Guayabo Blanco

Guayabo Blanco is the name of an ancient pre-Taino civilization that lived in the island of Cuba in time immemorial. The words in English mean "white mouse" and from here comes the name of the book; a collection of tales and stories that span a period of forty modern years in the life of a woman who is convinced she is a direct descendant of this distant and powerful race, but she however, is plagued by a family curse of negativity. At the center is the endearing and slightly corrupt personality of Mercedes Vega as she goes through life with chill and aplomb despite unsettling yet quirky circumstances because she trusts that good is ultimately victorious. The story is in the first person. It is the voice of Mercedes Vega as she relates her accounts and shares her thoughts. There is drama and humor as the reader is taken on a ride through a string of philosophical and sociological glimpses into family issues, corporate functions, Santeria rituals, love, police encounters, curses, brushes with the famed, rumors, outlandish assumptions and the elusive blessing of serendipity that appear as if by magic to protect Mercedes from the doom that according to others, is headed her way. Superstitious, neurotic, paranoid and totally immersed in fantasy, Mercedes is determined to to put it all down on paper and in the process of this inspiring story discovers the greatest treasure of all - herself.