Blue Butterfly: From Lisbon to Mozambique, a story of love and courage.

by Elisabete Azevedo

There is a birthmark on Leonor's wrist in the shape of a butterfly. She had never noticed it — until the day a blue butterfly landed exactly there, and her life began to come apart into something better.

From Lisbon to Geneva, from Geneva to Mozambique, Leonor discovers that courage is not the absence of fear — it is acting in spite of it. That love is not what we control, but what transforms us. And that some stories were written long before we begin to live them.

Blue Butterfly is a luminous novel about self-discovery, love, and the beauty that exists in the world when we allow ourselves to see it.

Not your typical light romance: this is a story of courage, real stakes, and a love that has to be earned.

A prophecy mentions two butterflies. Can you uncover who they are? #BlueButterflyChallenge

For fans of contemporary European fiction.

273 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2026

About the author

Elisabete Azevedo was born on August 8, 1989, in Funchal, Madeira Island, where she spent part of her childhood. She currently lives in Lisbon, Portugal, with her husband, four sons and their cat, Grace.
She grew up surrounded by the characters of books like Harry Potter, later discovering the magic of Harper Lee, Jane Austen, and Leo Tolstoy.
She published Minbert DesColorido, a children’s book, in 2023. Blue Butterfly is her first novel. She is currently halfway through her first fantasy novel.
More information on: https://linktr.ee/elisabeteazevedo

Reviews

[francesca x · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Diane Knutzen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank-you to NetGalley and Elisabete Azevedo for my ARC copy of Blue Butterfly!

4 ⭐️

I really enjoyed this book. This book was heartwarming, uplifting story of perseverance and human kindness.

I really enjoyed the writing style. It flowed nicely and was easy to read. I enjoyed the authors word choices. It made the book stand out in a good way as the author chose words that a lot of other authors don’t use. I loved how the author was able to bring to light some pretty series subjects, but still make them seem not depressing.

I liked the overall plot of the story and how it had good forward motion. It was nice getting to see our characters over a chunk of time and see how much they grew.

The character growth was exceptional. I love how we got to see Leonor grow over the years. To see her start out as someone who just accepts life as it is and goes with it to then see her start to take control of her life. To see her think about what she wants and stand by that. From there we get to really see her blossom and get to see how much she cares for others. She turns into this awesome character who fights for those who cannot fight for themselves. At the end, we get to see her truly be happy and accepting of herself. It was exceptional growth over the course of the book.

The romance in this book was sweet. It shows that life is all about timing. That the best things in life are worth waiting for. If it is meant to be, it will be.

The overall moral of humanity to the story was very impactful. Even if we think that we aren’t making a difference, we are. It takes everyone coming together for the better to make an impact. We can inspire others and fight for others. We can spread goodness out into the world and it will make a change; person by person.

Overall, I am thankful to have gotten to read this book. This was a very good book and a very impactful book. I definitely recommend reading this at least once.

[GrabaBookBookClub · Rating 5 out of 5]

📚 BLUE BUTTERFLY by Elizabete Azevedo
🦋 Review by Grababookbookclub 📚

🚨 STOP SCROLLING — I NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK! 🚨

I genuinely did NOT expect Blue Butterfly to pull me in like this! 🦋💙

You know those books where you start reading thinking, “Okay, let’s see what this is about…” and then suddenly you’re completely invested and thinking about the story when you’re supposed to be doing literally ANYTHING else?!

YEP. THIS BOOK. 😂📖

I found myself getting more and more drawn into the story as I read, and before I knew it, I was fully invested in the journey.

My reaction went something like:

👀 Okay… I’m intrigued.
📖 Just one more chapter.
😳 WAIT… WHAT?!
🦋 Okay, now I NEED to know what happens!
😂 Right… goodbye, sleep.

What I really enjoyed was the feeling this story left me with. Some books you finish and immediately move on to the next…

But every now and then, a book makes you pause after the final page and actually think about what you’ve just read.

Blue Butterfly did exactly that for me.

Elizabete Azevedo certainly gave me a reading experience that kept my curiosity alive and had me wanting to discover where the story would take me next.

And THAT is what I want from a book. 📚🦋

A surprising read, an engaging journey and definitely one that left its mark on my reading list.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Grababookbookclub 📚

#BlueButterfly #ElizabeteAzevedo #BookReview #BookTok #Bookstagram #BookLovers #ReadersOfInstagram #BookClub #Grababookbookclub

[Kasey Connors-Beron · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of Blue Butterfly and leave this review voluntarily.

My heart could not take some of the scenes in this book. I would get that stomach drop feeling and have to keep reading to see how things would end up. I loved the characters and their powerful, very real world relevant, motives. The book is on the shorter side, but I think that everything is still captured and nothing feels like it is missing. My one complaint is that the blue butterfly aspect feels thrown in and really doesn't add to the story itself, but that is just my opinion and it didn't actually take away from the pleasure I had reading it.

[Angelique · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was not the type of read I had initially thought it would have been, though I did go based off of the book's cover. I was expecting heartbreak and a romantic storyline but, this was more historically focused than much of anything else which meant that I was not in the type of thought space this type of read deserves. That being said, 3.85/5 stars.

Thank you to Elisabete Azevedo, Publishers, and Netgalley for this ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in exchange for my honest review.

[Margaux · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing of this book is quite poetic and I enjoyed the main characters evolution across the book. I like the setting in Mozambique and getting to know more information about its history. However I felt that the story felt a little bit unrealistic. There's the tiniest bit of magic realism which I've enjoyed but still I felt like there was something missing overall in the story. I would have emailed some more in-depth development.

[Yousseif Abdellatif · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kept me hooked in one sitting, and I forgot to eat lunch, which my stomach did not appreciate. Blue Butterfly has this snappy, pulpy energy, and elisabete azevedo never lets a page go limp. The last few chapters get a little ridiculous. Great for adrenaline readers, skip if you prefer realism.