ONCE UPON A SUNSET BY Tif Marcelo PUB Gallery Books

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Gallery Books (March 3, 2020)
• Language: English

The author of The Key to Happily Ever After—“a true gem filled with heart, laughs, and a cast of delightful characters” (Nina Bocci, USA TODAY bestselling author)—returns with a heartwarming and charming novel about a woman who travels to the Philippines to reconnect with her long-lost family…and manages to find herself along the way.

Diana Gallagher-Cary is at a tipping point. As a Washington, DC, OB/GYN at a prestigious hospital, she uses her career to distract herself from her grief over her granny’s death and her breakup from her long-term boyfriend after her free-spirited mother moves in with her. But when she makes a medical decision that disparages the hospital, she is forced to go on a short sabbatical.

Never one to wallow, Diana decides to use the break to put order in her life, when her mother, Margo, stumbles upon a box of letters from her grandfather, Antonio Cruz, to her grandmother from the 1940s. The two women always believed that Antonio died in World War II, but the letters reveal otherwise. When they learn that he lived through the war, and that they have surviving relatives in the Philippines, Diana becomes determined to connect with the family that she never knew existed, though Margo refuses to face her history. But Diana pushes on, and heads on a once-in-a-lifetime trip that challenges her identity, family history, and her idea of romantic love that could change her life forever.

Infused with Tif Marcelo’s signature “sexy, adorable, and heartfelt” (Kate Meader, USA TODAY bestselling author) voice, Once Upon a Sunset is a moving and lyrical celebration of love, family, and second chances.

THOUGHTS/REVIEW:

Tif Marcelo, the author of ‘The Key to Happily Ever After’ returns with a heartwarming and charming novel about Diana, an OB/GYN physician whose life is disrupted - first by a decision she made professionally against the hospital administration, then a recent break up from a long term boyfriend, her mother Margo moving in, then finally a recent shocking discovery of love letters found after her grandmother’s death.

The letters were from Antonio Cruz, her grandfather written in the 1940’s whom they were told had died during WWII - however, the dates in those letters proved otherwise. Taking a short sabbatical from the hospital, she travels to the Philippines to discover and learn about her living relatives. In the journey to the islands, she discovers much more than a new found family... 

In Tif Marcelo’s signature style incorporating the intricate relationships of family, relationships, food and love, I was transported not only in time of a long lost true love, but also to the bustling sights and sounds of Metro Manila and the beautiful sunsets I have longed for that brought me back to a simpler time. 

Part historical fiction and part literary and women’s fiction, Marcelo delivered a highly personal story inspired by her own grandfather. Also mentioned in this story were the Filipino Farm workers in Central California as well as the Fist and Second Filipino Infantry Regiments of the US Army.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT:

Tif believes in and writes about heart-eyes romance, the strength of families, and the endurance of friendship. A veteran Army Nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master of Public Administration, she is a craft enthusiast, food-lover and the occasional half-marathon runner. As a military spouse, she has moved nine times, and this adventure shows in some of her free-spirited characters. Tif currently lives in the DC area with her own real life military hero and four children.