This book very easily shot up to the top of the list of my favorite books of the year, and maybe of all time.

There is a warmth and a coziness to this story. But there is also grief and pain. Its balanced so well that you never feel overwhelmed by any of the "bad" things that happen in the story, but rather you feel a sense of empathy for the characters, our protagonist Isla especially.

This story is about stories, but its also about family legacy, family secrets, perception of self, perception of others and national pride. Puerto Rico is as much a character in this book as any of the others and Cardinal paints a rich and vibrant picture of the island, so much so that, while I've never been, I feel as if I have experienced it.

I found the fact that Cardinal wove together Isla's discovery of family secrets with the uncovering of political and racial unrest in her family fascinating. They do so often go together. Isla's island family is wealthy, but she doesn't necessarily see it as such, perhaps because she's viewing island life through the lens of an american who does struggle to get by. to peel back the layers of how her family, descendant from Spanish settlers, feels about those with more native blood was eye opening, for me as much as for Isla.

The stories themselves function as a conduit for Isla's learning and growth. She is young and sheltered when she first receives her gift, but because of the visions, she has to grow up. She learns things that have been kept from her. She is able to understand her family on a more intimate level, and to understand that everyone hides things, twists the truth, lies. but its not always for the wrong reasons. Through her struggles with her gift and trying to learn how it works, isla repairs relationships and even brings peace to other family members who have been silently struggling right along side her.

history, especially family history, is not black and white. its multi-faceted and full of brilliant colors. Cardinal has done an exceptional job at showing this to the reader. She excels at making small moments so poignant that they feel all the more special and powerful (one in particular sticks with me... it involves a sleepover)

This book is many-layered and each layer, as it peels back, is so satisfying to discover and savor.

This novel about a Puerto Rican girl discovering a family legacy of storytelling is not quite what I expected.

As a simply told coming of age story, I found it very effective. Isla is a lonely and socially awkward girl dealing with her father’s death and her mother’s alcoholism. She is sent to spend her summers with relatives in Puerto Rico, where she is not fluent in Spanish and feels out of place. I enjoyed her slow immersion and understanding of the culture and political issues, as well as her growing friendship with her cousin Maria and a romance with a childhood friend.

The storytelling aspect, on the other hand, left something to be desired. The “old women dying in the back room” mentioned in the opening chapter are barely a factor, and there is little contribution from any living cuentistas. Instead, Isla has bizarre visions of dead cuentistas’ stories. The visions are daily at the same time and cause physical reactions and even injuries to Isla in public. The main vision was an unresolved mystery, which might have been fine if it had been the only one, but Isla and others like her are plagued by all sorts of random stories for no apparent reason. Others may find this enchanting but it just did not work for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.

We follow Isla's story of growing up in New Jersey and spending summers with her Aunt Alama in Puerto Rico. It is through spending time in Puerto Rican that she learns of her family's storytelling abilities, starting with her Abuela. The gift of storytelling, where one sees visions of ancestors being played out in front of them, has been passed down to Isla after her Abuela's death. This story has mystery, family drama, secrets, and young love -- a great read!

A wonderfully vivid coming of age story with great descriptions of Puerto Rico and well developed characters.

This is a beautiful, magical coming-of-age story about Isla Sanchez, a girl growing up in New Jersey in the 1970s’s. Her father dies when she is eight, and her mother neglects her as she descends into alcoholism. By contrast, she spends her summer with her great aunt in Puerto Rico, where she is embraced by a large, tightly-knit and well-connected family. The story covers the next ten years of her life as she grows up and finds out that she comes from a long line of storytellers. This is a novel to savor, with its rich character development and immersive descriptions of Puerto Rico.

The Storyteller's Death
by Ann Davila Cardinal
Pub Date: October 4, 2022
Sourcebooks
From International Latino Book Award-winning author Ann Dávila Cardinal comes a gorgeously written family saga about a Puerto Rican teenager who finds herself gifted (or cursed?) with a strange ability.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.
I loved this book! This delightful tale, set in Puerto Rico, focuses on the life of Isla - growing up between summers with her great Aunt on the Island, and home in New Jersey. With the constant back and forth, she doesn’t feel like she really belongs in either location - always an outsider.

To add to her confusion, Isla is also a storyteller, part of a long line of storytellers within the Sanchez family. Is it a blessing, or a curse? The fact that it’s not even allowed to be discussed makes deciding that even more difficult.
I am recommending this book! A beautiful tale of growing up, of family, of the rich culture of Puerto Rico, of racism and privilege. I loved this book. 5 stars

Omg I am so excited to read this book!!! Thank you so much for giving me access to this earc. My official review will come in, but for now, I wanted to express gratitude. Ann's work rocks, and I am sure this book will be no different. I mean, quenepas and Bayamón, a love letter!!!

Official review to come soon!

An entrancing story of family secrets and how they effect generations. The writing and descriptions of Puerto Rico was very engaging.

This book absolutely amazed me. I went in with zero expectations, but ended up absolutely loving it. The story kind of jumps through time, sometimes it's small jumps, sometimes bigger jumps. It is story that covers quite some years and a lot of family history. It being written this way made sure that we, as readers, know everything we need to know in order to read and understand the story.

The story was captivating, I wanted to know more and more. If I would have had the time I could have finished it in one sit. There was so much to read about and experience. The story itself did not move super quickly but it is written in a way that makes it so easy to glide through the book.

The characters are so well described. You can really see them develop throughout time. They really grow and mature when they get older. It makes the characters very realistic and like an actual family. I loved the way how the bonds between the different characters were described and how those relationships developed throughout the story.

The story was not predictable at all. I had no idea where the story was going and what was going to happen. So, ofcourse, I did not expect this ending.

What a wonderful story this was. Isla is often left, by her mother, to her grandmother and great-aunt in Puerto Rico. When her grandmother dies when Isla is eighteen she learns of a storytelling gift. My gosh was this ever enchanting and magical. I am not into fantasy at all but am trying to have an open mind this year and this really hit the spot because of the magical realism. I also enjoyed that it had the added bonus of a murder mystery. I really related to Isla because my mother often treated me like a forgotten piece of luggage when I was young. I was also transported to Puerto Rico (a place I know little about), and the descriptions of the location were so detailed. This was such a lovely yet emotional coming-of-age story with themes of race, privilege, and politics at its core.

Set in Puerto Rico, the author creates a vivid setting for this girl’s coming of age tale with a Caribbean twist.

This delightful tale, set in Puerto Rico, focusses on the life of Isla - growing up between summers with her great Aunt on the Island, and home in New Jersey. With the constant back and forth, she doesn’t feel like she really belongs in either location - always an outsider.

To add to her confusion, Isla is also a storyteller, part of a long line of storytellers within the Sanchez family. Is it a blessing, or a curse? The fact that it’s not even allowed to be discussed makes deciding that even more difficult.

A beautiful tale of growing up, of family, of the rich culture of Puerto Rico, of racism and privilege. I loved this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I feel blessed to have discovered this author and this novel. I don't know how to talk about it except to say, when you see it in a bookstore, grab it fast!

Thank you Net Galley for the free ARC. Isla's family is shaken by her father's death. Her mother does not know how to deal turns to alcohol and drops Isla off as frequently as she can with her relatives in Puerto Rico. There she learns to be the story teller of her family.