The Right Hand of the Sun by Anita Mason

The Right Hand of the Sun

Anita Mason

A magnificent fictionalisation of the conquest of Mexico and the betrayal of Muctezuma by Cortes. This is a massive geographical canvas with lots going on – and that’s a challenge, as is the mixture of Spanish and indigenous words. But the battle scenes, although graphic and horrible, are well done and the whole adds up to an excellent and informative read.

Extract
It is not their fault. How many times has he told himself this? God in His wisdom has withheld from them the knowledge of Christ. Therefore they have fallen into the clutches of Satan. As a Christian, he must pity their ignorance and strive to deliver them.

He feels no pity. He has tried and he cannot. He has stood in the shrine of the temple and has seen a a human heart in a stone dish. It turned his own heart to stone.

..... They will be burnt, all of them.
Parallels
  • Children of the Sun - The Fall of the Aztecs by Elizabeth Manson Bahr
  • The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz del Castillo