York.

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LONGLISTED FOR THE 2016 CENTER FOR FICTION FIRST NOVEL PRIZE

One town. Three people. A single year that will change them all forever. Welcome to the seductive chaos of downtown New York

Raul is an Argentinian painter, fresh on New York´s downtown scene, about to explode into fame. James is the city´s most notorious critic, known for his unique synaesthesia, his mind ablaze with fireworks and symphonies. And Lucy is just another young girl who escaped suburbia, all too easily dazzled by the brilliant strangers who cross her path.

Exploding with colour and raw energy, this electrifying debut captures the spirit of a New York now long gone, a place of creation and destruction and endless possibility.

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Publisher´s description. Three lives collide in 1980s downtown New York: Argentinian painter Raul, infamous art critic James, and daisy-fresh young wanderer Lucy, a muse looking for her artist. This is a love letter to New York and the people who embodied the city´s vital, messy, living spirit. Penguin

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Molly Prentiss grew up in a commune in Santa Cruz, California. Hamish Hamilton published her debut novel, Tuesday Nights in 1980 . She has a MFA in Creative Writing from the California College of the Arts, was a Writer in Residence at Workspace at the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and at the Blue Mountain Center, and was chosen as an Emerging Writer Fellow by the Aspen Writers Foundation. She is also a contributor to various literary publications. Molly Prentiss lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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