Montezuma's daughter

Thomas Wingfield, an Elizabethan Englishman, travels to the New World to hunt down his mother’s murderer, the Spaniard Juan de Garcia. His pursuit leads him to the heart of the Aztec Empire during the reign of Montezuma, just as Hernán Cortés and the Spanish conquistadors arrive. Wingfield marries Princess Otomie, the emperor’s daughter, and becomes a leader among the Aztecs. He witnesses the Siege of Tenochtitlan, the torture of the nobility, and the eventual collapse of a civilization under the weight of foreign invasion and gold-lust.

Young adults and historical fiction enthusiasts read this story to see a firsthand perspective of the clash between European and Mesoamerican cultures. The book provides a detailed, if stylized, look at Aztec religious rituals and military tactics. Readers gain an understanding of the specific historical events surrounding the fall of Tenochtitlan and the human cost of the Spanish conquest. It serves as an account of vengeance set against the irreversible destruction of an empire and the tragic displacement of its people.

Practical, outward-looking, clear-cut and escapist; a moderate read.

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