Tequila Sunset is
the second book I've read by Sam Hawken. It's set primarily in Ciudad Juarez,
Mexico, which is just across the border from El Paso. Felipe "Flip"
Morales is the main character in this tense story.
Flip, whether he wants to or not, joins the ruthless Azteca
gang. Being part of a group or gang is necessary to survive. Over the course of
Tequila Sunset, Flip is pulled deeper
and deeper into the gang. At the same time, the police and a Mexican federal
agent are trying to use him to rat on the Aztecas. They don't care that he's
being forced to do things he does not want to do. Things that he will pay
dearly for doing. What he wants is peace and a life with his girlfriend
Graciela without violence
Nothing could be more dangerous for Flip. He's not only
trying to survive, he has family that he needs to protect, as well as Graciela.
There's quite a bit of violence in the book, but that's the
way it is in Flip's life. That's the way it is along the border of Mexico.
Tequila Sunset is
a captivating and powerful book. And at times, very intense.
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Disclaimer: Okay, what do you think of the cover? I think it's great. It really fits the story and the setting. My husband and I used to go into Mexico every year. Friends who lived close to the border would go across for dinner or lunch. But we haven't been in years, probably decades. It became too dangerous to go. The last time we went, we got to the border back into the U.S. and the border patrol guy waved us back into the U.S. without looking at our passports. It pays to have a Federal agent in the front seat. If I ever went back to Mexico, I think I'd look for the mask on the cover. I'd hang it on the living room wall. Probably wouldn't have relatives showing up at the front door unexpected.
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Disclaimer: Okay, what do you think of the cover? I think it's great. It really fits the story and the setting. My husband and I used to go into Mexico every year. Friends who lived close to the border would go across for dinner or lunch. But we haven't been in years, probably decades. It became too dangerous to go. The last time we went, we got to the border back into the U.S. and the border patrol guy waved us back into the U.S. without looking at our passports. It pays to have a Federal agent in the front seat. If I ever went back to Mexico, I think I'd look for the mask on the cover. I'd hang it on the living room wall. Probably wouldn't have relatives showing up at the front door unexpected.
Great review, Helen. I think the cover accomplishes what a cover is supposed to. It is so sad that people are afraid to go back and forth along the border. And the blame doesn't rest entirely on the Mexican side. Whatever happened to the free flow of people, ideas and commerce? It doesn't enhance our security when people are afraid to cross a border for lunch, afraid of being harassed and threatened. And it's getting just as bad at Canadian border crossings. Fences don't make me feel very secure. I've never liked them.
ReplyDeleteWe used to go back and forth across the border a lot. We haven't been across in years, now.
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