Xochitl Gonzalez – författare

'Deeply satisfying and nuanced . . . a tender exploration of love in its many forms' Observer 'Gonzalez couples engrossing political intrigue with engagingly flawed characters you can't help but root for' Mail on Sunday It's 2017, and Olga and her brother, Pedro 'Prieto' Acevedo, are bold-faced names in their hometown of New York. Prieto is a popular congressman representing their gentrifying, Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, while Olga is the tony wedding planner for Manhattan's power brokers.Despite their alluring public lives, behind closed doors things are far less rosy. Sure, Olga can orchestrate the love stories of the one percent, but she can't seem to find her own . . . until she meets Matteo, who forces her to confront the effects of long-held family secrets.Twenty-seven years ago, their mother, Blanca, a Young Lord-turned-radical, abandoned her children to advance a militant political cause, leaving them to be raised by their grandmother. Now, with the winds of hurricane season, Blanca has come barreling back into their lives.Set against the backdrop of New York City in the months surrounding the most devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico's history, Olga Dies Dreaming is a story that examines political corruption, familial strife and the very notion of the American dream - all while asking what it really means to weather a storm.

'Deeply satisfying and nuanced . . . a tender exploration of love in its many forms' Observer 'Gonzalez couples engrossing political intrigue with engagingly flawed characters you can't help but root for' Mail on Sunday It's 2017, and Olga and her brother, Pedro 'Prieto' Acevedo, are bold-faced names in their hometown of New York. Prieto is a popular congressman representing their gentrifying, Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, while Olga is the tony wedding planner for Manhattan's power brokers.Despite their alluring public lives, behind closed doors things are far less rosy. Sure, Olga can orchestrate the love stories of the one percent, but she can't seem to find her own . . . until she meets Matteo, who forces her to confront the effects of long-held family secrets.Twenty-seven years ago, their mother, Blanca, a Young Lord-turned-radical, abandoned her children to advance a militant political cause, leaving them to be raised by their grandmother. Now, with the winds of hurricane season, Blanca has come barreling back into their lives.Set against the backdrop of New York City in the months surrounding the most devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico's history, Olga Dies Dreaming is a story that examines political corruption, familial strife and the very notion of the American dream - all while asking what it really means to weather a storm.

'Deeply satisfying and nuanced . . . a tender exploration of love in its many forms' Observer 'Gonzalez couples engrossing political intrigue with engagingly flawed characters you can't help but root for' Mail on Sunday It's 2017, and Olga and her brother, Pedro 'Prieto' Acevedo, are bold-faced names in their hometown of New York. Prieto is a popular congressman representing their gentrifying, Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, while Olga is the tony wedding planner for Manhattan's power brokers.Despite their alluring public lives, behind closed doors things are far less rosy. Sure, Olga can orchestrate the love stories of the one percent, but she can't seem to find her own . . . until she meets Matteo, who forces her to confront the effects of long-held family secrets.Twenty-seven years ago, their mother, Blanca, a Young Lord-turned-radical, abandoned her children to advance a militant political cause, leaving them to be raised by their grandmother. Now, with the winds of hurricane season, Blanca has come barreling back into their lives.Set against the backdrop of New York City in the months surrounding the most devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico's history, Olga Dies Dreaming is a story that examines political corruption, familial strife and the very notion of the American dream - all while asking what it really means to weather a storm.

New York Times-bestselling author Xochitl Gonzalez delivers a captivating story about a young woman whose life becomes ensnared in her glamorous neighbour’s secret pastSPRING, 2007At twenty-six, Alicia Canales Forten feels smothered by her future. She’s in a long-distance relationship, living at home with her mother’s beliefs, saving up for her wedding to a future doctor. But after Alicia ventures out one night in the neighbourhood of Fort Greene, Brooklyn, she finds herself lured by the siren song of youth and possibility that the striving crowd of creatives holds, and moves in.No one embodies this milieu more than La Garza, a larger-than-life, up-and-coming fashion designer whose epic house parties fuel neighbourhood lore. La Garza’s life, observed by Alicia from her apartment across the street, seems to hold the allure and fearlessness Alicia has never dared to imagine for herself.But when Alicia’s wealthy banker cousin moves to the neighbourhood, she finds herself increasingly drawn into both his and La Garza’s precarious lives.Against the backdrop of a potentially life-changing presidential election and a looming once-in-a-generation fiscal crisis, Last Night in Brooklyn explores the dark compromise of the American Dream for people of colour living, unknowingly, in the twilight of a cultural moment. It is a story about everything money can buy – and the destruction of what it can’t.

SPRING, 2007At twenty-six, Alicia Canales Forten feels smothered by her future. She’s in a long-distance relationship, living at home with her mother’s beliefs, saving up for her wedding to a future doctor. But after Alicia ventures out one night in the neighborhood of Fort Greene, Brooklyn, she finds herself lured by the siren song of youth and possibility that the striving crowd of creatives holds, and moves in.No one embodies this more than La Garza, a larger-than-life, up-and-coming fashion designer whose epic house parties fuel neighborhood lore. La Garza’s life, observed by Alicia from her apartment across the street, seems to hold the allure and fearlessness Alicia has never dared to imagine for herself.But when Alicia’s wealthy banker cousin moves to the neighborhood, she finds herself increasingly drawn into both his and La Garza’s precarious lives.Against the backdrop of a potentially life-changing presidential election and a looming once-in-a-generation fiscal crisis, Last Night in Brooklyn explores the dark compromise of the American Dream for people of color living, unknowingly, in the twilight of a cultural moment. It is a story about everything money can buy– and the destruction of what it can’t.

‘I have goosebumps just talking about this story’ REESE WITHERSPOON‘Smart, funny – and furious’ MARIE CLAIRE‘Genre-busting ... A clear-eyed deconstruction of skewed value systems’ FINANCIAL TIMES--------------------------------------------Who gets to leave a legacy?1985. Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City; her tragic death is the talk of the town. Until it isn’t. By 1998 Anita’s name has been all but forgotten – certainly by the time Raquel, a third-year art history student is preparing her final thesis. On College Hill, surrounded by progeny of film producers, C-Suite executives, and international art-dealers, most of whom float through life knowing that their futures are secured, Raquel feels herself an outsider. Students of colour, like Raquel, are the minority there, and the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities is no secret.But when Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older art student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. As she attempts to straddle both worlds, she stumbles upon Anita’s story, raising questions about the dynamics of her own relationship, which eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist.Moving back and forth through time and told from the perspectives of both women, Anita de Monte Laughs Last is a propulsive, witty examination of power, love and art, daring to ask who gets to be remembered and who is left behind in the rarefied world of the elite.A NEW YORK TIMES, ELLE AND GOOD HOUSEKEEPING HIGHLIGHT 'Writing with urgency and rage, Gonzalez speaks up for those who have been othered and deemed unworthy, robbed of their legacy'Washington Post'Rollicking, melodic, tender and true. And oh so very wise'Robert Jones, Jr., author of The Prophets

THE REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK FOR MARCH 2024 A NEW YORK TIMES, ELLE AND GOOD HOUSEKEEPING HIGHLIGHT FOR 2024 'Anita De Monte Laughs Last asks some big questions, like who in art or history is remembered, who is left behind or erased and why. I have goosebumps just talking about this story' Reese Witherspoon 'Rollicking, melodic, tender and true. And oh so very wise' Robert Jones, Jr., author of The Prophets Who gets to leave a legacy? 1985. Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City; her tragic death is the talk of the town. Until it isn't. By 1998 Anita's name has been all but forgotten - certainly by the time Raquel, a third-year art history student is preparing her final thesis. On College Hill, surrounded by progeny of film producers, C-Suite executives, and international art-dealers, most of whom float through life knowing that their futures are secured, Raquel feels herself an outsider. Students of colour, like Raquel, are the minority there, and the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities is no secret. But when Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older art student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. As she attempts to straddle both worlds, she stumbles upon Anita's story, raising questions about the dynamics of her own relationship, which eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist. Moving back and forth through time and told from the perspectives of both women, Anita de Monte Laughs Last is a propulsive, witty examination of power, love and art, daring to ask who gets to be remembered and who is left behind in the rarefied world of the elite. 'Writing with urgency and rage, Gonzalez speaks up for those who have been othered and deemed unworthy, robbed of their legacy' Washington Post Praise for Xochitl Gonzalez and Olga Dies Dreaming 'Don't underestimate this new novelist. She's jump-starting the year with a smart romantic comedy that lures us in with laughter and keeps us hooked with a fantastically engaging story' Washington Post 'The sharpest and best written social comedy in a while' Los Angeles Times 'An astounding new voice' Esquire

‘I have goosebumps just talking about this story’ REESE WITHERSPOON‘Smart, funny – and furious’ MARIE CLAIRE‘Genre-busting ... A clear-eyed deconstruction of skewed value systems’ FINANCIAL TIMESIt’s 1985 and Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City. Thirteen years later, art history student Raquel is preparing her final thesis, feeling the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities as the wealthy students around her. Anita’s name – and the mysterious circumstances around her death – has all but faded from view.When Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. But then she stumbles upon Anita’s story, and is struck not only by the question of who gets to leave a legacy, but by how her own relationship eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist . . .* A NEW YORK TIMES, ELLE AND GOOD HOUSEKEEPING HIGHLIGHT *