Young graduate student Eriel Manto loves old books. One day, looking into an inconspicuous second-hand bookstore, she discovers a real treasure - the work of the semi-scandalous Victorian scientist Thomas Lumas, which describes the secret of penetrating into another reality. Time travel, telepathy, insight into the future - everything is possible if you know the recipe. Eriel shells out all her money for the precious volume, not suspecting that possessing a rarity will not only expose her to the temptation to try Lumas’ methods on herself, but will also arouse intense interest in her from very dangerous individuals. The girl, however, was warned that a curse was hanging over the book... The English writer Scarlett Thomas published her first novel at the age of twenty-six. A year later, she published two more with resounding success, and the Independent on Sunday included her in its prestigious list of the twenty best young authors. Of the eight action-packed novels by Scarlett Thomas, the public and critics rated Lumas's Obsession especially highly.