Tierra americana

Lydia Quixano Pérez runs a bookshop in Acapulco, married to a journalist, and has a young son, Luca. When her husband publishes a profile of a cartel boss who is also a charming customer in her store, gunmen massacre sixteen members of her family at a quinceañera. Lydia and Luca escape with nothing and head north, joining migrants on the freight train La Bestia and facing smugglers, heat, and betrayal on the way to the US border. The novel puts a mother's urgency at its center.

For readers who like fast-paced thrillers with a social subject. It prompts questions about migration, who tells the story, and what makes people leave.

Clear-cut and escapist; an easy read.

Best for readers like The Curious Generalist. Which reader are you?