Boston Teran

This book really captures you from the outset. I love how, although this is set in the old west, it touches on a lot of issues that are still at the forefront of society today. If you're looking for an idealized western (like Louis L'Amour book or a John Wayne film), this isn't for you. This is real, it's gritty at times, and it pulls no punches. Inequality had been a serious issue in America, with the rich overworking the poor, and the disabled being viewed as disposable. The characters show more were absolutely amazing, and I loved "Coffin" and "Jack". Highly recommend if you love gripping dramas that take a hard look at all too common struggles humanity faces. show less

Boston Teran’s new novel of political intrigue, The Creed of Violence, shimmers like a mirage on the baking desert floor, threatening to combust at any moment, and constantly evaporating into new shapes.

In the days just before revolution erupts in Mexico, a truck, loaded with weapons bound for blood, stops along a lonely, chapped road for a man on foot. The man, Rawbone, poisons the driver and steals the truck’s payload. When he tries to fence the weapons in the dusty, border town of El show more Paso, a young agent of the newly formed Bureau of Investigations, John Lourdes, arrests him. In the calculating stare of his prey, Lourdes recognizes a man whom he never expected to see again, a man whom he promised himself he’d kill if he ever found. Bound together, the two set out to transport the weapons to their intended destination, Rawbone in hopes of earning his freedom and Lourdes intent on uncovering an international conspiracy. The fragile partnership between these seeming opposites blossoms into something unexpected as they probe each other’s dark souls.

Teran walks a high wire in this relentless thriller, balancing personal tales of loss and regret with a larger story of corruption and greed. Rawbone and Lourdes are both children of a bloody desert barrio who mourn the loss of youthful innocence yet revel in the keen instincts and quickly violent nature the transformation wrought in them. Teran tells their personal story of redemption against the backdrop of American intervention into a budding civil war and a private security company named Agua Negra – black water – which foments revolution in hopes of securing interests in undeveloped oil fields. These rich and complex layers make for a captivating read.

As to Teran’s style, there will be those who compare him to Cormac McCarthy, especially given the story’s setting and time. And, while he exhibits McCarthy’s raw emotion and seething violence, his rich, graceful sentences and subtly intelligent dialog are more reminiscent of Hemingway. Not everyone will agree that Teran deserves such a comparison, but, in my book, he earned it.

A favorite read for the New Year.

Five bones!!!!! show less

The Creed of Violence starts out on the Texas/Mexico border in 1910. Mexico is rumbling for revolution which is a problem for both countries because of Mexico's much-needed oil fields (hmmm...sounds eerily familiar). John Lourdes is a young agent in America's Bureau of Investigation (early FBI). His job is to take the criminal known as Rawbone and travel with him and a truck full of weapons across the border into Mexico undercover. Rawbone is working with the Bureau to gain immunity. show more Problem? Aside from the obvious dangers of working undercover in a country on the brink of revolution, Rawbone is John Lourdes dead-beat father. John Lourdes knows this. Rawbone does not.

I really enjoyed this book for two reasons: the setting of the novel and the relationship between father and son. I could totally see why The Creed of Violence is being adapted in to a movie. What a violent and vivid portrait he paints of Mexico, the revolutionaries, the violence, and America's intervention into the fray. The setting sucked me into the novel but it was really the relationship between Rawbone and John Lourdes that kept me reading.

Here's the first line of the book which is about Rawbone:

"He was born in Scabtown the day Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theater."

I love how it starts out. Rawbone is a criminal and a common killer. He never knew his father and his prostitute mom died when he was young. Left on his own he turned criminal. Honestly, I kind of liked him. He was sort of funny with a type of wit that made him a likable character. John Lourdes, ironically, had a similar sad upbringing. Rawbone was married to his mom and then took off when Lourdes was young. His mom passed away shortly after. But instead of turning criminal like Rawbone, Lourdes joins the Bureau of Investigation. He's angry at Rawbone and really wants to see him dead.

But their journey together changes them. And that's the part of The Creed of Violence that I enjoyed. I'm excited to see how this book will be adapted to the big screen. I wonder who would portray Rawbone and John Lourdes.

**Asked by Kelley and Hall to read and review. show less

Boston Teran is an award winning author and this is his sixth book. Giv: The Story of a Dog and America opens with a prologue written in first person by the character who is going to tell the story. He informs his readers, "I would like you to know, here and now, this story does not unfold in the traditional way. What it does, in essence, is follow a dog known as Giv on his journey across the America of 9/11 and Katrina and Iraq... "(p. 4) This quote is a pretty good summary of the book. The show more protagonist Giv is a dog who has amazing adventures and endures all kinds of abuse and deprivation. Offspring of a dog with a mysterious past, Giv knows security and love in his first home but gets stolen and subsequently ends up with various owners - some who love him and some who do not. Giv's will to survive, his capacity for faithful love and his selfless courage enable some of the broken-spirited human characters in the novel to experience redemption from their pasts. These people have been devastated by loss from 9/11, war, murder, Katrina and other life-altering events.

Boston Teran has threaded the tale of Giv's travels with many insightful reflections about American people in various difficult circumstances. He not only portrays the low points in the lives of his characters, but also some emotional highs. Characters fall in love, find creative inspiration, and connect with their future purpose. The amazing qualities found within Giv and other characters reflect the spirit of contemporary America. The story contains mystery, introspective reflection, and plenty of drama. It touches upon the most tragic national events faced by Americans of this generation. Boston Teran's novel evidences great sympathy toward those who have experiences these losses first hand and it also expresses hope and faith in America's ability to endure.

I really enjoyed this book. I fell in love with its lyrical writing style from the first page. The writing is smooth, poetic and rhythmic. The story develops systematically and the ending is very climactic and satisfying. The characters seem very realistic and the setting encompasses many different parts of America to create an interesting mosaic of images. The novel's structure works well to reveal the story in segments that are sometimes puzzling, but all make sense by the end. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Giv: The Story of a Dog and America because I am not a dog person and have not previously read any novels about dogs (at least that I can remember). show less