Appreciated the ARC, but DNF. The writing was too gritty for my personal preference, with explicit language from the start. Just not my cup of tea.

I really enjoyed this book! Xiomara was a character that really resonated with me, and I was invested in what happened to her. I think this is a very important book because how it depicts grief and adulthood. I think many people will be able to find themselves Xiomara. Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC!

I unfortunately DND’d My Train Leaves at Three at 10% because I could not stand Xiomara. For a character that was supposed to be approaching thirty, she sure acted young. Some of this behavior I’m sure can be attributed to her state of deep grief, but it got to a point where I was rolling my eyes every other page waiting for her to get it together and act like an adult. I enjoyed Guerrero’s writing and would pick something up from her in the future.

Natalie Guerrero's MY TRAIN LEAVES AT THREE gives us a great setting (New York! Broadway!) and a compelling main character in Xiomara. The beginning pages flew by as Xiomara pulled me into her ambitions as a singer, her relationship with her mother, and her deep grief over her sister. I really wanted to root for her. In general, I guess I did root for Xiomara, but the story soon felt weighed down by stereotype: the grieving sibling with such low self-esteem she makes terrible choices in men; the ingenue who's treated poorly and taken advantage of by men in the entertainment industry. MY TRAIN LEAVES AT THREE did not live up to its promise, but I do hope to read more from Natalie Guerrero.

Not sure what I expected here. I love Latina authors and particularly, those set in NYC..

But this one was --- not really for me. I appreciated the theme of grief, and the tension between Xiomara, the main character, and her mother, as well as their constant struggle for survival as they face daily poverty. However, I didn't really like Xiomara. Her dreams of singing on Broadway are real and illusive, and her job as a singing waiter at a diner helps her to get there. But, she is a mixed up woman who is willing to have sex indiscriminately -- a window into her very low self esteem. There is even a (trigger warning) scene where she is raped by her employer, but she is unfazed.

I can see where some might like this book, but I was largely bored and spent most of the time I was reading waiting for something of consequence to happen.

Yet another wonderful debut! Delightful does not seem like the right word for such a tough book but I am having a great time reading it. My Train Leaves at Three is a heavy hitter and tackles some tough subjects. However, Natalie Guerrero has done an impeccable job of interspersing humor so the reader is not bogged down with sadness. The main character, Xiomara, is GOING THROUGH IT y’all. Do not be mistaken. Yet, I am consistently happy to pick this back up and excited to learn what will happen next for Xiomara.

My Train Leaves at Three was such a breathe of fresh air. This a story about grief, sisters, family, and trying to make it as an artist in NYC. The writing was very well done and the characters felt so real to me. I was rooting for Xiomara the entire time she was so real and relatable. I really enjoyed this debut novel by Natalie Guerrero and I am looking forward to reading more by her. If you enjoyed What Happened to Ruthie Ramirez or anything by Angie Cruz I think you should pick this up! Many thanks to the publishers & NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Random House for my copy of MY TRAIN LEAVES AT THREE.

It’s raw, emotional, and the ending took me to a place I wasn't expecting. This one wasn't my cup of tea.

My Train Leaves at Three is a heartfelt, beautifully written story about time, family, and the small moments that change everything. When Alma learns she might only have a few days left with her grandfather, she pulls the ripcord on her plans and dives into an unexpected road trip through the desert with him. The result is raw, tender, and rich with the kind of memories we wish we could make twice. Guerrero’s writing is vivid and emotional without ever feeling forced. If you love quiet stories that explore how ordinary moments become extraordinary this one is a gem.

Grief takes center stage in this coming-of-age novel following an Afro-Latina singer from Washington Heights. Xiomara once had dreams of Broadway, but is currently reeling over the death of her older sister and stuck working two jobs. But when a charismatic, on-the-rise Broadway Director stumbles into her life, Xiomara believes it could be her second chance at stardom. The opening scene instantly hooked me, and the prose is fantastic. Despite the many sleazy and shitty secondary characters and constant setbacks, the story never loses sight of its heart, making it a hopeful and deeply moving journey about a working-class woman and the relentless pursuit of dreams.

This was a quick great coming of age story. I enjoyed the main character and her struggle to follow her dream of singing. I liked the emotional growth she underwent and the romance was cute. I would definitely recommend this one.

This was absolutely wonderful. The writing was fantastic and I was rooting for Xiomara to succeed the whole time. The narrator was amazing.

All the stars, this one is going on my top books of the year list. ❤️

Thank you @netgalley and @oneworldbooks for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

thank you to netgalley for this e-arc. i either read this incredibly fast or it was a short book and i never realized it. either way, i don't understand how i read the whole thing and most things happened on the page and i'm still wondering what did i just read. xiomara goes from failing on broadway to suddenly teaching at a music school? did i miss where she had any degree to teach children and the fact she can find a teaching job when no one can? the "romance" with santi should have been skipped through.

I was really looking forward to reading tis book. As a NYer who loves Broadway and a therapist who works with grief I was attracted to the premise. It is billed as a coming of age story, but I am not sure if the main character ever does come of age. She seems lost the entire book. I guess this makes sense in her age and generation, but she is a difficult main character to rally around. It’s in her flaws that she is both relatable and unrelatable. I appreciated the place and sense of story. I liked the causal tone of the writing. 3 stars, interesting, but I’m not sure how long I will remember it. Thanks to Net Galley and One world for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a Hispanic woman myself, Xiomara's story resonated with me in a lot of ways.

Xiomara not only pulled me into her grief, she was also pulling me along with her to experience her struggles, her impulsive decisions and her small joys. She is still reeling from her sister's death from a year ago when we meet her. She is working two dead end jobs to make ends meet while her mother grieves the death of her youngest daughter and secretly praying for a reverse UNO card to come and take Xiomara instead of Nena. Her mother grieves by blasting prayers on television or radio broadcast, praying like it's her job (though she refuses to actually work and help pay for bills and rent) and wields religion like it will fix all of their problems without helping herself in the process.

Xiomara dreams of being a Broadway star one day and her mother demands she go back to school instead and study towards a "real" job. One day while Xiomara is working at Ellen's Diner Manny Santos enters the chat. Santos is supposed to be her savior, offers her a deal she can't refuse and Xiomara takes his hand and walks towards a mirage of a dream she can never quite reach.

A lot her decisions made me feel uncomfortable, but I could not fault her thought process. She was trying to survive, stay above water while trying to keep a roof over her mother's head. That's real life for a lot of people, not just women. The author truly grasped the concept of zombie walking through life while still recovering from loss. The weight of grief constantly smothering Xiomara, pulling her down and hoping she will give up, but she fought tooth and nail and pulled through. Maybe not in the best of ways, but in the only ways she felt were available to her. When someone is struggling like Xiomara was struggling, it could be impossible to see the light at the end of the tunnel. She was listening to the noise and chatter and could not focus on what was good and the best for her even when it was staring her in the face.

While I appreciate the ending the author gave Xiomara, I didn't feel it fit with the rest of the story I had just read. I'd say about 90% of the story felt realistic, up until that ending. It was wrapped up in a pretty bow and didn't quite fit. The book isn't very long, but the ending felt rushed and pulled me out of the storyline. The writing was beautiful as sad as the story being told was. I just would have liked a bit more of something.

A gripping novel! I couldn’t put it down until I knew where Xiomara landed. Will Xiomara land on her feet or fall flat on the concrete?

She pounded the pavement in NY, and was desperate to make connections to the next train forward.

A harrowing life turned to hope.

Definitely recommend.

A slow beginning that picks up around the midway point and left me cheering for X (our main character) by the climax. Deeply moving.

It took me a bit to get into this, but after the 25% mark I couldn't stop reading because I had to get to the end of Xiomara's journey. There's plenty of darkness and sad moments in this book, but there's a raw vulnerability and realism that justifies these moments and makes the ending that much more satisfying. (Spoilers, I guess.)

I love the representation here for a Black Latina woman pursuing her dreams in the musical theater world. This also feels so viscerally New York; I have only visited a few times, but I'm sure long-time New York residents will feel immersed in Xiomara's descriptions of the city.

A raw, lyrical debut that follows Xiomara’s journey through grief, ambition, and self-discovery in the heart of Washington Heights. Natalie Guerrero crafts an immersive narrative voice that feels lived-in and painfully honest, capturing the messiness of toxic relationships, the resilience of immigrant identity, and the aching need for belonging. The prose is often breathtaking, the emotional stakes high, and the line between realism and fairy tale beautifully blurred. Though occasionally loose in structure, the strength of Xiomara’s voice carries the novel toward a hopeful, hard-earned transformation.

The summary was a "coming of age" story. It is a modern feminine take on this trope. We follow Xiomara who lives in Washinton Heights and had her sights on being a Broadway signing star. However, we learn this after finding she is dealing with the grief of a death of a family member. She is at a low and as you read you think it is a the lowest, BUT it goes lower. Does she dig herself out, rekindle her Broadway talent and get the fairytale ending? You will have to read to find out. I don't want to give any clues. The book seemed rather slow for me and kept me from connecting with the main character during the first half. Midway I started to like her more and wanted to see where she would land. The end is real life. The story makes sense for her and by the end X (as she nicknames herself) is someone you want to see get the win.