ARROW IN THE SUN

In pre-Aztec times, deep in the forests of the Valley of Mexico, Prince Netzah hidden in the foliage, watched the abominable slaughter of his father, King of Acolhuacan and vowed vengeance against the murderous Zomoc, master of a rival kingdom. A hair-raising escape through the forest helped by Coyohua, a new-found friend, ends in capture by the villains and a temporary imprisonment where Netzah awaits his own sacrifice to the fire god. Freed by his friend, the two make their way to an uncle's palace and it is there that Netzah learns that ""to shoot an arrow into the sun, one must climb a lofty mountain"" for ""a mighty task must cost a mighty effort"". For Netzah, the mighty effort is patience. Years pass and Zomoc overtakes the kingdom and subdues the people with tyranny while Netzah patiently waits until the time is ripe. Assuming the disguise of a vagabond, he finally makes his entrance, mingling with the people and stimulating the ""underground"". The allegorical arrow hits its target dramatically in grand battle as Netzah redeems his kingdom. The unusually complicated names and places, so eye-stopping in the beginning, do not defeat a truly suspenseful tale woven around the times and the customs of an almost unknown culture.