Francesca Lia Block

House of Hearts Francesca Lia Block

Izzy Ames is a fierce young woman, living with her beloved boyfriend Cyrus Rivera and her three-legged tortoise, Yard, in a shack they built near the Salton Sea. One morning, Izzy wakes up to find Cyrus has vanished.

After weeks of looking for him with no results, Izzy discovers a clue that Cyrus may have left her for another woman. She abandons her search, and, heartbroken, ends up at the House of Hearts retreat center that promises "Healing from Grief and Childhood Trauma". At the center, Izzy is paired with a Cyrus look-alike, the musician, Ever Fontana, and for a moment she forgets the pain of her past. But when new clues about Cyrus's disappearance surface, Izzy must go down into the dark to find the truth.

Izzy's quest will take her into a world of sexuality, madness and violence, a world where she will discover secrets not only about Cyrus but also, ultimately, about herself.