Olivia Castillo
Author, Motivator, Shaker & Mover, Mother, Wife, Artist, Dreamer
Upcoming Release!
The Final Chapter of the Song of the Boricua Series: The Heart of the Boricua
When Hurricane Maria slams into Puerto Rico, it tears through more than roofs, roads, and power lines—it rips open the family’s deepest buried secrets. In the storm’s devastating aftermath, generations of silence begin to collapse, exposing betrayals, losses, and truths carried from Africa to nineteenth-century Puerto Rico. In this powerful conclusion to the Boricua trilogy, survival means confronting the past before it destroys the future.
Long before Maria, the roots of the family’s pain were planted in Africa and carried across the sea to nineteenth-century Puerto Rico, where love, loss, slavery, resistance, and survival shaped a legacy no one could escape. Now, in the aftermath of the storm, those buried histories rise to the surface, forcing the characters to confront the truth of who they are and what they have inherited.
As homeland, family, and belonging begin to unravel, inherited curses and painful revelations threaten to destroy everything—and everyone—they love. A betrayal reaching back generations could tear the family apart forever, leaving them to choose between silence and truth, exile and home, vengeance and forgiveness.
But the past will not remain buried. As Puerto Rico fights to rise from Maria’s devastation, the characters must follow the trail from Naswadi and Africa to the island of the 1800s and into the modern world. Their final reckoning will determine whether they preserve the legacy that shaped them or break free from it at a cost no one is prepared to pay.
In the explosive conclusion to the Boricua trilogy, the heart of Puerto Rico becomes both a battleground and a beacon. Only by embracing the full truth of their history can they heal what was broken, reclaim their identity, and choose a future that belongs to them.
Pictures courtesy of The Literary Week
The Literary Week
From the voice of The Literary Week,
"The Literary Week 2026 arrives in Bangkok, Thailand, where stories travel beyond pages and into presence.
This October, we bring together authors, storytellers, and literary voices from across the globe for an experience that blends culture, conversation, and recognition.
From curated showcases to global exposure, this is where your work is not just seen, it is positioned.
At the heart of it all lies the Golden Pen Awards 2026, celebrating voices that define the future of storytelling.
Thailand. October 2026.
Your story belongs here."
The Literary Week has asked Olivia Castillo to be featured at this year's event. They have said of Castillo,
"[Her] voice [is] rooted in heritage, a story shaped by resilience.
Celebrating Olivia Castillo, Golden Pen Award winner and the powerful mind behind Song of the Boricua, a narrative that honors identity, history, and truth. Her words don’t just tell stories, they carry the legacy forward.
This is what storytelling looks like when it comes from the soul."
Tune in to find out more news about the event in October 2026.
Read all about Olivia from her feature in Luxestavia Magazine!
"Through her acclaimed Songs of the Boricua trilogy, Castillo has emerged as a vital literary voice—one that honors Puerto Rican heritage while exploring resilience, identity, and survival through generations"—Luxestavia
Click here to read the whole story
The Literary Week Golden Pen
WINNER!
Celebrate with Olivia over her accomplishment of winning the coveted Golden Pen award at The Literary Week.
According to Literary Week, "The Literary Week 2025 proudly honored Olivia Castillo with the Golden Pen Award, recognizing her outstanding contribution to historical fiction through her acclaimed novel Daughter of the Boricua.
The Golden Pen Award celebrates authors whose work reflects literary excellence, cultural depth, and powerful storytelling, a distinction Castillo embodies with remarkable clarity."
Vote for Olivia!
Olivia was nominated to be part of the "Fab Over 40" contest for New Beauty magazine.
This isn't just any contest, it is a chance to raise money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. for women to receive the care they need for early detection and support.
Help Olivia win this contest, the vote is free, or donate votes to a great cause!
Fab Over 40!
NEW Release!
Excellent, well-paced read!
-M&M, Amazon customer
Awesome story of a curse family.
-Lalala, Amazon customer
The saga continues with the second installment of this award winning trilogy, Daughter of the Boricua.
The clouds above were dark and ominous. Moctezuma lay there bleeding, tears rolling down his swollen, bloodstained face. He thought of his firstborn, Isabella, at the mercy of the murderer of his people, Hernán Cortés, and it made him tremble with anger and loss. In a last act of defiance, Moctezuma murmured his revenge:
”Oh powerful god, I ask you to avenge my people. I ask that the next daughter of Hernán Cortés and her seed be cursed.”
With that he closed his eyes and destiny was set in the stars above him.
Daughter of the Boricua continues the saga of the award winning book, Song of the Boricua, and follows the story of Puerto Rico, told through the lives of three generations of women.
Liani; a Taino torn between her loyalty to her people, and her love for a Spanish officer.
Isabella; direct descendent of Aztec princess Isabella Moctezuma, cursed as her grandmother was.
Josephine; daughter of Isabella, afraid to love, but finding herself caught between love or career.
Are they cursed? Will they succeed or will their lives converge and end with the storm of the century?
Such a powerful debut, it sings!
-E, Amazon customer
One of the best books I've ever read!
-Jamie G., Amazon customer
Winner of the Bronze Award in the International Reader's Choice Awards and soon to be featured in Publisher's Weekly:
Song of the Boriuca
Olivia Castillo, like the jibaros of the past, captivates audiences with her timeless tale of love, loss, and rebirth.
Puerto Rico an island of contradiction, serves as an enchanting backdrop following three generations of women.
Elena: resilient and ambitious, but trapped by duty to her children. Maria:passionate and headstrong, but married to a man she does not love. Josephina: optimistic and romantic, but in love with an alcoholic. Isabella: clairvoyant and spiritual, but denies her heritage and roots.
Like the land these women are held hostage, unfulfilled and unable to find their happiness. Each generation like the land is cursed. Can they defy the powerful bond of the curse and free themselves to find love everlasting?
Castillos' fiction is timely, offering a glimpse into the islands rich history and offering insight into the story that has plagued women for all of time, the search for true love and acceptance of self.