All I will say is this - Jennifer Mathieu has done it again. I don't think she's written a novel I haven't loved, and The Liars of Mariposa Island just may be one of my favorites. The characters are so well structured and the relationships so complicated and messy, creating opportunities for a truly engaging discussion. Additionally, when a romance is introduced in a story, it is sometimes easy for that to overpower the rest of the narrative. That didn't happen here. While yes, there are romance(s), it's really the familial relationships that are the star of the show and I absolutely love how well Mathieu is able to balance that. I really can't wait for this to come out, so I can add it to my own personal library as well as my public library's.

Jennifer Mathieu has such a way with words. Her writing is beautiful & lyrical and really brings the characters and the plot to life. I felt I learned a lot reading this story too. I know some of this Cuban history but I felt I learned even more. The characters discover a lot about themselves and their family. All the memorabilia references were fun too.

Good plot, well-written characters, tons of pop culture references that will make Gen x-ers nostalgic. Unsure if teens will enjoy it as much as adults will, given all of them, but a solid story nonetheless!

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. As always, Jennifer Mathieu's writing is elegant and engrossing, but the lack of plot kept me from giving this five stars. As other reviewers have said, the ending is very open which also bothers me a bit.

This book tells the story of Caridad and her two children Joaquin and Elena. Caridad is an alcoholic and I also believe OCD who is trapped in the past, reliving her childhood on Cuba as part of a wealthy family. Nothing in Texas is good enough for her - not her former husband, not her home, not her children. Her controlling goes far behind physical things to her children. All three become adept at creating lies to get escape or execute control. This story is told in all three voices, although Elena and Joaquin are in first person and Caridad is in third person which works tell to reinforce the idea of Caridad as distant.

There's not a lot of action in this book. The story centers around the relationship between Elena and Joaquin, Joaquin and his girlfriend Amy (minor storylien), Elena and her boyfriend J.C. (minor storyline) but mostly about the children's relationship with their mother.


READING PROGRESS

Elena and Joaquin Finney live on Mariposa Island under the very strict thumb of their alcoholic mother. Elena, more than Joaquin, can ignore their mother, but the two siblings are always walking on eggshells to maintain peace in their home.
The summer begins with the return of the Callahans, the family 16 year old Elena babysits for. With the Callahans comes an escape for Elena. A place to go, and some much needed freedom. Joaquin has just graduated high school and has a job at the Mexican restaurant in town. Their mother is much easier on him, but he feels the need to protect his sister.
What I loved about this book (and I loved it a lot) were the flashbacks that gave insight into the sibling's mother's past. She had to flee Cuba, alone, after a traumatic experience. These really helped to understand why their mother acted the way she did.
This is an excellent book. Summer, 1986, on the beach, with secrets being exposed that were very shocking. Highly recommended.