by Ruta Sepetys
First published 2019
Eighteen-year-old Daniel arrives in Madrid hoping to connect with his mother's homeland through his camera. But under General Franco's oppressive dictatorship, Spain hides a sinister past. As Daniel's photos draw him into a dangerous web of family secrets and wartime tragedies, he must make difficult choices to protect those he loves. Against the sunny facades of the Spanish capital, a harrowing story of identity, forbidden love, and the corrosive power of silence unfolds.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: forbidden-love, found-family
Setting: Madrid, Spain
Period: General Franco's Dictatorship
495 pages · Hardcover · Philomel Books
Content warnings: war