Ballantine Books (Random House). To be published May 6, 2025.
Reviewed by Alma Ramos-McDermott
Category: Adult
Rating: 5 stars
Emilia was born in 1866 to a bitter woman who, when she was a novice nun, got pregnant. Unable to continue living with the other nuns, she married an older man who had worked with her when she was a novice and loved her. As Emilia grew, she was inundated with stories of her rich and cowardly father who refused to acknowledge his daughter and the inheritance she was owed from his rich coffers.
Emilia loved her stepfather, who taught her everything he knew and instilled in her that she could be anything she wanted to be. As a female she was expected to follow the pre-ordained path of marriage, or specific feminine vocations. However, Emilia had no desire to be a wife, nurse, or teacher. Her passion was writing so, under a male pseudonym, she began writing a series of successful dime store crime novels.
At age twenty-two Emilia became a crime reporter at The Daily Examiner in San Francisco, paired with a male reporter who took her under his wing. Eventually they travelled to Chile to report on its civil war, as Emilia convinced the editor to also let her go because her father was Chilean, and she spoke Spanish.
As Emilia learned more about Chile, its beauty, and its warring factions, she began feeling a love and connection to the country. However, separated from the man she loved, and finding herself on the wrong side of the winning army, Emilia soon found out Chile’s beauty didn’t extend to the black hearts of her countrymen.
In her own words, Emilia explains why she was not the typical female of her time and place. Her rich descriptions and life experiences will keep readers on the edges of their seats until its final, satisfying conclusion.
Highly recommended for Adults.
Note: This review was originally published in: You Decide: Should I read it or not?
Reproduced here as a courtesy to Alma Ramos-McDermott
REFORMA de Florida 