A HELLO SUNSHINE x REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK“A beautiful novel that’s full of forbidden passions, family secrets and a lot of courage and sacrifice.”—Reese WitherspoonAfter 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 … 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.
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You can add this gorgeous book to your #TBR list. Every page is as beautiful as the cover, definitely 5 star. Can’t not wait to read the next book. A great insight into Cuba that many of us have never seen. Great historical detail and remarkable characters. I would definitely recommend to friends and readers of historical fiction.
A compelling, un-put-downable page-turner told from two equally powerful female narratives. Cleeton vividly recreates revolutionary Cuba while deftly weaving in the modern-day expatriate experience. Lush prose, star-crossed lovers and turbulent times make this a family saga to savor. A must read.
“The exiles are the historians, the memory keepers of a lost Cuba, one that’s nearly forgotten.”
Elisa Perez is from a wealthy background, secure in what her role was to be, not only as a Perez, but also as a Cuban. Under Batista’s rule, her family had favor but at what cost? We see Cuba through Elisa’s innocent eyes. From the rush of excitement meeting her first love and revolutionary, and her naïveté of a reality facing Cuba outside her gilded walls, to her world crumbling as the political regime fails and her heartsick worry over an unknown future comes to fruition, the Cuba she knew is ending. The love for her family pulled her in one direction, while the love of a man fighting for his country pulled her in yet another, but it forced Elisa to see life past her safety bubble and realize how much more she had to offer…if she only took that first step.
“At the end of the day, the only thing you have left is what you stand for.”
Pablo, Elisa’s revolutionary love, fought for his convictions and was determined to free his countrymen from a dictator. Granted, we know Cuba traded one for another, but at the time, Castro seemed like a good choice to Pablo to help break free of Batista’s tyranny. Meeting Pablo changed Elisa’s life in many ways, some painful and some unexpectedly joyful, but I believe it changed Pablo too. He saw his fight in a different light because she gave him hope a better future existed, one he had never considered before.
60 years after her grandmother and her family escape Cuba, Elisa’s granddaughter, Marisol, returns to Cuba to lay her grandmother’s ashes to rest. Staying with her grandmother’s childhood friend Ana and her family, including her grandson Luis, Marisol’s trip takes a few…personal, unexpected turns. Growing up on stories from her grandmother and her great aunts left Marisol with a romanticized version of Cuba, one that was frozen in time through memories and a longing of the way things used to be before Castro came to power. However, when faced with the true reality of what was truly left behind, Marisol is left floundering on where she truly fits in as a Cuban-American. As she tells Luis
“…I’m a visitor here, a guest in my own country.”
“Then you know what it means to be Cuban…We always reach for something beyond our grasp.”
Luis was a modern day revolutionary. Teaching history at the University by day, while working his family’s restaurant at night, Luis was a fascinating take on the current political climate. I could draw so many parallels between Luis and Pablo in their beliefs and identity, but simply put, they were strong individuals in their own right fighting for the same thing, just in two different eras and with mixed results.
“…the double-edged sword to being Cuban-we are both pragmatic realists and consummate dreamers.”
This book was an amazing read! Chanel Cleeton did her research and captures the romance and myth, of old and new Cuba with so much passion, it bleeds all over the pages! She conveys so much emotion in these characters…it was hard not to get sucked into their daily lives, even when you know what’s coming for Cuba. I could not tear my eyes away from the magic this story wove! (Seriously, I was reading at work whenever I had the chance to snatch a few pages in.) Passionate, riveting, heartbreaking, romantic, raw…I don’t know if I can find the appropriate words to justify the feelings this book provoked, but I can say this book is worth its weight in gold. Chanel Cleeton took a dark bit of history and brought it to light with characters full of hope and zest for a better chance at life. I find myself looking at Cuba with new eyes and a hefty dose of respect, for the struggles the people have overcome in order to survive. Definitely recommend this read!
I kind of want to give this book a standing ovation. If you’ve read other works by this author, you should go in knowing that this is nothing like anything else she’s ever done before. Certainly there are love stories in this book – but the greatest love story of all may be between the richly layered characters Ms. Cleeton has given us, and the country that broke their hearts. It’s beautifully and authentically written, and I sit here a little bit in awe of everything I just read.
The story is told in dual time periods where we get a portrait of Elisa’s life during the volatile revolutionary period of the late 1950’s Cuba, and a portrait of Marisol’s as a Cuban American in present time. The storylines seem to run parallel to each other – events from Elisa’s life in the past often mirroring Marisol’s life in the present – and the storytelling is unparalleled. My heart belongs to both of these fierce, brave women and it breaks for the cruel realities of the hands they were dealt, and how they made the most of things. As I mentioned, there are so many love stories contained within these pages – and each one is incredibly rewarding in its own right.
Truly, I was drawn so far into this story, I began to feel Elisa and Marisol’s experiences tangibly. My heart raced, my arms ached with the need to hug these women who felt so real to me, my eyes welled with tears for each of them and the beautiful country they loved so dearly. I was fascinated by the history – beautifully and engagingly laid out for us in a way that not only held me captive to this story, but also had me googling events and places in Cuba so that my mind and heart could more fully embrace the words I was feeding them. In all, this was a stellar foray into historical fiction. I cannot recommend it highly enough, and I absolutely cannot wait for more!
4.75 stars–NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA is the first instalment in Chanel Cleeton’s romance series focusing on the Cuban-American Perez family. This is Eliza Perez, and her granddaughter Marisol Ferrera’s story line.
Told from alternating timelines, and dual first person points of view (Eliza and Marisol) NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA is a story of historical fiction; of revolution; of politics and war; of surviving against the odds during the Cuban revolution; of one family’s history between the present and the past. Upon the death of her cherished grandmother Eliza Perez, Marisol Ferrera embarks on a journey to Cuba, where she will meet her future, and uncover her past. Returning her grandmother’s ashes to her beloved homeland, Marisol will encounter the true meaning of struggle and loss, as she goes in search of her family’s history, finding more than she could ever imagined.
NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA is a fictionalized account of one well-to-do family’s struggle growing up in the 50s during the Cuban Revolution, their flight to freedom, and the promises made to one day return. We follow as one woman defies her family as she falls in love with a man of questionable affiliations; and another woman discovers that the past never forgets; that lessons learned are easily forgotten.
Chanel Cleeton pulls the reader into the turmoil and upheaval of Cuba in the late1950’s; where family is pitted against family; neighbors against neighbors; the rich against the poor. An engaging, brilliantly written, and intoxicating tale of the human spirit, love and never letting go.
I loved reading the Elisa sections of the book, about what life was like living in Havana during the Cuban revolution. The opening scene where Elisa and her family are leaving Cuba in 1959 is so powerful and emotional – and the scenes like that, where Cleeton SHOWS instead of TELLS, are by far what make this book worth reading. I know the details of the revolution, politics and modern-day struggles in Cuba are necessary to this story, but the fact that they’re mostly presented as monologues by various characters lessens their impact for us readers.
This is such a wonderful piece of writing. I enjoyed every moment of reading it. The history and modern situation of the city of Havana were painted in full color. The story between the characters was so well told that I devoured it as fast as I could!
Oh, how I loved this book. Ms. Cleeton brought Havana into light in such an intriguing way; I wanted to go there after I read the book.
Written in dual timeframes of the 1950’s Cuba and present-day in the United States, the novel tracks a woman in Cuba in love with someone she can’t be, and her granddaughter, going back to Cuba to spread her grandmother’s ashes.
In the 1950’s storyline, Fidel Castro is powerful and big changes are coming which impact the protagonist and her family forever. The present-day storyline is fraught with revealing the truth of her family while learning why her heritage is so rich, so fragile, and so powerful.
An incredibly good book that will open the reader’s eyes to Cuba’s past.
More like a 3.75. I really wanted to love this, and for the most part it was enjoyable learning about this culture and place that I have little knowledge of. The reason for my somewhat lower rating is because there is soo much politics. I understand why it’s in there and why it’s so important to the history and on-going situations in Cuba, but I would have preferred more of a plot rather than every page being about revolution.
Wonderful mix of history and fiction, I couldn’t put the book down!
I’m awash in Cuban culture & history after spending time immersed in this lush, romantic drama! After reading Next Year in Havana & When We Left Cuba, my only regret is that I’ll probably have to wait until 2020 for another Chanel Cleeton historical adventure 🙂 . . . 5 Stars . . . (my stars keep disappearing when I submit reviews )
I read this book because I had been to Cuba in 2019 and loved it. I could relate to many of the places mentioned in the book so enjoyed it more because of that. The characters were interesting and it had a great story line.
A good story, but a little too long. I read it because I have traveled to Cuba and was interested in the story from the perspective of a family who fled to make a new life in the US.
Tells the problems that Cubans faced during the time they were fighting for their freedom and the influence they brought to the US during that time.
I did not know the history of Cuba so this was very informative! It also gave me perspective on the relationship between Cuba and the USA. I have a new understanding of how Cuban Americans may view government.
I liked this book a lot. It had quite a few twists and it was based on, I believe, a true story. If not, the history itself had so much truth. It made you understand a little better what it would be like to live without the freedoms we have today in our own country and made me appreciate what I have.
It was also heartbreaking to think of all of the people that live in countries that are very politically controlled, yet maybe I understand more of the constant warring, etc. for change. It was easy to quickly get attached to the characters and to wonder if they would ever get back to their beloved Cuba. The author did a great job of describing the beauty and the war torn side of the country. I can only imagine what it must be like to not only leave your country, but your love, your life, your friends, your livelihood, everything behind. Great read. Rich, deep, full of great history among a few love stories.
What immigration was like.
Loved this book , the Author did a wonderful job describing Cuba in 1958 and present when the granddaughter went to visit and honor her grandmothers last wishes , the scenes described at times are heartbreaking , but historically needs told , while reading you can imagine and see the streets, hear the music , see the people both rich and poor , wonderful read , and Expanded my knowledge of a war in a country I didn’t know about .
Most beautiful book I have read in 2020!
A good story and lots of facts about what the Castro revolution meant for the citizens left behind.Peaked my interest in reading more about the revolution.