Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
A quick, enjoyable read about a historical event I had never heard of. A little cheesy in parts and lots of coincidences but fun.
Mirta, Elizabeth, and Helen are all in Key West over Labor Day weekend in 1935. As a storm churns and builds south of them, so do the stories of these troubled women.
Really really good. Got about 40% through and things started heating up to the point where I legit didn't put it down and stayed up til like 4am to finish it. The Keys sound glorious, beautiful, and dangerous. I was unfamiliar with this location, the Cuban Revolution, the Overseas Railroad, and this particular Labor Day storm. All was fascinating to learn more about in the context of these awesome ladies. Mirta perhaps took me by surprise the most, but I of course loved Helen's journey the most. And Elizabeth was a trip haha. Totally did not relate to her at all but she was still so winning. Couldn't be annoyed by her. Loved the way their stories intersected, however briefly. Cleeton writes very well. Would love to purchase!
Really really good. Got about 40% through and things started heating up to the point where I legit didn't put it down and stayed up til like 4am to finish it. The Keys sound glorious, beautiful, and dangerous. I was unfamiliar with this location, the Cuban Revolution, the Overseas Railroad, and this particular Labor Day storm. All was fascinating to learn more about in the context of these awesome ladies. Mirta perhaps took me by surprise the most, but I of course loved Helen's journey the most. And Elizabeth was a trip haha. Totally did not relate to her at all but she was still so winning. Couldn't be annoyed by her. Loved the way their stories intersected, however briefly. Cleeton writes very well. Would love to purchase!
I definitely enjoyed this book but not quite as much as I enjoyed Next Year in Havana and When We Left Cuba. I was under the impression that we were getting stories focused on all of the Perez sisters, so it took me a while to get adjusted to a new set of characters. However, as I got into the story, I ended up feeling connected with all three women.
I always like a book that includes multiple stories that tie together in unexpected ways, and The Last Train to Key West delivered on that front. There were a handful of plot twists that I certainly did not see coming. I thought it was interesting to see a Perez and a Preston together decades before Beatriz and Nick meet in When We Left Cuba, and Elizabeth Preston was definitely the most interesting character/storyline to me.
This book was fast-paced, all 300ish pages taking place over the span of one weekend. Natural disasters freak me out, so it was a little bit unnerving to read a book where a major hurricane is the central conflict, but I did think it was interesting how Chanel Cleeton compared the hurricane to the Great Depression and World War I (aka “The Great War”), man-made disasters that had occurred before the start of this book set in 1935.
Another good historical fiction read!
I always like a book that includes multiple stories that tie together in unexpected ways, and The Last Train to Key West delivered on that front. There were a handful of plot twists that I certainly did not see coming. I thought it was interesting to see a Perez and a Preston together decades before Beatriz and Nick meet in When We Left Cuba, and Elizabeth Preston was definitely the most interesting character/storyline to me.
This book was fast-paced, all 300ish pages taking place over the span of one weekend. Natural disasters freak me out, so it was a little bit unnerving to read a book where a major hurricane is the central conflict, but I did think it was interesting how Chanel Cleeton compared the hurricane to the Great Depression and World War I (aka “The Great War”), man-made disasters that had occurred before the start of this book set in 1935.
Another good historical fiction read!
Really wanted to love this one, but it didn’t do it for me. The first two books by Chanel Cleeton about the Perez sisters strike a perfect balance of romance and historical fiction. This one...not so much. It centers on the (real) great hurricane of 1935, but the descriptions felt surface level, as did the character development. There are three main women in this story, and I didn’t feel like I got to know any of them. A bit of a bummer for me as I loved her other books, but if there is another in the series I will definitely pick it up and hope for a bit more depth to the setting and characters!
I rated this 5 stars purely because it was such a great reading experience - staying up way to late, only too wake up early and grab for the book again to finish it. I wasn’t expecting a lot, I had read Next Year in Havana and enjoyed it but wouldn’t count it as a favorite or must read. I thought this would be a fun palate cleanser between some tough books. It wasn’t as fun as I expected but the story was fascinating and moved along with the looming backdrop of the coming hurricane. Very satisfying ending.
This historical fiction piece follows three women who are caught in the 1935 Key West hurricane. I learned a few things from this, like about the veteran camps in the Keys during that time, but I felt the less-interesting stories of the women took over. I also felt like the author told me what was happening instead of showing me. And I would have liked a more believable ending. A quick, light read overall, but don’t expect a lot.
Phenomenal! I was consistently struck by the intimate connections between the characters and the authenticity of their emotions
This historical novel, set in the Florida Keys around the 1935 Labour Day Weekend, is light on history and heavy on romance and, to quote lyrics from a former student, “That don’t impress me much.”
The narrative alternates among the perspectives of three women. Helen Berner is poor and pregnant and married to an abusive alcoholic. Working as a waitress at a diner, she meets Mirta Perez Cordero, a Cuban woman travelling with her husband Anthony to a beach house for their honeymoon. Helen also meets Elizabeth Preston who has fled New York to avoid marrying a gangster and is looking for a World War I veteran who last wrote to her from Key West. As a hurricane makes landfall, the three women cross paths more than once.
The historical elements are the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, the plan to connect the Keys via railroad using WWI veterans for labour, the deplorable treatment of those vets, the Cuban Revolution of 1933, and the impact of the Great Depression. The discussion of these elements is rather superficial, though I was inspired to do some further research so that’s certainly a positive.
I think we are supposed to think of the women as strong characters, but I was not convinced. Each of them is a damsel in distress needing to be rescued by a handsome, rugged hero. All are beholden to or threatened by “bad” men and redeemed or rescued by “good” men who swoop in immediately and take them into their arms. Helen is married to Tom who is abusive; Elizabeth is engaged to a gangster because of her father’s choices; and Mirta is in a marriage arranged to help her family in Cuba. Helen meets John, Elizabeth meets Sam, and Mirta gets to know Anthony. The women seem to need a man to complete their lives, and fortunately all are able to immediately charm the men they meet. I have difficulty with the love-at-first-sight trope, and it’s used twice here.
The reader must be willing to suspend disbelief too often. The three plotlines connect in very convenient and improbable ways. Then the bad guys are disposed of in contrived ways which I would classify as examples of deus ex machina. Everyone’s problems are nicely resolved so there’s a feel-good ending.
There is suspense because of the danger of the deadly storm threatening the Keys, but it’s not difficult to predict that, though people will die, none of the important characters will.
The short chapters move the narrative at a good pace so this is a quick read – perfect for a summer holiday. It entertains and doesn’t demand much of the reader. It is just not the type of book I prefer.
Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).
The narrative alternates among the perspectives of three women. Helen Berner is poor and pregnant and married to an abusive alcoholic. Working as a waitress at a diner, she meets Mirta Perez Cordero, a Cuban woman travelling with her husband Anthony to a beach house for their honeymoon. Helen also meets Elizabeth Preston who has fled New York to avoid marrying a gangster and is looking for a World War I veteran who last wrote to her from Key West. As a hurricane makes landfall, the three women cross paths more than once.
The historical elements are the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, the plan to connect the Keys via railroad using WWI veterans for labour, the deplorable treatment of those vets, the Cuban Revolution of 1933, and the impact of the Great Depression. The discussion of these elements is rather superficial, though I was inspired to do some further research so that’s certainly a positive.
I think we are supposed to think of the women as strong characters, but I was not convinced. Each of them is a damsel in distress needing to be rescued by a handsome, rugged hero. All are beholden to or threatened by “bad” men and redeemed or rescued by “good” men who swoop in immediately and take them into their arms. Helen is married to Tom who is abusive; Elizabeth is engaged to a gangster because of her father’s choices; and Mirta is in a marriage arranged to help her family in Cuba. Helen meets John, Elizabeth meets Sam, and Mirta gets to know Anthony. The women seem to need a man to complete their lives, and fortunately all are able to immediately charm the men they meet. I have difficulty with the love-at-first-sight trope, and it’s used twice here.
The reader must be willing to suspend disbelief too often. The three plotlines connect in very convenient and improbable ways. Then the bad guys are disposed of in contrived ways which I would classify as examples of deus ex machina. Everyone’s problems are nicely resolved so there’s a feel-good ending.
There is suspense because of the danger of the deadly storm threatening the Keys, but it’s not difficult to predict that, though people will die, none of the important characters will.
The short chapters move the narrative at a good pace so this is a quick read – perfect for a summer holiday. It entertains and doesn’t demand much of the reader. It is just not the type of book I prefer.
Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).
Thank you to @netgalley and @berkleypub for my free e-copy of The Last Train to Key West.
I've read Chanel Cleeton's last two books and have loved them and this one was no exception. I always learn something I didn't know before with her books. This one was unique as it has three female perspectives, all from different backgrounds, all centered around the Labor Day hurricane of 1935. And you know what? It worked beautifully. I usually tend to be drawn to one perspective over the others, but this one had me equally engaged in them all. It was historical romance perfection. 4.5/5⭐️
I've read Chanel Cleeton's last two books and have loved them and this one was no exception. I always learn something I didn't know before with her books. This one was unique as it has three female perspectives, all from different backgrounds, all centered around the Labor Day hurricane of 1935. And you know what? It worked beautifully. I usually tend to be drawn to one perspective over the others, but this one had me equally engaged in them all. It was historical romance perfection. 4.5/5⭐️