Santiaga is a post–World War II spiritual novel about a young woman searching for enlightenment. In the aftermath of war, Santiaga leaves her small town and travels toward a secluded monastic community in the mountains, certain that a guru will reveal meaning to her life. Instead, Santiaga learns that no one can hand her what she seeks.

Told with the powerful simplicity of magical realism and the cadence of folklore, Santiaga’s pilgrimage becomes a test of motherhood and identity. After her daughter is born, her once-independent quest collides with crushing expectations, self-doubt, and spiritual confusion. Forced to make heart-wrenching choices, she nearly loses herself — and then fights her way back.

A work of feminist literary fiction and a modern fable, Santiaga follows a woman who discovers that enlightenment is claimed by choosing herself, while learning to love her daughter without disappearing in the process.