One Year of Ugly

Trinidadian writer Mackenzie debuts with this sparkling account of a romance between Venezuelan immigrant Yola Palacio in Trinidad and a man working for a human trafficker amidst Yola’s family drama. After sardonic writer Yola’s aunt Celia dies, her debt to human trafficker Ugly puts the undocumented Palacio family in danger. Ugly threatens to report the Palacios unless they host newly arrived immigrants fleeing from Venezuela in their Port of Spain house. The Palacios fear their Venezuelan guests and lock themselves in their rooms each night. Ugly, meanwhile, tasks his enforcer Román with ensuring none of the Palacio family leave the city or contact the police, and Román becomes a love interest for the conflicted Yola (“I know what you’re thinking—This guy’s a criminal who was just choking your father, you horny bitch! All I can say is: forbidden fruit is the original aphrodisiac”). Mackenzie skillfully balances the trope of sordid romance with a sympathetic portrait of the people exploited by human traffickers, but the strongest element is the portrait of the family, which Mackenzie fills out with a deep understanding of Venezuelan history. Passages of Aunt Celia’s diary recall memories of a more prosperous Venezuela before it was brought down by environmental exploitation and political corruption, and further inform the family’s conflicted relationship with their fellow Venezuelans. This thoughtful and entertaining saga will move readers. (July)