A review by aellereads
The Spanish Daughter by Lorena Hughes

5.0

4.5✩
Puri inherited two things from her father: her passion for chocolate and a cacao plantation in the lush tropical setting of Ecuador. While she sails from Spain to Vinces, also known as Little Paris, a mercenary tries to murder her and kills her husband instead. Puri must then impersonate her late husband to survive and unveil the truth behind this murder attempt.

The Spanish Daughter is a poetic study of family relationships, loss, friendships, gender roles, identity, and belonging. Lorena Hughes paints a beautiful landscape of Ecuador during the golden age of the cacao plantations. I loved reading about the history of chocolate (especially as it is my guilty pleasure) and the growing techniques of cacao trees.

Hughes excels at writing historical fiction with a compelling suspense story, audacious characters, and an enchanting setting of the cacao plantations of 1920. Her vivid and descriptive prose captivated me from the first chapters until the very end. The many twists and turns added to the richly woven narrative and made it a quick and entertaining read!

*I would like to thank NetGalley for giving me a free copy in exchange for my honest review.