In Praise of the Stepmother is an erotic novel by Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2010.

The book is dedicated to Spanish film director Luis García Berlanga.

Their openness with sexuality, however, turns dangerous when Lucrecia starts a relationship with her pre-teen stepson, Fonchito, which ultimately leads to the unraveling of the marriage.

This is a book of the erotic novel genre that reflects on the meaning of happiness, sexual morality, and the loss of innocence.

[1] [2] It also has vivid descriptions and analysis of famous art representing erotic scenes, in particular from the Peruvian painter Fernando de Szyszlo and the Flemish master Jacob Jordaens.