One Brilliant Flame

A Novel

By: Joy Castro

Narrated by: Krysta Gonzales, Tania Possick, Frankie Corzo, Gary Tiedemann, Jonathan Villanueva, Andre Santana

Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

A nineteenth-century utopia becomes a powder keg of political intrigue and betrayal in an enthralling historical novel—inspired by actual events—by the author of Flight Risk.

Key West, 1886. The booming cigar industry makes it the most prosperous city in Florida. As a rebel base for the anticolonial insurgency in Cuba, it’s also a tinderbox for six young friends with ambitious dreams.

They all brim with secrets: Zenaida, the daughter of an assassinated Havana journalist; power-hungry Sofia, who plots a fast track to success; Chaveta, Zenaida’s loyal comrade in arms who fearlessly flouts tradition; Feliciano, a charismatic Spanish anarchist; Líbano, the cafetero, silent and watchful; and Maceo, a daring guerrilla soldier who fights a brutal undertow. As lives intertwine, revolution smolders, and passions ignite, the bustling coral island is set to explode.

Against the backdrop of the Great Fire of Key West, One Brilliant Flame explores the luminous fates of consuming passion and encroaching peril in the face of insurrection, sacrifice, and inextinguishable hope.

©2023 Joy Castro (P)2022 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“[A]rtfully performed by a team of talented narrators: Krista Gonzales, Tania Possick, Frankie Corzo, Gary Tiedemann, Jonathan Villanueva, and Andre Santana. With impressive production values, this impressively performed audio book…will have a very special appeal to listeners with an interest in historical Caribbean/Hispanic American literature.”—Midwest Book Review

“This is a fascinating, informative, and important read.”—Booklist

“Suspenseful and steeped in history, Joy Castro’s One Brilliant Flame transports readers to a vibrant nineteenth-century Key West, one stoked by revolution in Cuba and inflamed by the passions of striking young characters. Castro’s novel beautifully illuminates a largely forgotten history in a memorable and compelling light. I learned so much, but more importantly, I couldn’t put it down.”—Chantel Acevedo, author of The Distant Marvels

Brilliant!

Wonderful story and characters. I could put it down. I love the history accuracy as well.

Fascinating history

I am embarrassed that I didn’t know more about the history discussed in this book. I knew some information about Key West, but I didn’t know enough about the Cuban expatriates there. The stories of the individuals could have been fleshed out more. I still don’t really understand some of them. Overall, I learned a lot and enjoyed the story.

Luminous novel deserved better narration

Athletic prose & fascinating story.
The prose reminded me of Kate Chopin's work in the best way. But also like an English translation of a novel I'd prefer to read in Spanish.
I had trouble connecting with the narrators' choices, especially the lector's accent, which felt all over the place. Still, I'll buy a physical copy and revisit it, because it's worth savoring without distractions.

High Quality Page-Turner

I am a history buff, but this brought a whole new story to light. I did not know about the long struggle for Cuban independence, or the connection to Key West, or the devastating fire in Key West.
The author used her family connection to Cuba, and dogged research to craft a page-turner of a historical novel. I was interested in the characters, and their struggles and hopes, and could not have guessed the ending.
I hoped to like this book, but was pleasantly surprised to REALLY like this book.
The narration was very well-done. There are a number of readers, but subtle changes in voice let me know right away when any single narrator read 2 characters in conversation — I could tell which character they were doing, sentence by sentence, and it was not at all stilted.
Good story, very well done!

I’d give it six stars

What a wonderful story told in the different voices. Learning so much about the history of Key West and its importance. I truly loved this story.

A historical tale of Key West, with strong women characters

What a great story, which interweaves history with vivid characters of the time - including strong women.

Never ending story

It felt like a character presentation throughout the book. I was always expecting something to happen. Until it finally happened, the last 45 minutes of the book, and then the story abruptly ended.

A History Lesson and Surprise Characters

I began listening to this book just as I was planing a trip to Miami where Cuban culture is strong. I really enjoyed the history included in this book and it gave me better insight into Cuban culture. The book had some major surprises for me with the characters (perhaps other listeners will pick up before I did), but so many were not who you thought they were! The last 2.5 hours kinda turns everything upside down and I almost would have preferred to have insight into who they really were a little earlier. Overall - great read and I’m looking forward to traveling to Key West one day where I’ll surely remember this story!

I wanted to like it more

I was excited to get this novel, but a bit disappointed in a few aspects.
I’m no particular order:
Even though there were multiple readers, it was a bit difficult to discern voices;
Although the author apparently did extensive research from historical sources, the characters first person narration is the majority of the book which has unknown or on mentioned, primary source;
the fate of one of the main characters seems to be missing from the conclusion;
the first person segments were so short it seemed choppy, I would have preferred longer individual sections;
I did appreciate the positive yet tortured aspect of assumed, or real attraction of same sex; and
in summation, not a bad audiobook, just not as good as I had anticipated or wished.

Key Wedt Read

I loved this reading. The voices captured the characters’ personalities perfectly. The story weaves Key West history into the imaginable.