This novel stages beautifully the political background of Puerto Rico as they adjust to being a colony of the states and a brand new marriage between a poor man Marco and a rich debutant Isa.

The marriage of these two had so much strife and a lot could have been so much better for their marriage if they had truly listened to each other's views and been honest and fought for their feelings. Instead they tended to hide much from each other.

The book is very dense in history and may throw some people off for the slowness of the novel but I found it fascinating. I love learning history that I never got from school. 

Most of this novel takes place before my mother was born, but I loved reading it because my grandpa was stationed in Puerto Rico for the year after her birth. It just sounds like an amazing, beautiful place and I hope my mom gets a chance to go back one day.