THE LADY MATADOR'S HOTEL by Cristina Garcia

This is my first Cristina Garcia book, but it absolutely won't be my last. I adore authors who have a quirky unique voice, mix the awfulness and the beauty of life in one delicious story. Six protagonists - a half-Japanese female matador with a foot fetish, a guerilla fighter turned waitress, a murderous army colonel, a depressed and suicidal Korean mill owner, and a former Cuban jailbird who's adopting a baby - all stay at a luxury hotel in an anonymous Central American city.
Right, that's only five. And the sixth: a cold-blooded adoption lawyer whose husband is in love with one of her donor mothers  Each has their own devils and angels, each (except the corrupt lawyer...she likes things just the way they are) is battling for a different life. Does Aura's dead brother talk her into doing murder? Do the insurgents succeed? Will the Korean actually do himself in? Does the waitress get her revenge? Does the Cuban keep his new daughter? And what about the bull who doesn't want to fight? This small book, with its lovely prose (not a word wasted!) and clearly-drawn characters with their internal dialogues laid bare, is a 5; you'll love this.

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