“Thoughtful, heartbreaking . . . King expertly explores the myriad routes to family, hope, and love in a repressive country.” —Publishers Weekly

Under the One Child Policy, everyone plotted to have a son.

Now 40 million of them can't find wives.

China’s One Child Policy and its cultural preference for male heirs have created a society overrun by unmarriageable men. An Excess Male is one such leftover man’s quest for love and family under a State that seeks to glorify its past mistakes and impose order through authoritarian measures, reinvigorated Communist ideals, and social engineering.

Wei-guo holds fast to the belief that as long as he continues to improve himself, his chance at love will come. He finally saves up the dowry required to enter matchmaking talks at the lowest rung as a third husband—the maximum allowed by law. Only a single family shows interest, yet with May-ling and her two husbands, Wei-guo feels seen, heard, and connected like never before. But everyone and everything—walls, streetlights, garbage cans—are listening, and men, excess or not, are dispensable to the State. Wei-guo must test the limits of his love and his resolve in order to save himself and this family he has come to hold dear.

“King writes distinctive and sympathetic characters, and her vision of a not-so-far future is unnerving and thought-provoking.” —The Washington Post

“Disturbing, funny, suspenseful and keenly observed.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“The Handmaid’s Tale of a new generation.” —Peter Clines, author of Paradox Bound and The Fold

“Provocative . . . An intelligent, incisive commentary on how love survives—or doesn't—under the heel of the State.” —Kirkus Reviews