The Book of the Most Precious Substance

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What to expect

The highly anticipated thriller from internationally renowned author Sara Gran, author of Come Closer and the Claire DeWitt series

A mysterious book that promises unlimited power and unrivaled sexual pleasure. A down-on-her-luck book dealer hoping for the sale of a lifetime. And a twist so shocking, no one will come out unscathed.

After a tragedy too painful to bear, former novelist Lily Albrecht has resigned herself to a dull, sexless life as a rare-book dealer—until she gets a lead on a book that just might turn everything around. The Book of the Most Precious Substance is a seventeenth-century manual on sex magic, rumored to be the most powerful occult book ever written—if it really exists at all. And some of the wealthiest people in the world are willing to pay Lily a fortune to find it, if she can.

Her search for the book takes her from New York to New Orleans to Munich to Paris, searching the dark corners of power where the world’s wealthiest people use black magic to fulfill their desires. Will Lily fulfill her own desires and join them? Or will she lose it all searching for a ghost?

The Book of the Most Precious Substance is an addictive erotic thriller about the lengths we will go to get what we need—and what we want.

Critics Review

  • “In this sensational occult thriller, the rare-book dealer Lily…and the hunky librarian helping her search begin to fall under the book’s spell.”

    New York Times Book Review

  • “While Lily’s hunt propels the story forward, it is Gran’s frequently exquisite prose that demands investment from its audience.”

    BookPage (starred review)

  • “This mesmerizing biblio-mystery…perfectly captures the eccentric world of antiquarian bookselling while portraying a profound and magical reckoning with loss and the possibility of going on.”

    Publishers Weekly (starred review)

  • “An adventure story with lots of sex—and black magic…Lily’s acid narration and gradual reawakening and a ‘be careful what you wish for’ finale enhance this quest novel.”

    Library Journal

  • “Extravagant, sexy, and compelling. I loved it.”

    Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls

  • “A mix of book buying mystery, erotica, and a pinch of Clive Barkerian obsessive existential horror, but it’s all Gran. And it’s all brilliant.”

    Paul Tremblay, author of The Cabin at the End of the World

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