- Author Name : Paulo Coelho
Eleven Minutes tells the story of Maria. At a tender age, she becomes convinced that she will never find true love, instead believing that 'Love is a terrible thing that will make you suffer ...' A chance meeting in Rio takes her to Geneva, where she dreams of finding fame and fortune. Instead, she ends up working as a prostitute. Maria drifts further and further away from love as she develops a fascination with se*. Eventually, Maria's despairing view of love is put to the test when she meets a handsome young painter. She has to choose between pursuing a path of darkness, sexual pleasure for its own sake, or risking everything to find her own 'inner light' and the possibility of sacred se*, se* in the context of love.