Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Until August, 9780241686355, Viking, Penguin Random House, small hardback 

Gabriel Garcia Marquez next to John Steinbeck is probably my favourite writer. When I heard the news that Marquez's  sons and editor had decided to publish the last novella he had been working on before losing the battle to dementia, despite his wish to have it destroyed, I was very eager to form my own opinion.

"Until August" is tale of Ana Magdalena Bach who takes a ferry every year in August to an island where her mother is buried to commemorate her death. One year she takes a lover during that visit spending a passionate night,  a habit she continues annually despite being in a happy marriage. Typical Marquez material, one can feel the former brilliance of a master storyteller but it lacks the shine of his old magic, at least in my view. Still a Marquez despite its weekness and I am grateful his sons and editor added their story why they decided to forgo his wish... 

  "Love in the time of Cholera" remains my all time favorite,  with all its magic.