Introduction

For fans of Breaking Bad and Narcos, a searingly honest and unforgettable memoir that challenges women to rethink everything they know about survival, resilience, and finding their voice.

At twenty-one, Brenda Coffee surrendered herself to her marriage and became a woman who would do almost anything her charismatic and powerful older husband, Philip Ray, wanted. Regardless of whether it was dangerous, adventurous, sexual, or illegal, she wanted to be the one woman he couldn’t live without.

Brenda and Philip’s life together was a fairy tale until it wasn’t. Until Philip, the founder of two high-profile, groundbreaking public companies, began making real cocaine in their basement and became addicted. Until the Big Six tobacco companies threatened their lives for creating the first smokeless cigarette—Brenda coined the terms vape and vaping—and brutal Guatemalan military commandos forced her into the jungle at gunpoint.

A suspenseful, fast-paced memoir that reads like a thriller, Maya Blue will strike a chord with those who’ve lost their voice or had trouble finding their power. It will resonate with those who live with an addict or have grieved the loss of a spouse. But above all, it is an inspiring reminder that as long as you never surrender your voice and always keep your wits about you, you can survive almost anything.

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Excerpt

Hard-Ass and the commando in front of me haven’t stopped since we started walking. I turn to see if Estéban is still behind me. He’s breathing hard, and his face and shirt are wet. With a quick movement, the commando behind me jerks his head up and back—a sign for me to turn around and keep walking. Like Estéban, my shirt is wet and sticking to my skin, and small tendrils of wet hair have plastered themselves to the side of my face.

Overhead, the jungle’s alarm system continues to announce our presence. The loudest warning is the cacophony of howler monkeys, and the sound they make is frightening and unnerving. A combination of wild barking dogs and angry hooting gorillas. Up ahead a large bird screeches, together with lots of high-pitched tweets from smaller birds, and there are rhythmic sounds I can’t identify. They remind me of the rain sticks the Native Americans use to summon rain from the heavens, but rain isn’t the problem here. It’s the other commandos who are waiting for us somewhere up ahead.

Black ants have crawled up my shoes and are biting my ankles. I stop to reach down and flick them off, and I’m met with a swarm of mosquitos and tiny flying things that rise from the rotting layers beneath my feet. The mosquitos and flying things cover my arms and face and bore into my nostrils and ears. Like a crazy person, I begin swatting and smacking my face and then, just as suddenly, they vanish without a trace.

In a small clearing a few feet away, I notice a line of the same black ants. There are thousands of them. A militia of ants moving collectively, jostling one on top of and around one another as one, a long movable chain that appears to stay in the same place. They’re making a humming sound together with something that sounds like a clicking noise.

The jungle is the perfect place to do unspeakable things. If the commandos don’t get me, the insects will, or maybe they’ll take over after the commandos are finished with me. Maybe I’ll become a part of the rotting ecosystem on the jungle floor. view abbreviated excerpt only...

Discussion Questions

From the author:

1. Would you have gone along with your husband making drugs in your house?
2. Can you identify with author, Brenda Coffee, at such a young age, who worshipped and idolized her older, established and prominent husband?
3. Brenda Coffee wanted to be more that arm candy. Can you understand why she wanted to appear to be older and more sophisticated to keep such a man?
4. Can you relate to giving up your voice in a relationship or a marriage?
5. How does the title MAYA BLUE relate to the message of the book?
6. What are some of the takeaways from MAYA BLUE?
7. If you could ask author, Brenda Coffee, one question, what would it be?
8. Share a favorite quote from the book.

Weblinks

»	Brenda Coffee's website
»	Publisher's book info
»	Brenda's blog

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