Isabel Allende’s new novel binds threads of roots and destiny

‘It’s very easy for me to write about Chile, even though I haven’t lived there for so many years,’ says Allende, who once again intertwines California and Chile in her narrative. Photo: AP

A bloody civil war and the tragic death by suicide of an ousted president served as inspiration for Isabel Allende’s new novel, My Name Is Emilia del Valle.

The story centres on Emilia del Valle, a young Californian journalist who is dispatched to Chile to report on the confrontation between congressmen and those loyal to President Jose Manuel Balmaceda in 1891.