The Hero of San Jacinto

by Boyd Taylor

When budding historian Donnie Ray Cuinn stumbles upon an old letter in the musty bowels of the Texas State Archives, he believes he has uncovered the true story of Sam Payne’s valiant, or perhaps not so valiant capture of Mexican leader Santa Anna during the Battle of San Jacinto. Cuinn’s findings are published in a local magazine. But the article eventually becomes fodder in the gubernatorial race between Democratic upstart Bob Braeswood and Republican favorite Sam Eben Payne V, the great-great-grandson of the Texas hero. Braeswood is intent on exploiting the past, while Payne will do anything to suppress it. In the ensuing battle, Donnie finds his beliefs, not to mention his relationships, stretched to the limit.

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 14, 2012

Reviews

[Rena · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun book to read, especially if you love TEXAS history!

This book is hilarious and is sooo TEXAS, from the battle of San Jacinto and the way that Santa Anna was supposedly captured to Keeping Austin Weird to the UT-A&M rivalry to the bats under the Congress Ave. bridge to TEXAS politics (which can be kind of batty.)

I loved the twist at the end of the book and did not see it coming...the author constructed that perfectly. I will be reading the sequel! The name of the sequel is The Antelope Play.

The only thing I did not like about the book was I felt the author hurried the ending. The book is less than 200 pages, but I felt like he wrapped everything up too quickly, even though I enjoyed how things ended. However, it could be just me, as the books I usually read have twice as many pages.

Because this book was fun; because I am a TEXAS wannabe and love almost everything about the Lone Star State, I gave this book a 5-Star Rating!

I am not a Native TEXAN, but some of my really good friends are—thus I have been baptized by fire with the history and tours of La Bahia, Bob Bullock Museum, San Jacinto, Gonzales and of course the Alamo, just to name a few places. So I truly appreciate TEXAS history.

[Rebecca Darling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked up this book at a local book signing- enjoyed meeting the author and discussing the book with him. Was pleasantly surprised at how great it was. I love Texas History and I love the fun twist Taylor takes in Hero. Donnie is a likable character who you find yourself rooting for. It was a fast-paced story of a guy who gets caught up in a Texas Political Scandal and works diligently to get himself out of it. I alos loved that it took me to all my favorite places in Austin. I read this in a weekend - and loved how it ended. Can't wait for the next one!

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this in a Goodreads giveaway.
This was an enjoyable book to read. Good story and well developed characters.