"After the death of her beloved grandmother, a Cuban-American woman travels to Havana, where she discovers the roots of her identity--and unearths a family secret hidden since the revolution ... Havana, 1958. The daughter of a sugar baron, nineteen-year-old Elisa Perez is part of Cuba's high society, where she is largely sheltered from the country's growing political unrest--until she embarks on a clandestine affair with a passionate revolutionary ... Miami, 2017. Freelance writer Marisol Ferrera grew up hearing romantic stories of Cuba from her late grandmother Elisa, who was forced to flee with her family during the revolution. Elisa's last wish was for Marisol to scatter her ashes in the country of her birth. Arriving in Havana, Marisol comes face-to-face with the contrast of Cuba's tropical, timeless beauty and its perilous political climate. When more family history comes to light and Marisol finds herself attracted to a man with secrets of his own, she'll need the lessons of her grandmother's past to help her understand the true meaning of courage--and what it means to be Cuban"-- Provided by publisher.
Freelance writer Marisol Ferrera disovers shocking truths about her beloved grandmother in this ode to Cuba.
Cuban history is murky for me. While the names of the politicians are familiar – Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Fulgencio Batista – I recall nothing of the actual history, population, and culture. This book explores all of the above elements from the early 20th Century until now. It felt like reading a historical novel about the Cuban people rather than a fiction novel. I’m unsure of the accuracy of the information and representation, but it certainly made me want to learn more about the county.
The setting may have been complex and intriguing, but the characters and plot were not. The romances felt too rushed and underdeveloped to be believable. Marisol and Luis’ storyline suffered the most from instalove. I could believe a connection existed between the two, but not love (and not in one week). The novel did a better job with exploring the complicated familial and platonic relationships, particularly the connection between Marisol and Eliza. I would rather the romance be removed all together to focus more on the two main characters.
tl;dr While a fascinating analysis of Cuba’s struggles, I found the actual story to be insubstantial.
