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Showing posts with label Texas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Texas. Show all posts

Sunday, January 12, 2020

The Brigands by Parris Afton Bonds









Set in Matamoros, this exciting romance explores the events that led to the formation of Texas. Filled with real and fictional characters, the basic outline of the story remains faithful to the historical record. The provisional government was rife with tension. Land speculation or “Matamoros fever” resulted in some land titles to be sold illegally. 

While there’s no record of a double agent, like the nefarious Chaparral Fox, the provisional government had many factions and dissenters. James Fannin’s decision to capture the port of Matamoros divided the Texas army, weakening the forces at the Alamo.

Against the brewing unrest in Tejas y Coahuila, many strong-willed characters come into conflict with each other. Rafaela, who was raised in England, learns that she must marry a man she loathes, Paladin. Her father arranged for her to marry Paladin, a Baron, for his title. In return, the Baron would receive a dowry and the ability to pay off debts.  The dark brooding Baron clearly prefers the Fiona, the feisty Irish woman hired to become Rafaela’s companion.

Fiona, wonderfully delineated by Bonds, is the kind of humorous, hard scrabble character that is a joy to discover. Deprived of many things in childhood, Fiona determines to get her due. Gutsy and determined, she will not back down to Paladin who claims ownership to the same rich parcel of land that she does.

Rafaela appear altogether different, yet in many ways, she is similar to Fiona. She wants a home more than riches; she desires true love and not an arranged marriage to a dilettante. Though Rafaela tries to resist the charms of Niall, Paladin’s friend, she finds herself inevitably drawn to the penniless Irish Traveler. 

What makes this novel exciting is the expert pacing.  In scene after scene, these characters risk everything for a chance at true love and happiness.  In one of the most pivotal scenes, Fiona, with Rafaela’s help, turns her carriage around, as a bridge goes up in flames. By choosing to turn her carriage around, she’s throwing in her lot with Paladin and the revolutionaries. The plight of the mismatched lovers is not dissimilar to the plight of the ragtag Texas army that defies the odds.

Monday, February 15, 2016

The Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin

Years after a horrific crime, Tessie, the only survivor in the "Black-eyed Susan" murders steps forward. She is beginning to doubt that the right person has been convicted for the heinous crime.

Tessie was nearly killed and blinded by a "monster." After the  horrific attack, Tessie suffers memory loss and psychological blindess--a conversion disorder.

Heaberlin unveils the chilling story in back and forth chapters that contrasts events near the time of the crime with its aftershock seventeen years later.

If Tessie does not change her testimony, an innocent man could face the death penalty. Tessie, however, is reluctant to delve into her past. After all, she has her own daughter to protect from the media's harsh glare.


Adding to the tension is the fact that Tessie thinks she is going insane. 

Immediately after the crime she begins to hear the voices of the other Susans in her head. The grown-up Tessie thinks her monster has been planting batches of blacked-eyed susans to traumatize her.

The twist at the end packs a wallop. Heaberlin's latest is for fans of Gillian Flynn, Paula Hawkins and Brunonia Barry. 




Thursday, April 14, 2011

Bruce Machart's Wake of Forgiveness

Wake of Forgiveness by Bruce Machart.
Race horses play an instrumental role in this carefully crafted debut novel. By cultivating winning race horses, Vaclav Skala acquires most of the land in LaVaca county. His love for winning horse races, however, comes at the expense of his family.

After his beloved Clara dies, Vaclav is an embittered man who uses his sons as "work horses" to plow the fields. He exempts his own horses from working since he uses them to race. What proves to be Vaclav’s undoing, however, is his blind hubris.

Vaclav has so much confidence in Karel's riding abilities that he offers up his three other sons as bridegrooms to the daughters of the second largest landowner. This proves to be a tragic mistake. Vaclav may know horses and farming but he knows little about filial bonds or the disarming power of love.

Karel is a good rider but he's distracted by his opponent, Villasenor's daughter, Gabriella. Though only fifteen, he's enchanted by her beauty and the possibilities she offers. Although he is only a boy he must deal with conflicting feelings for her and loyalty towards his family--a situation that continues throughout most of his young life until a pair of delinquents force him to re-prioritize his life.

This novel is a powerful family drama and an intriguing look at life in Texas at the turn-of-the-century. Few authors write so powerfully and evocatively; this novel will resonate for a long time to come.


Review by Chantal Walvoord

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