Of Love and Other Demons

Gabriel García Márquez · 1927–2014 · Colombia

Originally Del amor y otros demonios (Spanish) · translated by Edith Grossman

Why it matters

In colonial Cartagena, a girl bitten by a rabid dog is pronounced demon-possessed, and the priest sent to exorcise her falls forbiddenly in love with her instead. García Márquez's late, incense-heavy return to the marvelous and the Inquisition's cruelty.

At a glance

Straightforward chronological narration, though period detail and church Latin add texture.