Butterfly Warrior.

Butterfly Warrior

Juan Blea

Sherman Asher Publishing

126 Candelario Street, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501

SCB Distributors, 1-800-729-6423 www.scbdistributors.com

1890932310 $14.95 136 pages www.shermanasher.com

"Butterfly Warrior: A Novel" by Juan Blea is an original murder mystery set in Santa Fe, New Mexico, tracing the bond of four friends with common roots in the Los Arbolitos Barrio. Together they form a society of the Butterfly Warrior, the feminine Aztec deity Itzpapalotl, who is empowered to grant to the dead the experience of returning to earth to collect and consume sacred nectar, their eternal reward. The four friends are Cuate, a clown, Anna, his logical twin sister, Whitey, the "wannabe," and Manny, the musician who mysteriously commits suicide. Though all friends have gone their separate ways, the death of Manny brings them together in unforeseen ways to examine their bond and the reason for death and life. Highly recommended for mystery buffs, "Butterfly Warrior" is a novel well grounded in place and cultures, filled with vivid bits of detail that enhance the story and the conflict of the characters.