by Asha Lemmie
First published 2025
Delphine Auber stands at the edge of adulthood in postwar Paris when tragedy upends her world. An aspiring writer who has never met her father, she seizes this moment of upheaval to pursue the quest that has consumed her dreams. She believes Ernest Hemingway is her father. Her search takes her from the streets of Paris to Harlem's vibrant neighborhoods, then south to the heat of Havana and the waters around Key West. She follows every lead that might bring her closer to the legendary writer. Delphine craves his recognition as both daughter and fellow artist. She has built her identity around this belief about her parentage. But Hemingway proves as difficult to pin down as his reputation suggests. As Delphine travels deeper into her investigation, she must confront what will remain of her sense of self if she has built her life around the wrong story.
Genres: american-fiction, 20th-century, adventure, coming-of-age, contemporary, biographical-fiction, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: identity-quest, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Cuba, Harlem, Key West, Paris
Period: Postwar
336 pages · Paperback · Dutton