We are excited to share the cover reveal, originally published exclusively by The Nerd Daily, for THE WAVES TAKE YOU HOME: A NOVEL by María Alejandra Barrios Vélez set to be released by Amazon Publishing on March 19, 2024! The Nerd Daily also shared an exclusive excerpt from this incredible novel, so click here if you’d like to read more! You can now pre-order wherever books are sold.
In this deeply heartfelt story about what it takes to build a new life, the death of her abuela brings a young woman home, where she must face the past in order to move forward and build a life that’s truly her own.
Ten years after she immigrated to the States, twenty-eight-year-old Vi goes home to Barranquilla, Colombia, at the news of her grandmother’s death. Abuela was the one who insisted Vi leave in the first place, but now Vi learns she’s inherited Caminito, their failing family restaurant.
Vi can’t understand Abuela’s intentions, but she resolves to honor those final wishes and stay—long enough, at least, to save Caminito. Her life in New York with a serious boyfriend and bourgeoning career is stable enough to wait for her return.
But the longer Vi is home, the more she struggles with what that word means. Abuela’s ghost is never far, reminding her of the choices she’s made and the ones that lie ahead.
As she reconnects with her family, community, and her first love, Vi will have to decide if she truly did leave for her own good all those years ago…and whether this time she should stay.
María Alejandra Barrios Vélez is a writer born in Barranquilla, Colombia. She has an MA in creative writing from the University of Manchester and lives in Brooklyn with her husband and scruffy dog, Gus.
She was the 2020 SmokeLong Flash Fiction Fellow, and her stories have been published in Shenandoah Literary, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, El Malpensante, Fractured Lit, SmokeLong Quarterly, The Offing, and more. Her work has been supported by organizations such as Vermont Studio Center, Caldera Arts, and the New Orleans Writers’ Residency.
The Waves Take You Home is María’s debut, inspired by the resilience and strength of the women in her family and the Caribbean city she spent most of her life in.
María Alejandra Barrios Velez is represented by Amanda Orozco.