At the recent International Latino Book Club Awards, Agave Blues by Ruthie Marlenée received the Isabel Allende Most Inspirational Fiction Book Award. And for September 2022, we are fortunate that the author, Ruthie, will guide us through the readings and join the Modern Latina Book Club discussion.
Synopsis:
Sometimes, la sangre atrae, “the blood calls you back,” and when Maya gets the call to go back to her agave roots to claim the body of her long-missing father, her world changes forever. Set against the backdrop of her childhood in Mexico, Agave Blues is the story of ailing attorney Maya, in a broken relationship and butting heads with her teenage daughter, Lily.
Maya swore never to return, but once she sets foot on mystical grounds, she uncovers her family’s turbulent history and how tequila infuses deep secrets that have altered her life, both emotionally and physically.
She realizes what’s missing in her life―magic, mystery, art, unconditional love, and the stories of her past, including the myth her father used to share with her about her grandfather, Pancho Villa. The fields seem to heal her and her relationships, so she extends her stay and reconnects with her family. But when she encounters the handsome yet haunted Antonio, a childhood crush resurfaces, only to cause her more grief as she tries to master the art of tequila.
Ruthie Marlenée is the Mexican-American author of Isabela’s Island and Curse of the Ninth and is currently working on the sequel, And Still Her Voice. Marlenée’s work can be found in several literary publications. She was born and raised in Orange County, California, and lives in Los Angeles and the desert in the Coachella Valley with her husband.
About the author:
Ruthie Marlenée is a Mexican-American novelist, poet and screenwriter born and raised in Orange County, California, and lives in Los Angeles and the desert of the Coachella Valley with her husband. Marlenée earned a Writers’ Certificate in Fiction from UCLA and is the author of Isabela’s Island, Curse of the Ninth, nominated for a James Kirkwood Literary Prize and Agave Blues, from which an excerpt A Good Tabernero Listens is nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and is forthcoming with Touchpoint Press 2/15/22. She is currently working on a sequel And Still Her Voice. Her poetry and short stories can be found in various publications, including Shark Reef, The Coiled Serpent Anthology, So To Speak, Detour Ahead, What They Leave Behind: A Latinx Anthology, Silver Birch Press, and Slow Lightning: Impractical Poetry. She’s received awards for her screenplays from the Women’s International Film Festival, the Oaxaca Film Festival, Carmesi International Fest, and the Mexico International Film Festival.
Join the Modern Latina Book Club in this special author-curated book club reading beginning September 12, 2022. Click here for the accompanying book club questions.