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An epic novel of love, discovery, and adventure by the author of the best-selling memoir When I Was Puerto Rican. As a young girl growing up in Spain, Ana Larragoity Cubillas is powerfully drawn to Puerto Rico by the diaries of an ancestor who traveled there with Ponce de León. And in handsome twin brothers Ramón and Inocente-both in love with Ana-she finds a way to get there. She marries Ramón, and in 1844, just eighteen, she travels across the ocean to a remote sugar plantation the brothers have inherited on the island. Ana faces unrelenting heat, disease and isolation, and the dangers of the untamed countryside even as she relishes the challenge of running Hacienda los Gemelos. But when the Civil War breaks out in the United States, Ana finds her livelihood, and perhaps even her life, threatened by the very people on whose backs her wealth has been built: the hacienda's slaves, whose richly drawn stories unfold alongside her own. And when at last Ana falls for a man who may be her destiny-a once-forbidden love-she will sacrifice nearly everything to keep hold of the land that has become her true home. This is a sensual, riveting tale, set in a place where human passions and cruelties collide: thrilling history that has never before been brought so vividly and unforgettably to life. From the Hardcover edition.

Product Identifiers

PublisherRandom House Audio Publishing Group

ISBN-100307938948

ISBN-139780307938947

eBay Product ID (ePID)150570966

Product Key Features

Book TitleConquistadora

TopicLiterary, Historical

Publication Year2011

LanguageEnglish

GenreFiction

AuthorEsmeralda Santiago

FormatCompact Disc

Dimensions

Item Height1.6in

Item Length5.8in

Item Width5.1in

Item Weight13.7 Oz

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

Reviews"An enthralling epic that not only illuminates the life of one extraordinary woman, but of the great sweep of Puerto Rican history. Rich with period details, unforgettable drama, and a riveting cast of characters, Conquistadora will seduce readers heart and soul." -Cristina Garc a, author of Dreaming in Cuban " Conquistadora is a wonderful and richly drawn novel, with an unforgettable story that will not only enlighten readers about the fascinating history of Puerto Rico in the 19th century, but delight them with a narrative that is always deeply felt and entertaining. A grand achievement from one of our finest writers." -Oscar Hijuelos, Pulitzer Prizewinning author of The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love and Beautiful Maria of My Soul From the Hardcover edition., â€œExtraordinary . . . a historical novel set in 19th Puerto Rico, featuring a high-handed, strong-willed woman determined to escape her boring upper-class future in Spain. When twin brothers inherit a sugar plantation in Puerto Rico, Ana marries them (who can tell them apart?), and they embark on what for the brothers is a lark, but for Ana is serious business. From the start, she takes to the land and the work of processing cane in the Caribbean, keeping the slaves inherited with the property and adding to their number over the years. She becomes the very image of a conquering hero: implacable, outspoken, demanding. Her husbands languish and fade while Ana runs Hacienda los Gemelos without their help. The issues of social caste, slavery, and sex roles make this a fascinating read. Itâ€™s an outstanding story, full of pathos, tropical sensuality, and violence-but it also poses uncomfortable moral questions readers are forced to consider . . . Storytelling genius . . . Conquistadora is a book-group must.â€� -Jen Baker, Booklist (starred review) â€œAn enthralling epic that not only illuminates the life of one extraordinary woman, but of the great sweep of Puerto Rican history. Rich with period details, unforgettable drama, and a riveting cast of characters, Conquistadora will seduce readers heart and soul.â€� -Cristina Garc a, author of Dreaming in Cuban â€œ Conquistadora is a wonderful and richly drawn novel, with an unforgettable story that will not only enlighten readers about the fascinating history of Puerto Rico in the 19th century, but delight them with a narrative that is always deeply felt and entertaining. A grand achievement from one of our finest writers.â€� -Oscar Hijuelos, Pulitzer Prizeâ€“winning author of The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love and Beautiful Maria of My Soul â€œHaving launched her writing career with the well-regarded memoir When I Was Puerto Rican, Santiago goes for broke with this grand, sprawling novel, which starts out in 19th-century Spain. Ana Cubillas, enraptured by the diaries of an ancestor who explored Puerto Rico with Ponce de Le n, is now in love with the island and finds a way to get there. . . . She just wasnâ€™t prepared for the heat, the wildlife-and the slave labor. Engrossing and polished, without the letâ€™s-just-get-through-it writing than can mar sagas . . . Perfect for those who want fun but literate reading.â€� -Barbara Hoffert, LibraryJournal.com blog â€œMy Pickâ€� â€œI loved this novel from the first sentence, and wept with emotion by the end. Lush, steamy and passionate, Conquistadora paints a rich landscape of life in colonial Puerto Rico, and in bold strokes defines characters so full of life they leap from the page and into your heart. Esmeralda Santiago has given voice to a history that has eluded me. Here is a haunting, visceral epic that satisfies on every level and yet leaves you hungry for more. Bravo, Conquistadora! â€� -Daisy Martinez, host of Viva Daisy! and author of Daisyâ€™s Holiday Cooking From the Hardcover edition.

Dewey Edition22

Number of Volumes14 Vols.

Dewey Decimal813/.54

Edition DescriptionUnabridged Edition