THE CUBAN AFFAIR

5 stars out of 5

The second I finished this book, my husband broke into a happy dance. Why is that, you ask? Well, most of the time when I'm reading I'm sitting across from him as he sits in his recliner watching the idiot box. And most of the time, that works just fine. But along came this character - Daniel Graham "Mac" MacCormick - who triggered giggles, snorts, chuckles and occasionally, outright guffaws from my side of the room. annoying the heck out of my usually sweet sweetie. A for-instance? Much of the book is set in Cuba, where the construction zones are dotted with "Porta-Juans" (okay, it might have been funnier in the moment, but you get the drift).

Needless to say, I did not share my husband's enthusiasm when I reached the end; clearly, Mac - a 35-year-old Army vet now runs a charter fishing business in Key West and narrates the story - has the same wacko sense of humor as I do. That's great, but what's even better is the  intriguing, action-filled plot that kept me thumbing through the pages of my Kindle and unwilling to put it down (yet another thorn in the side of my husband, who expected to be fed now and again).

The story, which takes place as the relationship between the United States and Cuba begins to "thaw," is timely, although the author does remind readers that the book was written before the current administration took office (it's set in the fall of 2015). It's also clear that he's done quite a bit of research, some of it on-site, much to the enlightenment of readers who appreciate history. That I, a person who literally switched my college major because I couldn't fathom taking another boring history class, was glued to the pages is perhaps the greatest tribute to the author's writing skills.

But I digress: The story begins as Mac is waiting in the Green Parrot Bar for a meeting with Carlos, a high-powered lawyer from Miami who's made a name for himself among anti-Castro groups. Turns out Carlos wants to hire Mac to participate in a fishing tournament in Cuba, but Mac isn't buying it. Carlos then ups the ante to $2 million for the job, making Mac put down his beer and agree to a meeting with Carlos's clients on Mac's boat. Turns out that one is the beautiful (and single) Sara Ortega, who claims her grandfather stashed a whopping $60 million in a cave before he fled Cuba during the Castro revolution. The fishing tournament, then, is just a red herring; the real prize is to find, and bring back to the States, the money -  less Mac's rather hefty cut, of course. 

Needless to say, the cash-starved Mac signs on (albeit grudgingly). His friend Jack takes the helm of the boat - now sold to the attorney and renamed to protect the names of the guilty - while Mac and Sara fly to Cuba under the cover of a U.S.-Cuba sanctioned tour of Yale faculty and grads. Needless to say, trying to steer clear of the clutches of the Cuban authorities is muy dificil; there's a fly in the ointment at nearly every turn and twist - quite possibly, Murphy's Law originated in Cuba - making it hard to know who to trust (if anyone) and forcing Mac to put all the skills he acquired during his two tours in Afghanistan to the test.

More than that I can't say without spoiling things for others. What I can say is that as I understand it, this is Mac's debut appearance in the reading world. He not only gets a big shout-out from me  - a more interesting, fun character I haven't come across in a while - but also my hope that I'll meet him again soon (hint, hint). Meantime, many thanks go to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Cuban Affair by Nelson DeMille (Simon & Schuster, September, 2017); 448 pp.