A Delicate Marriage

When wealthy Isabela Soto defies her strict father and marries impoverished yet fiercely ambitious Marco Rios, she believes them to be ideological soulmates, uniting to provide better conditions for poverty-stricken Puerto Ricans. But her expectations are short-lived as Marco’s business successes alter his sympathies and spirited Isabela struggles to find fulfillment, leading her to make some reckless decisions. Margarita Barresi’s A DELICATE MARRIAGE is a beautifully written, involving and absorbing story, richly detailed with the vibrancy of Puerto Rican culture and set against the fascinating backdrop of the political unrest that dominated the Island in the early/mid-twentieth century. Through Marco and Isabela’s ideals, experiences, and relationships, Barresi also explores class prejudice and colonialism in this sumptuously good debut novel.