María de Lourdes

Victoria

I am a bilingual writer born and raised in Veracruz, Mexico, currently residing in the state of Washington. I write novels, short stories and children’s books. I wrote my first novel, Los Hijos Del Mar (The children of the sea) because I wanted my sons to know their ancestry and to be proud of their heritage. The story, set during the late nineteenth century in México and in Spain, is based on the lives of my ancestors, the Victorias, who made a name for themselves in México’s pharmaceutical industry, and the Muguiras, Spanish immigrants who found success cultivating and trading coffee seeds. The novel weaves both families’ sagas into a shared destiny and their intertwined tales becomes, finally, the love story of my parents. Click here to read a chapter of Los Hijos del Mar.

My second novel, Más allá de la Justicia (Beyond Justice) is a farewell to my former profession as a litigator. Through the first-person narrative of my three characters, I bring my reader into the harsh world of our criminal justice system, the complex lives of the accused, and the people who work, relentlessly, in the pursuit of justice. While the novel is not a memoir, my work as a public defender influenced my writing, and the process became therapy, allowing me to understand how the experience had shaped me. Click here to preview Mas Alla De La Justicia

A number of literary journals have published my short stories. The theme that seems to permeate my prose in that genre is the struggle that Latinos face in the United States. My characters are often working women trying to survive in a country that is not their own. The inspiration for the stories often comes from the people I try to help in my current work as a mediator.

I particularly enjoy writing for children. I find the process uplifting, and a good source of balance, especially when the substance of my adult work is often dark, and daunting. The more I explore and learn about this genre, the more it calls to me, especially when I am around my grandchildren, who are my best, and most devoted audience.

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NOVELS

Set on two fascinating historical moments, the US invasion of México and the Mexican Revolution, “The House of Secrets” is a novel full of passion, ambition and mystery, which immerses us in the most exquisite and exotic traditions of Oaxaca with it… — Set on two fascinating historical moments, the US invasion of México and the Mexican Revolution, “The House of Secrets” is a novel full of passion, ambition and mystery, which immerses us in the most exquisite and exotic traditions of Oaxaca with its unmistakable smell of chocolate and the sweet taste of its traditional dishes. BUY HERE

EPUB:

Third place winner of the Premio Planeta Book Award (2010). In Más allá de la justicia (Beyond Justice), Melanie is a detective at the Seattle public defenders’ office. Her job is to investigate crimes allegedly perpetrated by the people whom the agency represents. She is an attractive, savvy, and very angry woman. Her husband recently abandoned her, and she must now do her best to support her daughters alone. Sofia, a newly hired Mexican attorney, is also trying to cope with her own defiant teenage sons, as well as with the responsibilities of her new job. When the pair is teamed up, conflict arises, and it is Rhonda, the office’s affable African American secretary, who keeps the peace, expertly navigating their differences with her natural humour and tolerance. The story, told in the first-person narratives of the three characters, transports the reader into the harsh world of litigation and into the complex and tormented lives of the accused: psychopaths, gangsters, prostitutes, and drug addicts. Más allá de la justicia provides an intimate, inside perspective of the criminal justice system in the U.S.A..

EPUB:

Los hijos del mar (I Leave You the Sea), is a beautiful love story set in late nineteenth-century Mexico and in Spain. The novel is based on the lives of the Victorias, who made a name for themselves in Mexico's pharmaceutical industry, and the Muguiras, Spanish immigrants who found success cultivating and trading coffee beans. The intertwined tales of Los hijos del mar become, finally, the story of a child who weaves both families' sagas into a shared destiny. Through the love affair of Licho Victoria and Pilar Muguira, the book reveals the social tensions still prevalent in Mexico between the conquered and the subjugated. The book is a must read historical novel.