The Facades is one of the most remarkable and talked-about debut novels in recent memory. Set in the once-great Midwestern city of Trude a treacherous maze of convoluted shopping malls, barricaded libraries and elitist assisted-living homes Eric Lundgrens novel follows a disconsolate legal clerk named Sven Norberg, who sets out to investigate the disappearance of his wife, the citys most celebrated mezzo-soprano. To track her down, he must descend into Trudes underworld and confront the menacing and bizarre citizens of his hometown: rebellious librarians, shifty music critics and the minister of an apocalyptic church who has recruited Norbergs teenage son. Written with boundless intelligence and razor-sharp wit, The Facades is a comic and existential mystery that unfolds at the urgent pace of a thriller.