From the outside, Elena Vega’s life appears to be an easy one: the only child of two professional parents, private school, NYU. But her twenties are aimless and lacking in connection. Something has always been amiss in her life: her father, the brilliant but deeply troubled Santiago Vega.
... moving ... As Elena learns about her father’s past, flashbacks in Santiago’s perspective take the reader with her. While she is an adult, Elena’s story is very much a coming-of-age narrative as she finds both where she came from and where she wants to go.
... heartfelt ... The sad reckoning becomes a travelogue of sorts as Elena drives around the island, where blue-hued waters and lush greenery remain amid scenes of devastation months after the storm. It adds up to a moving reflection on love and loss.
With the exception of Santiago, the characters are unevenly developed, with the author telling more than showing and often leaning into hyperbole. The novel is also weighed down by brief repetitive statements that stretch a point rather than illuminating it ... This multigenerational novel could have been better developed.
