Ben Tarver

Far from the Angels: a Tale of Revolutionary Mexico Ben Tarver

A young gringais rescued from Pancho Villa's raid on Columbus, New Mexico in 1916 and spirited into Chihuahua. She is forced to pass as a boy and live in squalor, subject to all the horrors and bloodshed of the 20th century's first major revolution. She becomes a pianist/spy in a bordello before joining Villa's doradosto fight side by side with her dashing Mexican lover in the cause of land reform and freedom.

Her dangerous exploits carry her into the far reaches of the Sierra Madre where she encounters both love and death. Captain George Patton, an officer in General "Blackjack" Pershing's expeditionary force, apprehends this "revolutionary Villista," discovers she is really a young girl and sends her back to her wealthy father in New York. The lure of adventure and her love for the boy she left behind compels her to return to Mexico in search of him so they can continue the fight for justice-and the right to pursue their passion and love in peace.

"Tarver, a bred-in-the-bone southwesterner, knows his milieu well, and brings the times, the Mexican revolution and his gutsy young heroine to roaring, bodacious life!"

-Les Roberts, prize-winning author and a reviewer for The Cleveland Plain-Dealer

"Ben Tarver has crafted another beautifully detailed story of action, romance and drama, played against the gripping panorama of the Mexican Revolution. It will move you to tears and laughter."

-Elaine Boies, editor and critic, Staten Island Advance