Book Review: Where There Was Fire by John Manuel Arias

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

A lethal fire in one of the most profitable banana plantations owned by the American Fruit Company in Costa Rica in 1968 ended in a night of personal tragedy for Teresa Cepeda Valverde ‘s family. Following the tragic death of her mother Amarga and the disappearance of her husband of eleven years José María, employed with the company, Teresa leaves for the United States, leaving her children, eleven-year-old Lyra and eight-year-old Carmen, in the care of friends. The tragedy and secrets that surround their family, their mother’s abandonment and her abrupt return six years later cast a long shadow on the lives of both sisters – the impact of which follows them into their adult lives. Twenty-seven years later we meet adult Lyra, a fertility counselor in San José who is raising her deceased sister’s ten-year-old son. Estranged from her mother who is approaching her sixtieth birthday and has recently been diagnosed with cancer. Lyra tries to piece together her family’s history with the American Fruit Company, the cover-ups, corruption and how the same poisoned their lives in more ways than one. Will her sixtieth birthday celebrations help bridge the rift between Teresa and her daughter and pave the way to healing or will the revelations that come to light tear them further apart?

With its strong premise, an atmospheric setting, folklore and magical realism incorporated into the narrative, an element of mystery and the realistic depiction of unethical and exploitative corporate practices that put the well-being of employees at risk, Where There Was Fire by John Manuel Arias holds a lot of promise. Unfortunately, I wasn’t quite taken with the execution. The author addresses several important themes such as tragedy and generational trauma, corporate greed and corruption, racism and colonialism, mental health, post-partum depression, suicide and dysfunctional family dynamics. I found the central plot intriguing and I thought that the main characters were well-thought-out. The narrative is presented through multiple perspectives spanning past and present-day timelines. I found the narrative to be more than a tad disjointed and lacking in much-needed depth and closure which detracted from the overall reading experience. I struggled to stay invested in the story on account of the uneven pacing and the several supporting characters who were interesting but the relevance of whom to the main plot was left largely unexplored, thereby rendering them somewhat unnecessary. There were several plot holes and the dynamic between the main characters and their individual storylines should have been explored in more depth.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Adriana Sananes. While I did enjoy the narration, I thought that the narrative was a tad difficult to follow on audio alone because of multiple timelines and perhaps too many characters and PoVs. Perhaps involving more narrators would have made the same easier to follow. I would recommend keeping the book handy if you opt for the audio.

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.