"A riveting historical thriller... this multi-generational page-turner is packed with intrigue and shocking plot twists..." Booklist

"A many layered adventure... smart writing done in accomplished style by an author who never talks down to her readers." Mystery Scene Magazine

"Hellmann's writing has matured... her plotting is more solid and assured... her characters more realistic...her settings wonderfully described. This is a fine, extremely well-told story." Deadly Pleasures

"Libby Fischer Hellmann is already an icon of the Chicago mystery scene. (Now) she heads in a bold new direction and masterfully evokes a Cuba past and present in a heartrending tale..." Sean Chercover, THE TRINITY GAME

"Libby Hellmann is a master at crafting an engrossing read. HAVANA LOST is exceptional... keeps you turning pages 'til the last." Heather Graham, NY Times Best-selling author Krewe of Hunter series

"Libby Hellmann offers a literary tour de force... lush with the details of another place and time--and full of lovers whose stars are tragically crossed with cold-war politics. The writing will take your breath away." William Kent Krueger, NY Times author of ORDINARY GRACE & Cork O'Connor series

What attracted you about a plot set in Cuba? Where did the inspiration come from?

I was talking to my sister on the phone after I'd finishedA BITTER VEIL. I knew I wasn't ready to go back to my Georgia Davis series yet, even though I was already about 60 pages into it. I'd been thinking about doing a World War Two thriller--I'm continually drawn back to that period of time. Unfortunately, I ultimately realized there was probably nothing I could write about the period that hadn't been done better by someone else.

The conversation turned to other time periods and settings, and my sister brought up Cuba. As soon as she mentioned it, I started to get that itch. It's the kind of itch that can only be scratched by delving more deeply into the subject. I told her how I remembered my parents flying down to gamble in Havana. This was when Batista was still in power. I must have only been about 6 or 7, but I remember being jealous that they were going to a foreign country and culture. I wanted to go too. Of course, they didn't take me.

A few years later Fidel took over and Cuba became off limits to Americans. Plus, it turned Communist! Communism was our enemy. Because of that, Cuba seemed even more mysterious and exotic, and I remember wanting to know more about it. Then, of course, there was the Cuban Missile Crisis, which made Cuba even more impenetrable and distant. So close and yet so far.

Finally, and I'm not ashamed to admit it, I recalled one of the Godfather films where Al Pacino (Michael Corleone) and Lee Strasberg (Meyer Lansky) are on a rooftop supposedly in Havana discussing how they're going to own the island. Shortly after that, Michael sees a rebel willing to die to overthrow Batista and changes his mind about doing business with Lansky.

That clinched it. I realized I had most of the elements for a terrific thriller: revolution, crime, conflict, and an exotic setting. There was only one other element I needed. I enjoy--actually it's more than that... it's probably an obsession--writing about women and the choices they make. I needed a female character who would have been thrown into the middle of the revolution. It would be fascinating to see what she did and how she coped. Once I came up with Frankie Pacelli, the daughter of a Mafia boss who owns a Havana resort, the rest was, as they say, is history.

Are any of the female characters in HL based on you? If so, which aspects of their personalities are inspired by yours?

None of my female characters are based on me. All of my female characters are based on me. I think it's impossible for an author not to share shades of themselves through their characters. The issue isn't so much what comes from me, though; it's their own authenticity. Once they're on the page, they have to be true to themselves. Consistent. They can't do one thing on Monday, and the opposite on Wednesday, even if I want to.

Have you been to Cuba?

Absolutely, I went to Cuba. My daughter and I went in 2012 on a cultural tour that coincided with the Havana International Book Fair. It turns out that the Book Fair is one of the largest in Latin America, and it was packed. We were there for 9 days. Of course we did a lot of other things and saw other places (Varadero, Cienfuegos, and Trinidad), and one day, we even ditched the tour and went on our own to Regla. I had written most of the book by then, so it was a perfect opportunity to fact-check. I'm glad I did. I got the geography of Regla wrong.