The Great Believers transcends generations to communicate the heartbreaking reality of the AIDS pandemic as well as the difficult intricacies of human relationships. Yale works for a university’s gallery, trying to persuade his friend Fiona’s great aunt to donate her art collection, while in his personal life he deals with the rapid spread of disease and death amongst his friends, including Fiona’s brother Nico. Fast forward to the future, where Fiona searches for her missing daughter, last seen involved with a cult leader in Paris as reminders of the past and clues of the present appear suddenly and with plenty of emotion. This book is incredible. It portrays a time period that I didn’t know much about with stunning detail and reality. The book manages to address so many themes while remaining well tied together and engaging. Though it started out a bit slow, I found myself engrossed soon enough, wondering about the cult, saddened by the tragedies and wondering how everything would connect across time, turning page after page. I would recommend this book to anyone at all, especially those without much knowledge about the HIV/AIDS crisis and would give it four out of five stars.