I Was Never The First Lady: A NovelI Was Never The First Lady stitches together threads of island and identity until they became one and the same Guerras own unpredictable book is haunting, complicated, [and] linguistically beautiful. The New York Times A lush, sensuous, and original tale of family, love, and history, set against the backdrop of the Cuban Revolution and its aftermath. Nadia Guerras mother, Albis Torres, left when Nadia was just ten years old. Growing up, the proponents