I hope that one day you, my children, will restore glory and honor to the Cortes family name.
Alicía Catalina Cortés grew up hearing about her father’s time in Pamplona, Spain during the running of the bulls.
Her older brothers have been training for years to uphold the family name and dance with the matadors once they become of age.
And secretly, so has Alicía.
For years, and years, she’s run harder and trained longer than all of her brothers. She is ready to prove herself in the arena – even thought she doesn’t fully know what happens once she gets there.
However, once she finished her training, her father adamantly refused to even consider letting her go.
He claims it is too dangerous for a female cow but wouldn’t even explain.
“I am a rare exception, my child. I’m one of few bulls who had been returned home to raise my family.”
“How come?” she wondered, but her question lingered unanswered…
If her father won’t let her…well, let’s just say that that won’t stop her.
And so, Alicía comes up with a plan – a dangerous, disaster-prone plan, but it might just work.
Overall, this one was so much fun!
4.5 stars for the book and 5 stars factoring in the audiobook.
I really enjoyed the character Alicía and her fiery determination to prove herself. Every time she was on the page, I was swept away.
I thought the setting really lifted the book – it was incredible to read all the little details and become immersed in this world.
And the side characters – the pig, the cat, the cowboys (I could go on) but they were all so unique and distinct.
I do feel like some of the side characters and side-plots felt a little grown for the audience (i.e. trying to marry off Alicía when she was very middle-grade sounding) but that wasn’t too distracting.
One thing that absolutely impressed me was the audiobook.
It was stunning – I loved the narration style and the musical accompaniments. It truly took the book to a whole different level.
Huge thank you to the author for sending me a free audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review
Interested in this one from Andrew Avner? Buy it here: Amazon
Miranda Reads 