Love in the Time of Cholera (Oprah's Book Club)
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • "A love story of astonishing power" (Newsweek), the acclaimed modern literary classic by the beloved Nobel Prize-winning author.
In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza fall passionately in love. When Fermina eventually chooses to marry a wealthy, well-born doctor, Florentino is devastated, but he is a romantic. As he rises in his business career he whiles away the years in 622 affairs--yet he reserves his heart for Fermina. Her husband dies at last, and Florentino purposefully attends the funeral. Fifty years, nine months, and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina, he will do so again.
In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza fall passionately in love. When Fermina eventually chooses to marry a wealthy, well-born doctor, Florentino is devastated, but he is a romantic. As he rises in his business career he whiles away the years in 622 affairs--yet he reserves his heart for Fermina. Her husband dies at last, and Florentino purposefully attends the funeral. Fifty years, nine months, and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina, he will do so again.
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Community Reviews
I was disappointed by this book that I know so many others have loved. I liked the first part of the book when Florentino woos Fermina. I was aghast at her sudden rejection of him. The entire middle section of the book was a snore fest. It details all the romantic liaisons of Florentino. The best part was the end when the couple finally get to know one another and truly fall in love. If you’ve ever had a lost love that you mourn for, this book will appeal to you.
Márquez’s world swept me away. His characters—Florentino, Fermina, and Juvenal—I fell in love with them. They’re flawed, yearning, stubbornly human. I saw in them the same contradictions I wrestle with: the tension between discipline and desire, the ache of waiting, the courage to love imperfectly. The story broke my heart and rebuilt it with tenderness.
What struck me most was Márquez’s scope—not just in time, but in emotional truth. He doesn’t rush love. He lets it ferment, falter, and evolve. That patience, that devotion to the long arc of becoming, mirrors my own journey. I’m building a life rooted in resilience and service, and this book reminded me that transformation often begins with longing. I was transported.
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