The Sweetness in the Lime

Book excerpt: “Part love story, part mystery, this engrossing tale of Cuban-Canadian connections . . . gets to the heart of what can happen when we cross borders.” —Karen Dubinsky, author of Cuba Beyond the Beach Eli Cooper is a resolutely single, fifty-something newspaper copy editor. He spends his nights obsessing over reporters’ unnecessary “thats” and his days caring for a demented father he knows should be in twenty-four-hour care. Eli is too busy—and too self-absorbed—to acknowledge what’s missing in his life. But then, on a single day in February 2008, Eli loses his job and his father. Alone and adrift, he begrudgingly accepts his sister’s gift: a two-week forget-it-all vacation to Cuba. After a series of misadventures, he meets Mariela—an off-the-books, thirtysomething tour guide—and falls in love. But does Mariela fall for Eli, or is he just her ticket to a new life? Eli and Mariela each have secrets they’re not ready to share—until they have no choice. A bittersweet story that takes readers from Havana, to Halifax, to Miami, and back again, The Sweetness in the Lime is a charming, clever novel that peels back the rind to discover there really is sweetness in the lime of life. “A quietly powerful novel—poignant with the sorrow of great loss, uplifting with the joy of discovery.” —The Miramichi Reader “A tense, honest and moving tale of latter-life love in the time of post-colonial globalization. You won’t want to put it down.” —Chris Benjamin, author of Boy With a Problem “A story about home, friendship, loss and new beginnings; about second chances and the power of loyalty and abiding love.” —Carmen Rodríguez, author of Atacama