Arturo Fontaine

When it was discovered that the writer Teresa Wilms (1893–1921), married with children, had a passionate love affair with Vicho Balmaceda, she was confined to a convent, from which she escaped. She traveled to Buenos Aires accompanied by Vicente Huidobro and later lived in Madrid and Paris, where she took her own life. She was 28 years old.

This novel delves into that love story, which scandalized society and shaped destinies. It was woven together from various documents—some from Teresa herself and others—but above all, from the stories the author heard firsthand from his own relatives, direct witnesses of that time and those real lives, here reimagined in a prose that entertains, captivates, enlightens, and moves.

"No one represents contemporary Chilean narrative better than Arturo Fontaine… the tensions, struggles, uncertainties, loyalties, and betrayals of a society in flux." Carlos Fuentes, Babelia, El País

"Hearing his voice is the star of the new Chilean novels." David Gallagher, The Times Literary Supplement

"The voice of the year… For the first time… Santiago acquires its own voice… One of the most outstanding Latin American narrators today." Camilo Marks, La Época

"In this novel, an era, a woman, and a desire come to life. It tells the story of a rebellious impulse that finds its course in female liberation, but whose corollary is loss and sacrifice. A metaphor for rebellion that leads only to death, for love that withers in illness and addiction, for women’s literature and motherhood punished in the name of maintaining a certain social order." Sonia Montecino

"The subtlest swings of a woman's heart and an era. A moving novel where there is only truth." Carla Guelfenbein

"An unputdownable book once you start reading. With subtle humor, it offers a sharp portrayal of a time oscillating between tradition and modernity, brimming with change and challenges, especially for women." Lucía Santa Cruz

"Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century Chile, Y entonces Teresa recreates a story of love and agony, masterfully revealing a way of narrating and writing that we thought was lost." Raúl Zurita