Last Train from Cuernavaca

by Lucia St. Clair Robson

In the Christmas season of 1913, Grace Knight’s elegant old hotel on Cuernavaca’s main plaza is the place to see and be seen. Mexico’s landed aristocracy, members of the foreign community, wealthy tourists, and young army officers with their wives flock to the Colonial. Under the ballroom’s hundreds of twinkling electric lights, they dance to old Spanish tunes and to the new beat of ragtime.

Outside the city, in the shadows of the valley’s two volcanoes, a company of federal soldiers raids the hacienda of Don Miguel Sanche, hunting for men sympathetic to the cause of the charismatic rebel leader, Emiliano Zapata. In a hailstorm of rifle fire, sixteen-year-old Angela Sanchez’s life takes a horrifying turn. After the soldiers leave, she returns to the ruins of her family’s home. She collects her father’s old Winchester carbine, gathers the survivors among his workers, and rides off in search of Zapata’s Liberating Army of the South.

Last Train from Cuernavaca is the story of two strong and ambitious women. For the sake of love, honor, and survival, they become swept up in a Revolution that almost destroys them and their country.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance, Fiction, Westerns

352 pages, Hardcover

First published April 27, 2010

About the author

Lucia St. Clair Robson has been a Peace Corps Volunteer, a teacher and a librarian. Her first historical novel, RIDE THE WIND, appeared on the New York Times best seller list, and in 1983 received the Golden Spur Award from the Western Writers of America. Since then she has written seven more novels set in a variety of times and places. Kirkus Reviews wrote, "Few novelists working today have a better grasp of early American history than Robson.""

Reviews

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned alot about the Mexican Revolution throughout the reading of this novel tho it did get a bit confusing at times. There are at least two different groups of revolutionary farmers, a group of federales, a group of renegade federales, and then some bandits thrown in here and there and after a while, I couldn't tell who was killing, looting and raping who. After a while, I started to feel every single group was in the wrong, but I did like Angela aka Angel, a woman that dons a pair of pants and a sombrero and runs with Zapata's army to exact revenge on the federal soldiers that looted her casa and captured her mother.

The problem is most of the novel, a good three fourths is about Grace, not Angel. Grace is an piano playing English hotel owner who has adopted Mexico as her country and she falls in love with Rico, a soldier. I didn't find her near as interesting as Angel and unfortunately she monopolizes almost the entire story, her and Rico. I found Angel's romance with Antonio as they ride the country blowing up trains WAY more fascinating and felt they warranted a lot more ink than they got. I also would have liked more character developement on Angel.

The last half of the novel becomes a wild goose chase between Rico and Grace as one miscommunication after another occurs.

There is all too brief part in which a woman named La Gata shows up. She is a widow leading her own group of revolutionary widows turned combatants and I was diappointed that there was not more of her as well.

Had this novel been about Angela (with more appearances of La Gata), not Grace and Rico, I would probably love it. As it is tho, I can't say I am blown away. It's not a bad book, just not what I was hoping for.

[Anne Schroeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nobody does historical fiction like Lucia. Her metaphors and similes are guaranteed to bring a smile when they spread across the page smoother than a whore's patooty. No, she does it better. The story unfolds in slow, gentle increments that don't sacrifice romance for action, but paces each so that each is integral. Lots of vivid detail about flora and fauna until I feel like I'm there. No stereotypes, no quick solutions, just careful pacing and tight historical facts that let me know I was reading something true and real.

It's been a long time since she released a book. I've been waiting for this one.

[Rebecca Huston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fairly interesting historical novel set in and around Cuernavaca and Mexico City during the early twentieth century. Three major characters and a beliveable romance that actually is romantic. Plenty of adventure, and try not to read the author's note until you finish the novel itself, it's worth it. Four stars overall, despite the simplistic writing style. Recommended, and my entry for Mexico in the around the world challenge.

For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_L...

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this book didn't go where I wanted it to go. The romance was too easy. I was going to give it a lukewarm review but guess what?
I was reading the last 20 pages on vacation in Idaho. I was impressed that the minute I picked it up, I felt like I was right back in Mexico. I think I may have been. As I was wrapping up, my nephew came up to me and said, "How do you stay so calm?" I asked him what he was talking about. (It's not hard to stay calm while reading a book.)
He said, "Didn't you see the girl almost drown in the pool? The paramedics came, took her to the hospital and you never looked up once!"
I guess that means this book was better than I let on, cause I didn't hear a thing.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fairly formulatic story, however, it is based on the true story of two women during the Mexican revolution, an English woman who owns a hotel in Cuernavaca and the daughter of a Spanish-Mexican and Indian woman from a middle class family who fights as a man leading a guerilla ban fighting with Zapata. Lots of love interests. The setting and history made it worth a quick read. (@Cynthia I picked this up because of Cuernavaca in the title)

[Aidan Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow...just...wow. "Thrilling" and "page-turner" are not words I usually apply to historical fiction, but this is a huge exception. It is about two women, one English, one Mexican Nahuatl Indian, who are caught up in the Mexican Revolution. Besides being action-packed and suspenseful, it is also wise and deep and high-minded. There are great profound quotes about love ("Men and women are two locked boxes...and in each one lies the key to open the other)", war ("Warfare...honed all the senses to a shiny, eager edge, yet limited opportunities to express the more tend of them"), socioeconomic class ("...the refined dignity that Old Money and Much-Older Poverty often had in common"), the nature of God ("She looked up at a sunset sky so glorious that God must surely live there"), idealism vs. pragmatism ("An idealist observes that an orchid smells better than a potato, so he concludes that it will make a more savory stew"), and what qualities a leader should have ("Angel never expected Zapata to smile at insubordination, but his teeth dazzled under his heady black mustache"). The main focus is on the Mexican Revolution and the dictator it overthrew, Porfirio Diaz, but many other facets of Mexican history and culture come to the fore-the Aztec civilization and its conquest by Hernan Cortes, the rule of the Hapsburg puppet Emperor Maximillian and his Belgian Empress Carlota, the slave trade of Yaqui Indians and other Indians from northern Mexico to the henequen plantations of Quintana Roo long after Mexico formally abolished slavery, and one version of the myth/legend of La Llorona, the Wailing Woman. And that's just the history woven in from Mexico! Mixed in with the Mexican history are tidbits from the outside world-the Russo-Japanese War among them. I also learned a lot of fun facts ("history McNuggets") from this book, many of them about languages. These included that the word "bonfire" came from "bone fire" from when the Celts burned oracle bones; that the racial slur "spic" comes from "no spigga the English"; that around the turn of the century certain U.S. cities (the novel mentions Boston and Cleveland) banned dancing the tango due to its lasciviousness; that kissing was introduced to Mexico by North Americans and Europeans; and that Porfirio Diaz dedicated all new public works on his birthday. There is affection for animals here (both Grace and Angel feel a kinship for iguanas, while Rico feels a deep and passionate love for his Andalusian stallion, Grullo). Globalization is shown to be very much a thing long before our current age of Cocacolonization and McWorld. (Grace drinks Coca-Cola to settle her upset stomach; Rico's grandfather hires Japanese veterans of the Russo-Japanese War, who miss fighting, to protect his hacienda; Cuban cigars are regarded by Angel and her band of Zapatistas as the best of the best, even before World War One; and Mexico City contains "German beer halls, English banks, Italian restaurants, French lingerie stores, and at least one Japanese curio shop.") There is flirtation with the supernatural-but only that, flirtation. (Grace holds seances, and while she doesn't really believe they work, at least a small part of her does; the Zapatistas placate los aires, the winds, Aztec wind deities, which they associate with bringing poor health and misfortune if they are not appeased; Angel and Antonio believe that Rico's grandfather's Japanese mercenary guards are gifted with sorcery to protect his hacienda. Lastly, this novel has a happy ending despite all the war and blood and mayhem. Love wins, justice is served, and families, friends, and lovers torn apart by war, violence and oppression are reunited again. This novel has all I asked for and then some stuff I wanted but didn't even know I wanted! Lucia St. Clair Robson's fellow female historical novelist Gayle Lynds is quoted on both the front and back covers as saying "No one writes historical fiction better than Robson." This may very well be true, and if she's not number one, she's certainly a strong contender for the best of the best!

[Tess Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

LAST TRAIN TO CUERNAVACA-Lucia St. Clair Robson.
From the moment I started reading this book, I was caught in Lucia's spellbinding ability to take you there. No matter the time period, or the location, one does not read a Robson novel, one lives it!
My life has been enriched with the historical knowledge of these brave people fighting for their freedom from rulers half a world away. Their fight against the injustices done the Native people's shows how truly strong women can be in the worst of circumstances. The people's ability to out think their oppressors is uncanny.
I have and continue to recommend Lucia Robson's books as great historical fiction. She does her homework diligently, even into living in the necessary conditions to get the history correct.
Lucia Robson -THANK YOU for what you do and your loving friendship,
TESS COLE

[Bea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this one because it is written by one of my favorite authors. It was set in an interesting place during an interesting time I don't know much about. (As a typical American. my knowledge of Mexican history is poor at best.) I liked the characters, though it's funny that the character that seemed the least believable ended up being based on a real person. The intertwining story-lines got a bit confusing at times, but really showed the complexity of the situation. The descriptions of the setting had me googling the area to see pictures. Overall, it was an enjoyable read.

[Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This author has the skill to make her characters come alive. Reading it felt like slipping in to a parallel universe where they lived. I knew very little about the Mexican revolution in 1910, but with 5 minutes of research to the learn about the main leaders of Diaz, Madero, Huerta, Zapata, and Pancho Villa, you'll jump right into the action. Historical fiction that makes you want to learn about a historical person or event is 5+ stars in my book! On to Lucia St. Clair Robson's next big adventure.

[Brad Hodges · Rating 2 out of 5]

Last Train From Cuernavaca won the Spur Award, awarded by the Western Writers of America. This is notable because the novel does not spend one moment in any part of what would become the United States, and it takes place in 1913, the last gasp of what would generally be considered the Old West. Most notably, the book really isn't that good.

Set during the bloody Mexican revolution, Lucia St. Clair Robson would seem to have researched her topic well. I'm no expert, so I don't know if everything is authentic here. She points out in an afterward that two of the characters are based on real people, and of course the off-page characters, such as Emiliano Zapata and Porfirio Diaz, were quite real.

Robson's story covers two threads. One is the romance between Rico Martin, a captain in the Mexican army, and Grace Knight, the English owner of a hotel in Cuernavaca. He is urbane, Harvard-educated, and rakish, while she is a widow and initially scoffs at this advances. But soon enough they are deeply in love, and we head into Harlequin Romance territory. Of course they become separated, and at different stages both believe the other to be dead, which is stretching it even for a daytime soap opera.

The other, more interesting thread, follows Angela Sanchez. When her parents are run off their land, she joins up with Zapata, but since she is a 15-year-old girl, she shoves her hair under her at and soon is known as Lieutenant Angel. She takes no grief from anyone: "'May snakes and toads crawl out of your mouth,' Angela called after him. 'May your insignificant penis shrivel up like a chili pepper.'"

These two threads will intersect, and ultimately come to a respectful agreement against the excesses to the Mexican government, in the form of a Colonel Rubio, also known as Fatso. Martin will rescue a peasant girl from being raped by the Colonel, which earns him a bounty on his head. But since he was part of the military establishment, Angel would like to see him hang. Grace is also kidnapped by Angel's band, but earns her respect, typified by this somewhat ludicrous passage: "The gringa could now clean and and load rifles. She could ignite tinder with a fire drill. She could hone a knife blade and pat out tortillas that were edible if not asymmetrical. But although she was tanned, calloused, and trouser-clad, Inglesa still stuck like a long-stemmed rose among the hardy cactus flower of the women's camp."

I lost patience early in this book, and I lost the thread of who was against who and why, and where everybody was (a map would have been helpful). The prose, as seen above, tends to the purple. I think there's a good novel about the Mexican revolution (I'm sure there have been several) but this is not one of them.

[Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set against the backdrop of the Mexican revolution, Last Train from Cuernavaca, is the story of two very different women, the men they love and their deep feelings for Mexico: Grace Knight, a widowed British ex-patriot, has fallen for Captain Federico Martín while he was billeted in her Hotel Colonial where the Mexican elite and foreigners meet and mingle and sixteen year old Angel Sanchez whose intrepid nature and love for Antonio has led her to join the rebel forces of Emiliano Zapata.

At a pivotal point in the revolution the paths of Grace and Angel cross leading to some dramatic and dangerous circumstances. The strength and fortitude of the two women stands them in good stead but they fear for not only their own survival but also the fate of their country. Among the rebels and the Federales, conflicting loyalties abound, making the story not only one of revolution and romance but also intrigue, double dealing and peril. I couldn't wait to see how it ended!

The author's afterword is worth reading as it contains some interesting historical information. Although this is a work of fiction, this exciting story is based upon the lives of two real women set in this time frame and location. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and would highly recommend the book. The excellent quality of Robson's writing will have me looking for more of this talented writer's work. 4****

Disclosure: A review copy of the book was provided by GoodReads.

Last Train from Cuernavaca

[Nicole Bates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucia St. Clair Robson has long been one of my favorite authors. I read historical fiction almost exclusively in middle school and high school, and her novels Ride the Wind, The Tokaido Road, Light a Distant Fire, and Walk in My Soul are treasures in my vast book collection. It was so much fun to curl up with a bit of my past for a few nights as I enjoyed Ms. Robson’s most recent novel.

Last Train From Cuernavaca is a light read full of great characters and fascinating historical detail. Robson writes with the ease of a natural storyteller. She is also a master of research and beautifully blends fiction and truth to such an exacting degree that I learn more from her stories than I ever did in school. I especially like the way she uses words and phrases from the native language of the area or characters she’s writing about.

The story itself wove together the lives of two remarkable, and real, women during the time of the Mexican Revolution. The stakes were set high in the beginning, which pulled me in quickly. As the story progressed I did not feel the same urgency that I had in the beginning; in fact I felt fairly confident that I knew how the story would end, but I still wanted to find out how it got there.

I would definitely recommend this novel to fans of both historical and non-fiction.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an historical novel, this doesn't deliver much in the way of actual history. It is historical in the sense that the locations and many of the major players are historical. Otherwise it's about as historical to the Mexican Revolution as Gone With the Wind is to the American Civil War (though perhaps not as epic). Really, it's a pretty high quality historical romance. It's well written and full of adventure and drama. Last Train from Cuernavaca is a love story in a war setting. The main love story is between the English (la Inglesa) owner of a hotel in Cuernavaca and a soldier in the Mexican Army. There is another pair, a young revolutionary couple, who fight for Zapata. Through the adventures and misadventures of the couples, this novel does a great job giving a sense of how the Revolution affected people's lives. It also portrays some harsh truths about war. In the Mexican Revolution, most of the fighting was over political power and there was very little concern for people's lives or property.

[Deborah Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book because I was headed to Cuernavaca, Mexico for vacation and it turned out to be so much more! The book is based in historical fact and is mainly about two women and their very different lives yet sharing the characteristics of and bravery and brains in the early 1900's. When I found the existing building from the description in the book that had been the Bella Vista Hotel (built and run by the Inglese) it was awesome. I found the plaque saying it had been the Bella Vista and when I went into the hotel, I and could feel how the story came to be. What a cool experience! It was wonderful to read about and feel more connected to Mexican history in a part of the world I had never known much about.

[Beth Yeary]

A fictional historal romance that covered two romances, put a revolution. What amazed me wasn't so much the romance, or the violance, but it seemed that everyone changed sides at least once.Both sides of the war seemed hell bent of destroying their own country. I felt sorry for the Mexican people who were forced out of their homes, and forced to fight for whichever side happened to take over their villiage.

[Gerald Camp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good historical novel. Shows the Zapatista aspect of the Mexican Revolution from the inside: both from the point of view of the peasants who supported Zapata and from the view of a wealthy British widow who owns the best hotel in Cuernavaca and who fears the Zapatistas and falls in love with a Federale officer. Reads like a movie: a good movie.

[Rainbowsoup · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucia Robson’s latest historical novel Last Train to Cuernavaca is entertaining and fast paced! The human tragedy and the heinous political unrest of the Mexican Revolution is reflected in the lives of two young beautiful women, English and Mexican. This action packed adventure is filled with heroes, soldiers, battles, conflict, allegiance and romance. Definitely a great read!

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I'm travelling I like to read fiction set in the place I am visting and this winter it's Mexico. This work of historical fiction is an well-told tale set during the Mexican Revolution in and near the city of Cuernavaca, 85 kilometres south of Mexico City. There is a nice romatic angle as well as the horrors of armed conflict. Highly recommended.

[Kathleen Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book! It's a historical novel that takes place during 1913 in Mexico. A little bit unbelievable in some places, but a good story about how hard it is to tell who are the "good guys" and who are the "bad guys." With a nice love story, too.

[Teena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historical novel based on events and people of the Mexican Revolution at the turn of the century 1900. Fast read, well written and quite interesting. Will keep your attention to the end.

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting historical novel in what I consider my hometown. Learned a lot and specially about to actual women who I never heard about before.

[Natalie Bright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical detail by this author totally blows me away, which allows you to become totally immersed in the time period. Great cast of characters too.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I would have liked a bit more history or back story. some was explained in the afterward.

[Eric Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly good romance set in Mexico during a time of revolutions.

[Michelle]

dnf

[Terry Ehle · Rating 4 out of 5]

HAD to finish it..

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story but I had a hard time investing in the characters for some reason.

[Gillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading a historical novel set in Cuernavaca, since I have been there several times. The details were great, and it was romantic.

[Sue Getman · Rating 3 out of 5]

simplistic writing kind of interesting