Pachacuti: World Overturned
It has been three centuries since Columbus arrived in the New World. Spaniards and Jesuits who followed in his wake, searching for gold and souls to Christianize, have nearly obliterated the Andean cultures. Pachacuti – the world overturned – ends one cycle of history and begins another. It has happened before in Andean legend: the world flamed by the sun, drowned in salt water, and ravaged by a rain of snakes and jaguars. In this cycle, Andeans are enslaved and devastated by diseases spread by their European overlords. They fervently hope for the next Pachacuti: revolution to sweep the Spaniards away.
Jesuit inquisitor Gregorio Moncada faces potential revolt, and an equally disturbing threat to his mission in Quito, Ecuador. Spain is deciding whether to eject the Jesuits, ending their oversight of the Spanish empire’s Catholics. Even if the Quichuans stay cowed, Father Gregorio may be cast from his South American home anyway.
Though Santiago Huamán manages Gregorio’s country hacienda, like most Quichuans, he fervently prays for Pachacuti. Spanish conquistadores, and priests, and landlords – gone! As unrest grows, Santiago helps to stir emotions, and pursues his dream of becoming a brujo – one who knows magic. Santiago does not despise all things Spanish: when Ana Alfaro’s fiancé is killed in a riot, Father Gregorio sends her to his hacienda for safety, putting her under Santiago’s personal care. Attraction between the two is inevitable.
Lori Eshleman, in her debut historical novel, Pachacuti, brings Ecuador to life in a vivid olio of history, intrigue, and cultures in flux. Multiple plots and locations, and a large cast of characters, require some sorting out, but Ms. Eshleman drew me along with her fluid writing and rich scenes. Recommended.
