My Mother Cursed My Name

Three generations of fiercely strong and stubborn Mexican American women face grief head-on as they attempt to shed generational trauma and discover the true meaning of home in this lyrical novel that features magical realism in the tradition of The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina and The House of the Spirits.

Felicitas Olivares is ten years old and terribly disappointed when she meets her estranged grandmother for the first time. Olvido is nothing like a grandmother should be. She is strict, cold…and dead.

Olvido is convinced the only way her spirit will cross over is if her body is buried in Mexico, though she hadn’t been back since she crossed the border to the United States decades ago. When this plan fails to help Olvido move on, she decides that she must have more unfinished business and determines that it involves her daughter, Angustias. She must do whatever she can to make sure Angustias is in a better place regarding family, job, husband, and God—but maybe not in that order.

Heartbroken about her mother’s passing and desperate to put her tiny Texas home in her rearview mirror as quickly as possible, Angustias doesn’t understand why suddenly everyone in town seems to be conspiring to set her up with every eligible bachelor in town, offer her jobs, and invite her and Felicitas to church every Sunday.

Only her daughter, Felicitas, knows Olivido’s plan but she can’t bring herself to tell her mother the truth—or the fact that she sees ghosts. But she’s not the only one who’s been keeping secrets. As Olvido and Angustias continue to follow the tradition of trying to steer the course of their daughters’ lives the way they see fit, all three Olivares girls must learn how to communicate and actually listen to one another, work to overcome generations’ worth of well-intentioned mistakes, and finally find home.