After the death of her mother in a tragic plane wreck, Gabriella was raised by her dad in Los Angeles, spending a month every year with her maternal grandmother in Cali, Columbia. Now, as a young adult, Gabriella is back at her grandmothers for her yearly visit. Her grandmother lets her know that the old family house is scheduled for demolition, so Gabriella goes to the house to have one last moment there. While there, she finds a box pushed far back on a shelf in her mothers old closet. Pulling it down, she finds that it is the purse her mom was carrying on the flight that night, never opened by her grandmother. Inside the purse is a red, leather bound diary that starts out when Gabriella is born and is written to her. As she reads, she uncovers an affair her mom was having in the last several months of her life. This knowledge is devastating to Gabriella and makes her angry with her grandmother, who knew about the affair as well. In a bit of rebellion, Gabriella decides to go against her grandmothers wishes and continue to see a young man she met at a party. Angel is handsome and nice, but with secrets of his own. I loved Gabriella. She was the perfect heroine for this novel, beautiful, sweet and a bit naive. Both stories, the backstory in the diary, and the present day story, were equally intriguing. A moving peek into another world. Leila Cobo's debut novel is an utterly wonderful and riveting book that had me in its clutches from the first page. It is lyrical and sensual with no word out of place. The character development is perfect, deep and meaningful, bringing the reader into the heart of the protagonists and their lives. In a sense, this novel sang to me in its poignant story of great loves.The story is about Gabriella, a young woman who is half American and half Colombian. She was orphaned at four years old when her mother died in a plane crash. Every year Gabriella goes to Cali, where her mother is from, to spend a month with her grandparents. She has always believed that her mother and father led an idyllic and perfect life until she finds her mother's diary in Cali - - and then she realizes that what she thought was true is a lie.The diary talks about a tumultuous affair that Helena, her mother, had when Gabriella was four. Helena was in Cali for two months working on a photography book that had been commissioned by the governor. She met a man who she fell in love with and Gabriella questions whether Helena would have abandoned her and her father for her lover. The diary consumes her as she reads page after page of sensual and loin tingling descriptions of their affair. Gabriella is puzzled and angry about her family's secrets, of being led to believe something was true that was not.At the same time that Gabriella finds the diary, she meets a young man. Angel, with whom she falls in love. Gabriella and Angel are both rich and are part of high society but Angel has a darkness about him and is not accepted by the old money that Gabriella is associated with. Angel's father is the foremost drug lord of Cali and is currently in jail. Everywhere that Angel goes, he is accompanied by a cotillion of armed guards. Gabriella is swept off her feet and their love affair is as sensually and sexily described as any literary depiction I've every read. Now Gabriella is at a crossroads. Is she drawn to Angel because of her anger and puzzlement about her mother's actions or is she truly in love with this man for who he is, despite his family?The book gives a very detailed and clear portrayal of Colombian culture and lifestyles. Having been to Colombia, I can say with some experience that the descriptions of armed bodyguards, cotillions of soldiered cars, the danger, the frenetic and joyful lifestyle, the parties, the fear and the celebrations all ring true.The book is structured in chapters alternating Gabriella's experiences with pages from Helena's diary. The story flows beautifully in this manner as both women's lives are juxtaposed on one another. We feel the joy, the pain, the heat, and the quandaries that each woman experiences. We feel at one with them. I am not one who usually cries when I read books, but this book brought tears to my eyes - - of joy and of pain. It is a wonderful book and I look forward with anticipation to Ms. Cobo's next novel.
What do You think about Tell Me Something True (2009)?
quick romantic read. characters drew me in and I didn't want it to end!
—Denika7
Surprise ending...I had to stay up late to finish it.
—jconville1
