The Veins of the Ocean by Patricia Engel

The Veins of the Ocean by Patricia Engel

Loved the sparse concise writing style and the weaving in of spiritual Santero influences. This is the type of fiction I love, following terribly flawed humans through devastating experiences and watching them carry on nonetheless. Plus I learned something about Cuba and Santeria in the process. Scenes where Reina tries to process her family’s tragedy and own her grievous guilt are braided with those depicting her move to the Florida keys, the healing quality of relationships and a communion with the natural world.

About The Veins of the Ocean

Reina Castillo’s beloved brother is serving a death sentence for a crime that shocked the community – a crime for which Reina secretly blames herself. When she is at last released from her seven-year prison vigil, Reina moves to a sleepy town in the Florida Keys seeking anonymity.

There, she meets Nesto, a recently exiled Cuban awaiting with hope the arrival of the children he left behind in Havana. Through Nesto’s love of the sea and capacity for faith, Reina comes to understand her own connections to the life-giving and destructive forces of the ocean that surrounds her as well as its role in her family’s troubled history.

Set in the vibrant coastal and Caribbean communities of Miami; the Florida Keys; Havana, Cuba; and Cartagena, Colombia, The Veins of the Ocean is a wrenching exploration of what happens when life tests the limits of compassion, and a stunning and unforgettable portrait of fractured lives finding solace in the beauty and power of the natural world, and in one another.

Read more of Jeannie’s Reviews on her blog, on Goodreads, or on the New York Journal of Books.