Sunday, March 3, 2019

The Exile: a story of love and immigration


The Exile by Gregory Erich Phillips is the story of Leila del Sol, a young woman in Phoenix, Arizona who came to the United States as a young girl, finds herself on a plane and deported back to her native Colombia. The story opens with Leila on the plane, scared and unsure of what she’s going to do when they land. Rewind to a time when her life was good. She was a successful loan officer for a mortgage company and the rising star for her boss, Samantha. At the company Christmas party, she meets Ashford, Samantha’s son and there’s an instant connection but they keep their distance. With time and chance meetings, Leila and Ashford fall in love, but they must keep their relationship a secret because Samantha would not be too happy. A series of events occur, and Leila is confused as to why she is picked up and deported since she has a legal visa. Ashford is determined to find out why and bring her home. Will Leila be able to come home? Will Ashford find her in time?


The Exile was a gripping drama featuring a very real issue of immigration. It is about love, fear and hopes to find freedom at any cost. Mr. Phillips portrays the complexity of the issue well in the character Samantha, who has no problem employing minorities but when one wants to be involved with her son, it’s another matter. Samantha was a good character to hate from the beginning as her prejudice becomes more evident; however, another villainous character, I feel fell short of being a character to fear. I knew Leila would be able to get away from this character and he wasn’t an important issue to deal with than Leila trying to get home. I recommend The Exile as a beautiful story of love and sacrifice and where home really is.

The Exile
will be available April 6, 2019
in hardcover, paperback and eBook

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