travel across Latin America through reading

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As Hispanic Heritage Month rolls around for 2024, it is important to realign ourselves with embracing and supporting a community and culture that has enriched the entire world. We can't all jump on a place and immerse ourselves in Latin American culture in person, but we can indulge in their stories through books! We don't even have to check a bag.

The following are a list of some of the best Latine book releases in 2024, with a wide range of authors, genres, topics, and destinations covered within the pages of their works.

Since the majority of Latine book releases that are published (or translated) into English happen to be set in the United States or Canada, this list will focus on books set at least the majority of the time in Latin American countries to show the vast diversity within the community. This does not discount the incredible stories that involve the United States and Canada, but rather take a conscious effort to spotlight novels that might not have as much visibility to residents of the USA and Canada, especially those who do not speak Spanish.

North America Heads up, just based on its size (and proximity to the USA and Canada), maybe of the 2024 Latine book releases to hail from the great country of Mexico. However, there are a few other countries making the list for this year that give readers insight to some of the other Latin countries rounding out North and Central America.

Fury by Clyo Mendoza Literary Fiction | Mexico

In a desert dotted with war-torn towns, Lázaro and Juan are two soldiers from opposing camps who abandon the war and, while fleeing, become lovers and discover a dark truth. Vicente Barrera, a salesman who swept into the lives of women who both hated and revered him, spends his last days tied up like a mad dog. A morgue worker, Salvador, gets lost in the desert and hallucinating from heat and thirst, mistakes the cactus for the person he loves.

Over the echoes of the stories of these broken men—and of their mothers, lovers and companions—Mendoza explores her characters’ passions in a way that simmers on the page, and then explodes with pain, fear and desire in a landscape that imprisons them.

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Historical Fiction | Mexico

1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants to play Salome, the star-making role in a big-budget movie about the legendary woman whose story has inspired artists since ancient times. So when the film’s mercurial director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican ingenue, in the lead role, she quickly becomes the talk of the town. Vera also becomes an object of envy for Nancy Hartley, a bit player whose career has stalled, and who will do anything to win the fame she believes she richly deserves.

Two actresses, both determined to make it to the top in Golden Age Hollywood—a city overflowing with gossip, scandal, and intrigue—make for a sizzling combination. But this is the tale of three women, for it is also the story of the princess Salome herself, consumed with desire for the fiery prophet who foretells the doom of her stepfather, Herod: a woman torn between the decree of duty and the yearning of her heart.

Before the curtain comes down, there will be tears and tragedy aplenty in this sexy Technicolor saga.

The Volcano Daughters by Gina María Balibrera Magical Realism/Fantasy | El Salvador

El Salvador, 1923. Graciela, a young girl growing up on a volcano in a community of Indigenous women, is summoned to the capital, where she is claimed as an oracle for a rising dictator. There she meets Consuelo, the sister she has never known, who was stolen from their home before Graciela was born. The two spend years under the cruel El Gran Pendejo’s regime, unwillingly helping his reign of terror, until genocide strikes the community from which they hail. Each believing the other to be dead, they escape, fleeing across the globe, reinventing themselves until fate ultimately brings them back together in the most unlikely of ways…

Endlessly surprising, vividly imaginative, bursting with lush life, The Volcano Daughters charts a new history and mythology of El Salvador, fiercely bringing forth voices that have been calling out for generations.

The Breakup Vacation by Anna Gracia Romance | Mexico

If Grace is being honest, she knows her choices skate past questionable and probably into destructive. But her heart is broken and the guy who broke it—her ex Josh—keeps hinting at a reunion. So when her best friends, Tiff and Camille, suggest they take a girls trip to help her get over her heartache, Grace doesn’t hesitate to recommend Cancún. She just doesn’t mention that Josh also happens to be there.

But juggling her friends, Josh, and the increasing number of lies she’s telling is a lot harder than she expected. And things only get more complicated when she clicks with a hot local guy, Daniel, who turns out to be half Taiwanese too. As the days unfold, Grace starts to think maybe she’ll get away with it. But will her past decisions and her need for closure come back to ruin the relationships that matter most to her?

How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems by Mikeas Sánchez Poetry | Mexico

In a fiercely personal yet authoritative voice, prolific contemporary poet Mikeas Sánchez explores the worldview of the Zoque people of southern Mexico. Her paced, steely lyrics fuse cosmology, lineage, feminism, and environmental activism into a singular body of work that stands for the self and the collective in the same instant. “I am woman and I celebrate every vein,” she writes, “where I guard my ancestors’ secrets / every Zoque man’s word in my mouth / every Zoque woman’s wisdom in my spit.”

How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems examines the intersection of Zoque struggles against colonialism and empire, and those of North African immigrants and refugees. Sánchez encountered the latter in Barcelona as a revelation, “spreading their white blankets on the ground / as if they’ll soon return to sea / flying the sail of the promised land / the land that became a mirage.” Other works bring us just as close to similarly imperiled relatives, ancestors, gods, and archetypal Zoque men and women that Sánchez addresses with both deeply prophetic and childlike love.

Tías and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raised Us by Prisca Dorca Mojica Rodríguez Nonfiction | Nicaragua

Tías and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise U Born into a large, close-knit family in Nicaragua, Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez grew up surrounded by strong, kind, funny, sensitive, resilient, judgmental, messy, beautiful women. Whether blood relatives or chosen family, these tías and primas fundamentally shaped her view of the world—and so did the labels that were used to talk about them. The tía loca who is shunned for defying gender roles. The pretty prima put on a pedestal for her European features. The matriarch who is the core of her community but hides all her pain.

In Tías and Primas, the follow-up to her acclaimed debut For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts, Mojica Rodríguez explores these archetypes. Fearlessly grappling with the effects of intergenerational trauma, centuries of colonization, and sexism, she attempts to heal the pain that is so often embodied in female family lines.

Tías and Primas is a deeply felt love letter to family, community, and Latinas everywhere.

Sun of Blood and Ruin by Mariely Lares Young Adult Fantasy | Mexico

In sixteenth-century New Spain, witchcraft is punishable by death, indigenous temples have been destroyed, and tales of mythical creatures that once roamed the land have become whispers in the night. Hidden behind a mask, Pantera uses her magic and legendary swordplay skills to fight the tyranny of Spanish rule.

To all who know her, Leonora de las Casas Tlazohtzin never leaves the palace and is promised to the heir of the Spanish throne. The respectable, law-abiding Lady Leonora faints at the sight of blood and would rather be caught dead than meddle in court affairs. No one suspects that Leonora and Pantera are the same person.

When an ancient prophecy of destruction threatens to come true, Leonora—and therefore Pantera—is forced to decide: surrender the mask or fight to the end. Knowing she is doomed to a short life, she is tempted to take the former option. But the legendary Pantera is destined for more than an early grave, and once she discovers the truth of her origins, not even death will stop her.

South America 2024 has been quite the year for South American authors and stories, and luckily some of the best Latine book releases from South America have been translated into English for the rest of the world (that speak English anyway) to enjoy!

Role Play by Clara Drummond Literary Fiction | Brazil

Vivian is a curator, not just at her gallery gig in Rio de Janeiro, but in every aspect of her life. Her apartment has designer armchairs. Her wallet is Comme des Garçons. Everything is selected and arranged, even her lovers and friends. In Vivian’s world, everything comes in excess, including her own caustic selfawareness. As she informs us, “I’m a misandrist and a misogynist,” but she is fond of gay men, “the one type of human you can properly get along with as equals.”

Role Play examines the superabundances of Brazilian elites― their art, ethics, and monied ambivalence in the face of social inequality, machismo, and violence. As sharp and sparkling as broken champagne flutes, Clara Drummond’s prose is seductively frank and unflinching in its depiction of wealth’s power to warp the self.

Thirst by Marina Yuszczuk Gothic Fiction | Argentina

It is the twilight of Europe’s bloody bacchanals, of murder and feasting without end. In the nineteenth century, a vampire arrives from Europe to the coast of Buenos Aires and, for the second time in her life, watches as villages transform into a cosmopolitan city, one that will soon be ravaged by yellow fever. She must adapt, intermingle with humans, and be discreet.

In present-day Buenos Aires, a woman finds herself at an impasse as she grapples with her mother's terminal illness and her own relationship with motherhood. When she first encounters the vampire in a cemetery, something ignites within the two women—and they cross a threshold from which there’s no turning back.

The Waves Take You Home by María Alejandra Barrios Vélez Women's Fiction | Colombia

Violeta Sanoguera had always done what she was told. She left the man she loved in Colombia in pursuit of a better life for herself and because her mother and grandmother didn’t approve of him. Chasing dreams of education and art in New York City, and with a new love, twenty-eight-year-old Violeta establishes a new life for herself, on her terms. But when her grandmother suddenly dies, everything changes.

After years of being on her own in NYC, Violeta finds herself on a plane back to Colombia, accompanied at all times by the ghost of her grandmother who is sending her messages and signs, to find she is the heir of the failing family restaurant, the very one Abuela told her to run from in the first place. The journey leads her to rediscover her home, her grandmother, and even the flame of an old love.

Like Happiness by Ursula Villarreal-Moura LGBTQ+ Coming of Age | Chile

It’s 2015, and Tatum Vega feels that her life is finally falling into place. Living in sunny Chile with her partner, Vera, she spends her days surrounded by art at the museum where she works. When a reporter calls from the US asking for an interview, the careful separation Tatum has constructed between her past and present begins to crumble. Domínguez has been accused of assault, and the reporter is looking for corroboration.

As Tatum is forced to reexamine the all-consuming but undefinable relationship that dominated so much of her early adulthood, long-buried questions surface. What did happen between them? And why is she still struggling with the mark the relationship left on her life?

Simpatía by Rodrigo Blanco Calderón Political Fiction | Venezuela

Simpatía is set in the Venezuela of Nicolas Maduro amid a mass exodus of the intellectual class who have been leaving their pets behind. Ulises Kan, the protagonist and a movie buff, receives a text message from his wife, Paulina, saying she is leaving the country (and him). Ulises is not heartbroken but liberated by Paulina's departure. Two other events end up disrupting his life even further: the return of Nadine, an unrequited love from the past, and the death of his father-in-law, General Martín Ayala.

Thanks to Ayala’s will, Ulises discovers that he has been entrusted with a mission—to transform Los Argonautas, the great family home, into a shelter for abandoned dogs. If he manages to do it in time, he will inherit the luxurious apartment that he had shared with Paulina.

Caribbean Many make the unfortunate mistake of assuming the Caribbean is a monolith, but these enchanting 2024 Latine book releases fully explore the diversity and complexity of the Latin Caribbean through their pages. To read more of the various diasporas in the Caribbean, check out the full list of new books by Caribbean authors in 2024.

Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar Middle Age Fiction | Cuba

In 1492, during the Spanish Inquisition, Benvenida and her family are banished from Spain for being Jewish, and must flee the country or be killed. They journey by foot and by sea, eventually settling in Istanbul. Over four centuries later, in 1923, shortly after the Turkish war of independence, Reina’s father disowns her for a small act of disobedience. He ships her away to live with an aunt in Cuba, to be wed in an arranged marriage when she turns fifteen.

In 1961, Reina’s daughter, Alegra, is proud to be a brigadista, teaching literacy in the countryside for Fidel Castro. But soon Castro’s crackdowns force her to flee to Miami all alone, leaving her parents behind. Finally, in 2003, Alegra’s daughter, Paloma, is fascinated by all the journeys that had to happen before she could be born. A keeper of memories, she’s thrilled by the opportunity to learn more about her heritage on a family trip to Spain, where she makes a momentous discovery.

Though many years and many seas separate these girls, they are united by a love of music and poetry, a desire to belong and to matter, a passion for learning, and their longing for a home where all are welcome. And each is lucky to stand on the shoulders of their courageous ancestors.

Reinbou by Pedro Cabiya Historical Fiction | Dominican Republic

In 1976 Santo Domingo, Ángel Maceta uncovers the real story behind the murder of his father, Puro Maceta, ten years prior. In the process, events that unfolded during and after the war are revealed, unleashing a series of small revolutions in his community that in turn unravel other intrigues of what really took place during the Civil War of 1965.

Weaving together the brutal realities of war with the innocence of childhood imagination, Reinbou explores this era in Dominican society, a time when the U.S. sent Marines into the country to back a coup against Juan Bosch, the first democratically elected president of the Dominican Republic since the end of the brutal, three-decade-long dictatorship of the genocidal Rafael Trujillo. Moving between 1965 and 1976, we follow the revolutionary efforts of Puro and the transformative, feverish adventures of Ángel.

House of Bone and Rain by Gabino Iglesias Paranormal Suspense | Puerto Rico *content warning: suicide

For childhood friends Gabe, Xavier, Tavo, Paul, and Bimbo, death has always been close. Hurricanes. Car accidents. Gang violence. Suicide. Estamos rodeados de fantasmas was Gabe’s grandmother’s refrain. We are surrounded by ghosts. But this time is different. Bimbo's mom has been shot dead. We’re gonna kill the guys who killed her Bimbo swears. And they all agree.

Feral with grief, Bimbo has become unrecognizable, taking no prisoners in his search for names. Soon, they learn Maria was gunned down by guys working for the drug kingpin of Puerto Rico. No one has ever gone up against him and survived. As the boys strategize, a storm gathers far from the coast. Hurricanes are known to carry evil spirits in their currents and bring them ashore, spirits which impose their own order.

The Tyranny of Flies by Elaine Vilar Madruga Horror | Cuba-inspired

Growing up on a Cuba-esque Caribbean island, Casandra, Calia, and Caleb endure life under two tyrannies: that of their parents, and the Island’s authoritarian dictator, Pop-Pop Mustache. Papa was the dictator's former right-hand man. Now, he’s a political pariah and an ugly parody of a tyrant, treating his home as a nation which he rules with an iron fist. As for Mom, his wife and hateful second in command, she rules from the mind.

But within these walls, a rebellion is fomenting. Casandra, a cynical, self-important teenager with the most unlikely of attractions, recruits Caleb, meek yet gifted with a deadly touch, to join her in an insurrection against their father’s arbitrary totalitarianism. Meanwhile, Calia, the silent, youngest sibling who just wants to be left alone to draw animals, may be in league with the flies—whose swarm in and around the house grows larger as Papa’s violence increases.

Bad Seed: Stories by Gabriel Carle Short Stories | Puerto Rico

The visceral, wildly imaginative stories in Bad Seed flick through working-class scenes of contemporary Puerto Rico, where friends and lovers melt into and defy their surroundings—night clubs, ruined streets, cramped rooms with cockroaches moving in the walls. A horny high schooler spends his summer break in front of the TV; a queer love triangle unravels on the emblematic theater steps of the University of Puerto Rico; a group of friends get high and watch San Juan burn from atop a clocktower; an HIV positive college student works the night shift at a local bathhouse.

Kay Kingsman is a writer and full-time silly goose. Along with being the first person to crip walk in Antarctica, Kay's writing has been featured in Forbes, Insider, Fodor’s, Viator, and more.

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