A man dangles a baby over a pier on the ocean because a lover has slighted him. This sets the tone for this novel.

This is about family. A history of murder and suicide. A history of poverty and broken relationships. A story of a sister loyal to the memory of a brother. The burden of family, of truths and sins.

There is beauty in the writing of this sad and disturbing tale. Beauty in finding the release of forgiveness and the power of healing. Engel has the power to transport a reader into the loneliness of Reina's heart and soul. Vivid descriptions, fascinating history of Cuba, traditions of Colombia. 4?cuba south-america90 s Angela M 1,335 2,163

You will find wonderfully descriptive language here, sentences of simple words full of complex meaning . I could see the ocean colors , feel it's depth and understand the sense of freedom it has for the characters and the dolphin released from captivity. The author covers a lot of ground here with a variety of themes - of families, immigration, guilt, freedom to live symbolized by the ocean ,freedom from the past, and of course love .

Raina, born in Columbia and raised in Miami visits her brother, Carlito in jail every weekend. Carlito is imprisoned for throwing his girlfriend's daughter over a bridge. A dejavu for Carlito who was thrown over a bridge by his father . The big difference though, is that Carlito survived. Raina carries the guilt of Carlito's crime and is haunted by his death. Raina moves away to the Keys to start a new life. There she meets Nesto , who has defected from Cuba so that he can provide for his children.

Their story is so much more about their pasts, and how it keeps them from moving forward , afraid of thinking about the future , living today for today. Through Raina's flashbacks and dreams , we are made privy to the haunting stories of rape , abortions at fourteen, family dysfunction and her secret. Nesto's past life unfolds as well - the sadness and hunger and lack of freedom that was his life in Cuba. He is trying desperately to get his children. Nesto is connected to the ocean , born on an island, feeling free only in the ocean , connected by his religious beliefs .

I was impressed with writing, moved by the story of pain and hope . Highly recommended.

Thanks to Grove Atlantic , NetGalley, and Edelweiss .edelweiss- netgalley-83 s Maxwell1,231 9,825

“It’s a sea of death,” Universo said. “But the water remembers what civilization tries to forget.”
The ocean is the third main character in this novel, besides our protagonist, Reina, a young woman struggling to let go of the guilt that haunts her sleeps, and Nesto, a man who comes into her life with his own past that he struggles to reconcile with his present. Between them are oceans, both physical and metaphorical, that they cross and re-cross, sometimes with each other and sometimes on journeys they can only take alone.

Engel's writing is lush, but not flowery. It gives you just what you need to know to get the full picture, but it allows you to get lost in the settings—sweltering Miami, the Florida Keys, Colombia and Cuba—in which the characters navigate their conflicting emotions, personal triumphs and tragedies, and more.

With Reina's perspective we come to see the world as harsh and sinister, and through Nesto we see raindrops of hope that bring new life to the darkness that inflicts itself on Reina's life. It's not a savior story, where one comes in to sweep the other off their feet. They both have problems that tug at their heart, those of responsibility versus desire, of forgiveness and redemption, of learning when it's right to let go of something and knowing when you've got something worth holding on to.

any good novel, this was one that gave me a lot to think about. It left me with more questions than answers, but provided closure and a little hopefulness in a story that's generally bleak and difficult.

At it's core is a theme that's overwrought—love is all we need in life—but delivered in a story that's rarely told. Engel's use of the Spanish was delightful (though I can see it being a slight turn-off for people who no experience with the language), and her Yoruba storytelling was beautiful, informative, and layered. I appreciated her portrayal of faith versus doubt weaved into a story of someone struggling to move on in life, looking beyond their present circumstances and releasing themselves from the guilt of their past.

I look forward to reading more from Engel.owned81 s RoxaneAuthor 114 books163k

An outstanding novel about family and obligation and the choice of suffering. Couldn't put it down. 75 s Elyse Walters4,010 11.2k

The first thing I noticed about Patricia Engel, at the Bay Area Book Festival was how gorgeous she is. She is not only elegant, with a healthy glow... Her energy is contagious. She's funny....and everyone in her packed filled room was having a good time.

The blurb gives enough details about the basic plot...so I won't repeat what's been said.
I enjoyed this story. There is an air of magic and tragedy. Engel paints us beautiful and complex portraits of the main characters....conveying mood, and emotions. For example... 'Guilt' is an emotion that becomes a backdrop between Reina and Nesto...
....the emotion portrayed during their upheavals.....allows the reader to ponder how it's shaping their relationship.

Backing up a minute...
I want to mention the physical book. Sometimes ... I actually get butterflies in my belly when touching a new hard copy book. Knucklehead-me missed seeing this book on Netgalley. ( I was too late for the party)....
Yet....I ended up with the physical book and a chance to meet the author!!
"The Veins of the Ocean"'s physical hard copy is artistically beautiful ....(we have a close bonding-thing going on). I'll be sharing this one with my 85 year aunt. She won't touch anything electronic. ( no wonder she's in such great health and spirit).

Having a head start about this story from the author herself --
I was well prepared to begin my journey. I felt I 'heard' the entire story before I read it myself. ( including discussions)

I've had an interest in reading books which take in Florida for about a year now... ( a combination of knowing my daughter was moving their and a few friends from Goodreads).

Themes explored are diversity...separations of immigrants...family relationships....( suffering hearts).....poverty....tribal commitment and pressures....crime & violence...
fear...and deep feelings of guilt.

The Ocean plays a role in this novel. It's the source of pain....and serves as a healing.
In the book "The Wilderness", by Diane Thomas....the woods were a source of pain and healing. In "We Are Called To Rise", the city of Las Vegas is also a source of pain...and then serves as a place of healing....

Non- characters - characters .....( oceans, woods, cities).....such as the Florida ocean --becomes an almost God- spiritual character ....an ocean about redemption ....the ocean offering wisdom and hope....especially for Reina and Nesto who find atonement in the waters.

"Nesto makes his own offerings to the ocean--watermelon, fruta bomba, or just a banana peel he cast off to the current with a question for Yemaya and Olokun, waiting to see if it sinks or floats--that I may make my own petitions to the water, asking for help to guide me through the darkness, find my way through the night tide past the metal fence, so I can clear the way for the Dolphin, lead her through the path to her freedom. Most of all, I ask the ocean to keep us all, Nesto, the dolphin, and me,
unafraid".

In my opinion -- people who Isabelle Allende....( especially thinking of her book,
"Island Beneath the Sea"....might enjoy Patricia Engel's novel..."The Veins of the Ocean". There is a similar style in writing......'enchanting'.

Esil1,118 1,424

2 ½ stars. The Veins of the Ocean is one of those books that has all the ingredients of books I usually , but somehow didn’t quite work for me. I never felt particularly engaged and reading it felt a bit of a chore. The story focuses on Reina, whose family immigrated from Columbia to Florida. She comes from a family full of nasty baggage, including her brother Carlito who was sentenced to death row for a pretty ugly crime. The first third of the book focuses on Reina’s relationship with her family, and especially her attachment to her brother -- although there are many flashbacks to this period later in the book. The rest of the book focuses on Reina’s life on one of the Florida Keys, where she meets Nesto who is a Cuban refugee with his own baggage. As I write the description of the story, I still wonder why this book didn’t engage me. I actually quite d the first part of the book that focuses on Reina and her brother. Told from Reina’s perspective, there is something heartbreaking and powerful about her attachment and loyalty to someone so flawed. But this was a good story on its own. After that, I felt that the book lost its way -- there was something aimless about the narrative structure and I was left with a sense of pointlessness. And – except for parts that were focused on her relationship with her brother -- Reina never quite came together for me in three dimensions – there was an odd flatness to her narrative. Others on GR have really been taken by this book and by Reina’s story, so don’t just take my word on this one. I suspect I am a bit of an outlier. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read a copy.netgalley57 s Lauren 1,770 2,460

The Veins of the Ocean is a contemplative look at grief, shame, loss, destiny, and hope through the eyes of Reina, a young Latina in south Florida. Traumatic events have shaped Reina's life from her earliest days, and when her beloved brother, Carlos "Carlito" commits a shockingly similar crime to the one their father did years earlier, Reina is tested in loyalty and love. She knows he is guilty, but devotes every weekend of her teen and early adult years to visiting Carlito, who now is on Death Row in a Florida prison.

This brother-sister relationship forms the backbone of this story: rich and lyrical in tone and detail, weaving present situations with dream sequences of her and Carlito's past. When Reina meets Nesto, a Cuban refugee who now lives and works in the Keys, she is drawn to his loyalty and devotion for his family, who he works tirelessly to provide for, back in Cuba.

There were some notabke plot points in the story: the dolphins at the "dolphinarium", scuba diving, Reina's visit to her family's home in Cartagena, and then the visit to Cuba. I also d the undercurrent of mysticism and the way destiny and freedom were a part of the larger story landscape.

Engel's prose blew me away and I am really looking forward to reading more by her.2010s-fiction audiobooks best-of-201734 s Sandra201 104

“Listen to the water, Reina,” she whispered as I let myself be cushioned by the soft rush of waves. “If you trust the tide, it will always return you to shore.”
In The Veins of the Ocean we follow Reina, a young latina, who wants to leave the past behind and start anew in the Florida Keys.
“I want to be forgotten. I want it to feel as if I’ve never existed. I want to be a stranger. Rootless.”
The last few years she had offered up her life for her brother on death row, and after his execution, she is emotionally drained. She finds her solace in Nesto, an exiled Cuban waiting and hoping to welcome his children to the United States and give them a better life. He offers her the peace she has missed for so long. It is not easy, but through diving and love for the spirituality the ocean offers, Nesto teaches her the faith she needs to go on with her life.
“That can’t be your only scar.” “I have more.” “Where are they?” “They’re the kind you can’t see.”
Dark, but compelling, Patricia Engel makes us feel everything and nothing. All the despair, guilt and loneliness, but also hope, believe and love; all of that what makes us human.
“We can’t be both human and divine. To be human is to be imperfect.” "


Review copy supplied by publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a rating and/or review.2016 arc caribbean-latin-america ...more25 s luce (cry baby)1,484 4,507

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“I want to be forgotten. I want it to feel as if I've never existed. I want to be a stranger. Rootless.”

A few days before reading The Veins of the Ocean I read, and enjoyed reading, Patricia Engel's Vida, a collection of short stories centred on a Colombian-American woman. I was intrigued by the premise of The Veins of the Ocean and the first chapters were deeply affecting. I was captivated by the understated lyricism of Engel's prose, by Reina's interiority and the reflections she makes by revisiting her past and her relationship with her difficult older brother.
After her brother is sentenced to death, Reina puts her life on hold. She works during the week and spends her weekends in a depressing motel close to Carlito's prison. In spite of her brother's heinous crime, Reina, un her mother, can't cut him loose. During her visits, Carlito reveals to her the inhumane conditions of solitary confinement. After his death, Reina struggles to adjust to a life without him. She moves to a small community in Florida Keys and seems resigned to live a lonely existence until she comes across Nesto, an exiled Cuban who longs to be reunited with his children.
The narrative moves between past and present, sometimes seamlessly, sometimes a little more clumsily. As Reina tries to adapt to her new life, she's forced to confront her own role in Carlito's crime. As she reconciles herself with her own failures, and those of her loved ones, Reina finds the courage to truly live.
I loved the atmosphere, tone, and setting of this novel. The narrative had an almost lulling dream quality that brought to mind the works of Ann Patchett. Reina too, could easily belong to a Patchett novel. Although she may appear to be a rather directionless individual, her sensitivity make her into an affecting character.
Sadly, I wasn't all that enamoured with the men in this novel, in particular Reina's love interest(s). Reina would often only belatedly introduce us to these characters, making their presence in the story feel rather sudden. These characters often are not given any direct dialogue, and their experiences and words are re-elaborated by Reina herself (she will say 'he told me this' or 'he said this and that'). They often don't appear in scenes as such, and Reina is merely thinking of what they told her. They felt kind of uninspired and forgettable. I also didn't see the point in Dr. Joe. He has a very small role at the beginning of the novel, and yet Reina will often think back to his words in order to make sense of something (she will think 'according to Dr. Joe Carlito did this because x'). And maybe it could have worked if his character had been a bit more fleshed out...but he had a hurried appearance which didn't cast him in a very positive light.
Then we have Nesto...the main love interest. And I kind of hated him for 95% of the novel. He is condescending, quick to minimise Reina's feelings or experiences (saying 'you're not Cuban, you grew up in America, you can't understand'). He seems very uninterested in Reina's painful past, flat out telling her that he doesn't want to hear about it, and that for him she came into being that night they first met (“for me, you were born the day I met you. Nothing before that counts”). And yet he excepts her to listen to his own past, the difficulties he overcame, and his present struggles. The only times he didn't make me roll my eyes, and want to strangle him, were when he spoke about the Orishas. His nuggets of wisdom however were banal at best: “To be human is to be imperfect”, the secret to life is “love”.
Later in the narrative he also tells Reina that she has “a debt to pay to Yemayá for your family”. Which, is king of crap thing to say. I just found him obnoxious and unsupportive.

What could have been a moving and incisive tale is let down by too much telling and not a lot of showing and by an extremely irritating love interest (curiously enough I found the love interests in Vida to be just as tiresome) who made me want to wish for a different ending for Reina (her happiness seems to completely hinge on their relationship...which yikes).

5-so-so-reads cover-love reviewed-in-2020 ...more21 s Alaina6,533 214

Wow!

This book was amazing to read! I'm so happy I took a chance on this. Okay, real talk: I really only picked this book because of the cover and the title. Okay, the synopsis really intrigued me too.. but still I was super hesitant about diving into it. I don't know, I'm super weird about books because when I read a bunch of great or intriguing books I somehow find a dud in the mix. Then my groove is ruined.

However, this book was not the case. I loved everything about it! The Veins of the Ocean is about family. Well, not only about that.. it's also about murder and suicide. Trust me, this book will take you on a whirlwind kind of adventure.

Reina is a loveable character. She is the definitely of a human being. She lives, hurts, and is still strong in the end. She is haunted by her guilt throughout day and night because of her past. Then there's Nesto, who comes into her life with his own struggles.

Overall, I absolutely loved these two. I loved the entire story. This book brought me heartache, so much heartache. Especially with the beginning but then it got so much better and I didn't think that it could. I loved Engel's writing and I can't wait to dive into another one of her books.

This book will make you cry but then it will make you happy. You are taken on a beautiful journey and it will be emotional. Read it. Enjoy it. Love it.2018 contemporary fiction ...more19 s Makis Dionis506 142

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Some authors are able to make first-person narrators real within just a few pages, and Patricia Engel certainly has that gift. Reina’s voice is perfectly authentic from page one. All her complicated feelings about her family are laid bare: her ambivalence towards her flighty mother, the void of feeling where her absent father would have been, and most of all, her guilt and shame over a horrific crime committed by her brother, Carlito, now in solitary confinement on death row.

Reina’s life in adulthood is rootless, with her brother in prison and her mother selling the family home in Miami. Eventually, after yet another devastating personal loss, Reina finds herself drifting down to the Florida Keys. Aimless at first, she is eventually drawn into connections with other people and with the unique Florida landscape, where land and ocean, and everything that lives on and in them, meet.

Engel’s writing is beautiful, and I was quite invested in how Reina’s life would play out, but I think I’ve about reached my saturation point on family dramas. I typically love literary fiction about relationships and dysfunction, and I’m sure I’ll come back around to it again, but for now, I’m looking for more page-turning action than deep introspection. I blame the approach of flip-flop and lemonade weather. There’s something about summer that makes me crave fast, fun reads. Hopefully as this month rolls on, I’ll be able to find a few titles that satisfy that craving.

With regards to Grove Press and NetGalley for the advance copy. On sale today, May 3!

More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com2016-release bipoc-author11 s ??????? ???????????Author 2 books184

https://www.envivlio.com/krk107

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???? ?????? ??????? ??? ???????, ? ?????????? ??????? ?? ?????? ?????? ??? ????? ??? ?????, ? ????? ???????? ??? ??????? ???????? ??? ???????? ????????? ?? ?????????? ??? ??? ?????????? ?? ??? ????? ???????? ? ??????? ??? ??? ??????? ?????? ???? ??? ?????, ??? ??? ??? ??????? ???, ??? ???????. ??? ??????? ??? ???????? ???? ????, ????????????? ??????????? ???? ???? ?????? ??? ???????????, ? ????? ??? ????????? ???? ???????? ?? ????????????? ??? ???????? ?????????. ????????? ? ????? ?? ???????? ??? ??????? ??? ??????, ???? ?? ????????? ?? ?????? ???????, ???????????? ?? ??????? ? ???? ??? ????????? ???. ? ????? ?? ?????? ??? ???? ??? ???????????, ??????????? ??? ??? ?????? ???, ?? ???????? ????, ???????? ???? ?? ???????? ??? ?????????? ???, ??’ ??? ????? ?? ?????????????, ???????? ? ????? ????? ??? ??? ???.
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? ???????? ????? ?????????? ??? ?????? ????????? ???????????, ???????? ?? ???? ???? ?? ???????????? ?????, ??? ?????????? ?? ?????????? ???? ?????????. ? ?????? ??? ????? ?????? ???????? ??? ?????? ???????, ?????? ??? ?????? ?????? ??? ?????????? ?? ?????????? ??? ??????? ?? ????, ? ????? ??? ????????????? ?? ?????? ?????? ??? ???????, ??? ?? ????? ??? ??????? ???????, ?????? ?????????? ??? ?????????? ?? ???? ????????????? ??????????, ?????????? ?? ????? ??? ???????? ??????????? ??????????. ? ????? ??? ????? ????????? ??? ??? ??????????? ???, ??? ??? ????? ???. ?? ????? ??? ??????? ?? ???? ??? ????????, ??? ?????, ????? ????? ???? ????, ??? ?????? ????????? ?,?? ??????? ???? ????? ???. ???? ????????? ??? ?? ??? ????? ??? ?????. ?? ???????? ??? ??????, ?? ???????????, ????? ??? ?? ????????? ??? ???? ???, ????? ?? ?? ‘???? ?????????.

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????? ??’ ???, ? ???????? ????? ?????????? ???? ????? ??? ??????????? ??? ?? ??? ?? ?????? ??? ? ???????? ??? ?????????? ??? ?????? ????, ?????????? ??? ?????? ??? ????????? ? ??? ????. ?????????????? ?????????? ????????? ? ??????? ??? ? ?????, ?? ?????? ????????????? ?????????? ????????? ???? ?? ???????? ??? ???????? ???? ???????, ????????? ???? ? ???, ? ?????????, ??? ? ???????, ????????? ??? ??? ???? ???? ???????????,  ???? ??? ??? ???????????? ???? ??? ?? ??? ??????? ????? ??? ?????, ???????, ??????????? ? ???? ??? ??? ???? ?????? ?? ???????? ????????! ???? ??’ ???? ??? ?????? ?????, ? ????? ???? ??? ??? ?? ?????? ??? ????????? ??????, ????? ? ????? ????????? ????????? ??? ?? ????? ??? ??? ????? ??? ???????????????. ????? ????????????? ??? ?????. ????? ? ????? ?? ?????????? ??????? ???? ?????????.
?? ?????? ??? ??????? ????? ??? ??????????? ??? ??????????? ??? ??? ??????? ??????????? ???????????, ???? ??? ????????? ?????. ???? ??’ ??? ??????? ??? ?????, ? ?????????? ??? ??????????? ??? ??????? ?????????-???????? ????????? ??? ??????, ????? ??? ??? ???????? ???????? ????????? ??? ???????? ???, ???????????? ???? ??’ ??? ??????? ??? ??????? ???, ?????? ??? ?? ?????????? ??? ????????? ?? ????????????? ?????????? ? ??????? ?????????, ??? ?? ?????????. ?? ??? ????????????? ??? ????? ???????????, ????? ????? ??? ???????  ???? ???????????? ???????????? ????????? ???? ??? ??????? ???????? ??? ??????, ???? ?????? ??????? ????????? ? ?????, ??? ???????? ??? ?????? ??????????? ?? ???? ?? ??????????? ??? ?????.
??????????????, ?? ?????? ??? ??????? ????? ??? ???????????? ????????? ???????????, ??? ??????????? ????????? ??? ? ???????? ????? ????? ??? ???????? ??????????, ??? ????????? ??? ??? ??????????? ??? ?????????! ????? ??? ??????????? ??? ?? ????????? ?? ??????? ??? ??? ??? ?????????? ?????????, ?? ???? ????? ????? ??????????? ??? ???? ???? ????????????. ???????? ? ?????????? ???????? ??? ?????? ?????????? ?????????? ??? ?????????, ???????? ??? ??? ???????????? ??? ??? ?????????, ??? ?? ????? ??? ?????? ??? ??? ????????, ???? ??? ??? ??? ???????? ????????? ??? ???????????? ????? ????????? ??? ?? ????????????? ?? ??? ????. ????? ??? ??????????? ??? ?????? ?? ????????? ????? ??????? ?????!9 s Book Riot Community953 201k Read

In this novel, a young woman named Reina lives with the guilt of a crime her brother committed, which affects many aspects of her life, including her bonds with family and a new relationship. As the book moves forward, Reina pushes her own limits and through a connection with the ocean, is able to see a reflection of herself that keeps her moving forward. This book is centered in the immigrant experience and tackles tough issues grief, family, fate and love with such grace. I took my time with the beautiful language of this novel and highly recommend it!

–Jamie Moore



from The Best Books We Read In July 2016: http://bookriot.com/2016/08/01/riot-r...9 s Cheri1,874 2,725


3.5 Stars

The Veins of the Ocean weaves together the stories of Reina, her brother Carlito, their father and mother, beginning with one event that will haunt their lives, and followed by a second event that will forever change them, and that will land Carlito in prison.

Reina, devoted to her brother, spends every weekend visiting Carlito, and the remainder of her time working as a manicurist, listening to her clients’ problems. She dreams of fulfilling her promise to Carlito to visit their homeland, Cartagena. When her mother sells the home she grew up in, Reina moves to a small island in the Florida Keys, away from the city life she had known, and the rhythm of her life begins to change. Though still mostly alone, but when she meets Nesto that, too, begins to change, and the slow and quiet pace of the island settles her, slowly. Their feelings of displacement, of not belonging anywhere are a common thread between Reina and Nesto, torn between their old countries and the new, the family left behind and creating a new life out of what remains without letting go of what is just out of reach.

Nesto is very tied to the ocean, the waters and the spirits that sway them, and there is a lot of time turning, returning to the ocean, the spirits within. For Reina this is a learning experience, whatever spirituality she was introduced to as a child was trampled by events in her young life. Her desire to know Nesto, to understand what he believes in, drives her to remember his stories. Nesto takes Reina diving, during which she learns to trust in Nesto more and ultimately learns to let go of her fears and see the enchantment of the world within.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic, NetGalley and to author Patricia Engel for providing me with an advanced copy for reading and review.
2016 adult-fiction columbia ...more9 s Lisa (NY)1,670 739 Shelved as 'unable-to-finish'

Paused at page 146. I Engel's writing but it is too slow and uneventful for me.8 s fatma949 884

4.5 stars

SO BEAUTIFUL
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