In 1934, a luxury cruise becomes a fight for survival as two women’s pasts collide on a round-trip voyage from New York to Havana in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton's page-turning new novel inspired by the true story of the SSMorro Castle.
New York heiress Catherine Dohan seemingly has it all. There’s only one problem. It’s a lie. As soon as the Morro Castle leaves port, Catherine’s past returns with a vengeance and threatens her life. Joining forces with a charismatic jewel thief, Catherine must discover who wants her dead—and why.
Elena Palacio is a dead woman. Or so everyone thinks. After a devastating betrayal left her penniless and on the run, Elena’s journey on the Morro Castle is her last hope. Steeped in secrecy and a burning desire for revenge, her return to Havana is a chance to right the wrong that has been done to her—and her prey is on the ship.
As danger swirls aboard the Morro Castle and their fates intertwine, Elena and Catherine must risk everything to see justice served once and for all.
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Penguin/Berkley
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Praise for The Cuban Heiress
This lively and twisty suspense novel from Chanel Cleeton pairs the glamour and desperation of women’s survival in the Great Depression, highlighted with a delicious Cuban American flair. … Cleeton’s characters offer a beautiful pairing of tenderness and passion, anger and revenge, courage and resolution.
New York Journal of Books
Cleeton adds intriguing secrets and strong character work to the dramatic plot. Historical fiction fans will be riveted.
Publishers Weekly
Cleeton's gift for lush historical detail, including gowns, weaponry, and architecture, is on display here…. the page-turning plot and tangled relationships are more than enough to engage readers. The ship's eventual fate, while tied to that of both women, also makes for interesting further reading. Fans of Cleeton's series about the Perez sisters will find much to enjoy in this captivating standalone.
Shelf Awareness
Chanel Cleeton shows just what an exceptional talent she is in her new book, THE CUBAN HEIRESS. While I’ve loved every one of Chanel’s books, I absolutely adored this one. Take one heiress with more than a few secrets, throw in a roguish jewel thief and put them aboard a glittering cruise ship sailing from New York to Havana and you have the perfect historical novel. As soon as I’d finished it, I wanted to read it again. Do not miss this book.
Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre
Chanel Cleeton does it again with The Cuban Heiress. Using as backdrop the very real life history of the incendiary New York-Cuba voyage of the luxury cruise ship, the SS Morro Castle, Cleeton explores the explosive encounter between New York heiress Catherine Dohan and the young Cuban lady Elena Palacio. But neither woman is exactly who they pretend to be, and the journey threatens them both, as they risk their lives to pursue justice.
Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Personal Librarian
Chanel Cleeton serves us a delicious slice of vengeance as two women risk everything for justice. The backdrop of the SS Morro Castle unfolds a chapter of history that is little known and brings the harrowing journey of that fateful voyage to life. The Cuban Heiress is a fabulous, gripping read!
Madeline Martin, New York Times bestselling author of The Librarian Spy
Whenever I open a new book from Chanel Cleeton, I know two things are certain: I will be captivated by her effortless and frankly mesmerizing prose, and I will have my eyes opened to a necessary but often overlooked chapter of history. In The Cuban Heiress, she takes us aboard the ill-fated SS Morro Castle with her vividly drawn and altogether unforgettable heroines, Elena and Catherine, and takes her readers on a journey that is entertaining, enlightening, and altogether unforgettable.
Jennifer Robson, international bestselling author of The Gown and Coronation Year
Set at a true life maritime disaster on board a sinking luxury liner, Chanel Cleeton’s The Cuban Heiress is a tense, compelling thriller in which we are never sure who is the hunter and who the hunted.
Rhys Bowen, New York Times bestselling author of Peril in Paris
I started reading The Cuban Heiress knowing little about the SS Morro Castle. By the end, I felt I had been aboard with a counterfeit heiress, a dead woman walking, a jewel thief, murky secrets, and gleaming revenge—all culminating in an explosive fire and a shipwreck to make history. This novel proves once again that real life is truly the stuff of fiction.
Sarah McCoy, New York Times and international bestselling author of Mustique Island and Marilla of Green Gables
When a decadent pleasure cruise aboard the SS Morro Castle morphs into an unthinkable nightmare, two women must use all their wits to fight for their very lives. Based on a shocking and little-known moment from history, Chanel Cleeton has woven a twisting tale of murder, revenge, and romance that I simply could not stop thinking about!
Stephanie Marie Thornton, USA Today bestselling author of Her Lost Words
Secrets and suspense abound on the luxury cruise of the SS Morro Castle, as two women, both determined to exact justice, hurtle on an unalterable course toward an uncertain future. From the title, The Cuban Heiress swept me into the story and held me riveted through the last page.
Shelley Freydont Noble, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiffany Girls
Quintessential, Cleeton rows us to glamorous shores in The Cuban Heiress. Chanel Cleeton delivers high impact on the high seas with her latest novel, The Cuban Heiress. Atmospherics, intrigue, and history with a dash of romance entwine the lives of two women, Catherine Dohan and Elena Palacio, as they travel on the SS Morro Castle. In this 1934 story, Cleeton paints the fight for justice and revenge with protagonists searching for the meaning of living with deadly consequences. Cleeton should be an auto-buy, and her talents are exemplified in the Cuban Heiress with its fast plot and prose to savor.
Vanessa Riley, author of Queen of Exiles
Cleeton excels at building tension and slowly revealing secrets. The Cuban Heiress is a great read for fans of 20th-century historical fiction.
Historical Novels Review
Chanel Cleeton conjures up a glamorous world of heiresses, con men, jewel thieves and gun runners in her 1930s-set novel, THE CUBAN HEIRESS. … The mix of romance and intrigue on the high seas gives the book a dash of Titanic-esque drama. … Where Cleeton excels is in brisk, clever plotting. …a delicious cocktail of a book that goes down as easy as an ice-cold mojito.
BookReporter.com
A novel of audacious risk and survival that will hold you tight in its grip from first page to last
Tessa Arlen, USA Today bestselling author of In Royal Service to the Queen
An absorbing page-turner by a master storyteller, The Cuban Heiress by Chanel Cleeton is a tale of love, larceny, loss, and revenge onboard theSS Morro Castle during the ocean liner's fateful 1934 voyage from Havana, Cuba, to New York City. Cleeton delivers a compelling cast of characters and seductively intertwined mysteries that captivate and surprise until the very last page. The Cuban Heiress is another superb must-read from New York Times Bestselling Author Chanel Cleeton.
Denny S. Bryce, author of Wild Women and the Blues
Nothing is what it seems in Cleeton's latest gripping historical novel.... Handsome con men, clever thieves, desperate rebels, and our valiant heroines all convene on this elegant but doomed ocean liner. Cleeton includes vivid details about the mysterious final voyage of the Morro Castle and provides further reading about this historic disaster.
Booklist
I loved The Cuban Heiress. It is a compelling novel of two women facing betrayal, intrigue and murder that captivated me from the start and held me until the emotional end. This is a must read for anyone who loves a well written and compelling novel set against the backdrop of a real and tragic historical event.
Georgie Blalock, author of An Indiscreet Princess
Utterly enthralling, Chanel Cleeton’s The Cuban Heiress takes readers on a harrowing journey to Havana alongside a pair of gutsy women engaged in the fight of their lives. Brimming with romance, intrigue, and danger, this cleverly written tale twists and turns all the way to the final page. I absolutely couldn’t put this book down!
Kristin Beck, author of The Winter Orphans