Book Review: "The Duel for Consuelo" by Claudia H Long (HF Virtual Book Tours)

Consuelo tries to be a dutiful daughter but her family makes it hard. Her dad is kind of a blowhard, always monopolizing important people and talking their ear off, and then her mother is slowly slipping into (what I assume is something like) dementia. While she slips in and out of lucidity Consuelo cares for her. The problem is that Consuelo's mom is a Jew. She doesn't practice in the open because the Inquisition is a strong force even in Mexico, and that would mean death for her and possibly the whole family. Sometimes she mutters about candles and prayers which puts Consuelo and her father on edge sometimes. When an invitation comes for a wedding of a local noble family there are old feelings stirred up and kind of sets the wheels in motion for most of the action in the book.

This story has all the universal themes that are so popular for a reason: love, misunderstandings that lead to a huge feud, loyalty to family, loyalty to oneself, and of course really bad guys to root against. This story isn't exactly reinventing the wheel, though I had never thought about the Inquisition makes it's way all the way over to the new world.

I'm never not going to not think of this when I hear about the Inquisition so here it is.

At first I had trouble with the super short chapters, especially the first few. It's like you barely knew these people and their story and then you get bounced around kind of quickly between them. It got easier the farther along in the book I went, maybe it just took some getting used to!

Praise for Novels of Claudia H. Long

The Duel for Consuelo: “A fascinating, terrifying window into early 18th–century Mexico and the final throes of the Inquisition. Courage and daring fill every page. The conclusion of The Duel for Consuelo is as heart rending as it is pulse pounding.” -David Perlstein, author of Slick! and The Boy Walker

Josefina’s Sin: “Superb debut. A moving tale of women seeking to balance competing passions of the heart, body, and mind in the lavish setting of a seventeenth-century Mexican court.” -Publishers Weekly

The Harlot’s Pen: “I was in awe of Claudia’s skill with threading such a compelling and captivating story through such a troubled time. She is beyond talented. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this inspiring book. You won’t regret it!” -Kristen @ Pretty Little Pages