This is my first Isabel Allende novel and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT!


Emilia del Valle is probably one of my favorite historical female main characters in a very long time. She was strong, intelligent, progressive and knew her mind! I enjoyed the details about traveling by boat, life in Chile and its customs, and her struggles of being an unmarried woman trying to make it in a male dominated industry.

I only wish I would have read this book in Spanish. I am new to this author and did not realize she wrote in Spanish, and this was a translated novel. There were some words used here that I never see in English written novels, and I wonder would the author had used them had she written the novel herself in English.

If you enjoy historical fiction with a little bit of romance and a strong female lead, this is the novel for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

This was an intensely, emotionally and wonderfully immersive novel. I was left in tears at several points as we followed our FMC (Emilia) through her childhood, young adult years and adulthood. The first-person POV allows the reader to experience all of her "firsts" in a very tangible way as she came into her own and began to write her own story.

Through deeply human interactions and intimate writing, Isabel Allende does a masterful job of weaving a tale about love, loss, war, grief, reconciliation and self-discovery.

I was so thoroughly enthralled in the plot that I found it hard to put this book down. As far as historical fiction goes, this is one of the most profound and gut-wrenching stories I've ever read. Emilia del Valle's heroism, bravery, wit and fiercely proud womanhood is one I'll be thinking about for a long time to come.

This was my first time reading Isabel Allende, and I was really looking forward to My Name Is Emilia del Valle after hearing so much about Allende’s body of work. I can confidently say that her prose is absolutely gorgeous: it’s lush, lyrical, and evocative. She has a way with words that drew me in immediately, and at times I found myself underlining passages just to hold onto a piece of this work for longer.

That said, the story itself didn’t quite work for me. The narrative felt clunky in places, in a way that made it difficult to stay emotionally invested. The backdrop of the Chilean Civil War is a major thread throughout the novel, but the way it was presented made it feel more like a historical footnote than an emotional or political force. I wanted to care more, but the structure of the story kept me at arm’s length.

After finishing the book, I browsed through other reviews and noticed several longtime Allende readers pointing out how parts of this novel felt recycled from her earlier works. As a newcomer, I didn’t catch those echoes myself while reading this, but I can see how this might come off as less inspired to longtime fans.

Ultimately, My Name Is Emilia del Valle had moments of brilliance, but for me, it didn’t quite come together. I’m still interested in exploring more of Allende’s novels, but I’m hoping for a more cohesive and emotionally resonant story next time.

I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Isabel Allende for this ARC.

I liked how strong the women characters are in this story. The women are both intelligent and fierce, and don't let others dictate what they can do. I like how bold and comfortable Emilia is with who she is and how she lives a life, that most women wouldn't dream of doing, in the time period she lives in. I like how comfortable Emilia is in her body and how comfortable she is to new experiences. I loved how Emilia got involved in the conflict in Chile and was able to report what was truly happening there and not write anything from hearsay. I liked how Emilia was able to know her Family in Chile and explore so many aspects of the country, that seem so wonderful and harsh at the same time. Truly an adventurous story.
I love all the secondary characters, Emilia's mother who taught Emilia to be kind and how to carry on, her stepfather, who was more a father then Emilia's own. I loved her Family in Chile especially her Aunt who was another strong women who was very protective of her family and quirky too. All in all the story is an adventure about a young woman who isn't afraid of exploring the world.

I want to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this story about being young and adventurous.

Isabel Allende delivers another stellar historical fiction novel. This story transported me in time and place to the Chilean Civil War of 1891. I became utterly immersed in Emilia's journey and experiences - I did not want the book to end. And that is the hallmark of great historical fiction. If this genre calls to you, I recommend you pick this book up. If you are on an around-the-world reading journey, this book is PERFECT for Chile.

Thanks to NetGalley for gifting me an ebook version of the novel in exchange for a review.

This book had me hooked from the beginning. Because I really wanted to find out if her Mama got what she wanted from that man.

But Emilia is also such a great character and you can't help but to keep reading to find out more about her.

And learning more about Chile in the process was nice as well.

thank you netgalley, the publisher and isabel allende for the e arc!!!

! 3.75 ⭐️ ! out MAY 6TH

this was an interesting historical fiction about our protagonist emilia del valle, an aspiring writer/journalist, as we follow her journey from san francisco to chile amongst a civil war to cover it & while there she discovers some long awaited answers to her questions about her roots including her father. this book delves into the horrors and realities that war entails, it’s done in a way that isn’t too gory but still very brutally honest. the romance aspect wasn’t a huge part of what made this story interesting ( in my opinion ) though i still appreciated the element/ use of it as i feel it gave light to the fact that during war, love and hope is still possible/ exists. i also enjoyed that is was done in a way where self love and exploration is valued alongside romantic love. i enjoyed most of the side characters; angelita has a special place in my heart, i found her story so tragic but appreciated getting to know her. ultimately, this was a great multi-layered story with themes of war, identity, hope and resiliency. i would recommend for any lovers of historical fiction, strong female leads or simply interested in reading more of that genre!!

⋆˚꩜｡ quotes⋆˚꩜｡

* “How is it possible that, from the dawn of their presence on earth, men have systematically set out to murder each other? What fatal madness do we carry in our soul? That propensity toward destruction is the original sin.”
* “I needed solitude and silence. I needed time to absorb the new outline of the world as I now understood it, after looking death straight in the eye.”
* “Do not try to understand what happened, my friend. It is an enigma. Guard that moment in your memory like a treasure,”
* “Pain is only pain, it can only be endured, as Angelita Ayalef taught me.”

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance ecopy of this title. Emilia del Valle is a woman ahead of her time. Born illegitimate in San Francisco in the 1800s, she is whip-smart, and her intelligence is is cultivated by her step-father. As a young woman, she begins writing dime novels under a male pseudonym. She aches to write under her own name, and write for a newspaper. She eventually gets her wish to become a journalist, but must wait to begin writing under her own name. When the Chilean civil war begins, she manages to convince her editor to let her accompany her male-journalist friend so that they can write about the war from different angles. She manages this by using her Chilean heritage (her biological father) to her advantage. While in Chile, she meets blood relatives, joins female camp followers in battle, and eventually is captured and almost killed. She and her writing partner fall in love, but she is drawn to visit a very remote parcel of land willed to her by her father. Emilia feels she must make this pilgrimage alone, and we see the strength of her true mettle in the process. The story is terrifically engaging, and the characters are fully-drawn, and captivating. The setting is descriptive; the reader can definitely visualize all the places Emilia's work and adventures take her to. Highly recommend.

My Name Is Emilia del Valle is my first Isabel Allende novel - I've wanted to read her work but been intimidated by the idea of starting her backlist - and this was an intriguing first Allende read. Emilia del Valle is a young woman who ends up as a journalist covering the civil war in Chile, where she begins discovering her roots and truly coming of age. Allende weaves history and character so well as she captures Chilean and American history and a story of discovering family and love, surviving war, and more.

My Name is Emilia del Valle lingers long after the final page. As someone who has lived in Chile, I was especially moved by the way the country’s history pulses through this story—with all its unrest, beauty, and resilience.
Emilia’s journey is both intimate and political, and her evolving connection to Chile felt deeply personal. This novel is a tribute to women who write, resist, and remember—and to Chile itself.

The setting:

"San Francisco 1866, an Irish nun [novice], left pregnant and abandoned following a torrid relationship with a Chilean aristocrat, gives birth to a daughter named Emilia Del Valle. Raised by a loving stepfather, Emilia grows into an independent thinker and a self-sufficient young woman.

To pursue her passion for writing, she is willing to defy societal norms. At the age of sixteen, she begins to publish pulp fiction under a man’s pen name. When these fictional worlds can't contain her sense of adventure any longer, she turns to journalism, convincing an editor at the San Francisco Examiner to hire her. There she is paired with another talented reporter, Eric Whelan.

...an opportunity arises to cover a brewing civil war in Chile. She seizes it, along with Eric, and while there, begins to uncover the truth about her father and the country that represents her roots. But as the war escalates, Emilia finds herself in danger and at a crossroads, questioning both her identity and her destiny."

And so the crux of the story begins.

I requested this title because I like Isabel Allende -- some of her books way more than others. This was a very much enjoyable read.

I liked Emilia's story--and back story. I particularly enjoy a novel about strong women and this fit the bill!

There is love, family, struggles, defeat, victory, tragedy, searching, and insight into Chilean society--as well as that of Latinos [and women as the underclass] in the US. And particularly much information about politics, war, and class society in Chile.

Descriptions I loved:
"large eggplant of a nose of an inveterate alcoholic"
"fog as dense as meringue"
"strung out on the rapture of violence"

I loved Paulina del Valle--she was quite the character! Much life when she entered the narrative!

I was hooked from the start. I thought this was a fast, interesting read, and a good yarn. But also depressing because of the Chilean political situation.

I did not anticipate the ending, but not faulting. 4.5, but not pulling the trigger on rounding up.

Recommend.

MY NAME IS EMILIA DEL VALLE is the latest historical novel by Isabel Allende. Set in the late 1800s, the story follows a strong, independent and adventurous woman from San Francisco to Chile, the home of her birth father. Emilia del Valle is the daughter of an Irish nun and a Chilean aristocrat who took advantage of, then abandoned her mother. Emilia was raised by her mother and beloved stepfather with little thought of her birth father. Even at age seventeen, Emilia is already defying societal norms for a young woman in the 19th century. She begins writing pulp fiction under a man’s pen name and later convinces the editor of The Daily Examiner to hire her. There she is paired with a respected male journalist and they end up traveling to Chile to cover a newly-brewing civil war. Emilia uses this opportunity to meet her estranged birth father and learn more about the country of her roots. The story is told in a first-person narrative, making it seem much like a memoir. The vivid descriptions draw the reader into the setting and history of the brutal civil war in Chile. I enjoyed this sweeping coming-of-age story of identity, love and family and the devastating impact of war. Highly recommended. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early copy.

My Name is Emilia del Valle has everything I typically look for in fiction, especially women's fiction and historical fiction: an indomitable female protagonist facing sexism, unjust social mores, and other obstacles in her life. Somehow, this novel fails to deliver on multiple accounts, primarily the entire novel seems recycled from Portrait in Sepia, an earlier Allende novel.

Though written in first person from Emilia’s point-of-view, the novel has a very distant omniscient feel in which Emilia knows all and tells all that others feel and think, though there is no logical reason she has these insights. She tells constantly and rarely shows what’s happening, giving the novel, even the descriptions of the Chilean civil war, the sense of a travelogue. Overall I found it difficult to feel much for Emilia herself or any of the other characters.

Raised in San Francisco by a loving step-father and an ex-nun mother, Emilia begins writing dime novels at an early age. When those no longer satisfy her, she convinces a newspaper to hire her as a reporter; but she must publish under a male nom-de-plum. Eventually she travels to Chile in the company of a fellow reporter, Eric Whelan. She’s to cover the government’s side of the war, and he’s to cover the rebels. She tells his version of the rebels’ events, rather than giving him his own POV. Finally at the end of the novel, for one whole chapter, Eric gets a POV chapter—when he goes to Chile to rescue her from herself-imposed search for her roots in a distant jungle.

Having been disappointed in the last couple of Allende novels, I’m wondering if this will be the last I read.

In the last few years, Isabel Allende has become one of my favorite writers and while I’m a bit late to the game, it means I’m lucky enough to have her back catalogue to work through in between the books she continues to publish regularly. Her latest novel, My Name Is Emilia del Valle explores being a woman in the male dominated field of journalism in the late nineteenth century. Emilia’s determination to prove herself combines with her desire to learn what she can about her roots as she travels to Chile to cover their unfolding civil war. She finds that her status as a foreign correspondent will only take her so far and that covering the war requires getting more directly involved than she expected.

From her early days, Emilia del Valle Claro knows that the man who raised her isn’t her birth father. No, her birth father was a scoundrel who seduced and abandoned her mother. But despite her mother’s obsession with getting her biological father to acknowledge Emilia and give her an inheritance, Emilia has little interest in the man. She has a greater interest in earning her living with her pen, beginning with publishing novels of vengeance and daring under a male pen name. Their overwhelming popularity leads to Emilia’s next adventure – becoming a columnist for the local newspaper in San Francisco. Her chance comes with conditions, however – she must continue writing under her male pseudonym. Building her reputation with her supervisors and colleagues, Emilia eventually pushes to publish under her own name when the opportunity to travel to Chile to cover the growing unrest. She wants to get at the human experience of the war but that means getting close to the front lines and physical danger.

As with a several of Allende’s novels, she explores femininity and women’s expected roles in society, mostly through the ways that her female characters manage to manipulate or undermine those strictures. Despite her mother’s regimented upbringing in the convent and the harsh reality thrust upon her by the betrayal of Emilia’s father, Molly Walsh Claro adapts to her new circumstances and flourishes even as she carries the heavy resentment. But through Emilia and Emilia’s writing, mother and daughter subvert conventions with the plots they devise and execute on the page and the money the sales of the novels bring in. Having a male alter-ego allows Emilia to become more independent, the men around her at the paper willing to support her efforts because they can do so without the truth of her identity and gender being known openly. Of course, a lot of Emilia’s ability to challenge and push the societal systems and expectations on her sex is down to the luck of which men happen to surround her, from her incredibly supportive and loving step-father to her colleagues and her first romantic interest (he may have deceived her in some crucial ways but he taught her about prophylactic measures that would allow here a degree of freedom and pleasure).

The exploration of femininity and womanhood extend even into Emilia’s journey to Chile to the front lines of the civil war. Because of her sex, Emilia is given particularly “safe” assignments and in order to get to the story she wants to tell, she must find her own way through to the soldiers and their camps, being accepted into the female support units who tend to camp maintenance and tending the wounded, bringing water to the soldiers during the fighting and assisting the medical staff as battle rages. From the uniforms to the fact they get shot at just like the men they’re there to assist, it becomes clear that women play just as active a role in the war and often pay at least as high a price if they get involved. With the role that class plays in the civil war, the way those societal norms and expectations shift with the different class distinctions gets layered in during the latter half of the novel as well.

The English translation of My Name Is Emilia del Valle will be available May 6, 2025.

Allende’s latest book of historical fiction written as a memoir of young adventurous journalist Emilia Del Valle that reveals her story from conception until her mid twenties from Chile to California to New York and back to Chile to report on the civil war and fall in love. Epic and enthralling. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy for an honest review.

My Name is Emilia del Valle is a historical fiction novel told from the perspective of Emilia del Valle Claro, a writer at heart. After first being published under the pseudonym Brandon J. Price, she is determined to be published by her own name, as a journalist in her own right. Her career takes her to many different locations for her to write as a journalist for a local paper, but she pushes to go to Chile, her father's native land, to cover the impending civil war taking place.

Overall, this is my second Isabel Allende book and I have grown to really like her writing style. She keeps you engaged in her characters and gives a rich and vibrant feel to the locations, like Chile, that she showcases. This book is not an easy read, but there were so many places I had highlighted in my copy that stood out as meaningful quotes about the human condition, many still applicable in today's world.

While there were moments that I felt weren't necessary for the growth of the character and some of the descriptions took away from Emilia herself, I enjoyed reading about her journey and how she challenged the norm of a woman's role in 1891. This novel got me intrigued in learning more about the Chilean Civil War as well, a mark that a novel stays with you.

This was an insightful and well-written novel and I gave it 4.25/5 stars. Thank you to Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

<u><b>My Name is Emilia del Valle</b></u>
Isabel Allende
Release Date: May 6, 2025

ARC courtesy of Ballantine Books and NetGalley.

Emilia del Valle is an independent-minded, strong willed young woman growing up in post-gold rush San Francisco. She is a writer and journalist, writing under a male pseudonym, challenging male-dominated societal norms.

Written in the backdrop of the 1891 Chilean civil war, Emilia searches for her estranged father, and searches for herself. It is a story of how fear changes people and society, and a lesson in facing and challenging the circumstances fate places before us.

Isabel Allende is one of the great storytellers of our time. This story is told in a compelling, heartfelt narrative that makes this book hard to put down. Her latest novel is enthralling and captivating, and is certain to appeal to a wide audience.

5 stars

A woman of independent spirit forges the life she chooses to have

Emilia del Valle Claro was born in 1866 to Molly Walsh, a naive young novitiate raised by the nuns with whom her widower father had left her as a child. Her dreams of becoming a nun were shattered when she was seduced and abandoned by a wealthy Chilean, Gonzalo Andrês del Valle, who subsequently refused to acknowledge that he was the father of Molly's baby. Francisco Claro, the scholar who founded the school where Molly had been teaching the poor children of the Mission District at his side, had feelings for the beautiful Molly and offered to marry her and raise her child as his own. For Emilia Francisco was her father, and a loving and supportive one; her mother regularly spoke of her birth father and the inheritance that surely would be Emilia's one day, but Emilia dismissed the tales and focused on her life as it was. She dreamed of becoming a writer, a path not generally available to women at that time, but by first writing pulp novels under a male pseudonym and later convincing a newspaper editor to hire her she was able to pursue her passion. She was someone who was happiest when pushing her boundaries and exploring new places, so when the editor offered to send her and the reporter with whom she had been paired, Eric Whelan, to cover the civil war that had broken out in Chile she quickly accepted the challenge. Not only would this help satisfy her wanderlust and give her the opportunity to do serious reporting, but she would also be able to search out her father and discover more about her Chilean roots. The unrest in Chile was far worse than she had anticipated and even as her relationship with Eric developed into a romantic one the danger to the two of them escalated. Her quest to discover who she was and what her roots were wouldhave consequences that she could not have anticipated.
Author Isabel Allende has written a powerful historical novel featuring a female protagonist who is unafraid to challenge the societal constraints that limit her ability to follow her passions and achieve her goals. The settings in which the story unfold, both the bustling San Francisco (from the Mission District to Nob Hill )and Chile (full of natural beauty but ripped apart by the brutalities of war), come fully to life with Allende's eloquent prose. Weaving together issues of a woman's lot in life during this period especially in a society that values men far more than women, what constitutes a family, and the search for roots and identity, Allende invites the reader along on Emilia's journey to self-discovery. Allende, herself both Chilean by birth and a journalist like Emilia, has created a powerful tale whose portrayal of historical events is honest even in the face of intense and brutal actions. Readers of the author's previous novels will enjoy discovering more about the del Valle family, while those who may not be as familiar with her works will still readily engage with Emilia and her life. Fans of Gabriel Garcia Márquez, Laura Esquivel and Julia Alvarez should also move this to the top of their TBR pile. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine Books for allowing me access to this beautifully told story of a remarkable woman's life in exchange for my honest review.

"My Name is Emilia del Valle" wasn't necessary, and has all the markings of a book that was written because it was January 8th and Isabel was out of ideas, so she went for the tried and trusty regurgitation of yet another del Valle story that's not really a new del Valle story but the same one we've seen before. Seen before? Yes, we saw this before in "Portrait in Sepia."

(Full review in link.)

After reading 'The Wind Knows My Name', I was excited to pick up this new book by Isabel Allende, but I was greatly disappointed. The story and the narrative lack depth; it is almost as if someone not intimately aware of the characters was narrating events superficially. I still do not know how to feel about Emilia's character. The book is supposed to be about self-discovery, where Emilia is clearly not typical of how women were supposed to behave and live in the 19th century, but instead, the book reads like someone stating events, not narrating a story with an overall arc.
I appreciated the thorough research that went into narrating the battles and historical developments in Chile, but it seemed a bit too much, and some parts came across as boring.
Many parts seemed unnecessary to the main plot. For instance, I understand that Allende wanted to portray Emilia as not abiding by accepted rules or as someone not particularly religious, but the details of her sexual encounters seemed excessive and awkward. The whole part about her relationship with Owen Whelan was especially superfluous.

Rating rounded up from 2.5.