Bitter Springs

by Laura Stone

Overview

in 1870s Texas, Renaldo Valle Santos, the youngest son of a large and traditional family, has been sent to train with Henry "Hank" Burnett, a freed slave and talented mestenero—or horse-catcher—so he may continue the family horse trade. Bitter Springs is a sweeping epic that takes themes from traditional Mexican literature and Old Westerns to tell the story of a man coming into his own and realizing his destiny lies in the wild open spaces with the man who loves him, far from expectations of society.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781941530559
Publisher:	Chicago Review Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	12/01/2015
Edition description:	None
Pages:	302
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.80(d)

Editorial Reviews

10/26/2015
This personal and tender story of tough men, soft hearts, and open spaces in 1870s Texas warmly serves the author’s purpose of showing that gay people have existed in all times and places. Family drama shifts the fates of the brothers of the Valle Santos ranching family, leaving Renaldo, the youngest, to train with talented mesteñero (wild-horse tamer) Henry Burnett. Hank eventually opens up about his history as a freed black slave and his adoption into an Apache tribe, as well as sharing his envy of the closeness within Renaldo’s Mexican family. Slowly, Renaldo comes to terms with the fact that, he, like Hank, is attracted to men. Simple, clean storytelling and an uncomplicated plot keep the story quietly intimate. Stone (The Bones of You) walks the fine line of keeping her protagonists traditionally masculine but never posturingly macho, and they’re often vulnerable with each other and gentle with the horses. Smatterings of Spanish throughout the dialogue ground the reader in the setting and help keep the book feeling period rather than revisionist; a scene of Renaldo teaching Hank Spanish endearments is particularly delightful. Readers will savor this sweet, loving historical. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly