Carlos Fuentes' novel, Aura, was first published in 1962 in Mexico. Felipe Montero, the protagonist, is a young historian, and he accepts a live-in position editing the memoirs of General Llorente, whose elderly widow (Consuelo) wants published before her own death. Intoxicated by the airless atmosphere of the house, Felipe begins dreaming of having sex and escaping with Consuelo's young beautiful niece: Aura. As he reads the General's writings he makes some discoveries surrounding Consuelo's infertility, her fantasy of having a child, and her obsession with youth, only to realise that Aura is actual fact is a projection of the 109-year-old widow. One day, while he embraces her, Aura turns into the old woman. Felipe then takes on the role of the General, coupled with Consuelo, to give birth to 'Aura', who epitomises youth and the illusion of life. In this complex short story, the author challenges the general notion of time through an innovative narrative technique. He employs second-person narration in the present and future tenses, thus removing the boundaries between present, past and future. The writing style creates a suffocating and dreamlike atmosphere, and mixes the fantastic with the tangible, making it difficult to distinguish between the two.