E-Audio, 09:16:46
Narrated by: Kyla Garcia
Release Date: June 16, 2020
Published by: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Read from: July 31- August 5, 2020
Stand-alone
Source: Library (Overdrive)
TW: Large Natural Disaster, Death, Spousal Abuse
For fans of: Historical Fiction, Romance, Adult, Sparkly Covers, Diverse AuthorsIn 1935 three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s captivating new novel.
Everyone journeys to Key West searching for something. For the tourists traveling on Henry Flagler’s legendary Overseas Railroad, Labor Day weekend is an opportunity to forget the economic depression gripping the nation. But one person’s paradise can be another’s prison, and Key West-native Helen Berner yearns to escape.
The Cuban Revolution of 1933 left Mirta Perez’s family in a precarious position. After an arranged wedding in Havana, Mirta arrives in the Keys on her honeymoon. While she can’t deny the growing attraction to the stranger she’s married, her new husband’s illicit business interests may threaten not only her relationship, but her life.
Elizabeth Preston’s trip from New York to Key West is a chance to save her once-wealthy family from their troubles as a result of the Wall Street crash. Her quest takes her to the camps occupied by veterans of the Great War and pairs her with an unlikely ally on a treacherous hunt of his own.
Over the course of the holiday weekend, the women’s paths cross unexpectedly, and the danger swirling around them is matched only by the terrifying force of the deadly storm threatening the Keys.
*MY THOUGHTS*
Whenever I like a historical fiction novel, I always feel like it needs to be celebrated. It’s no secret that I don’t like historical fiction, but when I finally do find one I like, it has to be really good. And so far, the books by Chanel Cleeton have felt that way for me.
Three women who have come from all walks of life come to the Key West for different reasons during the Labor Day weekend of 1935. Their paths cross unexpectedly as a very large hurricane swirls in the water surrounding them.
When I started this I was a bit scared. I was really worried about a hurricane coming towards us, so this hit a bit different. I have a small phobia of natural disasters after what happened to us with Hurricane Harvey in 2017. But even with the hurricane mentioned in this book, once I started reading, I couldn’t stop reading it. It wasn’t solely focused on the storm which might be why I was ok with reading it. At the end when it showed the damage it left behind, I did get a little sad. And I ended up going to research more on it because I hadn’t heard of it. I think that’s the most exciting part of historical fiction, finding the part of the book that actually happened and finding more information about it.
As for the characters, there are three different POV’s, but they’re all easy to distinguish between. It was interesting trying to learn all of them and their likes and dislikes. Not only Cleeton did a great job making them so different and needing different things, but the narrator also had diffferent voices for each of them. That seems like a really hard thing to me, but it might be easy for them lol
The love stories that were shown were very cute too. I thought it might be difficult trying to show the romance of all three main characters, but Cleeton made it flow so easily. I was rooting for one couple more than the others, but they were all still good.
The writing style was also really good. I love how she gave them each their own story and then made them come together at the end. I’m not sure why, but this always impresses me. I like stories that are able to gel together this way.
After reading Cleeton, I’m convinced that I don’t NOT like historical fiction, I just have to find those subjects that I do like. And even still, I might just like something else about it. If you’re having doubts like me, I hope you give those books a chance. They might surprise you like this one did for me.
Overall, I give this
What about you? Have you read this? Do you like historical fiction? Did you know about the Hurricane of Labor Day in the Key West in 1935? Let me know in the comments!