Acid rainstorms have transformed New York City into a toxic wasteland. Thousands have died and thousands more have been left stranded inside the five self-contained boroughs under military control. In one apartment building, an unlikely family of humans and ghosts survives. Mira reels from a devastating breakup with her partner Mal who is lost in the faraway expanse of Queens. A second generation Chinese American now back at home with her mother, Mira calls out to the empty airwaves with her HAM radio in the hopes of reconnecting with Mal, or connecting with anyone at all. Across the hall, Shin, a ghost cockroach, replays his lost life, and a headless man named Sad falls in love. Mira's mother is plagued by furious dreams alongside Grandpa Why, now a rambunctious ghost. As the world around them worsens, each character must learn to redefine what it means to live, die, and love at the end of the world.
Industry Reviews
"Muriel Leung gives us such elegance and tenderness and visions of loss and connection inside this broken world." -- Aimee Bender, author of The Butterfly Lampshade
"An astonishing feat of the imagination and the human heart, this book is a one-of-a-kind experience. A haunting and exquisite debut novel." -- Elaine Hsieh Chou, author of Disorientation
"A singular work of fiction: joyfully grotesque and ridiculously sexy. Muriel Leung's characters-ghosts, vermin, apocalypse survivors all-made me laugh out loud as often as they broke my heart. I loved it all, every single word." -- Jean Chen Ho, author of Fiona and Jane
"Muriel Leung builds a hypnotic world where the real and the spectral are layered like watercolors. To read this book is to be heartbroken, haunted, and, ultimately, healed." -- Jenny Xie, author of Holding Pattern
"Astonishing . . . writhes with heartbreak and wonder. Visionary, horny, and surprising at every turn, this novel is a triumph." -- Henry Hoke, author of Open Throat