Who is Eva Thorvald? To her single father, a chef, she's a recipe tester and the love of his life. To the chilli chowdown contestants of Cook County, Illinois, she's a fire-eating demon. She's an enigma, and when we first meet her, she's ten, secretly cultivating chilli peppers in her wardrobe. Over the years, the people she meets will shape her - and she, them - in ways unforgettable, riotous and profound.