When We Left Cuba

February 18, 2019
Cleeton (Next Year in Havana) will break hearts with this exquisitely wrought tale of a privileged girl exiled from her country and the powerful American politician who changes the course of her life. After Fidel Castro took power in Cuba, Beatriz Perez and her family sought refuge in Palm Beach, Fla., and tried to rebuild. But Beatriz craves revenge: the Cuban leader was responsible for her twin brother’s murder, and she believes that—with the help of a fellow exile, Eduardo Diaz, and her recruitment into the CIA—she can avenge that death. When U.S. Senator Nicholas Randolph Preston III enters her world at a Palm Beach society ball, she loses her heart quickly to the man who will change her life. Cleeton’s twisting, intricate plot of love and revenge takes Beatriz to such locations as Harlem and London (where she faces off with a trained Cuban intelligence officer) and finally to a potentially deadly meeting with Castro in Cuba. Tiny glimpses of the present day are woven throughout the novel, giving readers hints of what became of two idealistic souls. This is a beautiful and utterly transporting novel. Agent: Kevan Lyon, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

In this audiobook, narrator Kyla Garcia provides the voice of Beatriz Perez, a young Cuban sugar heiress living in exile. It is the 1960s, and in Florida the world is changing daily. As Beatriz tries to adjust to all she has lost--family, home, fortune--she becomes consumed by thoughts of revenge and become involved with the CIA. Garcia embraces the drama that defines Beatriz with reasonable aplomb, offering the energy and engagement this story requires, especially when Beatriz falls in love with an ambitious man. The work reveals an interesting time in history, but not with exceptional distinction. Nonetheless, Garcia does a fine job of delivering it. The story is easy to follow, and the performance is effective. L.B.F. � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine