The Book of Lost Saints is a Cuban family story with a heart firmly planted in the world of magical realism. Ramón, one of two central characters, is a hospital security guard by day and an exceptionally talented DJ by night. The other central character is Marisol, an aunt Ramón never met, but whose spirit is now haunting his dreams. Marisol disappeared in the aftermath of the Cuban revolution, and now she wants Ramón to uncover her story to put her spirit at peace. Doing this, however, is a singularly difficult task for Ramón, because it becomes clear that his mother, Nilda, played a key role in Marisol's fate.

The entire book is told in Marisol's spirit's voice, which takes some getting used to at first, but works quite well. Marisol's spirit has forgotten much of her own story, so not only do we share Ramón's efforts to uncover the truth, we share Marisol's struggles to understand and accept the life she cannot remember.

The dialogue is particularly well-written, making use of Cubanismos in ways that keep them accessible for those who don't speak Spanish, as well as for those who do.

This book offers an interesting, critical perspective on pre- and post-revolutionary Cuba, which carries into the present, as Ramón travels to the island in search of more details of his aunt's story. The U.S. cast members include a variety of Cuban Americans whose attitudes about their former homeland vary widely—so even though Marisol is narrating, the reader always has access to multiple perspectives.

The Book of Lost Saints should prove a satisfying read for a variety of readers: lovers of magical realism, fans of Latin American/Caribbean literature, and those who enjoy novels about families coming to terms with one another.

I was very excited to read this book but it wasn’t quite what I imagined. I felt it was unnecessarily long with pages of details not pertinent to the story. Somehow the magical realism, and the Cuban revolution got buried in some very grainy details.

Enjoyable concept and executed well overall. Lots of extraneous writing took away from the power of the book. Could have been great with significant editing.

4-4.5 stars

Wow, what an ending! This was no an easy book to read, partly because it was hard to figure out what was going on at the beginning, and partly because of the subject matter. This book covers the time surrounding the Cuban Revolution and moves towards the present where Ramon is being visited by the spirit and memories of his dead aunt Marisol as they both try to figure out what happened to her. This was a subject that I didn't know much about and like all war zones/dictatorships, it was a brutal, violent, and unfair time, and the struggles of the people continue to this day. The abuse and violence was particularly tough to read about, but I think it was also important to the story. There were times when I would get lost about the situation, but overall, I felt the author did an amazing job weaving together the past and the present. There were so many elements I loved about this book, and I only wish I could hear some of the music that Ramon put together, especially with the orchestra! This book took me awhile to get through because I wanted to read it slowly and let some of the events sit in my head. But I suspect if I had had the time, I could have sat down and read it in a couple of settings, with a different impact. As it was, I finished the last 60% in two sittings because once I hit that 50% mark, I wanted to know what happened! For anyone who enjoys historical fiction with a bit of mysticism and mystery, and doesn't mind some sex and violence, I would recommend this book.

Thanks to #NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful story about revolution, family & forgiveness. I highly recommend this book, a very unique take!

I wish I wasn't such a curmudgeon about spirits and ghosts, but I understand why the author chose this mode to tell the story about our main character, who returns to discover how she died. Readers learn a lot about life under Castro in Cuba and about Marisol, the spirit, and her family connections. Older is an excellent writer, which is why I read the entire novel on a long flight. I enjoyed the elements of mysticism flowing through the questioning of what happened to Marisol and the political history of how Marisol became involved with the movement. Much to appreciate and savor in this novel.

Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of The Book of Lost Saints. I was hooked by this book from the beginning. The twists in the plot line kept me intrigued and wanting to find out what happened.

This book took a few chapters to take root and set fire to my brain but when it did, hoo boy that flame was bright. This isn't a ghost story, it's a spirit story. Some people look up their family on ancestry web sites or do the DNA tests just for a lark, but for the rest of us, the story isn't in some database or lab results. Family history is complicated, doubly so with immigration, exponentially so because of a revolution. The Book of Lost Saints unfolded in an intricately beautiful manner that it was harder to put down with each story Marisol reveals to Ramon. Read this book while drinking a cafecito and listening to a playlist of old school Cuban songs (thanks, Napster) and late 90s dance club classics.

Thank you NetGalley for the free ARC.

At first, I was really lost in the book and could not figure out what was happening to Ramon, then I realized that Marisol was a ghost and I started catching on. Marisol has disappeared during the Cuban Revolution and does not remember what happened to her, so she haunts her nephew Ramon and tries to get him to help her. This is an interesting history of the Cuban resistance and made me want to know more..