The Hot Country

by Robert Olen Butler
Category: "Fiction - Historical"
Pages:326
Year of Publication:2013
Date Added:06/21/2016
Date Read:06/21/2016
Notes:Christopher Marlowe Cobb is a Chicago reporter in Mexico to cover the various revolutionary factions and the U.S. occupation of Vera Cruz. He pokes about town looking for a story and, along the way, semi-adopts a local lad and falls in love with the mysterious Louisa, a beautiful sniper. He discovers a German officer named Mesenger who is traveling to see Pancho Villa. He tags along on the train, which is robbed by Villa's forces led by an old friend of Cobb's. He rides into Villa's camp and raids Mesenger's luggage to discover the Germans are plotting to have Villa invade Texas with German support. After a brief fling with Louisa, who is also in the camp, he sends in his story and instead of seeing it published, he finds himself commissioned by the U.S. government to stop Mesenger an convince Villa of U.S. support, which he does.
My Rating: 6

Reviews for The Hot Country

Review - Hot Country, The

Not a bad story, nor was it poorly written. But I never really got into it somehow. It kept veering off — the Mexican kid, a reporter friend who drinks too much, the beautiful sniper, his mother who may be whoring in New Orleans but turns out to be a Pinkerton Agent — and wandering away from the main point.

Reviewed by Roger on 2016-06-21 20:52:41

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