The One

A razor-sharp and seductively hypnotic debut novel about the very fantasy of falling in love.Emily didnt join the cast of The One for fame or for a relationship. She simply didnt have anything better to do. Newly fired from her dead-end job, it doesnt take much convincing when shes recruited as a last-minute contestant for the popular reality dating show. Emily has been performing her entire lifefor her family and friends, former boyfriends, and coworkers. How different could it be playing herself in front of cameras?But the moment Emily arrives, it becomes clear shes been tapped to win it all. Emilys producer Miranda sees her as the golden ticket: generically pretty, affable, and easily moldedall the qualities of a future Wife. Emily herself is less certain. Its easy enough to fall in love under romantic lighting and perfectly crafted dates, but its harder to remember whats real and whats designed. And as Emilys fascination with another contestant grows, both Emily and Miranda are forced to decide what it is they really wantand what they are willing to do to get it.A brilliant send-up of our cultural mythology around romance, The One examines the reality of love and desire set against a world of ultimate artifice and manipulation.