María Gabriela Posada[7][8] is the deuteragonist of The Book of Life. She is the daughter of General Posada and the love interest of both Manolo Sánchez and Joaquín Mondragon, but she marries Manolo at the end of the movie. Physical Appearance: María has dark brown hair and bright copper brown eyes. Child: María's hair was tied in two braids by two red ribbons where they stick up with her bangs split on either side and she had round eyes. She wore a white and red dress with embroidery on the neckline and sleeves and black Mary Janes with white socks and a gold necklace. Upon returning to San Ángel ten years later, María has now grown into a beautiful young woman with a voluptuous build, curly knee-length hair that is tied in a high ponytail with small bangs parted a little to the left side while there are more pieces of hair parted on the right side of her forehead where it covers most of her right brow, almond-shaped eyes and red lips. Because of her stunning appearance, she has caught every guy's attention including Xibalba, much to the annoyance and jealousy of other women including La Muerte along with Claudia and her sisters. She wears a white off-the-shoulder blouse that is embroidered with flowers, a long red skirt with a yellow stripe at the bottom and top, a pair of black boots and she still wears the same necklace she wore in her childhood. During her wedding with Manolo Sánchez, María wears a simple white dress and white boots. Personality María is a beautiful, spunky, kind, gorgeous, adventurous, rebellious, passionate, independent, very brave, very courageous, fearless, empowered, very strong, strong-willed, free-willed, bold, very daring and very determined young woman who believes in freedom, free will, strength of choice and indomitable spirit. She is also a sweet, very benevolent, friendly, very loving, very generous, very caring and compassionate young woman who loves and cares for both her family, children, her friends and her hometown of San Ángel very much and very dearly. She also loves and adores to read books for both fun and enjoyment. María is also an adventure-loving and freedom-loving young woman. María is also a avid book lover, who wants to learn and know new and different information and knowledge. María is not a stereotypical "damsel in distress" and is by no means defenseless - she is able to stand up for herself on more than one occasion and knows kung fu and fencing. María is also very caring and compassionate to those around her and is willing to put the town's safety before her own happiness. She has a deep love for animals to the point of becoming a vegetarian and not eating meat at all [9]. She is also a cultured and intelligent young woman who enjoys reading. The Book of Life María first appeared in the film as a young child, watching her best friends Manolo Sánchez and Joaquín Mondragon fight for her affection. When La Muerte and Xibalba saw the three, the two decided to make a bet on who would win María's heart; Xibalba immediately chose Joaquín as he was impressed with Joaquín's strength and desire to be a great hero (and his somewhat show-off nature) while La Muerte chose Manolo due to his sensitive and kind nature. María is later seen with Manolo and Joaquín as they walk around the town of San Ángel and pass by the pig pens where the pigs are ready to be slaughtered. Not wanting that to happen, she releases them, causing havoc in the town square and angering her father General Posada. She does not regret her actions, but she feels guilty that she broke Manolo's first guitar. Her father then decides to send her away to study with the nuns in Spain in order to curb her rebellious behavior and become a proper young lady. When she is sent off, her father cries and excuses himself. Manolo and Joaquín also come to the station where Manolo gives María the baby piglet Chuy that she was fond of while she gives Manolo a new guitar with the words "Always play from the heart. -Love María" inscribed on the back. While she rides the train, her bonnet is loose and Joaquín catches it, keeping it as a memento when he fails to give it back to her. María returns to San Ángel ten years later having grown into a beautiful young woman, catching the eye of every guy in San Ángel (even Xibalba, much to La Muerte's annoyance and jealousy). She attends Manolo's first bullfight and is concerned when she believes Manolo will kill the bull. While the rest of the townspeople of San Ángel jeer and boo at Manolo for not killing the bull, Maria applauds his compassionate gesture. Later, when everyone has left, she hears Manolo sing about how he feels like he will never fit in and be accepted for being true to himself (the "Creep" song) and feels sorry for him. Relationships Manolo Sánchez María and Manolo have been best friends since they were children and the two often played together with Joaquín Mondragon. Before she was sent to Europe, Maria gives Manolo a gift: a new guitar with written words that says "Always play from the heart - María". Manolo promises to wait for her return, a promise he keeps and both kept in contact by letters [10]. After ten years, when María returns to San Ángel, she is disappointed when Manolo dedicate her a bullfight instead of the song he promised her; fearing that Manolo has renounced music in favor of the tradition of his family of bullfighters. But that fear is vanished when Manolo refuses to kill the bull (for which she applauds him animatedly) and hearing him sing "Creep" when he believes that all the spectators are gone. Although it is obvious that she loves Manolo, she does not make things easy for him as seen when Manolo touches a serenade for her on her balcony and leans forward to kiss her, but she stops him and says affectionately: "It will take more than that." Her affection for him also does not prevent her from reprimanding him when he gets into a fight with Joaquín and she points out that "both" are behaving like fools. She was completely devastated by the news that Manolo had died. Believing she had lost the love of her life, she agreed to marry Joaquín so that he would stay to protect San Ángel. However, when Manolo returns to life, their love is revived and they come together to protect San Ángel and they fight together against the bandit known as Chakal, showing how strong their bond is and how willing they are to protect each other. At the end of the movie, María gets married to Manolo and they soon have three kids; twin daughters and a son. Joaquín Mondragon María and Joaquín have been best friends since childhood; Joaquín also favors Maria and competes with Manolo Sánchez for her affections. While María does care for Joaquín, she is disgusted and turned off by his sexist views of women and their roles in society, which effectively squash any fleeting romantic feelings she might have felt for him. Although she truly loves Manolo, she still appreciates Joaquín as a good friend and they remained close friends even after she didn't choose him in the end. General Posada General Posada is María's father whose only wish is for her to be more "lady-like"; he is constantly angered by her rebellious and reckless attitude that he sends her away to study with the nuns in Spain so she will grow up to be a proper young lady. However, despite General Posada's attempts, María remains a passionate spirit with a rebellious streak. He favors Joaquín Mondragon over Manolo Sánchez and attempts to get María to marry the former, so he would stay to protect their town. Despite all of this, it was shown he genuinely cared for her very much as he cried after seeing her off to go to the sisters and was deeply heartbroken when she died, to the point that he banishes Manolo as he believes it to be his fault for not properly protecting her. By the end of the film, the General seems to have accepted his daughter for who she is, saying that "[She's] like the son I never had.. but much prettier!" Chuy Chuy was a piglet that was to be slaughtered at the town's butcher shop and his sad eyes caused María (with the help from Joaquín Mondragon and Manolo Sánchez) to release him and other other animals when she was a child. When María leaves for Europe, Manolo presents the piglet to her as a gift and Chuy returns with María (albeit much larger) to San Ángel after several years. Chuy is very loyal to María, warding her of men who attempt to win her heart. Catalina Posada She and Maria are twin sisters but unlike Maria, she’s a bit mischievous time to time. Catalina goes completely insane. General Posada gasps and she was so completely insanely. Screaming with frustration, everyone gasps. When Catalina’s speech, she was being to mischievous. She doesn’t want to go home. She is going to Spain to become a proper lady. General Posada smiled and saying “That’s my daughter”. Upon to San Ángel, everyone is curious about how Maria and Catalina are finally grown. She and Maria are finally here sitting next to him and meeting Joaquín Mondragon and Catalina sitting next to her father