First published 2021
Christina "Ting" Klein arrives in Manila from New York, running from her crumbling marriage to research Timicheg, an indigenous Filipino once displayed in American human exhibitions. She settles into her aging aunt's aristocratic household, where family obligations thrust her into caring for Laird, a cousin's American fiancé seeking his Filipino heritage. Ting reconnects with her circle: Inchoy, her gay socialist philosopher friend, and Chet, her wealthy ex-boyfriend whose business dealings link him to the current regime. President Procopio "Copo" Gumboc rules through terror, and Ting watches Filipino society crumble under his oppression. She navigates between her family's aristocratic customs and the brutal political reality surrounding them. Her loved ones struggle to survive Gumboc's increasingly repressive rule. Ting tries to maintain distance from the regime's horrors, but the violence eventually reaches her directly. She must reconcile her research into historical exploitation with the contemporary suffering she witnesses.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, contemporary, 21st-century, political-thriller, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Manila, New York, Philippines
Period: 21st Century
304 pages · Hardcover · Grove Press
Content warnings: violence