The Ballad of Gato Guerrero (Latino Voices) [Paperback]

Manuel Ramos (Author), Ilan Stavans (Introduction), Alfredo Vea (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: Latino Voices | Publication Date: November 1, 2003

Luis Montez-Denver attorney and part-time detective-has been getting his career and his life together. So how did he end up in a ditch, his car twisted and smoking nearby, a gun-wielding giant in a cowboy hat coming toward him?

The answer: his friend, Felix "Gato" Guerrero.

Trouble has always followed the larger-than-life Felix the Cat. Now it has jumped all over him. His girlfriend is the wife of a ruthless local crime lord and in spite of bullets and hit men he won't give her up. His former father-in-law blames him for a family tragedy and is bent on revenge. Worst of all, Felix is determined to remain unaware of the dangers. It's up to Montez-and not for the first time-to step in and save him.

As in his Edgar-nominated The Ballad of Rocky Ruiz, Manuel Ramos immerses readers not only in a thrilling mystery but also in the fascinating Chicano culture of the West. Fast-paced and richly textured, The Ballad of Gato Guerrero is an entertaining addition to the acclaimed Luis Montez mystery series.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In his second appearance, Denver-based Latino lawyer Luis Montez, introduced in The Ballad of Rocky Ruiz , again plunges into the past, revealed here in extensive flashbacks. Felix "Gato" Guerrero belongs to Luis's beer-drinking, wild-running teen years. Although Luis's lifestyle has been tempered by age and his painful divorce, Felix still kicks back on occasion--with booze, eight-ball, gambling and fistfights. The death of his daughter, the subsequent suicide of his wife and a harrowing stint in Vietnam has left Felix with ghosts to exorcise along with his new enemies. Felix calls on Luis to save him and Elizabeth, his sultry new love who is also the wife of Trini Anglin, a Latino mobster with a jealous heart. Also anxious to get his hands on Felix is Edwin Talmage, his onetime father-in-law, a bitter, well-connected man. Luis fights to keep Felix alive, while also trying to save the hoodlum son of another client. Luis is a remarkably upbeat soul in a world awash in domestic violence, gang and police brutality and the almost continual antagonism he faces as a Latino in a white world. His vision is unusual in crime fiction and his first-person story is informed with nearly tangible emotion. Ramos is developing a powerful, distinctive series.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Everybody's looking for Felix (the Cat) Guerrero. Since the accidental death of his daughter and the subsequent suicide of his wife, Martha, Martha's father, well-heeled investor Edwin Talmage, has had Felix in his sights. And now that the Cat has taken up with Elizabeth Anglin, her husband Trini, crown prince of Denver's leading crime family, would like to have a word with him too. When Felix brings Elizabeth out to visit his friend Luis Montez, the Denver lawyer (The Ballad of Rocky Ruiz, 1993), Anglin sends one Joey Cuginello after the lovers to ventilate Luis's house. And Luis can't even take the time off to sweep up the spent shells; he's got his hands full with Victor Rodriguez, hell-raising son of a client who's been beaten up by the law--who've responded by remanding Victor to Luis's personal custody for one long month. No wonder every other chapter of this lively, disjointed tale ends with a free-for-all that breaks up somebody else's furniture. The evil and retribution are distributed with a hand so generous it smacks of second-novel blues, though Ramos miraculously ties up more loose ends than you'd ever have imagined. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Northwestern University Press; 1 edition (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810120917
• ISBN-13: 978-0810120914
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,295,576 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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