Trip Fiction: The Sisters of Alameda Street by Lorena Hughes
I love to find good fiction set in our path whenever we travel. I find the reading brings the location to life, and vice versa.
My pick for our run from Miami to Lima is “The Sisters of Alameda Street” by Lorena Hughes of Ecuador. It is a perfect example of “historical fiction meets Latino soap opera”. The action is set primarily in San Isidro, but some back story takes us to Guayaquil, which we visited on this trip. I was immediately caught up in the story as young Malena Sevilla assumes a different identity to unravel the mysteries of her past. She inserts herself into a family of women living on Alameda Street, all of whose first names begin with A. Malena has reason to believe one of them is her mother. Hyjinx ensue.
There are a lot of overly convenient coincidences required to make this plot work, but that’s part of the fun. The character development is fantastic across the board. The setting and the richness of the culture are brought to shimmering life, and the descriptions of the Tango are delicious. Emotions are intense and plot twists abound. I’d call this the perfect read to enhance a visit to Ecuador.
Want to check this book out? Here’s a link to Amazon.
Note: as an affiliate, when you purchase through this link Amazon may send me a small commission at no extra cost to the purchaser
Have you read this book? Love it/hated it? Read other good books set in Ecuador or have fun travel/fiction stories from there? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below