3.5 stars, rounded up
This multi-generational story is beautifully written and fleshed out the West in the early 20th Century.  Fajardo-Anstine is definitely a wordsmith and I could easily see the scenes in the story.  
Told in a non-linear fashion, it covers five generations of a Chicano family from the Lost Territories from the late 1800s to the 1930s.  The women in several generations have the gift of sight. The story focuses primarily on Luz, who lives in Denver with her aunt and initially, her brother.   There are elements of magic realism within the plot - Luz’s reading of the tea leaves, Diageo’s kinship with his rattlesnakes.   But there are also dark elements to the story - the Klan operating in Denver, but also the everyday racism of the time.   It fulfilled my desire to learn something of the time and place.  But I struggled at times to connect to the rationale behind the actions of Luz.  
The pace of the book was also very slow and at the end, I was left with a feeling of wanting more.  
My thanks to Netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.

This book was beautifully descriptive, but I couldn't help thinking by the end I was just not the target audience for this book.  It reminded me of books I was taught in school where I just felt like I didn't understand it? It was an interesting look into Denver during the depression and the cultural clashes that were happening at that time. 

The book cover is exquisite and I would buy a print to hang 9n my wall!

Thank you to Netgalley and One World for the digital gallery in exchange for a review.

I have not read a book like this before. All I can say is wow. I loved it. I enjoyed the form the story was told in. It was unique and a voice of its own in the manners of the story.

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

A smartly written historical novel that expertly switches between time frames to tell the story of Luz and her family. The descriptive writing about this family’s struggles and relationships was wonderful.  I thought the ending was particularly good, finishing the book’s journey, while leaving some questions unanswered.  Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an advance copy of this book.

What an amazing story. As I read the story I kept thinking about the story, "Water for Chocolate," because of how intense the story was, and how realistic the characters are. I also found that even though the characters life were very hard they found many moments to be joyous about. They found love and work that made them fulfilled and they dealt with all problems the best they could. I especially love Luz talent to see the future in reading coffee grounds and tea leaves and Diego's talent with snakes, it made them feel closer to the earth. And no matter what, they took care of each other. And I loved the cousin Lizette because she knew what she wanted and she went for it and she knew who she is.
I only found a few places hard to read because of the injustice that fell upon these characters because the color of their skin, pretty sad that we still deal with this now.

I want to thank Random House Publishing Group - Random House, One World and NetGalley for a copy of this amazing story about courage and tenacity in the early 1900's.

A heart wrenching piece of historical fiction that spans multiple generations of Mexican and Indigenous people as they search to make a better life in the chaos of US expansion out west. The multiple views give you that look into the time and makes the decisions made, both good and not-so-good, tangible. Timeless themes such as love occupy the space as other (sadly) timeless conversations about race and migration. While many threads in this book are difficult, each page is beautifully written. The journey is well worth the time. May be a great book for a multi-generational book club.

I so wanted to love this. But I found the writing clunky, and I ultimately did not finish. It may just need some additional editing. I appreciate the chance to review this book.

A vivid, sweeping book spanning decades and generations.
But alas, it is not for me. I guess I'm not a fan of historical fiction. I'm sure it will find a place on the shelves of many who love the genre.

Our Colorado patrons will be thrilled to have a full length novel from this author.  I look forward to promoting it at our book events and clubs!

I loved this multi generational Chicano family saga set in the late 1800s. I loved how descriptive the writing was, and I loved the elements of tradition, history and magical realism. I cared deeply for every character on these pages, and I think this will be a fabulous summer historical fiction read. The setting is The Lost Territory, which becomes Colorado, I believe. The landscape descriptors are stunning, and the family relationships are beautifully intricate. I absolutely recommend this one!

I thought this book was very poorly written and couldn’t continue. Thank you for giving me a copy. I won’t leave a bad review anywhere. Best of luck.

This is a story about family, love, and survival.  Just when the story grabs you, it changes to another generation and you wonder why the story began this way.  However, you soon realize that this is a multigenerational story that floats back and forth between three different generations trying to show how they are connected.  A bit slow until about 3/4 of the way through, there are also parts where details are remiss which leaves the reader wondering about what just happened. 
The main story takes place in the West in the early 1900’s. Luz and Diego, live with her aunt Maria Josie until Diego leaves town after being beaten by an Anglo mob. Luz and her aunt struggle to survive and not get evicted. Maria Josie has her own story of struggles and survivals and we are only given hints but not the full story.  Luz reads tea leaves and has the ability to have visions about others and those connected to her from her Indigenous past. Racial tensions run rampant in her town and unfortunately her life has been filled with some joy but mostly struggles. We watch as Luz comes of age, learning to make her way and place in a divided town.
I felt the story ends rather abruptly, having no resolutions.  It made it rather confusing. Some characters are well developed and others too obscure. Interesting to read to learn about this time period in our history but a bit disjointed. 

Many thanks to #netgalley #womanoflight #kalifajardo-anstine for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I usually really enjoy historical novels, especially when they are about indigenous people and have the added intrigue of a power such as tea leave reading.  However, this book just didn’t hit the mark for me.  I found it to be disjointed (as others have commented, it seemed like short stories).  I found the ending to be rushed and would have liked to see more story development following the fire and Diego’s return
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

The entire book I was "waiting for the other shoe to drop." There is an ominous sense to the whole story. The bigotry, racism and poverty are well displayed. The novel well-developed these themes and I was made aware of yet another time and place in history which so well exhibited "man's inhumanity to man".
Set in the early 20th century and the 1930's around Denver, Colorado, I got a good feeling for the era. Certain portions of the setting were very descriptive: I could easily picture the law office, the theater in the cavern and the later city of white tents that surrounded it, the hall cleaning closet. 
The main character, Luz, is followed from early girlhood to almost 18. While I found myself drawn to her character, I did not understand all her motivations. Unless that was the author's point, one being following youthful impulses can change the direction of your life. The more sympathetic character was Lizette, just a year older, but oh so much wiser, even though appearances may have predicted otherwise. Lizette was a nice foil to Luz.  The strength exhibited by Simodecea and Pidre, Luz's grandmother and grandfather, and Avel, her fiance, added to the story's interest and were well-drawn. Other characters in the book appear as mere stick figures.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for providing me a copy of this book for my honest review.  This is the most unique historical fiction novel I have ever read.  It has a touch of magical realism in it as well.  This book was a multi-generational book that really was very character driven and focused a lot on family.  The setting is in America in the Southwest during the 1880's-1930's.  The setting and time frame alone set this book apart from most historical fiction novels.  I really enjoyed getting a glimpse into this part of American history.  If you enjoy multi-generational historical fiction with a touch of magical realism then you will love this book.

I am always looking for historical fiction that expands our scope of history instead of telling the same stories about the same people in the same places. This story centers an Indigenous Chicano family in Colorado and vividly brings to life both the natural world of the western territory in the late 1800s and 1930s Denver. And Fajardo-Anstine's characters are just as wonderfully drawn. Ultimately, this book is the coming-of-age story of Luz Lopez, but I would have happily read a book centered on any of the characters dancing around her -- and in some ways, it is just as much their story. 

The book is written in episodes, jumping back and forth in time, and you can see in this structure Fajardo-Anstine's talent with the short story form. But here, she proves she also can weave together stories to form a touching, compelling long-form narrative. 

My one quibble with this book: I wish it were longer. I wanted to know what happened to Luz. She comes into her own and then what? I'd have read another 200 pages, at least, about this family. And I trust Fajardo-Anstine would have used the space to make her characters even more nuanced and finely drawn. 

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

Woman of Light is one of my favorite types of books; historical fiction, family saga involving multiple generations.  While I liked the story of Luz and her family, I never fell in love with the story or any of the characters. Each section read like a short story and for me the whole thing never quite came together. I cared enough to keep reading but I wasn’t really invested in it. I find myself able to put this book down for real life without giving it a second though. The descriptive language was beautiful but something overall just fell flat to me.

An immersive, multi-generational story of an indigenous family. Beautifully written, this is a story with richly drawn characters that was a pleasure to read.

The descriptive words and phrases of this book immediately draw you in. The storytelling is center of the story and the other is just that, an amazing storyteller.