Review coming soon. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC; opinions are mine.

5 of 5 Stars. I fall down Chanel’s rabbit hole each time.
Pub Date June 16, 2020
#TheLastTrainToKeyWest #ChanelCleeton #NetGalley

Chanel Cleeton’s book are always amazing to read. Her passion for politics and history and honoring the lives of the forgotten throughout history always shines through in her stories. She has a way that makes you feel incredibly connected and invested in the characters, their world, their problems and joys. I also always appreciate how much she focuses on women, politics and history without making the reader feel bogged by all of the information. This book was wonderful and I truly enjoyed it.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I loved Chanel Cleeton and was not disappointed by this book. What drew me to the book was the author and the fact the book is based on the true story of the 1935 category 5 hurricane that hit the Florida Keys. It deals with the veteran camps, devastation of the storm, survival, martial abuse, and finding love. I loved the characters and was concerned about what happened to them. The story line is interesting, flows, is easily followable, and I couldn't put the book down.

Chanel Cleeton is a very talented, and this novel shows her strength. This was a very powerful and moving novel. I liked how this novel focuses on three women and their love stories. Thus novel also does an excellent job interweaving this story with the previous novels! I recommend this novel for fans of Beatriz Williams, Lucinda Riley’s, and C. W. Gortner!

I loved the other books in this series and this one is no different. A great story full of lovable characters. I loved all of the descriptions of the setting and I thought the plot flowed well.

I absolutely loved this book! I was so engrossed by the characters right off the bat. Her writing is out of this world, if you've been in a reading slump this is a great place to start, it absolutely blew me away!

I wasn't able to download and read this book due to a bad flare up of lyme disease. I apologize to Netgalley and the publisher and author.

Once again Chanel Cleeton has brought to life a lesser known part of history with this excellent tale that weaves together the experiences of three very different women experiencing a 1935 hurricane in the Florida Keys. All the women are in different stages of desperation, and their stories connect in fascinating ways. The looming presence of the hurricane adds a lot of tension to the story, and the horrors it leaves in its wake are well described.

I reached out to the publisher in March asking for an ARC of Chanel Cleeton’s (When We Left Cuba, Next Year in Havana) new book. They emailed me last week and sent me a version of it for my Kindle. While it is not my favorite Cleeton book, it was a really good read. In this story she brings to life 3 ladies in 3 different walks of life. The setting is in 1930s as one of the strongest hurricanes is set to hit Key West. Also it entangles the story of these three ladies over the course of the book. The book comes out at the beginning of June, and I highly recommend all of you add it it your TBR piles.

I really enjoy Chanel Cleeton's books and this one did not disappoint. She writes characters that are strong, resilient, and I love the way she connects them all but you don't quite know how until the very end. In this book, 3 women are in different situations, different walks of life but are brought together to Key West in 1935 during the Depression and right in the middle of one of the worst hurricanes in history. I loved each woman's story and situation, the buildup was great and the hurricane scene was absolutely incredible. I cared for each of these characters by that scene and I was so vested in what happened to each of these women. This was such a satisfying read, Cleeton is now an auto read author for me as I have loved each of her last three books.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the digital copy to review.

The Last Train to Key West was always on my radar, but it took me years to actually read it.
It is just a typical story of one with too many books and never-ending tbr.

What pulled me in immediately was three different voices of our three main characters. Each's chapter was written in first person, and they all sounded differently, which was mind blowing.

As I started the novel, I was sure I would read it in only few sittings, but then I got corona virus which really ruined my reading experience.
I wasn't able to really enjoy the book, to really get into the story.

Beside that, I also came to realization that I don't like to read about tragedies anymore, as they remind me of the earthquake and are triggering to me. I guess they hit home too close, at least at this point of my life.

Overall, I think The Last Train to Key West was a good book and I would recommend it to historical fiction lovers out there.

This book was amazing! I loved the characters, the setting, and the way the storylines eventually intersected. It was fascinating how each of them women were so different yet had similar challenges and experiences. I read this with my book club and it produced a number of discussions about trauma, abuse, family expectations, the handling of veterans. Such a fascinating book to facilitate such conversations. Looking forward to more from Ms. Cleeton!

“People are a mystery, and the second you think you have them figured out, they surprise you.”
— The Last Train to Key West, Chanel Cleeton

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️/5

It’s Labor Day weekend in the year 1935. Helen Berner, a Key West native, knows her home seems like paradise to the tourists that flock there, but she longs to break free of the prison it has become.

Mirta Perez, after marrying a man she hardly knows in her home country of Cuba, travels to Key West with him to celebrate their honeymoon. While she married him to help her family, she can’t deny her growing attraction to him. But his notoriety and shady business dealings threaten not only their marriage, but her life as well.

Elizabeth Preston travels to Key West on a quest to save her once proud family from complete and utter ruin. Along the way, she encounters a man she feels incredibly drawn to, but he’s got secrets that could derail all of her plans.

My favorite part was the way in which all three of these women’s stories wove together to create an utterly captivating novel. While it was a bit slow going in the beginning, it ended up being one I absolutely could no put down.

Cleeton does amazing work with historical fiction, really making you feel like you’re living in these times with these women, each struggling to come to terms with their new positions in life while also facing down a life-threatening hurricane.

I loved (almost) all of the characters, and enjoyed watching the women’s separate love stories come to life and be shaped by one of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the United States.

FULL REVIEW ON FRESH FICTON
THE LAST TRAIN TO KEY WEST by Chanel Cleeton is a captivating story about three women with different struggles, but all with the same determination: to live life on their terms and find some kind of happiness while doing so. Issues of class, the aftermath of WWI, and the Great Depression are prominent themes throughout this novel. While THE LAST TRAIN TO KEY WEST isn’t quite as dynamic as Cleeton’s earlier books (NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA and WHEN WE LEFT CUBA), the hallmarks of her writing and storytelling styles are there – intriguing characters, propulsive plots, and surprising connections. The Key West setting is gorgeously described, even during a treacherous hurricane. Readers will feel for the three women telling their stories and will be interested to finally understand how they are all connected, as well as how their stories will resolve.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: https://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=10719

I LOVED THIS BOOK! Chanel Cleeton does it again!! Every single book she writes is a complete binge for me and this was no exception. It was fast paced and the story lines were perfectly intertwined.

Thank you for the opportunity to read The Last Train to Key West. While I loved the author's previous books, I wasn't able to get into this one and won't be leaving a full review.

These three stories ended up being beautifully linked together, but ultimately there wasn't enough going on. I did appreciate reading about a time period/historical event I haven't heard of before though.

Thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for a copy to review.

Historical fiction that is accurate, informative and enjoyable is rare. This is all of the above. There was much in this novel that I did not know and it was so enjoyable that I sought out others by Cleeton. She does not disappoint.

I was fascinated with the setting and plot of this book. Key West in the 30s in the middle of a hurricane. We follow 3 different women during this time, which is chaotic collectively due to the impending storm coming, but also individually because each of their lives are complicated. I love stories like this, but I think in this case it made me connect a bit less with some of them. My absolute favorite one was Helen, a Key West native in an abusive marriage.⁠

I love the connecting thread to their lives and seeing the struggles they each go through. In many ways, each of their stories shows strength and resilience. I think that’s one of my favorite things about Ms. Cleeton’s books. Her female characters are strong women, even the more quiet ones.⁠

I couldn’t put this one down and I gobbled it up literally in one sitting. It’s addictive and you want to know how things will unfold so you keep reading. There’s danger and romance, heartbreak and happiness. All against the Key’s backdrop that just sparks to life.⁠

While this isn’t my favorite historical fiction by Ms. Cleeton is certainly one I really enjoyed and highly encourage that you pick up.⁠

Chanel Cleeton has become a master at historical fiction. Beautiful backdrops, rich writing, and strong characters bring this book to life