San Antonio entrepreneur Brenda Coffee is peeling back the layers with a raw new personal narrative, Maya Blue: A Memoir of Survival. The true story of love, danger, and survival will be released on May 20 at booksellers nationwide.
Her story — think Working Girl meets Taken — invites readers into a harrowing world few escape. The book begins with Coffee's marriage to her late first husband, Philip Ray, when she was 21 and he was 33. They lived in San Antonio's infamous and since-razed "Spy House on the Hill," an opulent Art Deco treasure at Interstate 35 and Judson Street known for its history of harboring Nazi spies. She describes their life as a fairytale — until it wasn't.
Ray founded Datapoint Corporation, which invented the first personal computer and microprocessor, and Favor, the first smokeless cigarette. The latter resulted in the couple being watched and threatened by the Big Six tobacco companies for endangering their primary revenue source.
Before heading on an extended vacation, Ray forgot to refill a prescription for Valium, which he took to treat insomnia. A week without the drug left him irreparably changed. His lifelong interest in science and learning, combined with an altered brain, led to him teaching himself how to make cocaine in the basement of their notorious home.
He became increasingly volatile as he became addicted to the substance and began drinking copiously. He ultimately succumbed to lung cancer, leaving Coffee a widow with a mountain of debt and the task of preserving the public company she helped him start.
After the ordeal with Ray, Coffee prioritized her health and well-being, with a solo trip to the ruins of the ancient Mayan city of Tikal. She encountered more trauma when she and her cab driver were forced 20 minutes into the jungle at gunpoint by the Guatemalan Army.
Today, Coffee is the creator behind 1010ParkPlace, voted one of the top 10 blogs for women over 50 by FeedSpot. Through Maya Blue, she opens up about her unbelievable life, inspiring readers of all ages with a story of stepping into her power, finding her voice, and surviving the unthinkable.
"So often, women want to please those around them, and in doing so, sacrifice big pieces of themselves," says Coffee. "They put themselves last, if at all. But as the flight attendants tell us before takeoff, put on your own mask before putting a mask on someone else."
Named for the blue pigment produced by the ancient Maya and other Mesoamerican cultures, Maya blue, art historians say, is the strongest, most resilient pigment known to man. Today, Coffee uses the color as a descriptive metaphor for her strength and the strength of all those facing the unimaginable.
"Our strength comes from never surrendering our voice," she says. "It's the most valuable tool we have, and with it, we can survive almost anything."
Maya Blue is a suspenseful, fast-paced memoir that reads like a thriller, appealing to Breaking Bad and Narcos fans. The publication recently earned a Kirkus star, a highly-coveted distinction from Kirkus Reviews to books deemed "exceptionally meritorious." Kirkus automatically nominates starred books for the prestigious Kirkus Prize.
Alamo City readers can connect with Coffee in person at one of several upcoming events. Forthcoming book signing events include:
- May 19, 5-8 pm — Paloma Blanca Mexican Cuisine, 5800 Broadway St.
- May 21, 5:30-7 pm — The Twig Book Shop, 306 Pearl Pkwy. #106
- May 30, 6 to 7:30 pm — Nowhere Bookshop, 5154 Broadway St.
- June 4, 6 to 8 pm — Beauty Lab, 1826 Nacogdoches Rd.
