Rosa Santos is cursed - all the women in her family are. Both her Cuban grandmother and first-generation mom lost the men they loved to the sea, so Rosa just knows. The ocean isn't for her. Neither are boats. And of course boys who sail are completely out of the question. With a college decision looming and a deep desire to understand the Cuban world of her grandmother, Rosa's Florida town and her neighbors will be the backdrop as she makes sense of how to move forward as a girl who truly knows where she belongs.
Rosa caught my heart from the beginning. I loved her open and vulnerable voice, her love for her grandma and her Cuban magic, her need for control and order while at the same time finding herself enchanted by the wild and forbidden. I really liked the role that Cuba - what it represents for her and for her family - played in this book. The magical realism in the story comes on softly, sometimes I had to stretch my suspended disbelief a bit, but I was rooting so hard for her that I was able to manage it. A few scenes left me wanting but overall the writing was strong. At one point I had tears at the tenderness of strong women who love each other and find ways to survive and thrive even as they are hurting in ways that no one may ever understand.
1 comment:
I love the cover of this book! Good to know that the story itself is worth reading.
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