Where There Was Fire

An arresting tale of love, regret, and redemption. John Manuel Arias offers a searing look into the legacy of American agribusiness in Costa Rica and masterfully tells the story of a family fighting to put itself back together in the wake of unimaginable loss. As poetic as it is powerful, Where There Was Fire burns with rage and grief, and most of all, hope>

Summary

Where there was fire, ashes remain . . .

Costa Rica, 1968.

A deadly fire rips through the American Fruit Company's most lucrative banana plantation, destroying all evidence of a massive cover-up.

That same night, Teresa Cepeda Valverde’s mother is murdered, and her husband vanishes into the darkness.

Decades later, as a hurricane twists through the streets of Barrio Ávila, Teresa’s estranged daughter Lyra begins to piece together the mysteries lost in the blaze. In her desire to find the truth of her own family's rupture, she uncovers a web of devastating betrayals, stoked by machismo, jealousy and greed.

‘A haunting, operatic saga of family, history and place. . . An utterly original, unforgettable tale of family that will sear a place in the reader's soul’ - Xochitl Gonzalez, bestselling author of Olga Dies Dreaming

‘An ambitious debut novel . . . The combination of legend and dream sequences, characters spellbound by hallucinations, toxic odours and huge cane toads, adds to the sense of a society ill at ease with nature and itself’ - Times Literary Supplement

Product details

• Authors: John Manuel Arias
• Publisher: Picador Uk
• Languages: English
• Age Recommendation: from age 18
• Product format: Paperback
• Release: 20.02.2025
• EAN: 9781035041381
• ISBN: 978-1-0-3504138-1
• No. of pages: 288
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature; Costa Rica, Sagas, Historical fiction, FICTION / Political, FICTION / Ghost, FICTION / Magical Realism, FICTION / Hispanic & Latino, Family life fiction, Narrative theme: Death, grief, loss, Narrative theme: Sense of place, c 1960 to c 1970, Narrative theme: Love and relationships, c 1960 to c 1969, c 1990 to c 2000, c 1990 to c 1999, Relating to Latin / Hispanic American people, FICTION / World Literature / American / 20th Century, FICTION / Multiple Timelines, Central America, FICTION / World Literature / American / General, FICTION / World Literature / Central America